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+# Character State: ch-03
+
+## Queen Seraphine
+Location: The Obsidian Dais, Grand Cathedral, Aethelgard
+Physical: Shaken by psychic feedback; silver scarring appearing on forearms; magically overextended.
+Emotional: Vulnerable and profoundly unsettled by the shared vision.
+Active obligations: Owes Aldric Thorne a formal response to the Bilateral Seal (ch-01) — PAID.
+Open loops: [Seraphine & Aldric] The emotional fallout of the shared childhood trauma (ch-03) — UNRESOLVED.
+Known secrets: CARRIED: The Blight has breached the inner glass-line; the Lowen-Court is already compromised.
+Arc: 25% — Shifted from viewing Aldric as a structural asset to recognizing him as a mirror of her own broken history.
+
+## King Aldric
+Location: The Obsidian Dais, Grand Cathedral, Aethelgard
+Physical: Death-like pallor; hands trembling from the weight of the blood-bind; bleeding from the palms.
+Emotional: Distant and armored in cold silence to mask the shock of the Communion.
+Active obligations: Owes Seraphine the protection of the Thorne-Valerius borders (ch-03) — UNPAID.
+Open loops: [Aldric & Seraphine] The revelation of the execution of his brother (ch-03) — UNRESOLVED.
+Known secrets: None.
+Arc: 20% — Allowed a rival into the most guarded vault of his memory, shattering his isolation.
+
+## High Priestess Malcorra
+Location: The Obsidian Dais, Grand Cathedral, Aethelgard
+Physical: Radiant, unaffected; eyes dilated from the ritual’s success.
+Emotional: Triumphant; views the sovereigns' suffering as a necessary refinement.
+Active obligations: Owes the Crimson Cathedral a "purified" sovereign (ch-02) — UNPAID.
+Open loops: [Malcorra & Seraphine] Control over the ritualistic elements of the Thorne alliance — RESOLVED.
+Known secrets: CARRIED: Does she hear the ancestors, or is she a high-functioning schizophrenic?
+Arc: 15% — Successfully forced the Queen into a ritual that stripped away her emotional defenses.
+
+## Captain Kaelen
+Location: The Perimeter of the Obsidian Dais
+Physical: Hand white-knuckled on his sword hilt; hyper-vigilant stance.
+Emotional: Overwhelmingly protective; simmering resentment toward Malcorra.
+Active obligations: Absolute silence regarding the Queen’s flagging physical stamina — UNPAID.
+Open loops: [Kaelen & Seraphine] The cost of his intervention against the High Priestess — UNRESOLVED.
+Known secrets: Knows the Queen nearly collapsed during the walk to the cellar — Malcorra does NOT know.
+Arc: 10% — Duty shifting from political to deeply personal.
+
+# World State: ch-03
+
+## NPC Memory
+- High Priestess Malcorra: TRIUMPHANT. Witnessed the successful binding; intends to use the shared trauma as leverage to guide the union.
+- The Cathedral Guard: ALERT. Witnessed the physical toll on the sovereigns.
+
+## Faction Attitudes
+- The Crimson Cathedral: ASCENDANT. Ritual success validates their dogma.
+- The Lowen-Court: CAUTIOUS. The physical toll on Aldric has his inner circle on high alert.
+
+## Active World Events
+- The Sanguine Parley: The Union is legally and magically sealed.
+- The Blight Advance: Tremors have resumed with a higher, glass-cracking pitch.
+- The Sanguine Marriage: Blood-bond is active; a permanent psychic tether exists between Seraphine and Aldric.
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