Thane's Restitution

## **Prisoners of the Drow**

After being captured by the drow, a handful of prisoners sit in the slave pen of the drow outpost Velkynvelve. There is Buppido (a talkative derro), Eldeth Feldrun (a dwarf ranger), Erixx Blacktooth (a half-orc barbarian), Jimjar (a cunning deep gnome), Prince Derendil (a quaggoth who claims to be a cursed elf prince), Ront (a brutish orc), Sarith Kzekarit (a drow accused of murder), Shint (a dwarf bard), Shuushar the Awakened (a kua-toa mystic), Stool (a myconid sprout), Topsy and Turvy (a pair of totally not were-rat deep gnome twins) and finally, the focus of this story, Thane ‘the Thorne’ Hayhurst (a paladin seeking vengeance and perhaps something greater).

The prisoner’s begin talking amongst themselves and Thane proposes an escape attempt. Most of the prisoner’s agree and break out of their restraints using a rusty iron bar Thane found. They lay in wait until their warden, Ilvara Mizzrym, and her underlings, Shoor Vandree and the recently disgraced Jorlan Duskryn.

As the cell doors are opened for the prisoners to be doled out their tasks for today, the prisoners spring into action and begin attacking them. After a long fight in which several of the prisoners nearly die, Jorlan sees the opportunity and downs Ilvara with the intention of embarrassing her. However as the prisoners swiftly finish her off and surround him, he surrenders realizing he is just as much a fugitive as they are and offers to help them escape. Thane punches him across the face then accepts his offer.

After a brief rest, they swiftly take the armory and arm themselves. Newly equipped they manage to defeat all guards and quaggoth on one half of the outpost. They barricade that half to the rest and prepare for the fight ahead.

After a drawn out fight, they manage to cut their way through the guards and slaughter the remaining occupants of Velkynvelve.

## **Into Darkness**

As this Motley Crew of fugitives escapes into the darkness, they encounter a handful of demons that they barely manage to dispatch. After gaining a fair distance from their previous prison, they stop to rest and take inventory of what they know and where they should go.

They decide that they should go to Sloobludop to access Darklake and from there go to Gracklstugh. On the way, Buppido slayed Shuushar. The others simply assume the insane old fish wandered off and continued without him. Buppido again attempts to kill, Ront this time, but Ront proved to sturdy and the others hear their fight. Thane breaks the fight up and Buppido manages to lie his way out of it.

The Motley Crew happen upon a gnoll party hunting hooked horrors. Thane pursued a hooked horror with the intention of making a weapon out of their hooks. During the fight, Buppido slips away and after the others defeat the gnolls he strikes a hefty blow on Thane nearly slaying him. However, Thane quickly turns around and ruthlessly dispatches Buppido.

During the fight with the gnolls, Sarith was seriously injured and Thane had to heal him. While doing so, Thane noticed Sarith had some sort of fungal infection and cured it as well. Sarith then admitted that he had been hearing strange voices telling him to go to the Neverlight Grove, murder the others, and to keep this illness secret. He then thanked Thane for likely saving his life.

## **The Darklake**

It took the Motley Crew about six days to reach the kua-toa city of Sloobludop. Unfortunately, when they arrived the kua-toa attacked them and tried to take them as sacrifices, because they didn’t have a kua-toa with them. They fought back and managed to cut their way to the docks where they found a gnome girl about to be sacrificed. They saved her and escaped into Darklake having killed quite a few of the fish folk.

As they rode the waters of the underground lake, the gnome explained she was a ranger from the surface and gave them her name, Vara Crowley. As they went, a handful of kua-toa attacked them, trying to drag them underwater to drown them. Sadly, they succeeded in drowning Eldeth. The others continued on their journey to Gracklstugh, unable to find Eldeth’s body.

On the journey, Thane summoned a wolf familiar he named Futch. Thane and Shint also worked together to heal Jorlan’s wounded figure, so he could be more effective in combat. Afterwhich Jorlan vowed loyalty to Thane. They encounter and slay a dire flail snail and manage to transport the shell with them to sell and have made into a shield or two.

## **Gracklstugh, City of Stone and Smoke**

It took the Motley Crew thirteen days to reach Gracklstugh from Sloobludop. When they arrived they came across a female hobgoblin being harassed by a group of orcs. Erixx and Prince Derendil jumped to her aid and the rest helped them defeat the orcs. The hobgoblin introduced herself as Naden Crash, a devastator from the same warband that Thane was once in. She explained that got injured and they left her behind. She managed to get to Gracklstugh and has just been trying to survive for the past few days. Thane allows her to join them under the circumstance that she vows loyalty to him and disavows Dardec. She readily agreed.

They go to the Blade Bazaar to sell all their loot and come across Themberchaud, a red dragon who keeps the forges of the city ablaze. He tells them to meet him in his lair in an hour, so they do. He proposes to them to spy for him in exchange for his protection from the corrupt authorities of the city. Thane agrees; however the second they leave the dragon’s presence, he expresses a direct desire to eventually kill the dragon and take its hoard.

As they look for a place to sleep for the night, they are approached by Errede Blackskull, the captain of the Stone Guard. She asks them to help her investigate demonic activities she’s noticed. The next day they go to the Whorlstone Tunnels to investigate. They find a group called the Gray Ghosts, a long time thieves guild of Gracklstugh that has recently taken up cult like activities and began summoning demons. Among the Gray Ghosts, they find a dragon egg, which they later return to Themberchaud. They also find a derro named Droki and Buppido recently made undead as vampire spawn.

After killing them, they return with Errede and spend the rest of the day shopping. However, they are spotted by a hidden drow scout named Xalith. The next day the Motley Crew and Errede are attacked by a large group of drow, giant spiders, and corrupt Stone Guard looking to get rid of Errede. They come out of the fight successful and that night they are taken to the King, Horgar Steelshadow the 5th, who thanks them for all the help they’ve been and offers them his protection as well. Thane, sensing a demon in their presence, kills a succubus who had been working her way into the King’s mind. The King thanks him for this as well and blames the drow for all of this demon business.

That night, as the Motley Crew drinks to their recent victories and alliance with Gracklstugh, Thane decides to tell them the real reason he came to the underdark.

“I was once like any other hobgoblin, part of a war band; however one day in our conquests I came across a drow woman. She was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen and I fell for her instantly. I spared her life and helped her escape the warband. Once the rest found out what I did they beat me to an inch of my life and left me for dead, promising to track down and kill the woman I helped out of spite.”

“I lay there in pain for hours, vowing my revenge, when a man appeared. He offered me the power to get my revenge in exchange for nothing more than loyalty.”

“I accepted and now I’ve come to the Underdark to find the woman I love and kill my warband.”

All of them gained a new respect for Thane, before he simply seemed a quiet brute, if a wise leader, but now they understood why he was here. And they had his back.

The next day, they began their journey to the Neverlight Grove. On the way, they encountered a colony of Mind Flayers and with the help of some githyanki wiped them out. They managed to save one of the Mind Flayers slaves, a drow woman named Charlindra. Her mind was gone from the time she spent with the aberrations, so Shint and Thane did their best to restore her, to little effect. Thane assigned Sarith and Jorlan to take care of her while they travel, thinking that being around people of the same race may help her.

## **The Fetid Wedding**

It took them eight days to reach the Neverlight Grove. Shortly after arriving they meet a group of drow, mostly female, who call themselves the Word of Eilistraee. The main group introduce themselves as, Phaerune Rhomdym (drow paladin of Eilistraee), Thalra Zolond (drow cleric of Eilistraee), Shyntriia Maeund (half-drow, fighter, worshipper of Eilistraee), Vastana Myt'tar (drow bladesinger), Rahkezira (half-orc barbarian/rogue), and Mana Deth (drider paladin), all of whom are female. They explain that they are on a pilgrimage to Menzoberranzan, to lead as many drow as possible away from the darkness of Lolth, and to the light of Eilistraee.

Among them there is also a firbolg named Uribella (circle of the land druid), who inhabits and tends to the Neverlight Grove. She explains that the grove is in danger from a demonic threat and that she needs as much help as she can get to fight it. Specifically she explains that the Demon Queen of Fungi, Zuggtmoy, is attempting to infect and take control of Araumycos, a fungal system covering a huge area of the underdark. If she succeeds, that entire area will become her domain, making her almost unstoppable there.

All of them agree to help, Thane agrees because it involves killing demons, and the Word of Eilistraee agrees because it's the right thing to do. Overjoyed by they’re agreement to help, Uribella goes off to gather local uninfected myconids and mushroom ents to aid in the fight while the rest prepare for the fight and get to know each other better. Thalra is able to restore Charlindra’s sanity and Thane states that it’d be best if she went with them after this was over with.

After a night of preparing for battle and getting to know their new (if temporary) allies, they all begin the assault on Zuggtmoy and her forces. The battle is drawn out, the spore servants, infected myconids, and demons fighting fiercely to defend their queen, but the Motley Crew and the Word of Eilistraee manage to cut a path to her. They fight valiantly and after a few of them fall, they finish Zuggtmoy sending her back to the Abyss. The clerics and paladins quickly heal their downed allies.

That night there was a lot of merriment between the two groups. Most of the Motley Crew being thoroughly enchanted by the beauty and kindness of the followers of Eilistraee. Several members spent the night with some of the followers.

In the morning, Uribella thanking them and promising safe passage through the Grove if they ever come this way again. They parted ways, the Word of Eilistraee heading to Menzoberranzan and the Motley Crew headed to Blingdenstone to deliver Topsy and Turvy.

## **Blingdenstone, Rise against Juiblex**

It took them sixteen days to reach Blingdenstone. They were received very well by the deep gnomes, who are mostly neutral to other races except drow. Jimjar, Topsy, and Turvy vouch for the two drow in the party, Sarith and Jorlan. Not long after they arrive they are approached by officials of the city pleading for help. Apparently a mad man and a bunch of oozes broke into their city hall and killed almost all the representatives. The man has started calling himself, ‘The Pudding King’ and claiming to be the new king of Blingdenstone. They suspect Juiblex has something to do with it. The Motley Crew agrees to help.

Later that night, they learn there is a faction of wererats in Blingdenstone called the Goldwhisker Clan and take Topsy and Turvy to them to see if they can get sanctuary there. They are welcomed and meet directly with the leader, Chipgrin. Chipgrin explains that he just wants his people to be accepted in Blingdenstone, which has long attacked them on sight and considered them a plague. He offers to help with the Pudding King. Thane accepts and explains this to the Blingdenstone officials.

The next day, the Motley Crew, forty wererat deep gnomes, and a handful of stone golems and Blingdenstone guards raid the Pudding Court. Readily handling the oozes in their path until they nearly defeat the Pudding King, but he turns into an ooze and seeps through a crack in the floor. They proceed to the basement where they fight even more oozes and find that where there used to be plumbing there are now pits of acid being used to breed oozes. Juiblex and The Pudding King start shooting acid at them, destroying almost all of the stone golems and quite a few of the guards and wererats, but the Motley Crew manages to fight their way to the two and kill them.

After the battle, the deep gnomes thank the Motley Crew and offer them eternal sanctuary and business connections for the deed. They also agreed to accept the wererat clan into their society, Topsy and Turvy being among them. After another day of resting and refilling supplies, the Motley Crew begins their journey to Menzoberranzan.

## **Restitution**

On the way to Menzoberranzan, traveling along the web warrens the Motley Crew finally encountered the target of Thane’s vengeance, his old warband, about several dozen goblins, two dozen hobgoblins, and twenty bugbears. Thane immediately challenges Dardec to a fight, he doesn’t accept, stating that Thane has already been proven weaker. A full on fight breaks out and the Motley Crew devastates the warband as Thane handles Dardec. Thane’s mount, Futch manages to rip the throat out of the dire worg that Dardec was riding, bringing him to the ground. Thane jumps off of Futch, using the momentum to cut Dardec almost in half, killing him. He proceeds to cut Dardec’s head off and lifts it up showing the rest of the warband. The remaining members surrender. Thane heals some of the goblins and bugbears that were dying and kills some of the others that he had a particular vendetta against. After that they recuperate and gather all their usable supplies off the dead. Thane animates some of the corpses to use as cannon fodder and they continue on to Menzoberranzan.

## **The City of Spiders**

It took them eight days to reach Menzoberranzan from Blingdenstone. On the outskirts of the city, they set up camp. The surviving members of the warband, the zombies, and several members of the Motley Crew, Erixx, Ront, and Naden, stay behind. Thane orders them to stay hidden if possible, but to kill any drow patrol they come across and to be ready to pave a path of destruction into the city if called.

On the way to Menzoberranzan, Thane managed to scry on the woman he was looking for and with the help of Sarith and Jorlan learned she was at the Fey-Branche estate in Menzoberranzan.

The true name of this woman was Alaenrae Alaeret and the truth of her story is summarized here. Alaenrae was born the first child of the noble house of Alaeret in the drow city of Enyalean under the continent of Omara.

In her young teens, it was discovered that she was Runechild, a type of sorcerer who are known for holding remnants of their magic in the form of natural runes on their body. After discovering this, her parents sent her away and tried to hide her nature knowing that she would be sought out by mages curious to study her magic and by the priestesses of Lolth who considered sorcery to be sacrilege against Lolth. Their intentions were to protect her and themselves, and their choice proved to be a wise one. Not long after her departure their house was sacked by a group of lesser houses, lolth priestesses, and wizards looking to study her.

All except her younger brother, Irennan Alaeret, were killed and he was spared only because he surrendered and told them Alaenrae’s location. Irennan has since taken house Alaeret’s financial holdings and used them to fund the search for her, he’s hated her for years, believing their parents cared for her more and blaming her for his suffering caused by the fall of the house.

Alaenrae is unaware of most of this, knowing only that she is a runechild, that her parents sent her away, and that shortly after arriving she was attacked by mages. In a fury at both her life being endangered and the thought of being betrayed by her own family, she let out a burst of magic that killed several of the men attacking her and she ran off into the night. She has since been on the run, using her beauty and her magic to survive, trusting no one, as she roamed the surface for almost twenty years.

Recently the town she was briefly staying in was attacked by hobgoblins; being used to running and fighting for her life she wasn’t afraid, however there was one scraggly hobgoblin dressed in hides, who seemingly selflessly helped her and even killed his own to aid her escape, undoubtedly at the cost of his life.

She escaped into the underdark and decided to find her way to Menzoberranzan to find some amount of security, and perhaps get some revenge against her fellow drow which she hated. She managed to sneak her way into the city and worm her way into the noble house of Fey-Branche, eventually taking the identity of the Matron Mother and charming the soldiers of the house with her magic. Over time she murdered most of the nobles of the house and freed all of their slaves. There she was now, sitting in the house of Fey-Branche enjoying the comforts of noble life, as Thane and the Motley Crew were sneaking into the city.

Unbeknownst to both Alaenrae and Thane, there was a third party in the city with dark designs. Graz’zt, the Demon Prince of Rape and Indulgence, who has been summoned into the underdark same as many of the other demon lords. He too has snaked his way into the city and taking over the noble house Mizzrym, the noble house with the greatest power in the slave trade of Menzoberranzan as well as much of the underdark in general. Graz’zt enjoyed the beauty of the drow and the strength of their women, enjoying most of all the breaking of that strength. He and the succubi of his entourage had charmed and mentally broken all the members of house Mizzrym, or killed those that resisted too much. His plans were now to spread his power throughout the rest of Menzoberranzan and dominate the drow and especially the drow women, even if he had to do it one noble house at a time. The numerous slaves under Mizzrym’s command would undoubtedly be a boon in this regard, but for now he was simply having his succubi scout on the other noble houses and begin working their way into their ranks. In doing so, he has learned of the apparent weakness of house Fey-Branche and the apparent beauty of its Matron, and in so doing he has set his eyes on Alaenrae.

Returning to the Motley Crew, Shint used a seeming spell to disguise Thane, Jimjar, Sarith, Jorlan, and himself as shackled prisoners in rags, while the remained perfectly armed and armored. Futch, the dire wolf was made to look like a steeder, and Vara, the gnome ranger was disguised as a Xalith Vandree. They came to the gates of Menzoberranzan, Vara used a house badge to prove herself as Xalith Vandree and convinced the guards she was transporting some escaped slaves. The ruse worked and they managed to get to house Fey-Branche undiscovered and unquestioned.

Arriving at house Fey-Branche, they requested audience with the Matron Mother. Intrigued by this Alaenrae accepted the request and they came before her. She of course questioned why a member of house Vandree with a group of slaves would want an audience with her. For a second none of them answered, then Thane stepped forward to speak. Immediately the guards at Alaenrae’s side went for their weapons, but Alaenrae stayed their hands, even more intrigued by this slave coming to speak.

Thane got on one knee and began, “I know this must seem strange, but I know you. My name is Thane Hayhurst and several months ago I helped you escape from a warband of hobgoblins. Since then I have been trying to find you, traveling the underdark, being captured by the drow, escaping, and fighting my way all the way to now. I love you and I would do anything for you!”

Alaenrae of course seemed surprised, but not as much as Thane would have thought. She did remember Thane, and fondly as one of the few who had ever truly helped her.

She smiles and says, ”Well, Thane Hayhurst why have you come to me in this way?” Eyeing his restraints and thinking to herself whether she should have to free her previous saviour.

“Worry not, I come to you in a guise. As you seem to be too.”, Thane says guessing at her current position.

Alaenrae’s guards now draw their weapons and step forward prepared to attack, but Alaenrae again waves them off and begins to speak. Suddenly, a soldier of house Fey-Branche burst in and yelled,”We’re under attack!”

Immediately Shint drops his illusion and the Motley Crew spring into action. Thane goes to Alaenrae’s side while the rest go to help the soldiers. Alaenrae orders her people to consider them allies. They were being attacked by a couple dozen succubi, Mizzrym soldiers, and slaves. They fight them off quite easily, though most of the remaining Fey-Branche drow fall in the battle. In the fight the succubi mostly tried to get to Alaenrae, though she easily resisted their attempts to charm her, and together Thane and Alaenrae easily cut down the fiends. Thane with his longsword and Alaenrae with her rapier.

Afterward they regroup and Thane uses a sending spell to call Naden and the rest to them. They come to the conclusion that they need to pay the Mizzrym estate. Naden uses a polymorph spell to turn Erixx to a T-rex and they plow through the gates of Menzoberranzan to the Fey-Branche estate. Thane updates them and together they storm their way to the Mizzrym estate.

When they arrive most of the drow and the slaves are, let’s say, distracted by each other, the madness of Graz’zt having infected them thoroughly. The Crew start fighting their way in and manage to turn some of the slaves to their side. They clear out the ground floor and begin going down a long stairway to a large temple like room. Suddenly several succubi round a corner and grab Alaenrae, pulling her into the temple.

Thane immediately goes into a fury, cutting down succubi and drow and slaves that get in his way, but he ends up getting separated from the Crew. He fights valiantly and with the strength of twenty men, but he is eventually overwhelmed. With one last burst of magic, a divine word, he manages to banish most of the fiend surrounding him and the weaker drow and slaves around him drop dead on the spot, but there are still dozens of these enemies between him and the Crew. Graz’zt finally giving his full attention to the intruders swiftly brings Thane to one knee with a stroke of his blade. Things seem grim...

Suddenly the Word of Eilistraee burst through the back entrance of the temple and quickly turned the tide. They distract Graz’zt long enough for the Motley Crew to make it to Thane and heal him. While all of this is happening, Alaenrae manages to break the enchantment on herself and kill the succubi that grabbed her. Now all of them together begin assaulting Graz’zt, with Alaenrae dealing the finishing blow, a disintegration spell.

When the dust settles they realized that Jimjar and Erixx died in the battle, but Thalra Zolond, the leader of the Word of Eilistraee quickly revives them. Afterward, they quickly made their way back to the Fey-Branche estate to regroup and rest. Thane has the remaining members of the warband and the freed slaves (which were quite a few at this point) begin fortifying the estate. Meanwhile the Motley Crew and the Word of Eilistraee rest and socialize. Thalra explains to everyone that they're here to lead drow away from Menzoberranzan, and that one of their members is from house Mizzrym, so they scryed to see how they were doing and found the depravity, which is why they came to the Motley Crews aid. Thane and Alaenrae get to know each other better and spend the night together.

Meanwhile in another part of Menzoberranzan, the Spider Council’s six remaining members discuss the news. Two destroyed noble houses, invaders, and rebellion among the slaves. They manage to discover the identities of the Motley Crew, a group of escaped prisoners, who seem to be at the head of this chaos. Fiirnel'ther Vandree, the Matron of house Vandree, insists they let her handle these rebels instead of putting the full force of Menzoberranzan into the attack, wanting revenge for her daughter, Xalith, whose identities they used to break into Menzoberranzan. The rest of the Matrons agree; however, Matron Baenre makes it clear that if she fails it will mean the destruction of their house.

House Vandree musters all of its forces and summons as many demons as they can before the assault. They send their best assassins and scouts to begin the assault to loosen the enemy ranks. Or that was the plan, what really happened was the assassins and scouts were quickly slaughtered and raised the alarm so that everyone was completely ready when the real fight started. When the fight began, Shint polymorphed Futch into a T-rex and Naden began fireballing the crowding enemy. The rest went into the melee while Vara sniped. Thane burst out skeletal, spectral wings from his back started flying around killing demons. He managed to banish most of them with a divine word.

Things were going bad for house Vandree when Matron Vandree with her entourage entered the fight as well. It turned the tide for a bit, but in the end Thane and the rest came out on top. After the fight, they healed and regrouped. Then Thane and several members of the Word of Eilistraee got into an argument. Thane was arguing that they should take this opportunity to cripple Menzoberranzan. With three of the top houses destroyed, Menzoberranzan was weaker than ever before. The Word of Eilistraee was arguing that they didn’t want to cause more chaos or kill more drow. Thane told them they could leave, but he would still take advantage of the opportunity. The Word of Eilistraee left and took the drow who chose to go with them.

Thane then led the rest and finished off house Vandree, then they fortified the estate and rested. Immediately after they finished resting, they charged the house Baenre estate, the most powerful noble estate in the city. While the hundreds of freed slaves (including orcs, goblins, hobgoblins, ogres, bugbears, jackelweres, and even a stone giant) assaulted the main force of house Baenre with the support of Naden, Erixx, Ront, Derendil, Sarith, Jorlan, and Shint; Thane, Vara, Jimjar, and Alaenrae flew up to the throne room of Matron Baenre on Futch polymorphed into a roc.

After a brief fight, they manage to kill Matron Baenre. An apparition of Lolth appears and curses Thane, making him a constant target of all spiders and drow, and destroying one of his eyes. Thane barely flinches and hops back on polymorphed Futch and starts summoning lightning upon his enemies. After about 10 minutes, the battle is won. That night they looted the Baenre estate. At this point, after looting four of the top noble houses in the city, even the lowliest of goblins among them was adorned in fine drow silks, armor, and weapons.