Ishmutekebessa Goddess-Queen of Leh-Shelekhumbis
b 2079; d 2286. anglicized pronunciation /ɪʃˈmuːtəkəˌbɛsə/. Goddess-Queen of Leh-Shelekhumbis, Ishmutekebessa, was born to a Shagrela’alite desert chieftain and a Shelekhumbian priestess in Sahamudh Oasis in southern Shelekhumbia. Her mother named her Ishmutekebessa which means ‘beloved of Ishmût,’ according to official records. However, some scholars believe that she took the name Ishmutekebessa later as an adult when she adopted the cult of the chaos goddess Ishmût. As a young person, she was seized in battle, taken captive, and obliged to serve the wizard Darigor Host of the Dead, a powerful Shelekhumbian necromancer who ruled Shakhrilim. Lygdamionites, chaos priests of the god, Lygdamion, fought Darigor and defeated him. Conflicting accounts report that Ishmutekebessa either entered into the coterie of the Lygdamionites or traveled on her own by barge down the Leh-Shelekhumbis River to the new city outside of the ruins of Elántuventh. Here, she dedicated herself to the goddess Ishmût. Some scholars believe this is where she took upon herself the name Ishmutekebessa. In time, she subdued the priests of Lygdamion and became high priestess of the temple of Ishmût in New Elántuventh. Using a powerful combination of hieratic and chaos magic, she expanded the power of the temple to all of lower Shelekhumbia. In time, lesser chaos rulers abroad became her subjects, including Asgionantis of the Twilight, the ruler of Mirrhaimo. Most scholars believe that the year 2102/2103 is the earliest to which we can ascribe her assumption of the title 'Goddess-Queen.'
Vassals
Ishmutekebessa was lord of several lesser wizards, including Asgionantis of the Twilight, the bibliophile wizard that ruled Mirrhaimo.
Elántuventh of the Dawn
Ishmutekebessa established a new city across from New Elántuventh on the west bank of the Leh-Shelekhumbis River called Elántuventh of the Dawn, so called because it was said to receive the light of the dawn across the waters of the river. She established temples in the other major cities of Shelekhumbia along the river. The cults of other gods were not overthrown, but the political power of the temple was elevated above all local authorities. The greatest edifice of the new city was the Temple of Ishmût which was completed after many decades of work. Ishmutekebessa was eventually crowned Goddess-Queen of Leh-Shelekhumbis, according to legend, by the chaos goddess, Ishmût herself. Ishmutekebessa appointed priestesses to enforce the cult and decrees of her goddess and called these Ismutic priestesses the Ismutanes.
Sixth Isbajath
The Sixth Isbajath, 2283 to 2286, brought about the end and destruction of the Goddess-Queen. Her greatest general was her 'lieutenanant', Zhulkaraim, who had previously displayed merit by defeating Souphikyan, a notorious djinn sorcerer that was ravaging the desert frontier of south Shelekhumbia. Jamiheya Daughter of the Wind slew Ishmutekebessa in the culmination of the Battle of the North Wind.
See Also
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