Pharaoh

The Pharaoh is the religious head of the Cult of Aquias. She rules over the city of Surket and holds claim to the Aquian Empire and Ozymandium, though neither exist anymore.

History
The title of Pharaoh was first recorded being used by the tribes following Ozymandias to describe him in a religious aspect. It seemed to be an additional title attributed to him, or a more specific title that dealt specifically with his control over the early human faith. It is unclear if the title was created for him or if it existed already to describe the head of the faith and he received it when he took control.

After the death of Ozymandias at the hands of the Council of Surket, his son Xerxes inherited the throne and the title of Pharaoh along with it. The Pharaoh became the title for the living god, a sort of intermediary between mortal and divine who would ascend to true godhood upon death. All emperors of Ozymandium were considered Pharaoh.

The title of Pharaoh remained a secondary title of the emperor of Ozymandium until the year 0 AA, when the Aquian Emperor Phillip the Usurper married Safiya, Princess of Ozymandium. Phillip took the title of Emperor of Ozymandium, but gave Safiya the title of Pharaoh in a political move to ease tensions between the Aquian Empire and Ozymandium. This move combined the Cult of Ozymandias with the Cult of Aquias and retained the belief that Safiya was a living goddess, much in the same way that all Emperors of Ozymandium were considered to be.

For the next several hundred years, the Pharaoh was always the wife of the Aquian Emperor. If the Emperor died and a new one took power, the old Pharaoh would kill herself in a ritual that supposedly freed her soul and allowed her to ascend to godhood alongside her husband. This changed after 763 AA, when the Aquian Empire collapsed after the Isle of Aquias was completely flooded over by the Veridian Sea. The Cult of Aquias remained, and the Pharaoh did as well, claiming the titles of Empress of Aquias and Ozymandium upon the death of her husband. The next Pharaoh would also become chosen by the previous one.

For the last 700 years, the Pharaoh has passed from woman to woman. She has remained in Surket and held her claims as Empress, though she doesn't use the titles as their legitimacy is questionable at best. She also theoretically is in charge of the city, but she doesn't enforce that either because of the imbalance of power between her and the Council of Surket. Between the lack of legitimacy and the constant power struggles with the Council of Surket, many scholars say that the position of Pharaoh is obsolete and will not last beyond the next century.

Pharaohs
Below is a list of all currently known Pharaohs

Ozymandian Pharaohs

 * Ozymandias 4000 - 3970 BA
 * Xerxes 3970 - 3940 BA
 * gap in the record
 * Darius IV 47 BA - 0 AA

Aquian Pharaohs

 * Safiya 0 - 57 AA
 * gap in the record
 * Tethys 427 - 448
 * Riala (disputed) 448 - 461
 * Celestia 461 - 467
 * gap in the record
 * Minerva 747-768
 * Tethys II 768 - 791
 * gap in the record
 * Aliya 1424 - 1498
 * Nephys 1498 - 1501 (present)