Hélice: The Island of Komnenos
Overview
Komnenos is regarded by many as the most beautiful of all Helian Isles. Though many of different preferences disagree and say that Tyros - with its majestic white-cliff hills, flood plains and amphitheaters built along the edges of mountains - is the most beautiful, or even Koros with its many valleys and the sheer volume of its crystal blue beaches... few can deny that Komnenos is, at the very least, the most colorful of all Helice. The trees of Komnenos are all of a rare breed, and sprout many different shades in a charming variance. Trees of blue, pink, purple, white, light green and even gold leaves are very common and many such trees are upheld by white bark of a shade similar to that of pale sand.
The Isle is grassy and carries a similar white shade to much of the stone as Tyros has, with many of the mountains and hills revealing this colorful contrast along their edges. There are many rare flowers on Komnenos as well, ones which tend to obnoxiously adorn themselves with greater opulence than a rose's bloom. It is a land celebrated as an example of Pyrrha's eminence, conjoined with the glory of Arsinos and his sun. Komnenos is marginally sunnier than even the remainder of Helice, leading many to note on the Komneni complexion that is often notably more bronze to that of the typical Helian.
There is also one more thing Komnenos is known for -- its pleasures. Komnenos serves almost as a prototypical hospitality-based society, saturated in monuments and attractions unseen on other islands, as well as finely crafted foods and beverages. It has many of Helice's best restaurants and certainly holds the vast majority of the archipelago's skilled vintners. Many Komneni also take the trade of prostitution by night, and are even requested by clients upon other isles to sail to their dominion and offer them their skill. For these reasons, compiled, Komnenos is regarded as an island of youthful exuberance and nighttime pleasures, whether through the satisfaction of one's palate or the depths of hedonism.
The Isle is similar to Kephallonia in total population, though at a lower number of around six thousand. It is the most diverse of all islands in terms of race; though it is still dominated by humans and to a lesser extent biqaj, there are a significant number of members of other races, including Sev'ryn, Eidisi, and Lotharro. Many of these races are diluted and mixed in blood, however, due to centuries of separation from the Southern Continent.
Komnenos is led by a matriarchal council known as the hariphii. These councilwomen tend to lead their own villages and will convene to make island-impacting decisions in Heraion, where the greatest of all hariphii rules. Their station within their order is determined by the accuracy of their predictions, as all hariphii serve as augurs. Many across Helice pay for their prophecies, often to legitimize noble children with tidings of conquest and valor, or to speak of great fortune yet to be acquired; they are con artists, but motivators to the public. As Komnenos is a very evenly distributed society in terms of population, there are many hariphii and they tend to be fairly equal in influence.
Heraion
Heraion is a modest city-state centered around the Hariphii Commune, driven by wealthy visitors from other isles and populated by agoras of food and drink vendors, craftsmen and artists, freelance prostitutes and other such things. The city-state is known for its perpetual state of light, as there are lanterns running across every building to the one beside them, and all lanterns are lit from late evening to the rise of dawn. As Komnenos is known for its colorful landscape, such lights often emphasize intricate displays of color that marvel onlookers - especially those new to the Isle.
The city-state also has some of the most monuments of them all, with many statues of both Gods and political figures across time, as well as characters from Tyros-inspired heroics that are popular among the islanders.
The settlement is led by the hariphii-megana, a fortune seer of few comparison with what has been labeled even by many cynical Helians as the ability to see through cracks into the future. Of course, the hariphii-megana is simply a woman of great knowledge on history, precedent, politics and logistics, and makes educated determinations on future events generally once the outcome is already certain. Still, she is regarded with exalted import, and her services are often requested by some of the most powerful men and women in Helice so that she might serve as a sort of advisor to their growth.