Hiel Palace

The **Hiel Palace**, also known as the **Lux Palace**, was an elegant building in the heart of Hiel, capital city of the planet Giath's human inhabitants. In the days of the Ghost Wars, it was home to the Lux Republic of Giath, and the palace from which Mayor Austin Hiel ran the government.

## Layout

### Exterior

Built at the heart of the city, the Hiel Palace lay on a slight rise at the edge of Hiel, overlooking the vast lake of Hiel. It was a compound of multistoried buildings and turrets, surrounded by ramparts and defensive moats filled with water. The palace appeared as an assemblage of shallow domes and tall, sharp spires that gleamed white and gold in the daylight. A beautiful ensemble of orchards and gardens surrounded the castle’s outer enclosure, and several terraces were built on various levels, providing the inhabitants with fresh air and light. The north tower was equipped with a lofty balcony, from which the old moats and the palace's ramparts could be seen unobstructed.

The way to the main gates of the palace went through a twisting path in the middle of a blooming garden, lined with majestic dark golden trees. The front entrance itself was a wide wooden door ornamented with intricate carvings. There were other entrances to the castle, including one in the curved south wall, another in the east wall, and another gate the officers used to enter and exit their private wing in the back of the castle.

### Internal layout

The multistory building included kilometres of winding corridors and all manner of bedrooms, ballrooms and reception rooms. The palace featured a reception room contained within a dome-shaped structure, a ballroom with a marble staircase, a throne room, a bridge-spanned reflecting pool, and Austin Hiel's study—which overlooked the lake and was surrounded by gardens.

The palace's most formal room was topped by a domed ceiling and panelled with wood. There was no furniture inside, and a massive, sun-shaped lighting fixture hung from the ceiling.

One of the palace's entrances led to the first hall, a long hallway decorated with statues, art and sculptures. That room provided access to a series of offices, most of which were occupied by low-ranking bureaucrats. By walking past the suite of offices, visitors could reach the grand hall, an ornately decorated chamber, the grand hall in which the royalty of Hiel held court. That second hallway was lined with pillars and featured a grand staircase that led to a lower level. Down the steps of the grand hall lay another series of chambers, which included a map room that contained a map of the galaxy. There were also a meeting chamber, a steam bath room, the dining hall and the lounge of the council and the amphitheatre. That final room not only hosted the official gatherings of the Lux Republic, but also contained the only possible access to the castle's best kept secret: the hidden chamber from which the Depository was held.

The private wing of the Mayor was located at the back side of the palace. It was equipped with transparent doors marching along a wall so that the surrounding gardens would be seen in full display. The Lux Republic of Giath often gathered in this room in the mornings and evenings because the sunset light made it gleam like a flower.

Honoured guests had the benefit of their own wing, which was located a long distance from the main reception room of the palace. Those particular chambers featured a balcony, scarlet floor tiles, wide windows an a large, round bench settee.