Iona,
Great Mother
Goddess of motherhood, law, and diplomacy, patron of mothers, children, and families, Queen of the gods.
The wife of Aeto and one of the first-generation gods of Imperial Ennead, and thus one of the first deities to arrive at the unformed world of Terrace from the Distant Verdant Star to participate in the creation and forming of the world, Iona is generally viewed as second in power and authority only to be her husband.
Although Aeto and Iona (along with the other first-generation gods) are both viewed as essentially primordial and pre-existing the physical world of Terrace, Aeto is generally understood to be the elder of the two.
What exactly this means has been an endless source of debate for scholars and priests. While it is accepted that the first generation of Realmgardian gods is older than the material world what exactly occurred before their departure from the Distant Verdant Star is not elaborated upon in Realmgardian mythology.
Iona is universally worshipped as a divine mother figure, both due to being the literal mother of several of the younger gods of the Ennead and due to being said to have taken the lead in the creation the mortal peoples of Realmgard and guiding them into the establishment of well-ordered societies.
As a pair, Iona and Aeto are venerated as the patron gods of long and happy marriages.
Whereas her husband is most often depicted as a grandfatherly figure, Iona is most frequently depicted as a woman of childbearing age and depictions of Iona while pregnant are common, especially when used as protective talismans for pregnant women.
It is also common to depict Iona holding one of her literal children as a baby — there are numerous myths telling of the childhoods of the second-generation deities and Iona is understandably a major figure in these stories — or as a metaphorical mother draping her mantle protectively over mortal children.
Similarly, while Aeto often appears in the guise of a humble wanderer, Iona is never depicted as anything other than a regal monarch. It is said that while Aeto goes off the wander the mortal world, Iona rules over the gods in his stead as his trusted regent.
Iona is viewed as an unequivocally benevolent figure and many myths involve her serving as a mediator between feuding deities or mortals. For this reason, Iona is worshipped as the primary Realmgard god of law and legal systems, as well as diplomacy and conciliation.
During the expansion of the Elven Empire and thus the spread of Imperial social and legal institutions throughout Realmgard, the rising prominence of Capitolina as the patron deity of the Empire led to her being tied more closely to Aeto and Iona to ideologically promote the Imperial institutions as both divinely-legitimised and fundamentally benevolent.
Ultimately, Capitolina came to be viewed as a daughter of Aeto and Iona. Given the growing association between Capitolina and the river goddess Creusa as sisters given their shared Imperial connections, Creusa is therefore also often considered a daughter of Aeto and Iona.
As perhaps befits a mother goddess, Iona is slow to anger, but terrible in her wrath once finally roused. Several of the most notably severe punishments inflicted on the wicked in Realmgardian mythology came at the hands of Iona, though the universal consensus is that those on the receiving end of Iona’s retribution had it coming.
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