Itzamna

Not part of Riordanverse The following article/section is from the Storm Runner/Shadow Bruja continuity under Rick Riordan Presents and not the Riordanverse canon.

Itzamna
Biographical information
Full name	Itzamna
Gender	Male
Alias	Itzam-yée' God of the Sky, Day and Night God of Writing The Serpent Bird Itzam
Family	Ixchel (wife) The Bakabs (sons)
Status	Immortal
Physical description
Eye	Black circled with in a silvery light
Hair	Sparkling black Blue (as a monkey)
Species	God
Behind the scenes
Appearances	The Storm Runner (mentioned) The Fire Keeper The Shadow Crosser

“	The written word is power. It can change worlds. I always say, rule with wisdom, not war.	”
–Itzamna talking to Zane in The Fire Keeper.

Itzamna (pronounced: "IT-sahm-na") is a Maya creator god of the Sky, Day, Night, Writing and father of the Bakabs. The god-bird version of Itzamna, Itzam-yée' ("eet-sahm-YEE"), is a bird deity who sits on the Ceiba World Tree.

History

Itzam-yée' sits on top of the Mayan Ceiba Tree and can see all three planes: the underworld, earth, and paradise. His sole purpose is to keep balance and peace.

Itzamna is honored during both the Uo and Mac months of the Haab' calendar. During Uo, physicians and shamans made offerings to the god. Ceremonies led by the elders of the community honored for both Itzamna and Chaac during Mac.

After Ah-Puch was defeated in the war against the gods he started, Itzam imprinted him on paper from the World Tree as part of his prison in Hurakan's volcano, the Beast.

Itzam-yée' depicted on King Pakal's sarcophagus

Storm Runner Trilogy

The Storm Runner

After Zane Obispo, son of Hurakan, kills Ah-Puch in the Empty, he ends up in Xib'alb'a. Ixtab makes him write his story with paper she got from Itzam-yée', it will only reveal the truth and will multiply if needed. When he's done, Ixtab reveals that Itzam gifted him with the paper to cover up the fact he survived the battle against Ah-Puch. The other gods wanted him dead as the Sacred Oath forbid the existence of any godborns, he was helping Zane because, unlike the other gods, he doesn't want to see them go to war.

The Fire Keeper

He appears to Zane Obispo in the form of a blue monkey in Cabo San Lucas in Baja California Sur. He later offers to take him to El Arco on a boat before transforming into a human form and introducing himself to Zane. He describes himself as a fan of Zane‘s book and wants him to keep writing, he also reveals he has been the one talking to him and he is not the fire keeper. He tells Zane his story will likely end in death before he vanishes.

When Zane is taken captive by Jordan and Bird, he tells the son of Hurakan to remain calm and inspect his surroundings.

He is present during the execution of Hurakan. After the twins escape and the gods catch Zane and Brooks, he informs them he has covered up the last few minutes for the spectators and reveals he never broke the sacred oath when the godborns arrive. As Zane explains everything in Xib'alb'a, the gods pardon those they see as guilty and agree to train and claim the godborns. He later gives Zane more paper to write his story on. When Hurakan reveals that Itzam-yée' is a different version of Itzamna, Zane wonders if he was the bird that delivered the coconut that Jazz had sent them.

The Shadow Crosser

As Zane is dying of demon poison, he telepathically begs Itzamna to burn it out. A few days later, he meets up with the son of Hurakan and his companions at the library of the Shaman Institute of Higher-Order Magic. He collapses on the floor and takes them to the Ceiba World Tree and says Camazotz and Ixkik' have placed gods in a deep slumber and are going to attack the tree. He uses the last of his power to give the tree two or three more days of protection and doubts the godborns can defend it. Later, he tells everyone to evacuate as the tree is under attack. He gives Zane his sunglasses and turns into a dragon to fight as the godborns leave.

As they reach the caverns, he communicates to them via the sunglasses and tells them to follow the thread coming out of Ren's watch. Later as they enter a portal, he tells the godborns not to touch their destiny threads and informs Zane that something happened. When K'iin speaks to them, he has Zane take off the glasses so that the calendar doesn’t know he is with them, as they have a bad history.

As Zane, Brooks, Ren, Adrik, and Marco prepare to go to 1987, Itzamna warns them to find the gods within twenty-four hours or be trapped in the past. He also informs them that the world tree is safe for the moment. When the enemy finally attacks the SHIHOM, he tries and fails to save records of history and is taken down. He is held in chains as Jordan and Bird greet Zane at the World Tree. He apologizes for putting Zane in this predicament by giving him the power of the dragon. After the enemy is defeated and enough gods are woken up, he regains his power and congratulates Zane on his victory but informs him that five godborns have went rouge and he is the only one who can rewrite what has been destroyed.

Appearance

Itzamna can take the form of a blue-haired monkey with a mouth shaped like a giant O. He had long fangs and a long tail. His scream sounded like a mix of gnashing teeth and a horrifying howl.

However, his human-like form has black curly hair that sparkles like each strand was laced with stardust. He is tall, skinny, and wears wire-rimmed glasses with mirrored lenses covering his eyes that are black like a starless sky circled with in a silvery light that matched his hair. His long blue robe shimmers and his dark skin glitters like quartz, Itzamna looked like he came from the moon. His voice is deep and soothing like the chocolate drink especially of Jazz.

Personality

Itzamna enjoys watching things from the sidelines, letting the affairs of gods and humans unfold on their own and only getting involved if he feels it is necessary.

He enjoys good writers and will ensure they get a chance to finish their story.

Abilities

• Atmokinesis: As the God of the Sky, he has absolute control and divine authority over the sky.
• Umbrakinesis: As the God of Night, he has absolute control and divine authority over darkness.
• Sorcery: According to Ixtab, Itzam-yée' is the greatest master of sorcery and magic Earth has ever known.
• Shapeshifting: He can take on the form of animals like monkeys and dragons with a flash of pale blue light.
• Power Bestowal: Itzamna can grant the power of the dragon to others.

Trivia

• Jennifer Cervantes first revealed Itzamna's presence in the book of Instagram by doing an impression of him wearing his mirrored glasses.
• People often mistake Itzam-yée' for Seven Macaw, a god the hero twins defeated, as they can both be referred to as Principal Bird Deity.
• Itzamna appears in the Marvel comics as a member of the Council of Godheads along with Zeus, Osiris, Vishnu, and others. He is depicted as the sun god of the Ahau and the son of Hunab Ku and Coatlique, even though she was considered an Aztec goddess.
• As the god of sorcery, his Greek/Roman counterpart is Hecate.
• His Egyptian equivalents are Isis, Thoth, and Khonsu.
  • Itzamna has symbols similar to Thoth. He can take the form of a blue monkey, while baboons are sacred to Thoth. Also, Thoth is often depicted with the head of an Ibis in Egyptian art. Itzamna has a bird form, Itzam-yee'.  
• His Norse counterparts are Freya, Odin, and Vedrfolnir.