Hill and Lynn weren't the only ones who knew. Most well-informed people had heard that Fzoul Chembryl, leader of the Zhentarim and a bishop of Bane, had used Eye Tyrants to brainwash most of the Bane Church's senior clergy so he could become its undisputed leader.
Many believers had been sent to Meteorite Island in the Starry Sky to pray before a supposed Bane Holy Relic. Those who prayed devoutly and gave everything without fear never knew that the god who answered them so warmly was an Eye Tyrant.
By the time they left Meteorite Island, they had lost their own wills and become Fzoul's loyal followers.
Yet this near-blasphemer had absolute control over the Zhentarim. He spread fear of Bane across Faerûn, and the Zhentarim's reign of terror helped Bane regain Greater Divine Power so quickly. Bane therefore didn't care that the priest was using him.
It certainly fit an Evil God. Results were all that mattered to them. As long as the man didn't place himself above his god, a priest who knew when to die was still a good priest in Bane's eyes.
But did Bane think few people knew about it? Harpers had long since infiltrated the Zhentarim. The leaders of the Northlands knew, and so did most rulers across Faerûn.
Between the two, Hill found himself respecting the princes of Ghost City more.
The Arcanists forced back into the Shadowfell by that desperate battle must have received some promise. Perhaps those who remained on the continent would find a way to bring them back.
But as a practitioner of magic, Hill understood that the princes of Ghost City were probably more fixated on the Nether Scrolls than on returning to their Netheril homeland.
And yet, while they were frantically hunting for the Nether Scrolls stolen