Sarahin

Sarahin, translated as the "Wolves' Den", was a unique fortress located deep within the Haunted Lands in Zakhara.

The actual fortress complex was located on a mountain named Jabal Sarahin.

Location
The land surrounding Sarahin was dry but received enough rainfall to support forage for small herds of livestock.

Defenses
Sarahin sat atop a plateau that stood over high. Since the walls surrounding the fortress were quarried from the same rock as the plateau, Sarahin could not be seen from the ground even though the plateau was the highest point as far as the eye could see.

History
Sarahin was originally constructed by Amir Heidar Qan of the jann.

During this time, the fortress of the Everlasting was destroyed, forcing the holy slayers to scatter throughout the Land of Fate. One holy slayer learned of Sarahin and began planning to overtake the citadel with Grandfather Hasan.

Holy slayers infiltrated a nearby village, and attempted to convert the jann to the worship of Hajama. The jann, in turn, tried to convert their sheikh. The sheikh appeared to be won over, but later ambushed the holy slayer missionaries and washed Sarahin's ramparts with their blood. The heads of the missionaries were returned to Grandfather Hasan with a message saying Sarahin belonged to the sheikh.

After receiving the message, the Grandfather traveled to Sarahin where he was admitted as a guest. Hasan told the sheikh that he would forgive the slaughter of his followers if the sheikh would give him all the land that could be contained by a single ox's hide in exchange for 3,000 dinars. Since the sheikh wished to put the matter behind him, he agreed to the deal before his entire court.

Grandfather Hasan then proceeded to cut the ox hide into tiny strips, which he used to surround the entire fortress of Sarahin. Outraged by the clever deceit, the sheikh refused to honor the bargain, but the jann of the court forced him to uphold his word.

Background
The name 'Sarahin' is from the Arabic سَراحِين (sarāḥīn or saraheen), an older word meaning 'wolves' or sometimes 'lions', based on a word for 'goes out between dawn and sunrise', perhaps appropriately for its holy slayers. However, in modern Arabic, it sounds more like 'two landmarks'. The more familiar word for 'wolves' is ذِئَاب‎ (ḏiʾāb or dhiaab‎) and a den for wolves or hyenas is 'wijaar'.