Gods and Pawns
Encyclopedia
Gods and Pawns is a collection of stories written by Kage Baker
and published by Tor Books
. The stories are set in the universe of her series about The Company
.
Kage Baker
Kage Baker was an American science fiction and fantasy writer.- Biography :Baker was born in Hollywood, California and lived there and in Pismo Beach most of her life. Before becoming a professional writer she spent many years in theater, including teaching Elizabethan English as a second language...
and published by Tor Books
Tor Books
Tor Books is one of two imprints of Tom Doherty Associates LLC, based in New York City. It is noted for its science fiction and fantasy titles. Tom Doherty Associates also publishes mainstream fiction, mystery, and occasional military history titles under its Forge imprint. The company was founded...
. The stories are set in the universe of her series about The Company
Dr. Zeus Inc.
Dr. Zeus Inc., also known simply as The Company, is a fictional entity in a series of time travel science fiction stories by Kage Baker....
.
Background
Operating in the 24th century, a group of scientists and businessmen has created immortal cyborgs at different times throughout history. These loyal servants preserve items from the past for the Company to sell, at huge profit. Recruited as very young children, the cyborgs leave their humanity behind. There are exceptions, however.Contents
- To the Land Beyond the Sunset — In 17th-century YucatanYucatánYucatán officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Yucatán is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 106 municipalities and its capital city is Mérida....
, Literature Specialist Lewis wins a vacation from Company base New World One and decides to take Mendoza with him to Amazonia. They discover an unnaturally fertile landTerra pretaTerra preta is a type of very dark, fertile anthropogenic soil found in the Amazon Basin. Terra preta owes its name to its very high charcoal content, and was indeed made by adding a mixture of charcoal, bone, and manure to the otherwise relatively infertile Amazonian soil, and stays there for...
where gods are mortal and one mortal in particular pays the terrible price of being the fertility deity. Though based on real research about the Amazonian terra pretaTerra pretaTerra preta is a type of very dark, fertile anthropogenic soil found in the Amazon Basin. Terra preta owes its name to its very high charcoal content, and was indeed made by adding a mixture of charcoal, bone, and manure to the otherwise relatively infertile Amazonian soil, and stays there for...
, Baker explains it differently. - The Catch — an early Company attempt at creating an immortal servant went badly wrong in 1964, and now a time-traveling rogue is loose. Bobby Ross loves 1951, the year of Hank BauerHank BauerHenry Albert "Hank" Bauer was an American right fielder and manager in Major League Baseball. He played with the New York Yankees and Kansas City Athletics ; he batted and threw right-handed...
's famous World SeriesWorld SeriesThe World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball, played between the American League and National League champions since 1903. The winner of the World Series championship is determined through a best-of-seven playoff and awarded the Commissioner's Trophy...
catch, and he will live through that year over and over. Security Tech Porfirio is on the case. - The Angel in the Darkness — Porfirio's brother's descendants have fallen on hard times in 1991 Los Angeles. Another Company rogue, a self-appointed Angel of Death, is stalking them. Porfirio would intervene, but he is supposed to be dead.
- Standing in his Light — Facilitator Van Drouten introduces Johannes VermeerJohannes VermeerJohannes, Jan or Johan Vermeer was a Dutch painter who specialized in exquisite, domestic interior scenes of middle class life. Vermeer was a moderately successful provincial genre painter in his lifetime...
to the camera obscuraCamera obscuraThe camera obscura is an optical device that projects an image of its surroundings on a screen. It is used in drawing and for entertainment, and was one of the inventions that led to photography. The device consists of a box or room with a hole in one side...
and has him run off six dozen canvasses for the Company to sell centuries later. To help him out, she also teaches him photography. - A Night on the Barbary Coast (originally in The Silver Gryphon, 2003) — Facilitator Joseph goes in search of a gold claim and its miner. He takes Botanist Mendoza to the wild and woolly San Francisco of the Gold Rush. She turns out to be much more help than he expected. This short story won the first of the Norton awards in 2003.
- Welcome to Olympus, Mr. Hearst! — In 1933 the famous publisherWilliam Randolph HearstWilliam Randolph Hearst was an American business magnate and leading newspaper publisher. Hearst entered the publishing business in 1887, after taking control of The San Francisco Examiner from his father...
is looking for a new lease on life. Facilitator Joseph is there to seal the deal. Lewis tags along with a valuable movie-script to hide in the mansion. Nothing goes right. Theft and a bogus spiritual medium, along with some star cameos, create a story whose outcome astonishes even Joseph. - Hellfire at Twilight — In 18th-century England, Lewis has to steal a fabled scroll from the underground lair of the notorious Hellfire ClubHellfire ClubThe Hellfire Club was a name for several exclusive clubs for high society rakes established in Britain and Ireland in the 18th century, and was more formally or cautiously known as the "Order of the Friars of St. Francis of Wycombe"...
, and becomes a god for a night.