Jhallan

Jhallan was a Zarosian Mahjarrat who was not held in high regards by most others of his kin. Like all Mahjarrat, he is thousands of years old. He is first encountered during The Tale of the Muspah in the form of a Muspah. Jhallan was relatively pacifistic, and hid under the Mahjarrat Ritual Site in a block of ice to avoid being sacrificed in the next Ritual of Rejuvenation. This proved to be fruitless, however, as he ends up getting sacrificed by Lucien at the eighteenth Ritual of the Mahjarrat.

Personality
Jhallan is described by Azzanadra as being rude and sneaky, and thus had trouble fitting in with the other Zarosian Mahjarrat. This becomes evident when he is first encountered during The Tale of the Muspah, as, after he shapeshifts back into his true form, he is quick to tell the adventurer who found him that he has plans to make, and to go away as their constant blathering is distracting him. Jhallan only started acting slightly more polite when he realised that he needed the adventurer's help, as he had become extremely weak during his slumber, and made the excuse that he was rude because he was startled and tired.

Jhallan seems to think little of humans, describing them has having a "feeble mind", and saying that the adventurer is intelligent "for a human".

Azzanadra also describes Jhallan as being fiercely loyal to Zaros, and a good warrior back in his day too. However, by the time of the Fifth Age, Jhallan had grown weary of battle, as he had seen so much battle and violence in his life. Jhallan tried to avoid battle at all costs, which led to him hiding beneath the ritual site and his eventual discovery and sacrifice. Azzanadra, upon hearing of Jhallan being alive, expressed affection to him and decided to aid him at the coming ritual.

Arrival on Gielinor
Jhallan, like the rest of the Mahjarrat, originate from the war-torn plane of Freneskae, a realm full of powerful beasts and elements, which was created by a cruel and archaic elder god. Here, the Mahjarrat had to battle the elements, thick magical currents, and migrating beasts.

In the Second Age, Icthlarin, the Menaphite god of the dead travelled to Freneskae in an attempt to find forces to help ward off the advancing armies of Zaros, and promised the Mahjarrat great battle and sport if they became his followers. Jhallan and the rest of the Mahjarrat accepted his offer, and travelled with Icthlarin to Gielinor.

After serving under Icthlarin for some time, the Mahjarrat began to feel that their powers were being wasted, and eventually the god Zaros approached them. Zaros claimed to see their worth, and promised them more battles if they joined his side. Jhallan and the other Mahjarrat accepted this offer, and the Mahjarrat became a valued part of the Zarosian empire.

Eventually, some of the Mahjarrat became tired of Zaros's rule just as they did of Icthlarin's. Led by the Mahjarrat general Zamorak, who had somehow obtained the Stone of Jas and Staff of Armadyl, a plot to betray Zaros came into being. Zamorak and his followers attacked Zaros's castle, and, through a chain of events, Zamorak was able to stab Zaros in the back with the staff before having the god trip after a short skirmish, causing Zaros's godly energy to be transferred to Zamorak, while Zaros left his body to avoid death. The other gods, angered at one of their own kind being killed, banished Zamorak from Gielinor, and the god Saradomin confiscated the Stone of Jas. Jhallan was one of the few Mahjarrat to stay loyal to Zaros, with the majority of them switching their allegiance to Zamorak. This reinforced the other Zarosians' trust in him, and he became a valued ally to them.

The God Wars
Eventually, Zamorak returned to Gielinor, now a god and more powerful than ever. Zamorak, angered at losing the Stone of Jas, attacked the other gods in the hope of reclaiming it, starting a cataclysmic God Wars. Jhallan and the other Zarosians were persecuted during this time, with an effort by the Zamorakians and Saradominists to wipe all trace of Zaros from the world. Jhallan's exact role in the war is unknown, but most of the Zarosians either went into hiding, were killed, or were captured.

Whatever Jhallan's role, the amount of violence and battle he saw during the wars changed him somewhat, and he became weary of battle, trying to avoid it at all costs.

Eventually, Guthix, the god of balance, awoke and ended the wars, creating the Edicts of Guthix, which meant the gods were now unable to interfere directly with Gielinor. Most Mahjarrat began to search for Guthix after he went back to sleep in order to kill him and return Zamorak or Zaros, but no hunts were successful and they ceased eventually.

Hibernation under the Ritual Site
After the God Wars ended, Jhallan's aversion to battle caused him to grow weaker and weaker, with the other Mahjarrat beginning to view him as pathetic, with Zemouregal remarking that he was ashamed to even call him a Mahjarrat. Due to this, he was viewed as an excellent choice for the next sacrifice. As such, Jhallan chose not to attend the 17th Ritual of Rejuvenation, which had the effect of weakening him further.

Since not attending the Rituals of Rejuvenation would eventually prove fatal, and actually attending would inevitably lead to him being sacrificed, Jhallan decided to try and copy a trick previously attempted by the Mahjarrat Lamistard. In "preparation" for a ritual, Lamistard had tunnelled under the ritual site in order to be close enough to the Ritual marker to be rejuvenated, but without having to actually participate in the ritual. This however, led to his downfall, as he was eventually discovered and sacrificed in the 16th ritual after accidentally tunnelling into the basement of Zemouregal's Fortress.

Seeing Lamistard's mistake, Jhallan decided to hide in a natural cave instead, choosing to encase himself in a block of ice in a cave near the Snowy hunter area, found south-west of the ritual site. Jhallan slept in this block of ice for many years, but eventually had a nightmare, which caused him to shapeshift into a Muspah, a legendary beast from Mahjarrat folk tales.

Discovery
Jhallan was eventually discovered by an adventurer exploring an icy cave while helping a young Fremennik, Erjolf, pass his Fremennik trials. Erjolf saw the Muspah encased in ice on an unreachable island in the middle of the cave and decided it must be some long-lost armour or some other treasure he could use as a trophy to present to the Fremennik, with which he could use bypass the trials entirely. When the adventurer made a path to the island and examined the monster, not knowing what it was, Erjolf suggested that they travel to a nearby natural historian who was hunting Yetis.

After hearing a description of the creature, the historian claimed that it was a mythical creature, as a creature with the proportions described simply could not exist, it was the kind of creature you would often find in folk tales. Recalling reports of a statue in the Kharidian Desert with a similarity to the creature, he sent the adventurer there to try and find it, hoping it could shed some light on what the creature was. After the adventurer arrived there and uncovered the statue, they encountered the Zarosian Mahjarrat Wahisietel, who was disguised as a scholar named Ali the Wise. 'Ali' claimed to have also been searching for the statue, and was shocked when the adventurer claimed to have actually encountered the creature in the flesh. Wahisietel identified the creature as the Muspah - a nightmarish monster from Mahjarrat folklore. Suspecting some Mahjarrat magic at work, Wahisietel tasked the adventurer with investigating the creature and reporting their findings back to him.

Using a spell Wahisietel taught them, the adventurer unfroze the Muspah, which began to move, causing Erjolf to run away in fear. Jhallan, unaware of what he was, and unable to remember anything, demanded the adventurer tell him what he was. Upon hearing he had turned into a Muspah, he regained his memory and transformed back into his true form. Jhallan proceeded to rudely bark at the adventurer to go away, before realising transforming into the Muspah had drained his already depleted power immensely. Realising he needed their help, he calmed down and explained what had happened to him: he had had a nightmare about the Muspah while slumbering, causing him to transform into one. He proceeded to tell the adventurer of the Ritual and how he needed their help to re-enter his hibernation, this time closer to the ritual marker in an area he would not be disturbed.

Jhallan was able to use his remaining strength to travel to a cave just north of the ritual site, and, upon being led by the adventurer to a suitable area directly under the marker, demanded the adventurer re-freeze him. The adventurer, realising that they still hadn't got a trophy for Erjolf, manipulated Jhallan into providing one. Jhallan proceeded to curse all adventurers and their meddling ways, and used his last ounces of strength to create a Muspah tail. The adventurer then allowed Jhallan to return to hibernation, freezing him into a block of ice using a similar spell to the one used to unfreeze him in the first place.

The 18th Ritual of Rejuvenation
As the time for the 18th Ritual drew nearer, many Mahjarrat began to head north. When the time had eventually come, Lucien, using two Elder Artefacts, had established himself as an unofficial leader of the ritual, deeming only himself worthy to decide the sacrifice. After several battles between Lucien and a party of opponents, including the adventurer, Wahisietel and a delegacy of Temple Knights and Guardians of Armadyl, most other Mahjarrat arrived. Some, who had also been absent for previous rituals, such as Azzanadra and Akthanakos attended as well. Jhallan remained frozen underneath the ritual site.

However, it turned out Lucien had somehow become aware of Jhallan's plan. While the other Mahjarrat were quarrelling, Lucien silenced them and decided to sacrifice a Zarosian. He then extracted Jhallan from his icy sanctuary beneath, still frozen. Zemouregal and even Sliske immediately agreed with him, while Khazard and Enakhra adamantly demanded that their rivals, Wahisietel and Akthanakos respectively, be sacrificed instead, deeming Jhallan too insignificant to bother with. Wahisietel stated that Lucien be the sacrifice due to the threat he posed, and proceeded to attack him, being backed up by the other Zarosian Mahjarrat and the party of humans. Yet another battle broke out between the factions, with Jhallan pathetically struggling in the middle of it, being too weak to free himself or say anything.

Zemouregal soon ran into great trouble when he was attacked by both Azzanadra and his former minion Arrav. He begged his cousin Lucien for help, but, upon being blatantly ignored, he realised Wahisietel had been right and convinced the other Mahjarrat to focus on Lucien instead. Everyone present, including the Mahjarrat, the Barrows Brothers, Sir Tiffy Cashien, Idria, and Arrav proceeded to attack him. However, Lucien's immense might allowed him to withstand all of their attacks with ease, but he soon got bored. He demanded everyone stop fighting, as it was time for the ritual, and proceeded to sacrifice Jhallan. Jhallan's body disappeared in a flash of bright white light, killing him, and causing the other Mahjarrat to be rejuvenated, while also causing the nearby humans to experience a strange power.