Xquic

Xquic (or Ixquic /ˈʃkikʼ/, ALMG / INALI: Xkikʼ, sometimes glossed as "Blood Moon" or "Blood Girl/Maiden" in English) is a mythological figure in the myth of the Hero Twins known from the stelae of Izapa, Mexico and the 16th century Kʼicheʼ manuscript Popol Vuh. She was a maiden and the daughter of one of the lords of Xibalba, who became pregnant by the god Hun Hunahpu while being a virgin and became the mother goddess of the Hero Twins, Hunahpu and Xbalanque. The myth of Ixquic and the Twin Gods originated at the ancient site of Izapa in Mexico dating back to the Preclassic period of Mesoamerica, her earliest representation is found on the stela 10 from Izapa, which contains a complex mythological scene depicting Ixquic after giving birth to the twins Hunahpú and Ixbalanqué, who appear at her side and under the tree into which the head of Hun-Hunahpú was transformed after being severed. This scene was narrated centuries later in the Popol Vuh, where according to the story, she was the daughter of Cuchumaquic, one of the Lords of Xibalba (Xibalba being the Maya underworld). She heard about Hun Hunahpu, a god who after being defeated in a ball game was decapitated and his head had been transformed into a tree. She visited the tree and became pregnant when Hun Hunahpu put saliva on her hand. The lords of Xibalbá decided to sacrifice her when they noticed her pregnancy, considering it a disgrace, but she managed to escape from the underworld. She went out into the overworld and looked for Ixmucane, the mother of Hun Hunahpu with whom she lived after demonstrating her powers and later gave birth to the twin gods Hunahpu and Xbalanque.