The House of Sand and Knives is a mythical place in the Sangora Desolation recounted in the stories and legends of the Akwarai dwarves. It is said to be the place from which the desert began, causing the mountains the Akwarai once lived in to collapse to sand, and also the place at which the desert will end.
Many have fruitlessly attempted to search for the House of Sand and Knives. Nearly all explorers who set off with such aims are outsiders who heard the stories of the Akwarai, as to the dwarves it exists in its own time and can never be found until it is ready. The House is described to be a magnificent template made of stone, rising high out of the surrounding dunes. Its central dome is supported by a ring of simple yet grand columns. Within this dome sits a small pedestal, and upon this pedestal lies the first and last grain of sand. Though not present in the stories of all clans, in many the great serpent Mushmah is said to coil around this pedestal and its grain, protecting them from those who would interfere with the desert.