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+# Character State: ch-20
+
+## Lena Duval
+Location: The Heart Tree (Siphon Hub Core)
+Physical: Transfigured into bioluminescent sap and silver-veined wood; human substrate dissolved.
+Emotional: Transcendent, serene; ego merged with the Hum.
+Active obligations: None — Paid (Ch-18).
+Open loops: Human interference (Ch-20) — RESOLVED.
+Known secrets: CARRIED (Ch-02--unresolved): Mother's deliberate drowning — held in Hum consciousness.
+Arc: 100% — Permanent stabilization as the Eternal Sentinel of the Bend.
+Permanent: YES
+
+## Jax Harlan
+Location: The Sovereign Veil (Perimeter)
+Physical: Enhanced ocular reflex (silver-green); immunity to toxins; no injuries.
+Emotional: Absolute devotion; protective focus on the Bend.
+Active obligations: Paid (Ch-18).
+Open loops: Protecting the border (Ch-20) — RESOLVED.
+Known secrets: None.
+Arc: 100% — Transitioned from outsider to Bayou Sentinel.
+Permanent: YES
+
+## Aunt Maribelle Duval -- DECEASED (Ch-19)
+Established: Submerged within Siphon Hub root lattice acting as a filtration organ.
+Legacy: Redemption achieved as an ecosystem component; provides stability to the filters.
+
+## Remy LeBlanc -- DECEASED (Ch-19)
+Established: Biologically suspended in cypress memory-strands within the Interior Grove.
+Legacy: Serves as the eternal historian and archivist of the Bend’s memory network.
+
+# World State: ch-20
+
+## NPC Memory
+- The Hum (Cypress Bend): PROTECTIVE — The collective consciousness has successfully repelled the final vestiges of human intrusion and sealed the borders.
+- External Louisiana (General Population): TERROR — The Bend is solidified as a "no-man's land" of lethal anomalies.
+
+## Faction Attitudes
+- The Hum Collective: Unified — All individual coven wills have been absorbed into a singular, protective biological force.
+- External Authorities: Hostile/Fearful — They have designated the area a permanent exclusion zone.
+
+## Active World Events
+- The Sovereign Veil: Permanent status. The lethal fog barrier is fully established, ending all interaction between the Bend and the outside world.
+- The Apotheosis: Concluded. The transition of the ecosystem into a self-contained, sentient entity is complete.
+
+# Narrative Status: FINAL
+- All character arcs concluded.
+- World state stabilized as an isolated sentient ecosystem.
+- No remaining active threads; the narrative has reached its permanent endpoint.
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