The Windspeaker

Arnuchagtopzha (The Windspeaker)

_{art by BelleDeese}
Gikzha Tama, also known as The Windspeaker, was a Gish military leader, empress, and religious figure, known for establising the Gish Empire and assisting in the foundation of Wind Worship. She fought directly in many of the battles during the Imperial Expansion Era during the formation of the Gish Empire, using her masterful control of Storm Magic to devastate her enemies. Besides her military and political achievements, Gikzha Tama was also known for her progress in discovering the deeper secrets of magic, and the foundation of the Zephyr Callers.

Physical Description

General Physical Condition

Gikzha Tama was a very fit woman, due to her decades of military experience. She was considered very healthy for the standards at the time, and very rarely became ill. Her strength and speed was considered exceptional, although much of the information about her physical abilities has been twisted by her mythologization, especially after her death.

Mental characteristics

Personal history

Gikzha Tama was born in a farming village outside of Redeko in the year 1 AW. As one of the only free settlements during Elemental rule, Redeko and its vassal settlements were heavily defended by a legion of Storm Mages known as the Kdarozhgtop (The Heralds of the Tempest), which Gikzha became infatuated with at a young age. At the age of 13 Gaizhan years (17 Earth years), she joined the Kdarozhgtop, quickly rising in the ranks due to her intellect and skill with magic. Eventually, while out on a border patrol, Gikzha ran into a Storm Elemental mining operation, specifically one meant to harvest Voidstone. Having never seen such a material before, Gikzha allowed her curiosity to get the better of her, and she sneaked into the mines in order to get a better look.
When she attempted to leave the mines, Gikzha was discovered by the Elementals working there, and was promptly attacked. Without sufficient magic training to defeat an Elemental on her own, Gikzha used a sharp slab of Voidstone in desperation as a weapon, and to her surprise, her Elemental attackers were absorbed into the Voidstone.
Upon returning to Redeko, Gikzha's superiors studied the Voidstone that had trapped the elementals, and discovered that it could be used to harness the elemental power and give a specific ability. This slab of voidstone specifically allowed anybody who touched it to summon huge bursts of lightning with ease. In secret, Gikzha stole the slab and had it melted to be reforged into a bracelet. Soon after, she convinced a handful of her Kdarozhgtop colleagues to set out to Rezhita in order to oust Kubkot the Hurricane, the Storm Elemental ruler of Gishik.
Gikzha arrived in Rezhita and was immediately out of her depth. Many of her allies died in a brutal fight with Kubkot's most powerful Elemental soldiers, and Gikzha was forced to retreat into Rezhita's underbelly. This setback turned into an opportunity, however, when Gikzha met a girl named Pralim. Pralim was a self-taught Forest Fire Mage who knew Rezhita from the inside out. With Pralim's guidance, Gikzha managed to slowly but surely train an army of mages and oust Kubkot from his throne. Gikzha took the throne of Rezhita and, upon realizing the imminent collapse of Kukbot's own network of city-states, decided to simply conquer and unite the Gish under her rule.
Within five years, by the year 21 AW, Gikzha Tama had conquered much of what was classically considered "Gishik". And during her conquests, tales of her powerful magic and heroic conquest melded with the ever-growing monotheistic faith of Gtopre. Upon returning to Redeko in 22 AW, the first High Priest of Wind Worship, Maloch Izhkabd, ordained her as a sort of messiah figure sent by Gtopre, also known as "The Winds" to save humanity. It is unknown of Gikzha truly believed Maloch's words, but she readily accepted the role and quickly spread Wind Worship throughout her new Gish Empire.
As Wind Worship spread, Gikzha also looked to spread her territory. She turned her eyes to the Shiv in the south, who were slowly declining after a brief age of economic dominance in the region. In 26 AW, Gikzha Tama began her invasion of Shivish, rapidly conquering Shiv cities and territories, replacing their rulers with Gish nobles and converting them to Wind Worship. The Shiv quickly armed themselves and fought back, sparking a long and arduous battle of attrition that the Gish eventually won in 34 AW, fully conquering the Shiv and incorporating their territory into the Gish Empire. Gikzha herself fought in many of those battles, dueling powerful Shiv mages, which only added to her growing mythological status.
After the conquering of Shivish, Gikzha returned to Rezhita and officially wedded Pralim, beginning the Tama dynasty which lasted for the entirety of the Gish Empire's reign. She resigned from military duties and took up a mostly political role until she died in 53 AW, when she was succeeded by her second oldest daughter, Gikzha Tama II.

Sexuality

Gikzha Tama was known to be a lesbian, and was one of the main factors in normalizing homosexuality in both Gish and Shiv society. This was mainly done by her endorsing the Hazhatudan Ideal of Family, which disliked the concept of blood inheritance and bloodlines, defining "family" as the people you live with and trust. Gikzha had Hazhatud's Ideals as well as her other philosophies incorporated into Wind Worship's philosophies and theology during the early years of the religion, influencing religious and moral thought for years to come.

Education

Although she was very well-educated in magical technique and learned many military tactics, Gikzha Tama was raised as a farmer, and was not given a very thorough formal education. She was taught how to read by her future wife Pralim when they first met, but she was not a very prolific writer or reader even then. Often, she would speak about her philosophy and magical hypotheses to a hired scribe, who would write dissertations in her name.

Failures & Embarrassments

While Gikzha Tama is mainly known for her mythological successes, she did have several military failures, mainly her inability to conquer the Antom, despite her overwhelming military might. She was also unable to discover how to control the abilities created by voidstone items, which was an aspiration of hers.

Intellectual Characteristics

Despite her lack of formal education, Gikzha Tama was very perceptive, and was known for discovering alternate solutions to difficult problems. This made her a very skilled military leader and mage, using her unique perspectives to develop wild and unheard of techniques that allowed her to succeed where many others failed. One of her main magical breakthroughs was the Conductive Skin Technique, which allowed her to defeat Shiv Breeze Shifters by turning her body into a sort of electrical conduit. When the Breeze Shifters materialized in order to grasp her, they would be electrocuted and knocked out by a wave of lightning upon touching her.

Morality & Philosophy

Gikzha Tama viewed the world as an "eternal conflict", filled with various battles of both mind and body. As such, she saw most interactions as a challenge to be won, and was known for her overwhelming force of personality (and force of punches). She viewed human life as fairly meaningless inherently, but that life could be given meaning through great acts and "many battles won".

Art by sampaints

Current Location

Rezhita

Ethnicity

Gish

Date of Birth

Kirgurzh 9th

Life

1 53 52 years old

Circumstances of Birth

Born in a now-destroyed farming village outside of Redeko

Circumstances of Death

Died of an unknown illness at the age of 52

Gender

Female

Eyes

Green

Hair

Short and brown, sometimes in a buzzcut

Skin Tone/Pigmentation

Tanned white

Height

5'10"

Weight

152 lbs

Aligned Organization

Gishik

Known Languages

Gikzha Tama knew Gish and small bits of Shiv, enough to converse with the Shiv when she needed to write and discuss treaties.