Goddess Gambit — Jim McPherson

Goddess Gambit Book Three of "The Thrice-Cursed Godly Glories" Only three weapons have any history of effectiveness against Master Devas, the Shining Ones of myth, legend and more than a few polytheistic faiths on the Whole Earth even to this day. These are the Trigregos Talismans: a curved blade, a looking glass that doubles as a shield as well as an inter-dimensional prison, and a crown/tiara made up of glowing-red apparent rubies or blood stones. All are actually composed of Brainrock-Gypsium, the subtle matter remnants of the Big Bang's Primordial Godhead. In these three forms, this Godstuff has the potential to kill the Inner Earth's extant devil-gods. Just as importantly for many, having them will force devils to stay well away from you. As recounted in "Feeling Theocidal," Book One of the trilogy, ever since Chrysaor Attis used them in an effort to eradicate his Great God of a father, Thrygragos Varuna Mithras, on Thrygragon they have been known as the Thrice-Cursed Godly Glories. As recounted in "The 1000 Days of Disbelief," Book Two of the trilogy, the Death's Head Hellion, the Contagion Collectors of Renaissance-era Europe and the Trigregos Titaness each very nearly succeeded in wiping out devil-worshippers throughout the Hidden Continent of Sedon's Head using them. The Godstuff making up the Godly Glories is both transmutable and teleportive. No matter how long lost they've been since circa 5500 YD (Year of the Dome, also the Sedon Sphere, what's been separating the Inner from the Outer Earth since the Genesea of Year Zero), finding one should lead you between-space to the other two. Pass forward to 5980. Not surprisingly, when one of them finally shows up again, it suddenly seems like nearly everyone wants all three of them. Nergal Vetala is the Blood Queen of Hadd, the Land of the Ambulatory Dead. A Moon Goddess, once the most fecund of Master Devas, she's the lone devic vampire; has been since before the historic 1000 Days of Disbelief. For 35 years she has been unable to prevent the encroachment of the Living on her realm, the Land of the Ambulatory Dead. Then her soldier falls out of the sky and she's back in the pink again - as in arterial. But that's hardly enough for her. As of wary of contacting them as she is personally, there's no doubt in her mind that, thusly armed, her loyal soldier will become her unstoppable champion, the Trigregos Titan. At stake is much more than merely Hadd. At stake is the mastery of devils, the gods and goddesses of not just the Living, and, with it, mastery over the entire Hidden Headworld as well as the balance of the planet beyond the Cathonic Dome from whence he hailed. And so he does. Unstoppable, though, remains to be seen. Until now everyone who plays a Trigregos Gambit loses.