[1817] By the Court

[warrl]

My theory on that is that the soul is infinite, but the human mind finite - therefore one person may (won't necessarily) have fragments of memories from several previous times that soul was incarnate, but rarely a cohesive memory of even a single incident.

[Runningflame]

Further complicating the question is the way Annie and the fire elemental seem to be portrayed as two different persons sometimes.  How much of that is metaphorical (two sides of one personality) and how much is literal?

[spritznar]

maybe not so metaphorical...?

[Runningflame]

So... Annie's human side is the left brain and her fire elemental side is the right brain?

[spritznar]

it would seem to fit with the left vs right brain stereotypes; where the left is more analytical and the right is more creative/artistic etc

also, i think tom has touched on some left/right brain stuff in the comic when jack had the etheric spider on him? i don't remember what other people thought or if tom's mentioned it, but it seemed like his expression was split where the left and right halves were making different expressions...

[mturtle7]

Apr 13, 2017 1:44:50 GMT Igniz said:

1. The way I see it, Annie has agreed to become an agent of Psychopomp Co., doing their bidding as she previously has done a few times in the past, the difference being that, now, she will do so whenever and wherever they want her to, without questioning and without arguing on Annie's part - she's not turning into a psychopomp herself.

2. More than with Surma and Annie's bloodline, I think it has to do with a couple of things:

1. Their "hybrid" nature. Fire elementals are etheric beings, so being half-breed / having one inside would make these individuals naturally attuned with etheric, paranormal and supernatural matters, thus rendering them ideal candidates for certain tasks and jobs such as medium or psychopomp avatar, given their "in-betweener" status as mortal + etheric. In other words:

   Apr 12, 2017 18:45:50 GMT zaferion said:

   The pomps seem kind of passive by their very nature, but a living being can be more proactive about it.

2. The psychopomps know Annie since she was very little and, given their previous "work" association with Surma (whom they most probably met during her tenure as Court Medium), as well as their "Uatu the Watcher" nature, it's only logical that they chose her to fulfill the role they signed her with.

Of course, given that there are several things that Tom has left unexplained as of yet and that the plot is still ongoing (I feel that, definitely, there's something dark and sinister about the death and return of Superman Surma), one can suppose things such as, for example, the Shinigami Club having different plans from those Annie (and us) is expecting, and Annie's pledge is in reality part of a plan to save her from a terrible fate.

Huh...that's an interesting idea! When you put it that way, I can only think of one other character who might have a similar 'hybrid' nature. I wonder now if Anja could see the psychopomps, and whether she might have done a bit of work for them as well.