Sliske

Sliske is a Mahjarrat loyal to Zaros. Azzanadra describes him as "Sliske the serpent-tongued, who delves the shadows"." and Zemouregal calls him: "One of the more powerful of our number. Sliske has particularly strong shapeshifting capabilities and powers over shadows. I would love to catch this guy, but he's a slippery fellow." His name is similiar to the Polish word "śliskie" meaning "slippery" Sliske is one of the more mysterious, and for that matter the more powerful, Mahjarrat, being unfindable unless he desires to seek you himself. He also collects strong warriors and adds them to his collection as his undead wights, which he uses in battle.

Abilities
Not much is known of Sliske's powers. He is known for "delving the shadows," possibly due to his "powers over shadows," as Zemouregal mentioned in his notes. Sliske's "power over shadows" is noted to be very useful by Azzanadra, who states that "Not many of our kind are able to reach into the Shadow Realm, but of those who can, Sliske’s mastery is unmatched." . Azzanadra has also said of Sliske, "An ally he may be, but I did not become master of my Lord's legions without being sure of the powers wielded by those close to me. Sliske is one whose actions can be seen each and every day in the smallest of this world's details."

Suggested by the fellow Mahjarrat's comments, it is possible that Sliske is intelligent and very cunning, as he was known to Azzanadra as "Sliske the serpent-tongued" and a "slippery fellow" to Zemouregal. His "Serpent-tongue" seems to similiar to the abilities of the Ring of Charos, Azzanadra states that "too many would assume this to be just his manner of speaking – he is far from being a snake. Rather, his words carry weight in the mind, and have a way of bending the weak to his will." in Postbag 44. Azzanadra has also stated that "Power is fleeting, and Sliske always gets what he wants out of deals; I’d advise, should you ever meet him, not to make deals with him.". This is further evidenced by his backstabbing the player in The Ritual of the Mahjarrat, where he attempts to turn you into a Barrow wight

He is thought to have great control over the undead, as he is thought to be the stranger in The Fall of Six who granted the Barrows brothers their abilities and is thought to have reanimated their spirits; the stranger in the tale is described as "delving into the shadows at its (the camp's) edge". Azzanadra states that "Sliske himself did not kill his Barrows toys, but it was the power he granted them that sealed their fate." It seems Sliske only controls specific warriors of whom he thinks are worthy of becoming his slaves, unlike Zemouregal who takes any zombie as his servant, and trains them later.



Involvement with Nex
According to Ashuelot Reis, Sliske (during the God Wars) manipulated some Saradominists to do his bidding (under the pretense of converting them as well as revealing how to wake Guthix from his slumber) in order to unleash Nex, a Zarosian general, upon the world again. He was successful in doing so and Nex was free once more. Following this, Sliske disappeared.

Ritual of the Mahjarrat
Sliske first shows himself to the player in The Ritual of the Mahjarrat. He reveals himself to be the individual who has been keeping The Barrows Brothers trapped as vengeful spirits. He appears at Ghorrock for the Ritual of Rejuvenation just as the player, Wahisietel, Sir Tiffy Cashien and a battalion of Temple Knights are fighting Lucien and his forces. Sliske joins the fight against Lucien, aiding in defeating the Ice Demons that the other Mahjarrat summons. When the Ritual commences, Sliske goes against Khazard's suggestion that Wahisietel be sacrificed and then goes along with Lucien's suggestion that fellow Zarosian Jhallan be sacrificed because he is the weakest of all the remaining Mahjarrat. When Wahisietel demands that Lucien be sacrificed because of the danger he poses to Gielinor, a fight breaks out amongst the Zarosians and the Zamorakians during which Sliske summons the Barrows Brothers to fight off Zemouregal's zombie minions as well as Arrav while he fights Zemouregal's second in command, Sharathteerk. After the Ritual is completed and Lucien is killed by the Dragonkin for attempting to use the power of the Stone of Jas, Sliske is one of the few Mahjarrat who does not teleport away out of fear. Instead, impressed by the player's power, he remains to attempt to claim the player as a new addition to the Barrows Brothers, but fails because Akrisae saves the player by jumping in front of the spell that Sliske had cast. Akrisae is then turned into a Barrows Brother called Akrisae the Doomed and Sliske teleports away with his new minion, commenting that he will do for now.