The great hall shimmered with golden light, a cathedral of art and wealth rather than a simple room. Gilded sconces held hundreds of candles, their flames mirrored in towering gilt-framed mirrors along the walls. Crystal chandeliers dripped from the vaulted ceiling like frozen constellations, scattering shards of brilliance across polished marble floors.
Above, painted gods and muses floated across the frescoed ceiling, their flowing robes and solemn gazes watching from their eternal perch as though blessing, or judging, the ceremony below.
