A Tour of the Imperial Palace
Exterior Features
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The new Imperial Palace was built in a cathedral style using elements of both European Gothic, Romantic, and Baroque as well as some Oriental elements. The new architectural combination was in keeping with the feeling of renewal which had taken hold of the population in the wake of the Exodus.
The first feature of the Imperial Palace are the walls. These walls no longer have the defensive advantage that they once otherwise had due to the predominance of modern weapons such as missiles, phasers, and quantum torpedoes, but the walls serve a symbolic importance in marking the Imperial capital city as the most important city in Trekylon-on-Gaia. Both the walls around the outer perimeter of the Imperial capital and the palatial estate have anti-personnel, anti-tank, and anti-aircraft emplacements to defend against ground and air attacks. In the case of the city walls, base shields are also in place to further defend from orbital bombardment (around the Palace, base shields only protect the palace and the immediate grounds themselves, not the walls or the main gate). The palatial walls surround the mountain on which the Palace is constructed, adding yet another obstacle to ground assaults on the structures within. The main gate serves not only as a defensive redoubt but also a clear signal that a visitor has entered the palatial grounds. There is always a detachment of Palace Guard stationed at the main gate to insure security as well as to provide an Honor Guard for foreign delegates. In times of siege, the main gatehouse acts as a fortified position for the Imperial Redtroops fighting ground attacks. The main gate also carries the flags of visiting foreign heads-of-state and displays them alongside the Imperial banner on special occasions. Every mile along the palatial walls, there are guardhouses where the Palace Guard are garrisoned. These guardhouses serve a double purpose in that they are the munitions storehouses for defending troops, and also makeshift Trauma Centers where injured soldiers receive First Aid. These guardhouses are also protected by anti-aircraft batteries and base shields to prevent enemy troops from being able to use the destruction of the guardhouses as a means of circumventing the main gate defenses and penetrating the palatial grounds. |
Interior Features
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Upon passing through the double doors, visitors come to a grand foyer. A Grand Stairway leads to a pair of double doors which in turn lead to the Grand Hall. The lower floor has the staff quarters (where the staff are treated as extended members of the Imperial family). The upper floor is reserved for honored VIP guests, their staff, and retainers. The doors leading to the Grand Hall are locked after 1700 hours and only Imperial heralds can summon the VIPs after that time (and until 0900 the next day). Guards are stationed at the doors to the Grand Hall, and at the foot of the Grand Stairway.
On entry into the Palace, visitors encounter what has been called the Grand Hall. This hallway, wide enough to accommodate large groups of people at a time, has columns and arches decked in 36-karat gold. Gold curtains add to the generally golden luster of the Grand Hall, and is further heightened by a single red carpet going from the entrance to the pair of golden double-doors called the Golden Doors or the Golden Entrance. It is at these doors that two Panther Guard, an usher, and a herald stand vigil. When foreign dignitaries present themselves for audience with His Imperial Majesty Drake I, the herald steps into the Throne Room ahead of the guest and announces him. The Main Audience Chamber is where open-public audiences with Drake I are held. The chamber is very ornately decorated in the Gothic style, right down to the glass mural of Trekylon's founder, Michael I. The throne itself is on a raised dais, upholstered in red (the predominant color of the empire) on a 24-karat gold frame. On either side of the walkway leading to the dais are stadium-style seats to give guests and VIPs the best views. The left side seats (from the perspective of Drake I on the throne) are reserved for members of the Imperial Parliament and ITC Diet. Right-side seats are for the citizens, ambassadors and VIPs. There is enough room in the aisle to allow for seats for up to twenty additional guests on special occasions. Protocol dictates that no affair of state can be conducted in the Main Audience Chamber except when passing Imperial Edicts (which are different from Parliamentary Decrees). Just off to the right, and behind the throne, the private residence of the Imperial family is a spacious accommodation with a secret escape which even the Panther Guard are not made privy to, for security reasons. The private Imperial residence is off-limits to all but the family (their retainers live in the residence for added security, and not even government officials are allowed access), to give them privacy from both government affairs and public scrutiny. Behind the Imperial residence (and not shown here), the Imperial bedchamber is where the emperor and his wife (Drake I is currently not married) retire after a busy day of attending public ceremonies, parliamentary sessions, and VIP audiences with foreign guests. Like the residence, the bedchamber is off-limits to all but the Imperial family. To the left and behind the throne, is the Private Audience Chamber, where the emperor can meet with members of the Council of Ministers, the ITC Diet, and the Imperial Parliament. It is off-limits to foreign visitors except by special invitation from the emperor himself as the private chamber is not accessible to news media. The room itself is not as ornately decorated as the Main Chamber, but red remains the predominant color. Often, light breakfasts or lunches are served in the private chamber due to the presence of a low table. This is most especially convenient when the emperor and ministers are in discussion about new government policy or new foreign policy. |
Guest Rooms
The various guest rooms at the palace can accommodate the needs of the different species of VIP guests, due to the architectural and technological design. Climate-controlled rooms with adjustable humidity, pressure, and even atmosphere enable those VIPs that breathe non-oxygen atmosphere to sustain themselves.
Because it is recognized that many VIPs will have certain specific requirements and even taboos, each guest room is designed so that furniture, interior decor, and lighting can be changed and adjusted based on the requirements of its occupants Guest rooms range in size from small condos which can house two people, to grand chamber-like rooms that can hold twelve comfortably. Smaller guest rooms are located underground, yet thanks to technology, they can provide the occupants with the illusion of having viewports to the outside world. The larger VIP guest rooms have windows which open to stunning views of the surrounding mountains, and the nearby Imperial Bay, and Panther River. |
Gardens and Recreation
The Palace Grounds were designed with green-space in mind, despite the mountaintop location of the palace itself. This produced a challenge to landscape designers and botanists to come up with a means to utilize the expansive green-space to maximum advantage. It was then-Regent Drake who had first proposed a gardens which would help hold the land on which the foundations of the palace rested and still provide the much-needed peace and tranquility from the daily affairs of state. To this end, a series of terraces broken up by water-filled ravines, suspension bridges, and grottoes were created within the 100 acres of land enclosed within the Palatial Walls. The front gardens are what visiting VIP guests first see upon entering the Palatial Walls, with a large pathway wide enough for small vehicles leading to the porch. This is the garden that is open to VIP guests as well as visiting government senators.
A separate garden expanse was created, separated by the palace itself and closed to all except the Imperial family. Here, the terraced system is continued, with the addition of a small stream and waterfall as well as a large grotto. In the gardens, various species of trees, shrubs, flowering plants and ferns give the gardens an almost rain-forest appearance, and this has even resulted in an unusual micro-climate nearly approximating the rain-forests of the southern continents. The success of these various plants is attributed to the genetic engineering which makes them hardy enough to sustain themselves even in the lower temperature environment of the mountains.
A separate garden expanse was created, separated by the palace itself and closed to all except the Imperial family. Here, the terraced system is continued, with the addition of a small stream and waterfall as well as a large grotto. In the gardens, various species of trees, shrubs, flowering plants and ferns give the gardens an almost rain-forest appearance, and this has even resulted in an unusual micro-climate nearly approximating the rain-forests of the southern continents. The success of these various plants is attributed to the genetic engineering which makes them hardy enough to sustain themselves even in the lower temperature environment of the mountains.