02 - Nagash the Unbroken (40 page)

The gifts of the Horned God belonged to the skaven, and to them alone.

Lahmia—The City of the Dawn, strange and decadent

Lamashizzar:
Priest King of Lahmia

Neferata:
Queen of Lahmia

Khalida:
a young noblewoman and ward of the royal household

Ubaid:
Lamashizzar’s grand vizier

Tephret:
most favoured handmaiden of the queen

Aaliyah:
handmaiden of the queen

Abhorash:
the king’s champion

Ankhat:
a wealthy and powerful noble

Ushoran:
a wealthy and powerful noble

Zurhas:
a dissolute young noble and cousin to the king

Adio:
a dissolute minor noble

Khenti:
a dissolute minor noble

W’soran:
a scholar, formerly of Mahrak

Prince Xian Ha Feng:
emissary of the Eastern Empire

Rasetra—Former Khemri colony, now an independent city

Shepret:
King of Rasetra

Lybaras—City of Scholars

Khepra:
Priest King of Lybaras

Anhur:
Prince of Lybaras

Quatar—The White Palace; Guardian of the Valley of Kings

Naeem:
Priest King of Quatar

Numas—Breadbasket of the Kingdom

Amunet:
Queen of Numas

Zandri—The City of the Waves

Teremun:
Priest King of Zandri

The people of the Blessed Land worship a number of gods and goddesses, both
major and minor, as part of an ancient pact known as the Great Covenant.
According to legend, the Nehekharans first encountered the gods at the site of
what is now Mahrak, the City of Hope; the timeless spirits were moved by the
suffering of the tribes, and gave them succour amid the wasteland of the desert.
In return for the Nehekharans’ eternal worship and devotion, the gods pledged to
make them a great people, and would bless their lands until the end of time.

Each of the great cities of Nehekhara worships one of the great deities as
its patron, though devotion to Ptra, the Great Father, is pre-eminent. The high
priest of a Nehekharan temple is referred to as the
Hierophant.
In every city
but Khemri, the high priest of Ptra is referred to as the
Grand Hierophant.

In addition to the priesthood, each Nehekharan temple trains an order of holy
warriors known as the Ushabti. Each Ushabti devotes his life to the service of
his patron deity, and is granted superhuman abilities in return. These gifts
make the Ushabti among the mightiest warriors in all the Blessed Land. Since the
time of Settra, the first and only Nehekharan emperor, the Ushabti of each city
have served as bodyguards to the priest king and his household.

The fourteen most prominent gods and goddesses of Nehekhara
are:

Ptra:
Also called the Great Father, Ptra is the first among the gods and the creator
of mankind. Though worshipped all across Nehekhara, the rides of Khemri and
Rasetra claim him as their patron.

Neru:
Minor goddess of the moon and wife of Ptra. She protects all Nehekharans from
the evils of the night.

Sakhmet:
Minor goddess of the green moon, also called the Green Witch. Ptra’s scheming
and vindictive concubine, who is jealous of the Great Father’s love of mankind.

Asaph:
Goddess of beauty, magic and vengeance. Asaph is the patron goddess of Lahmia.

Djaf:
The jackal-headed god of death. Djaf is the patron god of Quatar.

Khsar:
The fierce and malign god of the desert. A cruel and hungry god worshipped by
the tribes of the great desert.

Phakth:
The hawk-faced god of the sky and the bringer of swift justice.

Qu’aph:
The god of serpents and subtlety. Qu’aph is the patron god of Zandri.

Ualatp:
The vulture-headed god of scavengers.

Sokth:
The treacherous god of assassins and thieves.

Basth:
The goddess of grace and love.

Geheb:
The god of the earth and the giver of strength. Geheb is the patron god of
Ka’Sabar.

Tahoth:
The god of knowledge and the keeper of sacred lore. Tahoth is the patron god of
Lybaras.

Usirian:
The faceless god of the underworld. Usirian judges the souls of the dead and
determines if they are fit to enter into the afterlife.

The Nehekharan calendar operates on a twelve-year cycle, with each year in
the cycle devoted to one of the major gods in the Nehekharan pantheon. For
example, the 62nd year of Qu’aph (-1750 Imperial Reckoning) represents the year
of Qu’aph in the 62nd calendar cycle.

Scanning and basic
proofing by Red Dwarf,
formatting and additional
proofing by Undead.