Imperial Palace

The Imperial Palace is a massive complex built on the estuary of the Blessed River in the Pale City, capital of the Aulesiri Empire. Construction on the edifice began only shortly after the foundation of the city itself. According to legend, Luseysi insisted on the humblest dwelling for himself, but even if this was true, his successors immediately started to craft a gigantic and sumptuous home for themselves. Over the centuries, other buildings were demolished or annexed, until the palace incorporated almost the entire western shore of the estuary.

The bulk of the complex is a series of interconnected buildings, nearly continuous from the River's Edge to the northern walls of the city, containing the imperial quarters, that of their enormous household, a vast series of kitchens, assembly halls, feasting rooms, chapels, baths, a cordoned-off area that has been frequently used as a harem (though the current emperor, Auren II, has not indulged in that particular excess).

The palace is connected by a bridge to the Solemn Isle that separates the Blessed River's estuary from the bay. This island serves as a thickly forested parkland for the Imperial family, as well as being the location of the famed Imperial Shrine. On the other side of the Palace stands the Inner Gardens, walled off from the rest of the Pale City, and accessible only from the Palace, by a footbridge over the road that separates them.

The Palace is connected to the south of the city by the Emperor's Way, and to the Lunar Shrine by the Gods' Way.