Foreign Dealings
I've been feeling moderately like crud all month (possibly weather, plague, lingering COVID, acute state of paranoia brought on by not being a native-spawned American in the US these days, that sort of thing) and not been getting much done.
So have some little worldbuilding snacklets that I have managed in the meantime.
In the shade of Empire, distant lights flicker in deference;
They bow not in fear, but in awe of the center's enduring flame.
- inscription above the doors of the Pavilion of Measured Words
The Pavilion of Measured Words, located with its peers on the Star-Gleaming Promenade, is the headquarters of the Ministry of State and Outlands.
They don't, of course, do all their work there. Leaving aside court business, other famous buildings elsewhere in Haníëra¹ associated with the Ministry include both Treaty Hall, the grand reception hall where treaties and other such instruments are formally signed and sealed, located at the end of the Path of Least Resistance, and the Most Serene House of the Friends of the Imperial People, housing legations to and from the Empire's satrapies and client-states.
The Most Serene House is, itself, located at the eastern terminus of the Street of Immanent Destinies, where the street ends at the monumental Gate of Honorable and Harmonious Acceptance of the Mandate. Notably, the western end of the Street opens onto the Avenue of Sempiternal Victory, through the matching Gate of Inevitable Abjection Before the Ecumenical Throne.
It is notable that the two Gates in question are the favored locations for surrender ceremonies, and the choice of which to use is in itself a summary of the terms offered.
- Calmiríë's governance district, surrounding the Imperial Palace, Great Hall of the Senate, and Seat of Judgment. The name literally means "place of duty".