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Post by arf on Dec 29, 2023 8:02:45 GMT
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Post by silicondream on Dec 29, 2023 8:06:38 GMT
"However...you still have to kiss. Yes, we're bored." |
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Post by blahzor on Dec 29, 2023 8:30:44 GMT
Kat really gonna live a whole life then save scum at the end to choose Annie
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Post by jaybird on Dec 29, 2023 9:12:18 GMT
Huh. I wonder if this will push Kat more towards the ether and her final goddess form. Seems like it must be transformative in some way.
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Post by silicondream on Dec 29, 2023 10:33:41 GMT
Kat really gonna live a whole life then save scum at the end to choose Annie Elderly Kat: "Soooo...I was doing well with the psychopomping but then I started falling behind, so I empowered the golems as mid-tier archangels and Robot talked the Seraphs into some sort of repentant helper daemon thing. That freed up a little time and I was able to finish Heaven 1.0 so all the New Person souls would have somewhere cool to be. Clippy and Sass got mad but I offered the psychopomps an optimized workflow algorithm that tripled their reclamation rate on the souls that actually want to merge with the Ether, and now they're looking the other way. But then I was so sad thinking about all the New People who died before Heaven came online, so I uplifted a Tic-Toc to sentience and asked it to patrol the past and pick up all the other souls. But it kinda got over-enthusiastic and picked up half the sentient dead in Earth's history, so then I had to design a paratemporal etheric recycling protocol that could drive the whole ethersphere off a single constantly dying soul--your dad volunteered for that bit because he thought he might catch a glimpse of Surma somewhere in there. All that was pretty stressful and I started to get a little fragmented and there was this little psychotic break thing and the New People picked up on it and there would have been a multimillennial religious war, but then the Council of Alternate Kats showed up and got me some therapy and rebooted the timeline and everything worked out! Although I do still have a headache." Elderly Annie: "..." Elderly Kat: "I DIDN'T WANT TO BOTHER YOU!" |
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Post by Igniz on Dec 29, 2023 12:11:00 GMT
Panel 3: "With with your help."
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Post by arf on Dec 29, 2023 12:19:23 GMT
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Post by silicondream on Dec 29, 2023 13:35:11 GMT
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Post by ctso74 on Dec 29, 2023 14:20:33 GMT
Buddy has just been hanging out in the background. He's just happy to be there.
I guess we'll see how his passing into the Ether affects Kat in the new year.
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Post by liminal on Dec 29, 2023 17:19:41 GMT
Can't wait until Monday...Majin Blue looks so upset.
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Post by Gemini Jim on Dec 29, 2023 17:39:06 GMT
"However...you still have to kiss. Yes, we're bored." "Only married couples are allowed to 'pomp creatures jointly ..." |
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Post by Gemminie on Dec 29, 2023 19:20:42 GMT
Leading into this page, Kat tells Annie that she refuses to force Annie into becoming a guide before she's ready. Now Annie replies that "in the future, no matter where we are in our lives," she'd accept and consider it an honor. This implies that something is different right now. What's different right now? Well, for one thing, they're in the middle of a massive etheric distortion of uncertain nature, and Annie's trying to get herself, the New People, and Renard to safety. For another thing, Annie hasn't been approached by the psychopomps to come work for them yet. My impression of what she means is that once she's working as a guide, whenever that is, she'll be happy to take on the responsibility of being the New People's guide as well.
Kat's response is that for now, she'll do the task, and we see Sam in the background, looking happy about this – perhaps he'll get to be guided into the Ether by the Angel herself! Kat may need some pointers from Annie. But Kat tells the Interpreter that she wants to keep her options open and is not designating anyone as permanent guide for the NP at this time. He discusses things with the Arbiter, and they agree that this is acceptable, but he's got a "however" that's going to have to wait for the next page (next year!).
What's his "however?" I'm supposing it's something we can't predict well because we don't know much about the nature of the Ether and its beings, structure, and laws. One thought I have is that Kat has zero sensitivity to the Ether, so she'll have to have her eyes at least temporarily opened. Another possibility might have to do with the Machine Angel appearance/mask/shell; that seemed to put the Arbiter/Interpreter off. Will Kat have to alter her Ether strategy? Or perhaps it has something to do with Diego's arrow; perhaps this is just a caution about using it in this type of situation. Or maybe it's a warning that the things Annie is going to show her are trade secrets not for mortals to know, similar to what Ankou said. I could probably keep speculating from now until next year, so for now, happy New Year to all!
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Post by Hatredman on Dec 29, 2023 19:59:34 GMT
I think Kat would be entrapped in the psychompomp duties, and when Annie takes over, both of them will be entombed there forever. Now that's a very interesting theory! (First post in the forum, later I'll introduce myself properly) |
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Post by gpvos on Dec 29, 2023 23:57:59 GMT
Welcome to the forum, hatredman!
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Post by silicondream on Dec 30, 2023 5:06:57 GMT
Yes, welcome! I think Kat would be entrapped in the psychompomp duties, and when Annie takes over, both of them will be entombed there forever. "With or without wi-fi?" asks Kat. |
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Post by pyradonis on Dec 30, 2023 13:09:09 GMT
Dude still is looking quite happy for someone who just died a pointless death after just having been promoted to living being not too long ago, but Gemminie's probably right in that he believes it's a good thing to be guided to the beyond by his Angel. (First post in the forum, later I'll introduce myself properly) Welcome! |
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Post by Runningflame on Dec 30, 2023 16:26:06 GMT
Okay, but the really important question is... Am I the only one that thinks Clippy's little frown looks just like a pencil moustache?  |
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Post by blahzor on Dec 31, 2023 1:34:46 GMT
I think Kat would be entrapped in the psychompomp duties, and when Annie takes over, both of them will be entombed there forever. Now that's a very interesting theory! (First post in the forum, later I'll introduce myself properly) you can't leave Kat with her mind and expect her to be trapped anywhere also b/c of how Clippy reacted..it implies they didn't know Kat will ascend or else why force the contract on her when beings like her and Coyote can ignore the rules as they see fit. Or they know she will be one and use the contract so shape her behavior to their liking and Clippy doesn't know |
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Post by drmemory on Dec 31, 2023 2:32:15 GMT
Dude still is looking quite happy for someone who just died a pointless death after just having been promoted to living being not too long ago, but Gemminie's probably right in that he believes it's a good thing to be guided to the beyond by his Angel. (First post in the forum, later I'll introduce myself properly) Welcome! I was wondering if anyone else would comment on how happy Sam seems! I'm thinking he's just happy to see his Angel getting the respect she is due? Either that, or he's happy to learn he is actually, no kidding, a living creature. One with a soul.
I think at this point we can be pretty sure that Renard and the other NP are frozen out of the conversation. In fact, I didn't get it at first, but I believe they are inside the Arbiter, or at least inside a little environment he created. The walls match him. Arbiter Lounge?
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Post by drmemory on Dec 31, 2023 2:39:52 GMT
As for the "However", my best guess is that Annie is about to get written into Kat's contract. The Interpreter doesn't seem happy to have the soul/psychopomp relationship be left ambiguous, and I'm thinking he'll want to nail it down.
However, the other thing is that Kat can't actually see the ether, and it may be that she will have to be given a new power or ability to enable her to be able to take NP into the ether. It remains to be seen is this is something the Arbiter or Interpreter can do by themselves, or if we are about to see one or more official psychopomps brought into the situation. Can Kat be granted this power and not become a psychopomp herself?
I'm still half expecting something bad to happen here, that will lead to Zimmy's prediction coming true. Please don't break Kat!
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Post by silicondream on Dec 31, 2023 4:27:42 GMT
Dude still is looking quite happy for someone who just died a pointless death after just having been promoted to living being not too long ago, but Gemminie's probably right in that he believes it's a good thing to be guided to the beyond by his Angel. Plus, he's watching the Angel actually plan the afterlife of his people and negotiate with other deities how it should work. How many believers are privileged enough to receive that kind of revelation? you can't leave Kat with her mind and expect her to be trapped anywhere That's why it's also a mental jail! Nothing like an INT drain to cripple a wizard. On the one hand, Kat could ascend to the stratosphere and still be nowhere near Coyote's level, in raw power or sneakiness. If Saslamel is backed up by the rest of the etheric bureaucracy, I think Kat has a long way to go before she can just ignore him, especially because she's still a squishy human at core. On the other hand, Diego apparently managed to skate by. But he only used the arrow one or a few times, so was perhaps a lower-priority threat, and he was probably protected by the rest of the Court. So...I dunno. I think at this point we can be pretty sure that Renard and the other NP are frozen out of the conversation. If that's true for Renard, it's a little surprising. I didn't think that Annie's connection to him could be broken so easily--but maybe she hasn't tried to connect? And that's why he hasn't bothered to learn any new languages. This way he can avoid the uncomfortable convo about "actually, you're standing inside my <REDACTED>." However, the other thing is that Kat can't actually see the ether, and it may be that she will have to be given a new power or ability to enable her to be able to take NP into the ether. Kat can somewhat see the ether, she just can't see it as well (or as poetically) as Annie. She could see the ROTD, for instance, just in a less glamorous form. And she's already constructed devices like this one that allowed her to join Annie inside Diego's Arrow and see and interact with the restrained soul of Jeanne's lover. She could also see the door to the Ether that Mort left through. But you're right that she'd need more powers/training/tech (maybe her own blinker stone?) to actually Guide like Annie does. |
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Post by Hatredman on Dec 31, 2023 13:36:57 GMT
I think at this point we can be pretty sure that Renard and the other NP are frozen out of the conversation. If that's true for Renard, it's a little surprising. I didn't think that Annie's connection to him could be broken so easily--but maybe she hasn't tried to connect? Hmmmmmm... Remember that, when inside Zimmy's distortions, she can't connect to Renard. |
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Post by silicondream on Dec 31, 2023 15:46:39 GMT
If that's true for Renard, it's a little surprising. I didn't think that Annie's connection to him could be broken so easily--but maybe she hasn't tried to connect? Hmmmmmm... Remember that, when inside Zimmy's distortions, she can't connect to Renard. Ah, that would explain it. |
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Post by TBeholder on Dec 31, 2023 17:21:16 GMT
"With or without wi-fi?" asks Kat. Kat will not ask. She will come up with an answer. |
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Post by Gemini Jim on Jan 1, 2024 6:51:16 GMT
"This is acceptable. However....
We have to fill out some paperwork, and the office is closed until Tuesday."
(Happy New Year!)
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Post by drmemory on Jan 1, 2024 7:39:38 GMT
If that's true for Renard, it's a little surprising. I didn't think that Annie's connection to him could be broken so easily--but maybe she hasn't tried to connect? Hmmmmmm... Remember that, when inside Zimmy's distortions, she can't connect to Renard. Right, that. Also, we haven't seen him since the Arbiter/Kat conversation started, and they were wrapped inside the Arbiter or inside a little Arbiter Lounge or something along those lines. So it's not like he's lurking around and just not talking! The camera angles have panned around enough that we would have seen if anyone else was there. Especially Renard, who was hanging out right by Annie just before.
Back here Renard and the NP were still around. Probably frozen like the first time our heroes met the Arbiter.
Then here is where it first looks like they are being wrapped up by Arbiter material.
Except.
Here we see a few silhouettes on the breaking glass (breaking reality?) but it isn't clear whether those are the frozen NP or what. It kinda looks like them?
Then we have a few pages of Kat's armor or body or whatever providing the background.
When she makes it through the broken stuff, with the help of Annie's burning beacon, they are inside whatever the Arbiter set up. Still, even then, there are a couple of places where it almost seems like there are projections or shadows of the others, but it could just be the art. Not sure.
Best guess - at some point the Arbiter (or Interpreter) decided the topics that were to be discussed were too sensitive for those not directly involved to hear them. I'm really wondering whether part of the motivation there was to keep the suspicious dark-haired NP girl out! I'm sure the ancient and powerful Arbiter can see who that really is, and is fully capable of taking measures to prevent eavesdropping if the usual time freezing or what have you isn't enough.
So the ones allowed to participate are Annie (the one real psychopomp present), Kat (owner of the NP contract), and Sam (the first dead NP, and the cause for the conversation). Renard wasn't invited simply because he's not one of those directly involved. He doesn't get a vote. I'd actually guess that the rest of them, including Renard, were frozen as soon as the Arbiter and Helper Ghost showed up. 
BTW, this is consistent with the events in Chapter 71, "New Contract". Everyone but the Annies, Renard, and Kat were frozen out immediately. Actually, I think they got wrapped up in Arbiter then also. See here - they even got the little stone pedestals to stand on, just like now. The "new creature" was pulled in and got his own pedestal as well, but didn't get to participate because he wasn't a living being yet, of course. Just an exhibit for contract court at that point. So we had the Annies and Renard (parties in the original contract), Kat (potential contract abuser), and Albert (exhibit A).
TL;DR - The Arbiter and his helper are only interested in contracts. Only those involved in the current contractual discussion get to participate. Think "Standing".
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