Structure

Aeriel governance is vested in the Aether Council, a body of elders chosen for wisdom and merit rather than birth or wealth, led by the Archon who serves as head of state and supreme arbiter of Caelum's policies. The Council meets in the Council Chamber of the Primary Plateau, a circular hall open to the sky on its eastern face so that deliberations occur in full view of the celestial vault the Aeriels serve. Membership is not fixed in number but must encompass all three primary Ministries and at least one representative of each inhabited island with a population above five hundred.

The three great Ministries form the administrative backbone of Caelum. The Ministry of Celestial Affairs, currently under Councillor Aelith Starweaver, oversees all astronomical research, star-chart maintenance, and the interpretation of celestial phenomena for policy purposes. The Ministry of Education, led by Councillor Merith Cloudscribe, administers the Celestial Academy and all scholarly institutions, including the nomination of junior astronomers and the oversight of the Academy's three-discipline graduation requirement. The Ministry of Sky Defense, commanded by Councillor Varek Stormborn, directs the Skyguard — the military and peacekeeping force whose three wings patrol the sky-corridors of Caelum and its approaches.

Each floating island is administered by a Governor appointed by the Aether Council, responsible for resource allocation, population welfare, and maintaining the Skyanchor Pylons that keep every island aloft. Island governors may petition the Council directly; disputes between islands are adjudicated by a rotating panel of two Council members and one Elder drawn from outside the dispute. This system has governed Caelum for over eight centuries without formal written constitution, sustained instead by accumulated precedent and the extraordinary lifespans of its participants.