Yanar's Monument - The "Spectral Wall"
On Terminus' Western Coast sits Yanar's Monument. Also called the "Spectral Wall," this building spans a large distance of coastline.
This monument consists of the main building, in the shape of a large passenger sail boat, and the long, waist high, stone wall that runs North and South from the building for several miles along the coast. Along the wall are several "light points" where open gaps in the wall face the ocean to allow light to shine out. Every six miles there is a larger "light tower" that stands notably above the rest of the wall. These are used to guide ships along the coast.
Built centuries ago in memory of the Yanar Crash, an incident where a passenger ship called The Spectral (often referred to as The Spectral Yanar in recent history) was caught in an unusually large storm that toppled the ship and sent it crashing into the cliffs (where the monument now sits). All of over six hundred people on the ship perished in the incident.
Yanar's Monument was created from the remains of the ship. What was possible was brought up from the shore to the cliff top, and turned into a building that resembles the capsized ship. At the top of the ship's mast a light is kept lit year round to pay respects to those who died, and warn any passing ships of the cliffs.
Aftermath and the Spectral Wall
The Yanar Crash was a large scale event as, due to the ships nature of carrying passengers to several locations along the coast, many from all over Terminus lost someone in the incident. As a result people countrywide travelled to the coast to pay respects and help build the initial monument. However more people wanted to help than were needed for the initial build so, and it isn't known who began this, some brought stones to the site and set them on either side of the Monument Building. Others joined this process, adding more and more stones until small waist high walls started to form. This continued, with every person who came to pay respects adding their own stone to the wall, letting it grow just a little further. While initially just using stones from the local area, when word of this spread people who came to mourn those who were lost began bringing stones from their hometowns, using them as gravestones for those who were lost. It is now tradition for people to travel to Yanar's Monument when grieving the death of a loved one, usually if they were lost in an event that left no body, however some come to pay respects regardless. This is a tradition that still exists in the modern day, with any who visit the wall adding their own stone (though it is considered polite to only add stones from the local area unless a stone is brought specifically as a gravestone).The Yanar Coast - The "Flaming Stones"
The Yanar Coast is a notable area where small, naturally occuring, flames constantly burn from vents in the rocks. These are fuelled by underground gas emissions, primarily methane, that keep the flames burning. It isn't known exactly how old the flames are, but they are (collectively) at least 2500 years old. These have been used to mark the coast by sailors for centuries, in fact the oldest recordings of them come from sailing logs. However, they can be dimmed by intense coastal storms - which is believed to have been the cause of the Yanar Crash. The "Spectral Wall" built as part of the Yanar Monument is designed to prevent this. It protects the flames from wind and rain, and helps concentrate gases towards them. This keeps the flames burning, brighter even than the open flames. Coupled with openings that focus the light towards the open water, this creates a much stronger effect. The Wall is now a useful, reliable, coastal feature for sailors to navigate with.Sensory & Appearance
The Yanar Monument building often smells of wet wood, due to being on the coast. The building creaks in the wind, with the swaying wood. However its quite light inside, due to the constant flames in the area. These are also used to heat the monument, making it pleasent to spend time in.
Contents & Furnishings
Inside the main monument building, several items are displayed that tell the tale of the Yanar Crash. This includes parts of the ship that survived, such as chests, furniture and tattered sails; goods or items owned by the passengers (most notably a half destroyed child's stuffed toy) ; and items donated by relatives of those who died.
Architecture
The monument is messy, somewhat by design as cut bricks aren't used in its creation, simply placed stones. This makes it a disjointed, but charmingly natural design.
As people bring grave markers from all over Terminus to place in the wall, the rocks are missmatched. While most rocks used in the wall are from the local area, it is easy for those trained in identifying rock to tell when one has been brought from elsewhere, and where it came from.
Defenses
The monument isn't build for traditional defence, but is built to withstand sea storms. It is reinforced in several places, and visitors are asked to report any damages so volunteers can replace any lost segments, or add reinforcement where needed.
Tourism
Also known as the "Light Wall," Yanar's monument has become one of the great sights of the world. From a ship sailing off the coast the Light Wall is a stunning twinkle of fire-light, focused out to sea due to the walls build, that shimmers in the night.
It isn't uncommon for passenger ships to slow themselves around the monument, or sail an inefficient route to pass it, so their guests may view it. Some ships also sail out solely to give visitors the view (however this is regulated to minimise the number, as it's considered disrespectful to those who visit to mourn).
Due to tourism a tale that the lights are the spirits of those who've lost their life at sea, trapped in this world forever mourning their loss, has been spun. However this has no basis, and appears to be a tale told to visitors by guides to create a "more wondrous experince."
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