Amulet of Bolli Part 2

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by on March 18, 2023 at 12:02 am
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The lead he had wasn’t what she expected, though honestly she was’t sure what to expect to begin with. Some upstart local gang was stealing jewelry in the neighbourhood and the amulet just happened to be one of many. It was clearly something they were being hired to do based on what Bandi overheard of them, and what she knew of the gang itself. The Blood Drakes: they were too new and frankly unorganized to be scheming anything by themselves, and their targeted goods seemed a bit suspicious.

It was enough to work off though and she was certain she’d find him some new leads soon. All that was left was searching her database, hacking into others where necessary, cross-referencing the information, yada yada yada—and she’d get the full picture on this “amulet” if that really was what it was.

The whole thing would take ten minutes, tops, and she told him as much. He nodded, finished his smoke, got a drink from her cellar. She stared down the glimmering screens before her, taking notes, putting together the pieces of his latest puzzle.

The picture it made was a strange one.

“They’re after asuran tech.” Dwag said decisively.

Bandi nodded like he was some wise asuran scholar. She wanted to cuff his ears.

“You already knew?! I told you to tell me everything!” She snapped.

“Was just a hunch. I didn’t actually look into it.”

She sighed. “You really rushed this job, huh? Just dove in and chased the Drakes themselves. Then lost them on top of it.”

“Rent’s comin’ up.”

“Of course it is,” she grumbled. She liked Bandi but he could be real stupid sometimes. “Well, your hunch was right. There’s a bunch of news articles showing the stolen goods: they’re not all asuran made but they all look awfully similar in shape. They look like data crystals.”

“A data crystal?”

“Yeah, you know, it’s like a memory container? You store information in it.”

“So is that what this is?” He pointed to the poster of the amulet of Bolli with its little cube pendant.

“Yes. Most definitely. It’s an odd shape but that’s a data crystal for sure. This Bolli character looks to have been an asuran pirate who worked on the same crew as your client’s grandfather. Didn’t have family. Her obituary says she passed her legacy onto her crew.”

“So the Allemans didn’t steal it.”

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by on March 18, 2023 at 12:04 am
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“Probably not,” she shrugged. “From the news articles, looks like other families with ancestors on that ship’s crew got hit too, though their jewelry wasn’t the right target. Whoever hired them Drakes is after Bolli’s legacy, and I’m betting it’s that for sure.” Dwag tapped the poster.

“Her legacy is the data crystal?”

“Oh absolutely.”

“But what’s on it?”

There it was, he wasn’t even trying to hide his curiosity now—the boy’s eyes glinted in a way that reminded her of a young progeny. She smirked.

“Who knows? This Bolli isn’t exactly famous. There’s some school records I found of them in the Rata Sum Colleges’ database, but they weren’t a standout genius or anything. Synergetics’ student. Dropped out. Probably turned to piracy after, but aside from the obituary, there’s no real news on them. Whoever is after her legacy—”

“—was related to someone on that ship!” Bandi finished. The gears were turning in his head and she could see it. She liked him best when he was smart.

Proud and satisfied with her findings, she pulled up a ship crew registry document on one of the monitors to show him. She waved him over and he leaned in to see:

The Meridian.

“Weird ship name,” he remarked.

“Oh shush.” She smacked his arm then pointed to the list of crew mates, highlighting a number of them. “These are the ones whose families got robbed recently.”

“Which means our lil thief is one of these.” He pointed to the rest.

“Most likely. And that’s your lead. I can get you a list and see if I can’t get you some addresses, but it’ll cost. You got enough for this?”

Bandi nodded, sat back up, and took his hair—an obvious wig of thick foliage—off his head. As the usual spiky blades of his natural hair sprang forth, she noticed a clutter of objects cradled within the wig itself.

Power stones. Tons of them.

“This enough?” He asked.

“It’ll suffice.” She talked like it was barely enough, but she knew her sharp toothed grin was giving her away. “Let’s get you those leads.”

“Cool.”

“Oh and Bandi?”

“Yeah?”

“Get a damn purse.”

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by on April 1, 2023 at 12:00 am
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Tora, or “Bandi,” leafed through the folder of documents Dwag handed him, thinking. He had more work ahead of him than he liked. This was a lot of addresses and people to sift through. A few ideas floated in his head on how to narrow that number of folks down, but he’d think it through later. Now he had to move out and meet up with his strange new ally.

Dwag shuffled over to the door and pressed a button to swing it open. Ol’ Hall was on the other side, as anxious as they left him.

“Take our guest to the door, Halladr. Then it’s back to work.” Dwag commanded.

The young norn dutifully took him down the hall, careful not to touch him, but not as careful about where his eyes lingered. Tora raised an eyebrow at him, mulling over whether he had the energy to tease the poor bloke. The norn froze the moment their eyes met, his face transforming into a panicked tomato. The sight made Tora chuckle.

He couldn’t believe this guy was fussing over what business was between Tora’s legs. Non-sylvari folk worry about the weirdest shit, he thought.

They reached the door then, dutiful jumpy Hall opening it for Tora like a scared human nobleman. He looked ridiculous. Tora faced the open doorway, the night air brushing the leaves of his wig against his cheek. He moved to exit, but stopped.

An idea curled the edges of his lips into a mischievous grin.

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by on April 1, 2023 at 12:02 am
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Looks like I do have a little bit of energy left.

“Hey Hall?” he called sweetly. The norn jumped at his name, but didn’t move as Tora leaned in with a conspiratorial look in his eye. “Wanna know a secret?”

Hall glanced back at his mentor’s workshop door as if looking for help or permission. He shuffled his feet with discomfort, wrestling with what looked like a desperate need to know clashing with an equally desperate need to flee. Like a true engineer, his curiosity eventually won him over.

“Wh-What secret?”

With a gentle smile, Tora beckoned him closer and the norn bent down to lend his ear.

“You know down there?” Tora whispered. “There’s two heads.”

The jumpy bloke pulled back, looking startled and confused. The sylvari gave him a helpful wink and watched as the norn put two and two together, eyes widening and jaw dropping to the floor.

“Goodnight, Hall,” Tora sang softly as he glided out the door.

He gave Hall one last meaningful look before closing the door, leaving him stunned on the other side. Then Tora spun around and waited, eagerly listening for what came next.

A few moments passed, then thunderous footsteps made their way down the hall.

“DWAG! DWAG!! YOU WON’T BELIEVE WHAT I JUST LEARNED—”

A door opened and shut. There was silence.

And then…

A shriek of rage.

“BAAAANDIIIII!!!!”

And that was his cue. Giggling like a madman, Tora scampered off into the night, disappearing before Dwag could even exit her workshop.

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by on April 15, 2023 at 12:00 am
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The sun peered over the horizon, painting Lion’s Arch in red and gold hues as Tora made his way to a small cafe hidden away in the city’s many winding streets. He passed by the city’s infamous lion statue on his way, wincing as the oncoming dawn weaponized it against him with blinding flashes of light. It was way too early for his tastes, but he’d let that odd FPS guy choose the time while he chose the place. They’d meet-up, exchange what they found the night prior, then make a plan of attack.

He wasn’t sure how he was going to pay FPS for his help, a kiss maybe? The guy did seem pretty enamoured with him. That felt too optimistic though, and honestly a bit wrong. Just give him a cut of your pay, he thought reluctantly. His wallet would hurt for sure and rent was coming up, but that was the simplest answer. If he’d been smart about it, he’d have asked for more pay upfront: this job was already proving to be more work than it was worth.

Tora caught his reflection in a nearby window: no dress or wig today—just his regular clothes and oversized coat. Would FPS even recognize him? Should he have dressed up a bit? He frowned at his reflection, thinking it over again but deciding against it. He needed practical clothes today, and nothing too flashy. FPS would have to just deal.

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by on April 15, 2023 at 12:02 am
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The tired thief turned the corner and found their rendezvous point: a little cafe called Iron Kettle. Rarely busy with the best black tea latte in the city, and run by a lovely old charr who knew how to mind their business—he couldn’t think of a better place to meet. He swung upon the rickety metal door and scanned the interior.

There was only one patron inside: an irritatingly chipper looking FPS sitting at a table with a warm drink and a smile as bright as the sun threatening the horizon outside. The overwhelming glow of his demeanour was enough to blind Tora. Wasn’t this guy up as late as he was? How the fuck did he look so alive at this hour?!

As he thought though, FPS didn’t seem to recognize him, at least not immediately. The tree of a sylvari squinted in thought, watching as Tora walked up to the counter, got that damned best black tea latte in the city, and made his way over to their table. It felt like the realization only truly set in the moment Tora sat down across from him.

“Miss Bandi?”

Still calling me Miss… He didn’t have the energy to respond—too damn early—so he nodded instead, stirring his drink as he waited for it to cool. Should’ve had coffee before I came here, he thought despondently. He didn’t even like coffee, he just wanted caffeine. The latte would have some of course, but he wasn’t sure it’d be enough.

FPS watched him carefully, clearly thinking through what he was seeing. Did he figure out Tora wasn’t whatever his drunk master taught him a girl was? Was he disappointed now that he wasn’t done up half as pretty? Whatever, man, you said you’d help and I’m too tired to play the sexy vixen for you. Just deal with it.

“Miss Bandi,” FPS said delicately, “are you perhaps…”

Tora paused his stirring. Did the guy actually figure it out? Did he realize—

“…as stunning in your casual wear as you are when dressed for a night on the town?!”

Tora nearly knocked his drink over.

This tree is something else!

“Sure, yeah, okay,” Tora responded stiffly. He didn’t know how to register that. It was flattering to hear, he supposed, but it was also just… a lot. He couldn’t decide whether FPS’s relentless infatuation would make their job easier or harder.

That overly confident smile was back on FPS’s face. “Oh my, are you embarrassed?”

There wasn’t enough caffeine in Tora’s sap to entertain that shit.

“Alright, FPS. Let’s exchange notes, shall we?” He said with a cool grin. The tree wilted a little at his tone. He almost felt bad about it.

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by on April 15, 2023 at 12:04 am
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They set to work. Tora pulled out the folder Dwag gave him and shared what he found out. He had to stop when he revealed who Bolli was.

“Was your sister an asura?” FPS asked, confused.

Tora stopped a moment. “…My sister?”

“The necklace was your long dead sister’s wasn’t it?”

Oh fuck is that what I told him? “Uh…” He tried to think fast but blanked. “…Yes. Yes, she was. Found family, y’know?”

Tora rubbed his temples, trying to think. If this was the lie he was going with, it’d get complicated real fast if they talked to anyone who knew Bolli personally.

“I um… met them much later in life though,” he continued carefully. “Didn’t er… meet any of their old crew or anythin’.”

Was that enough cover? This lie was getting lazy and thin real fast. At this point he wasn’t sure what would be easier going forward: telling the truth or keeping up the lie. Lies were best for short term solutions and he wasn’t sure how short term FPS was going to be.

FPS bought it up though, or simply didn’t care to question it. He nodded sagely and let Tora share the rest of his findings with the list of crew members.

When he’d finished, he looked up to see that the eccentric fool he’d met the night prior had vanished, replaced by an eerily similar sylvari with the face of a wizened adventurer. Said adventurer studied Tora with a deep unsettling consideration—the kind that said they were suspicious of him. Who could blame him? Normal people don’t really have access to the kind of information Tora found, do they? And who would go this far for some trinket of a dead relative?

Cold sweat formed on the back of Tora’s neck as he began to realize his mistake.

Then he blinked and the stranger was gone.

The eccentric fool, as boisterous and chipper as before, returned. Tora frowned.

Had he imagined that? There wasn’t time to question it—it was FPS’s turn to share

his findings.

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by on April 29, 2023 at 1:13 am
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For his part, FPS talked to his own associates (that he suspiciously didn’t feel inclined to name) and presented several interesting documents. They were letters handed off to the leader of the Blood Drakes, each one requesting a new item for them to steal. Damn, how did he get his hands on those? It was a good find.

Whoever wrote them was smart though, cautiously refusing to give a return address, and using a vague codename: Mr. R. Even their chosen place of transaction didn’t hep much. They always made their transactions with the gang in the same place: just outside the gates of Lion’s Arch. Useless information now—the amulet would’ve likely moved from that point last night to Mother knows where.

The letters were handwritten on average paper you’d find in an office so no lead there. If they had something to compare the handwriting to… but all they had was Tora’s contact list. There wasn’t much they could do with the letters just yet.

They moved onto the contact list.

“These are the folks we should chat up first,” he pointed to a separate list Dwag made for him: the ones whose families were robbed.

“The ones who were robbed? But isn’t that a waste? We know they don’t have it.”

“Exactly, which means they’re the safest to ask questions of. Find out the history of this Meridian ship crew. See if there’s any long held family grudges against Bolli or anything like that. We should talk to the norn and asura first.”

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by on April 29, 2023 at 1:18 am
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If they talked to the longer lived races, they’d have a higher chance of meeting someone who knew Bolli personally.

FPS agreed.

They packed up their things, tossed out their drinks, FPS gave the charr barista a compliment that nearly got him mauled, and Tora swiped a few napkins and creamers on their way out the door—mostly out of habit.

*

They had four people to talk to: Garan Ripshield, Eira Gunnarson, Yugoro Arata, and Ghell. Eira was obviously norn, so they started there, and then moved to Ghell the asura, Garan the charr, and finally Yugoro the human. It took them the rest of the morning, locating and interviewing each for whatever information they had to give.

They were all eager to talk about what had been stolen from them, and were interested to learn why they’d been targeted, but as suspected, only the norn and the asura recalled who Bolli was at all. Even then, they’d turned out to be too young to have known Bolli personally—only having heard of them through their parents and grandparents. On one hand, this made investigations harder, on the other though, at least Tora didn’t have to worry about being called out on the “Bolli was my long dead sister” thing. He didn’t even intend to bring it up, frankly, but FPS brought it up. Every. Single. Time.

He’d had to beg the plant to stop mentioning it, which naturally FPS didn’t understand.

“But surely, they’ll be more willing to talk if they know its a matter of the heart! She was important to you!” He protested.

“Maybe I just don’t want to talk matters of the heart with everyone, okay?!”

FPS paused at that, considering Tora’s words with what looked like an exaggerated seriousness.

“Oh, of course,” FPS said solemnly. “It’s sensitive to talk about, I understand.”

Tora wasn’t really sure he did.

*

They took a break for lunch after their first set of interviews to discuss what they’d learned, grabbing sandwiches off a street vendor and wandering about deserted back alleys. In the end they hadn’t gleaned much. Those who knew something of Bolli didn’t have much to say about her relations on The Meridian. If there were crew mates who had grudges, they didn’t know anything, and they sure didn’t know of any legacy Bolli left behind.

“But she makes a mean apple pie!” FPS offered.

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by on April 29, 2023 at 1:20 am
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Yes, both the norn and the asura mentioned the apple pie among other equally useless information. He was starting to wonder if the info Dwag had got him was a bunch of dead ends after all.

“We still have the rest of the people on your list to talk to,” FPS pointed out with undying optimism. “The ones who weren’t robbed?”

He was right, but there was a lot of them. Six of them at least. Tora sighed and pulled out the folder again to look over who was left. They’d have to be smart about this. If they chose the right contact they wouldn’t need to talk to all of them.

“Norn and asura first, right?” FPS asked.

Tora nodded.

*

…They talked to all of them.

“Pretty sure my late mother worked with her. I don’t know much about her though. Oh! She was real good in the kitchen, does that help?” said the norn.

“My old man claimed her apple pie was the best but I’ve never had it,” huffed an asura.

“I think my grand sire mentioned something about her having a mean left hook?” mentioned a charr.

“Granny worked with her. She used to send us cookies,” said a human.

“Really good apple pie. Never got the recipe.”

“She fought a minotaur that was after my grandpa!”

“Just the best baker. Mom sings praises about her apple pie.”

“Mean left hook.”

“Father’s been trying to reproduce her apple pie for years.”

“Owes my Ma twenty gold.”

“That apple pie though?”

And finally…

“Yeah, I remember Bolli. Used to work together.”

It was the last person on their list, Rhin Noelle—an old male asura. The sight of him was startling, Tora thought they’d talked to all the asuras. Noelle wasn’t really—asura didn’t usually do the last name thing, he was pretty sure. Noelle was a very human name.

Peering over Rhin, he spotted a framed painting on the wall—a recreation of a wedding between what looked like a younger Rhin and a young human lady.

Ah.

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