Sheridan's Mausoleum

the resting place of one of the greatest warriors and leaders in human history

ADDENDUM: this record has been altered by Council edict to permanently remove and erase all instances of the name of the Yaatu Parikaa, so that she might be utterly forgotten by history, even if her deeds cannot be.
Sheridan's Mausoleum was the walled monument in the heart of Sheridan's Rest protecting the ruins of what was referred to as either the "The Commander's House" or "The Commander's Crypt". Either name would make sense, as the small log cabin had been built by David Sheridan, the legendary Ancient Mageguard best known as Commander Sheridan, the man who caught and executed *REDACTED*, the founder and leader of the Cult of Terra. Years later, Sheridan's remains were buried under the floor of the small cabin, and the site was revered by the many humans who came to visit it.
The construction of the larger stone monument around the cabin was to protect and preserve it for future generations. Sadly, it failed, and the monument and crypt stood for barely more than 250 years. It's location, and the location of Commander Sheridan's burial, now lost to history.

Purpose / Function

Sheridan's Mausoleum was built to protect and mark the final resting place of the legendary Ancient Mageguard, Commander Sheridan.

Architecture

At the heart of the monument was the simple one room log cabin originally built by Sheridan himself. It served as his home for many years, and was where he died some unknown years before the Sunder. A meter high stone wall was added years later to protect the cabin, under which Sheridan's remains were buried by the Rangers who found him. This wall was added to over the years, as was a tall tower from which a banner celebrating the great man's life was hung.

History

After the death of *REDACTED*, founder and leader of the Cult of Terra, at his hands, Commander Sheridan left Landen and the human settlements in search of the rest of the Cult leadership. He never returned or seen again.
Then came the Sunder. In the first year following the great disaster, thousands of rangers and explorers, and even the Skla'vin, journeyed out in every direction they could searching for remnants of the lashaan. Inevitably, none was found. A great many other things were however. Craters and strange stripped barren land where lashaan settlements must have been. Great natural wonders like The Cascades. New sites of natural resources and strange creatures never seen before.
Amongst these things was discovered a small cabin in a farmstead on the south shore of the River Rothum between the Arche and The Cascades. It was clearly of human construction, decades old, and had not been maintained or lived in several years. A human skeleton was found in the bed inside the cabin, along with various personal effects, and two objects of dramatic significance. The first was a set of Ancient Mageguard armour in a sack in the back of a small storage shed, and the second was a note left on the table next to the bed. The content of the note was lost, though the rangers who found it said that it was both sad and confusing. Crucially however, it was signed "David Sheridan".
The Rangers immediately set up a camp of their own nearby and sent messages back to Landen. The location was set as a meeting and resting place for explorers and Rangers, as the human exodus up the River Rothum began in the following years, vast numbers set out deliberately to visit the now protected resting place of the legendary Commander Sheridan.
Sheridan's remains were sealed in a stonewood coffin and buried deep under the floor of the cabin where he clearly spent his final days, and the cabin itself remained untouched as a grave marker, crypt, and even monument. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the legendary Mageguard Commander had chosen an excellent spot for his small homestead. The area around the little cabin was good for both river and land farming with access to stone, wood, and of course water. It quickly became a permanent settlement and grew even more quickly, despite it's incredible distance from Landen. As more people came, direct access to the cabin needed to be limited to prevent the occasional theft of Sheridan's possessions and general wear and tear on the hand build wooden structure. A stone wall with gate and banner tower were build around the cabin both to mark it's location and to protect it from the public and the ever expanding town that had been named in honour of the mausoleum: Sheridan's Rest.
In the early third century, Sheridan's Rest, like many of the settled areas of the southlands, was experiencing social upheaval. This upheaval was particularly chaotic in Sheridan's Rest and Lashaan's Vigil, as they were the two largest and most prosperous settlements between the growing conservatism in the east, and the growing power of the Mountain dynasties. Conflict began to escalate over access to the River Rothum and growing ideological divides.
Political and economic power in Sheridan's Rest changed dramatically from decade to decade through the 200s. Eventually, conflict within the city, fuelled by undue influence from Landen and the Steel Kingdom, led to an all out battle. During this upheaval, a great fire spread. Between it's destructive force and power of the magic unleashed in the fighting, more than half the city was destroyed. Including Sheridan's Mausoleum. The faction that won the battle were libertarian hardliners. They were ideologically opposed not just to the the Landen Council's attempt to control and regulate magic, but what they saw as a whole history of military repression. When the Commander's Crypt was found burnt down, and the walls of the mausoleum partly destroyed, the victors (many of whom partially blamed Sheridan for the Sunder) celebrated. The ashes were tilled into the ground, and the remaining walls dismantled and the stone carted away for use in the rebuilding of the city.
The ensuing years saw massive changes to the city, and even subsequent battles and fires. Even after the layout of the city solidified and the social situation calmed, the shoreline of the Rothum itself was changed by ques and farmers.
Unsurprisingly, and tragically, the once hallowed spot of Commander Sheridan's burial was lost somewhere within the city that bore his name.

Tourism

Though tourism is of course unheard of in modern Austur, Sheridan's Rest and the great monument it was named for was a special destination for thousands of humans. In the early years after the Sunder, when humanity felt lost and afraid, the discovery of Commander Sheridan's resting place became a somewhat macabre beacon of positivity. For those years when the world was changing and so many people were travelling and expanding up and down the river, it was considered something of a pilgrimage to visit the Commander's Crypt before settling down in one of the new towns, or establishing some new homestead of one's own.

"No single being; human, skla'vin, or even lashaan, can change or save a world alone. We must work together to fight fear and suffering, not each other."

- Commander Dafyd Sheridan, Hero of Legend (24PS)

RUINED STRUCTURE
265AS

Founding Date

unknown

Alternative Names

The Commanders House, The Commander's Crypt

Type

Monument, Large

Parent Location

Sheridan's Rest