staging: character-state-ch-10.md task=903adf5d-9b50-4b3d-8fe6-961adbad3178

projects/crimson-vows/staging/character-state-ch-10.md

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+# Character State: ch-10
+
+## Queen Seraphine
+Location: The Great Hall, Castle Sangue
+Physical: Pulse is visible in her throat, synchronized with Aldric's; skin is warm and flushed with shared vitality.
+Emotional: Overwhelmed by the intrusive sensory input of Aldric’s internal landscape; fiercely protective.
+Active obligations: Owes Aldric Thorne the protection of the Thorne-Valerius borders (ch-03) — UNPAID.
+Open loops: [Seraphine & Aldric] The sensory merging of the Sanguine Vow (ch-09) — RESOLVED.
+Known secrets: CARRIED (ch-03—unresolved): The Blight has breached the inner glass-line; the Lowen-Court is already compromised.
+Arc: 70% — Accepted the physical and emotional vulnerability of the bond to save the realm.
+Permanent: YES
+
+## King Aldric
+Location: The Great Hall, Castle Sangue
+Physical: Breathing is labored but steady; the silver scars on his arm throb with crimson light.
+Emotional: Resigned to the loss of privacy; experiencing a surge of alien maternal instincts from Seraphine.
+Active obligations: None.
+Open loops: [Aldric & Seraphine] The sensory merging of the Sanguine Vow (ch-09) — RESOLVED.
+Known secrets: None.
+Arc: 65% — Forfeited his isolation to become a dual-anchor for the kingdom’s survival.
+Permanent: YES
+
+## High Priestess Malcorra
+Location: The Great Hall, Castle Sangue
+Physical: Fingers trembling slightly as she grips her thurible; eyes wide with religious fervor.
+Emotional: Ecstatic; her worldview has been validated by the successful manifestation of the Vow.
+Active obligations: None.
+Open loops: [Malcorra & Seraphine] The theological purity of the bond vs. its raw execution (ch-09) — RESOLVED.
+Known secrets: None.
+Arc: 40% — Transitioned from orchestrator to witness of a power that exceeds her liturgical scripts.
+Permanent: YES
+
+## High Provost Vane — DECEASED (ch-04)
+Established: Executed by Queen Seraphine via hemomantic heart-stop after attempting to poison King Aldric.
+Legacy: His absence allowed the High Priestess to finalize the Sanguine Vow without political opposition.
+
+# World State: ch-10
+
+## NPC Memory
+- The Lowen-Court (Castle Sangue): REVERENT — Witnessed the shared heartbeat of the sovereigns; fear of the Blight is temporarily eclipsed by the spectacle of the Vow.
+
+## Faction Attitudes
+- The Crimson Cathedral: ZEALOUS — The successful ritual is viewed as a divine mandate to expand their influence into the Thorne territories.
+- The Thorne Loyalists: CONFLICTED — Relieved by the King's health but terrified of the "bloody symmetry" now linking him to the Valerius Queen.
+
+## Active World Events
+- The Sanguine Sovereignty: PERMANENT — The bio-magical link is successfully forged, creating a dual-consciousness that anchors the kingdom's ley lines.
+- The Oakhaven Breach: ESCALATING — News of the eastern border's collapse arrives mid-ceremony, demanding immediate deployment of the unified sovereigns.