Nuhu Bes (ˈnu.hu ˈbɛs)

"We may never know why the Clarati spared Nuhu Bes, when all other centers of Murian Imperial power were destroyed. Unkind historians claim we were too unimportant for them to bother, but I believe that we were shielded by the blessings of Dewi Calikutli and the other gods of the Nakaal."

— Kertayasa, the Jero Mangku of the temple of Dewi Calikutli

Nuhu Bes is the largest of the Nuhu Islands, and is the center of the Bikusigara. The Ularan who live there claim that the island was once the most important and powerful in the Mangimoi Archipelago, and that Sagara Luhur was the provincial capital of the region during the days of Muria.

While historians are most interested in the capital, most visitors go to the town of Lamaraja to see the Grand Temple of Dewi Calikutli, an ancient sea-goddess of the Ularan. She is one of the few deities from before the destruction of Muria to still be actively worshipped, and her temple is one of the largest and most elaborate in the world. The priests do hasten to inform visitors that there are no longer drownings in the name of the goddess performed there, and that the vast central pool is now for nonlethal rituals only.

The island beyond the two major settlements is mostly given over to agriculture, with cloves, nutmeg, and coconuts being the main crops. The Ularan also raise large herds of pigs and goats for their meat, and they can be seen in the forests and on the hills wherever one goes.

Notable Spirits

The most worshipped entity on Nuhu Bes is Dewi Calikutli, who is the goddess of the seas around the Nuhu Islands. She was born from the cataclysm which shattered ancient Bato, when the ocean flooded what was once an enormous island. Long ago, the priests of Dewi Calikutli would re-enact the birth of the goddess with Anma prisoners standing in for their ancestors of the Anmara, but this practice was retired centuries ago after the remaining Anma sacked the temple and the town of Lamaraja. While the Bikusigara forces were able to drive the invaders out, Dewi Calikutli instructed her priests to use clay figures in the future rather than further provoke the provincials.

Geography

Nuhu Bes is a mountainous island, and heavily forested. The highest point is Gunung Kecil, near the center of the island. It is long and thin, stretching about 55 miles from north to south with a maximum width of six miles.

Type

Island

Location under

Nuhu Islands

Included Locations

• Gunung Kecil
• Lamaraja
• Sagara Luhur

Geographic Details

Location: Southern Region
Latitude: 3.71 degrees South
Longitude: 12.38 degrees West
Average Elevation: 69 ft
Highest Point: 2,467 ft (Gunung Kecil)
Lowest Point: -3 ft
Area: 210 sq mi

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