Gunung Pau (ɡu.nuŋ paw)

"That's not a mountain. It's a memorial. A gravestone to an entire civilization."

— a resident of Xuyla discussing Gunung Pau

Gunung Pau is the highest point on the island of Xuyla. While it looks like a natural mountain, it is actually a gigantic pile of stones and rubble placed there by the grieving gods of Anmara when that kingdom was destroyed by the Nakaal of Muria. For many of them, the mountain was their gravestone as well; between the destruction of their physical anchors and the deaths of so many of their worshippers, the gods of Anmara were rapidly fading from the memory of the world.

In the thousands of years since the mountain was created, it has become overgrown by forest, and has settled into a stable pile. During the deforestation of Xuyla a century ago, the loggers still found many relics of the ancient world just beneath the surface. Fragments of buildings, ancient statues, and even the bones of the dead were all uncovered. When the great dragon-goddess Latu-Mangga arose from her lair beneath the mountain, she returned all of these relics to their resting places, where she and her companions had heaped them in the aftermath of the cataclysm.

Notable Spirits

Many nameless phantoms haunt the mountain. These are the specters of ancient gods, who have been forgotten by all but Latu-Mangga herself. In her restless dreaming beneath Xuyla, she struggles to hold each member of her ancient family in mind so that they do not fade entirely away. But no single being, not even a god, can be the sole believer in a pantheon, and they have become little more than shadows flitting across the landscape of her mind and occasionally manifesting in the physical realm.

Geography

Gunung Pau has a fairly gradual slope, with few areas that are difficult to climb. However, there are many places where the mountain is unstable, and sometimes the surface conceals large empty spaces. Sinkholes and landslides can appear at any time, especially in the last hundred years. While the mountain is heavily forested, large animals tend to avoid it, and it is common to see nothing bigger than an insect when visiting.

Alternative Name(s)

Tama Loku

Type

Mountain / Hill

Location under

Xuyla

Geographic Details

Location: Southern Region
Latitude: 1.83 degrees South
Longitude: 18.41 degrees West 
Elevation: 3,520 ft

The Mountain of Grief

In the ancient language of the Anma, the mountain is known as Tama Loku, or the Mountain of Grief. The sorrow that built the mountain has permeated the local metaphysical environment, and those who stand on the slopes can feel its impact. Their thoughts will turn to the things and people they have lost, adding their own grief to that already accumulated there. Sometimes, the ghosts of the mountain will manifest with the faces of those being actively mourned. More than one person has perished trying to catch such a ghost, plunging headlong down the nighttime slope.