Elden Ring's Gloam-Eyed Queen is shrouded in mystery. She was the Empyrean who originally wielded Destined Death and cradled the Godskin Apostles who still hunt the demigods to this day. Chosen by her own Two Fingers, she rivalled Queen Marika's rule, but Maliketh defeated her in battle and sealed away Destined Death within his blade, securing Marika's immortal age.
The Gloam-Eyed Queen's identity is still unknown even after Shadow of the Erdtree, but there are clues that lend credence to the theory that Melina, who becomes our maiden at the very start of the game, was the Gloam-Eyed Queen all along.
As Reddit user InfiniteTakedown explains in their incredibly impressive and detailed thread (which you can read in full above), it's never stated that the Gloam-Eyed Queen stole the rune of Destined Death, merely that she had it. This seems to imply that she was once a trusted demigod, and we know that Marika bestowed Great Runes among her children.
There's countless evidence in Elden Ring and Shadow of the Erdtree that Melina's mother is Marika. She was born at the foot of the Erdtree, which Shadow of the Erdtree places as the Shaman Village where...
