Following the triumph at Hieros, the Sultan sought to reward Ali Ghazzawi. He was granted the rank of Wazir and dominion over Eremos, a colossal planet with a diameter of 162,557 kilometers. However, the gift was a poisoned chalice. Eremos was a dead world—a relentless, arid desert with no natural resources and almost no water. With 42-hour days, temperatures that swung from a blistering 55°C at noon to a freezing -10°C at night, and a meager population of 2 million sub-humans barely surviving on moisture vaporators, it was a wasteland. Yet, Ali accepted.
The political tides shifted quickly. Within a year, the greedy Sultan was assassinated by his own brother. The new ruler, recognizing Ali’s strategic importance, granted him the mountainous planet of Oros and—most importantly—an imperial monopoly. Ali Ghazzawi became the sole individual authorized to manufacture Reaper’s weapons within the Khilij Empire.
Under Ali’s reign, Eremos transformed. What began as a weapons forge evolved under his successors into the greatest shipyard in the galaxy. The desolate desert was gradually swallowed by a global machine. The ship industries grew with such ferocity that the entire planet was encased in a shell of heavy industry.
Today, Eremos is home to 48 billion sub-humans. It remains an arid world; when the fierce desert winds howl, they carry a fine, orangish sand into the atmosphere, staining the sky a permanent, dusky hue. The Ghazzawi family has covered nearly every inch of the surface with factories, sprawling markets, and high-density residential sectors. At any given hour, thousands of starships descend through the haze to Oros, seeking everything from a single engine bolt to a custom-built imperial cruiser.
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To manage this massive population and infrastructure, Eremos is divided into specialized Sectors known as Blocks:
* Block A: The crown of the planet. A lush, high-security zone containing the grand palace of the House of Ghazzawi.
* Blocks C, Y, F, R, and Q: The industrial heart, dedicated entirely to the construction and repair of spacecraft.
* Blocks G, T, U, and P: Massive, dense residential zones for the billions of workers.
* Block W: The most secretive sector, housing the weapon foundries where the Reaper’s blades are forged. Entry is restricted to authorized personnel only.
* Block O: The military district, serving as the headquarters for the Ghazzawi legions.
* Block D: The largest and most volatile sector. It is a lawless expanse that houses the empire’s most notorious Black Market.
For years, the House of Ghazzawi battled the Underworld Lords of Block D. Each time a crime lord was executed, a more ruthless replacement emerged. Recognizing the futility of a war of attrition—and the immense potential for profit—the family changed tactics. After a nearly successful military purge, the remaining Underworld Lords swore absolute, blood-bound loyalty to the Ghazzawi line.
Now, the black market thrives under the family's secret protection. While rival noble houses of the Khilij Empire frequently accuse the Ghazzawis of harboring criminal enterprises, the loyalty of the Underworld Lords is so absolute that no evidence has ever reached the Imperial throne. Block D remains a place where anything can be bought for the right price, provided the Ghazzawi family gets their cut.
