Moonsea, Zhentil Keep.
Built on the shores of the Moonsea, Zhentil Keep had originally been the stronghold of Bane, the God of Tyranny. After Prince Manshoon of Zhentil Keep and Bane's cleric Fuzor joined forces to reclaim control of the city, Manshoon declared the worship of Bane its official faith. Fuzor, meanwhile, broke with Bane's orthodox Church in Mulmaster, established a rival authority, and proclaimed himself Bane's true high priest. He erected the Dark Altar and incorporated most of Zhentil Keep's clerics of Bane into the Zhentarim.
This had not actually been Bane's intention. The God of Tyranny would have preferred to bring the Zhentarim under his direct control. But Bane liked capable, ambitious young men, and he soon endorsed Fuzor's ambitions. He offered the local Zhentarim many words of encouragement, accepted their repentance, strengthened their faith, and told Manshoon, "Go ahead. You still have me behind you."
With Bane's support, the Zhentarim soon flourished. The construction of Ravenhold in the north marked the gradual establishment of Manshoon's hegemony over the Moonsea, and the Zhentarim began seeking to build a new empire centered on Zhentil Keep.
Zhentil Keep was the nerve center of the Zhentarim, the vigorously beating heart of Bane's dark forces.
As the sea breeze rose over the Moonsea, Cyric, the Dark Sun Prince, climbed to the top of Zhentil Keep's tower and surveyed the evening view.
Beneath the setting sun, merchant ships with black sails crossed the waters of the Moonsea like banks of dark clouds gathering before a storm engulfed a city.
The Moonsea's shipping had always been the busiest in the central Realms. Goods arriving along the Black Road brought the Zhentarim enormous profits, while the Chessenta-Tumis route, which crossed the Dalelands and Sembia and led straight to the southern Sea of Fallen Stars, further