Habel and the other old mages had always believed their intelligence and cunning far surpassed the magical talent heaven had given them.
Even if their own efforts could not transform them completely, they could at least rise above ordinary people.
Hadn't Alustriel and the other Seven Sisters simply lived long enough to be lucky enough to meet the previous Goddess of Magic?
They had no desire to become anyone's lackeys. Once they had the Demon Lord in hand... given how the Toril Gods bullied the weak and feared the strong, what could they do, no matter how much they hated them?
They had seen plenty of evil gods, devils, and demons commit atrocities across Faerûn and get away with it. They were utterly confident about their future.
It seemed never to have occurred to them that their plan might fail.
If the one they had offended were Umberlee, they might have had some hope.
If the Toril Gods were truly as magnanimous as they appeared, why would the Demon Lords of the Bottomless Abyss behave so politely now?
Aside from the evil gods, the other gods simply tried to show their gentler side to their followers... even those who killed without hesitation could still appear forgiving.
No one settled other matters openly... just as Six-Finger had been dragged into the Main World twice in succession... both times after he had humiliated Waukeen.
The timing had been perfect each time... the first came when Six-Finger had completely seized three layers of the Abyss, just as the Bottomless Abyss was about to raise him to a position comparable to Demogorgon's.
Just when Six-Finger felt he was one step from success, an opportunity suddenly appeared to drag a wonderfully perfect world into the Abyss.
Then he was trapped.
The second time, Demogorgon's subordinates