Characters City of the Plague God Sarwat Chadda

Ishtar: Goddess of Love and War in City of the Plague God

Overview

Ishtar, the ancient Mesopotamian goddess of love and war, appears in City of the Plague God as a complex figure who bridges the divine and human worlds. She is the adoptive mother of Belet and a fierce protector of mortals. Her character is defined by her dual nature—she revels in the passion of battle yet deeply loves her children. Through memories and present actions, she reveals a goddess who has spent millennia experiencing both the joy of love and the pain of outliving those she cherishes.

Plot Role

Ishtar enters the story when she collects Sikander Aziz after his first supernatural encounter. She reveals her identity and explains that the monster attacking his family’s deli was sent by her sister Erishkigal’s husband, Nergal. She takes Sik to her townhouse, where she shares visions of her past—including the Trojan War and World War II—to show him the reality of divine conflict. Later, she uses Daoud as bait to draw Nergal into open battle. In the climactic god‑surge fight, Ishtar is impaled by Nergal and disintegrates into starlight, sacrificing herself to protect Belet and Sik. After her death, Belet discovers Ishtar’s collection of mementos from previous adopted children, and Ishtar’s spirit later appears in the underworld to help Sik and Mo retrieve the flower of immortality.

Motivations and Traits Shown Through Actions

Ishtar is motivated by love—both romantic and maternal. She adopts orphans across centuries (Fimi, Jacob, Ahmed, Florence, Belet) and keeps their keepsakes, demonstrating a need to retain connection despite outliving them. Her love for battle is evident in her memory of Troy, where she felt the emotions of warriors as a “choir.” Yet she also shows restraint: during World War II, she protects a French town from bombers rather than hunting Nergal immediately. Her willingness to sacrifice herself for Belet and Sik underscores that maternal love outweighs her own immortality. She can be manipulative, using Daoud as bait without his knowledge, but she also shows vulnerability when she admits immortality is a sickness. Her command of love during a street fight (making two men hug instead of fight) illustrates her power to inspire peace, though she admits she would have preferred a little blood first.

Chronological Arc

Ishtar’s arc is largely revealed through flashbacks and her final sacrifice. In Sik’s vision from Chapter 7, she recalls the Trojan War, where she revels in combat. Later, in World War II, she confronts Nergal in a French town, choosing to destroy bombers rather than kill him. In the present day (2019 Manhattan), she first appears as a glamorous mother picking up Belet from school. She gradually shifts from a mysterious, compelling figure to a tactical general, using Daoud as bait and preparing for Nergal’s attack. She shows Sik her gallery of former children (Chapter 16), revealing her grief and longevity. In Chapter 17, she gives Sik the king’s seal and announces Nergal’s arrival. The battle in Chapter 18 ends with her death. Later, in Kurnugi (Chapter 28), she appears alive and cheerful, driving Erishkigal’s chariot, having been resurrected or never truly dead in the underworld. She helps Sik and Mo obtain medicine from the Sea of Tiamat, then fades from the main action as Belet and Sik return to the living world.

Relationships

  • Belet: Ishtar adopted Belet as a war orphan from Iraq. Belet is fiercely loyal but often angry, feeling she must prove herself. Ishtar treats her with love but also expects her to be strong. When Ishtar dies, Belet is devastated and later blames herself. In the underworld, Ishtar addresses Belet’s anger with gentle humor.
  • Sikander Aziz: Ishtar treats Sik with warmth, calling him handsome and clever. She gives him the lion ring and asks him to be Belet’s friend. She trusts him to deliver the ring to Gilgamesh. After her death, she continues to help him from the underworld.
  • Nergal: Her brother‑in‑law and enemy. She calls him “sister’s husband” and mocks his decay. Their conflict dates back millennia, with Ishtar believing in heroism while Nergal embodies decay and despair.
  • Erishkigal: Her sister, goddess of death. They have sibling rivalry—Ishtar is radiant and joyful, Erishkigal is stiff and joyless. Yet they cooperate when Belet and Sik need help, showing familial bonds beneath the tension.
  • Daoud: Ishtar used him as bait because his vitality reminded Nergal of his own lost glory. She defends Daoud to Sik, implying he has hidden talents.

Key Decisions and Consequences

  1. Revealing herself to Sikander: Ishtar chooses to involve Sik rather than let Belet handle things alone. This decision brings a mortal into the divine conflict, but it also gives Sik agency and ultimately leads to him finding the flower of immortality.
  2. Using Daoud as bait: By provoking Nergal through a beautiful mortal, she forces a confrontation. The consequence is Nergal’s attack on her home, leading to her death—but that death allows Belet and Sik to later retrieve the flower.
  3. Refusing to kill Nergal in WWII: She lowers her sword, believing mortals can be raised up. This spares Nergal temporarily but leaves him to later escape the underworld and ravage Manhattan.
  4. Sacrificing herself in battle: She faces Nergal head‑on and dies protecting Belet and Sik. This act of selflessness inspires Belet to continue the fight and strengthens Sik’s resolve.
  5. Helping from the underworld: Despite being dead, she persuades Erishkigal to assist, giving Sik and Mo the information needed to reach the Sea of Tiamat. This ultimately leads to the creation of Mo’s Promise and the cure for the poxies.

Themes and Symbolism

Ishtar embodies the theme of mortality and immortality. She calls immortality a sickness and shows through her gallery of children that eternal life is a burden. Her sacrifice proves that love (the other infinity) is more important than endless existence. She also represents heroism and sacrifice—she believes in heroes even in an age of machines and meaningless death, fighting bombers with a sword to protect innocents. Her role as a mother ties to family and brotherhood: she adopts children across cultures and centuries, demonstrating that family can be chosen and transcends time. Her war with Nergal is a conflict between plague and decay and the healing power of love—she stops a street fight with a command of love, while Nergal spreads disease. Finally, Ishtar’s identity as a goddess who adapts from Mesopotamia to modern New York speaks to identity and heritage: she retains her ancient power but drives a Jaguar and wears modern clothes, showing that heritage is not static.

Questions and Answers

  1. Why does Ishtar adopt mortal children if she knows she will outlive them?
    Answer: As the goddess of love, she cannot help but care for orphans. She feels guilt for the lives lost in war—her domain—and adopting children is a way to make amends. She keeps their mementos to hold onto the memory of each love, even knowing the pain it brings.

  2. How does Ishtar’s memory of the Trojan War contrast with her actions in World War II?
    Answer: In Troy, she revels in the glory of hand‑to‑hand combat. By WWII, she sees modern warfare as meaningless destruction. She still wields a sword but uses it to defend civilians rather than to fuel her own joy. This shows her evolving belief in protecting the innocent over celebrating battle.

  3. Why does Ishtar use Daoud as bait?
    Answer: She needs to provoke Nergal into a direct confrontation. Daoud’s youth and health remind Nergal of what he has lost. Ishtar prioritizes the greater good—drawing Nergal out—over Daoud’s safety, though she does not reveal her plan to Sik until the last moment.

  4. Does Ishtar truly die when Nergal impales her?
    Answer: She appears dead and disintegrates into starlight, but later she is seen alive in Kurnugi driving Erishkigal’s chariot. It is suggested that gods cannot be permanently killed in the same way as mortals; her physical form was destroyed, but her essence survives in the underworld. Belet’s quest to rescue “her mother” in the epilogue implies Ishtar is still trapped there.

  5. What does Ishtar mean when she says immortality is a sickness?
    Answer: She explains that endless cellular renewal is like cancer. The pain of outliving loved ones makes eternal life a curse. She contrasts two infinities: love, which is worth the pain, and whatever the second infinity is (she does not name it for mortals). This statement foreshadows that Nergal’s immortality can be “cured” by the rain containing the flower’s sap, which kills him by stopping his decay.

For further analysis of themes related to Ishtar, see Mortality and Immortality, Heroism and Sacrifice, and Family and Brotherhood.