... Ever tried clothing on that was too small?  

It's strongest at the point of contact and spreading outward, so absolutely Morgana is restricting his breathing in an effort to weaken him. Arms and legs are not fully immobilized yet, but getting there as the bind is woven. 

Kithran can easily go for the hip or knee joints - break the leg off, break the hold  

The wood audibly strained and splintered under Ch'dau's pull. It seemed more resistant than if it were flesh and bone, but not resistant enough, and with the sound of several threads snapping, the ball joints of the shoulders came undone, leaving scattered torn threads in the open socket. 

Ch'dau could feel weight at his hips even as the puppet brought the mask closer to his face. 

You are very much like Aranwen, aren't you? 

The puppet twisted it's feet together behind the small of Ch'dau's back, locking its hold, and the gemstone seemed to brighten. 

Though invisible to the others, Ch'dau could feel threads beginning to weave themselves upon his body. Individually he might have snapped them without a thought, but the combined strength of all of the threads began to stifle muscle movement where they spread, bit by bit...

... What Morgana would do here. It's a gamble on her part and it leaves the puppet's remaining joints directly open to Kithran's blade to break, but she would risk it for the chance she succeeded.

Ch'dau performed the wookie method of melee attacking

Nicely done there  

It is the Witch of Threads - heartstrings are merely threads of the heart, aren't they? 

I've added to the post with the encounter between Aranwen and Morgana on the current page. 

The exact wording I'm going to withold for Aranwen to share herself later, but I imagine it's not hard to guess what Morgana offered her

Or as Morgana would put it, slow acting contact poison. Recall how cosmetic retail employees will put perfume on your wrist for you to sample... 

Morgana's vocation as an assassin is not an empty title

When I rolled for Morgana having a doll in the apothecary, it was to see if the shopkeeper was one of her dolls. So Kithran and Mosic were actually interacting with Morgana playing shopkeeper.

I had briefly considered a combat puppet hiding on one of the ceiling beams, but that ultimately made no sense if they're patrolling. So instead we have the situation where Morgana saw Kithran enter the store via the shopkeeper, and brought one of her combat puppets in for the ambush.

The rest is as you're aware  

Dispel magic would basically sever her magical thread connection to the doll. The gemstone will appear to darken and the puppet falls to the floor as you might expect. At least until Morgana reestablishes a connection 

Bloody wireless connectivity

That particular action might be what truly reveals the second doll in this encounter, and why Morgana has no trouble tracking Kithran's movements despite the combat puppet not facing Kithran. Also why the puppet made a direct b-line to the store from the street in the first place

The shopkeeper does appear/smell human by all accounts

I always find myself not really recalling the extent of what the holodeck can do. I presume what I have is okay, but I couldn't remember how tactile the things it could make were  

It also occurs to me that Lt. Tal's exercise room would take up very, very little CPU and memory due to being mostly inanimate objects  

The shopkeeper begins mixing something together after seeming to get over the initial shock of 'there's fighting in my store'

If she finishes and the puppet is still able to fight, she throws the bowl at the puppet, the contents dispersing into a faint dust cloud about it. A compound that may induce drowsiness...

After her prayer, Aranwen did what she could to stem the bleeding, undoing her armour to better use the leather straps for holding her injuries closed so they may clot, but the fact remained that she was a mess. She leaned back against a wall, and found herself adrift between wakefullness and unconsciousness.

“In another k’tomba cage,” Ch'dau snorted softly into the dank dark of the dungeon. “There is something ironic about that, yes, Ara? The path we have walked together began with me in a cage and Kithran on the other side of the door and, now, it seems, it will end the same way…”

Aranwen's head perked up, and she looked in the direction of the voice, "Not yet," She replied, her voice quiet but far firmer than her last appearance would have suggested, not at all a voice to match the look of the silent, defeated Syl who was led to this cage.

“I am sorry, khatun,” he sighed over the incessant giggling, “that you have to be here at the closing of that circle. Sorry to you all, my friends… m’rra’fiki… that I could not spare any of you from this.”

Aranwen smiled sadly in the darkness, "Do I really deserve to be called that? Would a true khatun have done as I have done?" she asked, her voice a bit weaker as it echoed the ache in her heart.

“no matter what failure you think was enough for you to drop your blade, you have never failed me… You never could… I have loved you since Davnor… and that, too, has been my honor.”

Aranwen's breath caught in her chest, and she felt an icy panic grip her heart.

Part of her wanted to disbelieve; that was the safest response for herself. For a Sylvari to deeply love was dangerous. Only another Sylvari would potentially live as long as she might; any other species would not live so long, and she didn't know if she could take that. Not again.

Part of her, however, recalled to her mind Ch'dau's warmth, and she began to relax. She held a hand to her chest, and nodded to herself.

"Thank you, Ch'dau," Aranwen replied, finding the warmth returned to her voice. My dearest friend; my love. The only reason she didn't reply with these words was because she knew what she had to ask of them all, and those words would only make it even harder for Ch'dau.

Finding the flame in the abyss once again enkindled, Aranwen took a deep breath and drew of its warmth. She looked around her at the other three nearby, her golden eyes once more burning bright.

"This path I led you all down has ended up here. Would that I could have made it otherwise. But I fear I must ask of you still more, if not as a leader, then as someone who wishes you all to survive this. I will say this but once - I did not choose this to steal the honourable death rightfully earned by you in battle. I chose this as one last gambit. One last chance.

Temper your spirits in the flame of your will. Forge your hearts into blades that are yielding, but strong. Even should it be bent in two, let it bend but never snap. And if you must lash out, lash out at me. Curse my name. Strike me down. Forsake me. Do what you need to do.

The only advantage we may yet gain is whatever can be gained by ceding ground which complacency assumes will never be trodden again.

Do you understand?"

Aranwen knew what she was asking of the people she had called allies. Not so much of a plan but a desperate gamble. Something to buy them time to learn, to plan, and, should the opportunity come, strike.

Is more like this

Just so we're all on the same page for looks, the puppet kind of looks like this, but with greater detail and more realistic shape, also a few more complex joints

The cloak obscures the limbs - damage the cloak more, and the limbs become more visible. If they can see the doll's major joints in particular, they can see the threads inside of the ball joints

Though, a careful examination of the hand would show the threads in each ball joint there too

I didn't even design that to work out this way, but it makes me giggle that the enemy Aranwen couldn't defeat is one that she could have been able to with Kithran's help. Yay synergy!

With the loss of surprise as her usual and generally most effective tactic, her intention now with the puppet is to maintain a hold on either Ch'dau or Kithran for long enough to bind them by spell and thread (think hold person, but as a maintained touch to establish it and with threads rather than a mental paralysis effect), but with the appearance of Ch'dau she's switched target to primarily be aware of him. The single puppet is at a disadvantage with both Ch'dau and Kithran on the offensive. That said, somehow she still keeps track of Kithran's movements while inside of the apothecary.

Of course, the crux of this encounter is how she's able to keep track of Kithran, preventing her from striking precise enough to cut the strings that keep the puppet animated... like one of those dolls with strings inside the limbs for controlling them.

Alternatively, if her puppet is knocked back long enough for Kithran and Ch'dau to retreat from the apothecary, she does not pursue.

As you can also tell, she also tries to unnerve them enough to make some manner of mistake. Given she's not actually in the battle herself, she has the luxury of not being in danger while she tries to psych out the two of them.

Let me know if you need a specific response from her; otherwise, this should not actually take that long to wrap up, as far as encounters go. It's a retreat or incapacitate type encounter - Morgana cannot be killed here, but her puppets can certainly be made to stop moving, if temporarily.

With the impact forcing Kithran to the ground, the puppet wasted no time stepping over her and then kneeling down, pinning her lower body with its weight.

Looks like I have won, Kithran.

One hand went towards its face, but the puppet was suddenly yanked off of Kithran. In that instant where its feet weren't touching the ground, it seemed to flop backward like a limp doll, before it found its footing once again. Not even a moment later, and Ch'dau's strike hit true. A mortal wound on any living humanoid. Yet, instead of flesh, the blade struck wood, and the head on the puppet twisted completely around to look directly at Ch'dau.

The shopkeeper still hid behind the counter, but her veil was just visible over the lip as she watched the commotion unfold, backed up against the shelving and making herself as inconspicous as possible, her hands held in front of her in a pitiful defensive posture.

So, this is the cat... Ch'dau, if I heard right... Yes. I do see why she desires you so.

The puppet's arms bent at an impossible angle for a Sylvari, revealing that its limbs were not so limited in mobility. The actual structure of the puppet seemed akin to a poseable mannequin akin to those used by artists, but much larger, and shaped far closer to that of a Sylvari. It reached forward in an attempt to grab Ch'dau, but a retaliating slash against the outstretched hand served to repel that attempt.

Hm, she neglected to mention the extent of your physical strength. Little wonder Aranwen trusted you two to be safe enough without her.

One hand reached back towards Kithran quite suddenly, as though it could still track and see Kithran even with the mask turned towards Ch'dau.

No matter. What will you do now, Kazari? I trust you'll find me far more... durable... than those low grade mercenaries you slew earlier. And I only need hold you long enough to subdue you.

As with all her masks, this one does have a high quality gem in the forehead - this one being emerald

Stardate 2365.02.22
U.S.S. Peregrine; Deck 3 - Starboard Holodeck – 0720

Lt. Tal stretched her limbs, standing on one foot then the other, reaching one way, then another, and twisting the full of her body about as she warmed up. The room she stood in was very plain, reminiscient of a large gymnasium, with various apparati arranged around the floor. As much as she didn't like the holodeck's portrayal of living beings, which she simply could not shake the feeling of how fake they felt, it still served a very good medium for these sorts of exercises. And it felt good after a shift on the bridge, particularly in the Big Chair. She generally maintained a healthy alertness of the state of the ship during her shifts, but though her mind was alert, her body was seditary; she always found afterwards that she needed to let go and move.

In a leap, she cleared the edge of the raised platform, walking to stand at one corner of the wide, square mat, and raised her arms above her head. With practised ease, she ran forward, leaping into a somersault and a flip, before landing on her feet on the opposite corner, her arms once again raised in a mirror of her starting position. She repeated this routine several times, occasionally changing the pattern as she felt like it.

At the beeping of her PADD, she took a deep breath, wiping the sweat from her brow as she walked over to where the PADD lay.

"A priority change in mission?" Tal frowned, "Distress signal response... the Serapis... I'm not familiar with that name. We will need further details... which will be upcoming in the meeting."

Any other questions she had would be better to hold until 0900, she reasoned, and with that set aside in her mind, Lt. Tal turned back to the room, this time moving aside the square mat and leaping upon one of two twin bars, using her momentum to swing around and balance herself up above them.

Please be patient with me as I ease into trek-ese; I'm more used to the science role, so tactical will be a bit of a jump sideways

If I err too badly on a call or protocol, please let me know and I can amend my post appropriately. I'll do my best as Lt. Tal though  

Aranwen is in a very dark place in her mind now. But despite immediate appearances, her will and resolve are not gone. She's in a corner, with no way out, but she's not dead. And she intends to make full use of this fact in whatever way she can.

I got a 97 on the roll for Morgana ambushing Aranwen. As Aranwen expected, Morgana isn't inclined to attack Aranwen because she's not one of the targets. What she didn't expect was what Morgana said...