Solving Cases Around London
Learning about the Case
This storylet is a combination of Bronze-Bordered Opportunity Cards and options in locations around Fallen London. This storylet begins with the following Opportunity Card:

A letter on the doormat
Unlocks: Featuring in the Tales of the University 30
Another day, another breakfast. Another letter on the doormat, stuffed with possibilities.
Open it up
The handwriting is that of the Semi-semiotic Fellow. Perhaps you still have friends at the university.
It's always a favour
'Terrible business. Ghastly business. Could have ended better. But on with the show, as they say.'
The next paragraph is smudged. You brush off the - what's that? Marmalade? - and continue.
'I wanted to ask a favour, one which might work out well for you. There's a fellow I know with a problem. Jeweller chap in Spite. An odd sort if you ask me. He's poor as mud, but… well, you'll have to see for yourself. He might pique your academic interest, if you take my meaning. Coral and such. I hear he's looking for a detective. And despite what happened at the University, your skills are beyond question. So, could you pop along to Spite and look him up? I told him to expect you.'
Well, that's a d—nable liberty. But your interest is piqued all right. What does the Semi-Semiotic fellow mean? It's still early. You could be in Spite before the mushroom markets open.

An occurrence! Your
solving cases around London Quality is now 1!
Talking with the Solitary Glim-sculptor
This storylet continues in Spite.

Find the Glim-sculptor
Unlocks: solving cases around London 1
The Semi-semiotic Fellow's letter was rather vague about this unhappy jeweller. Spite is a big place.
Something about coral?
There's a wretched little shop between the local spider-den, and a pie shop that wouldn't tempt a starving rat. In place of a sign, someone has nailed a chunk of dead coral over the door. Is this it?
The Solitary Glim-sculptor
You're in the right place. Glim sculptures line the dirt-caked shelves. They're well-carved, even beautiful, but you sense something wrong with the shapes and the proportions. In a district like this, a shop so stuffed with glim ought to be robbed four times a night, but the sculptures are untouched. One piece especially stands out. It's not quite in the shape of a Correspondence symbol, but it does echo the style of the carvings on the spires of the Bazaar. And it's detailed; it must have taken many hours. Whoever carved this had a strong mind.
The proprietor appears, pushing aside a curtain made of black coral beads. An odd looking fellow, to be sure. His skin is pallid and sharkish. 'Yes?' he says. His voice is a damp whisper that suggests years of quiet resignation.
You explain that you were directed here, by the Semi-semiotic Fellow. The Solitary Glim-sculptor nods sadly. 'They took it,' he says. As if that explained everything.

An occurrence! Your
solving cases around London Quality is now 2!

The Solitary Glim-sculptor has lost something
Unlocks: solving cases around London 2
'They took it', he says. Who they were and what they took isn't obvious.
Not used to visitors
You look expectantly at the Solitary Glim-sculptor. He looks back. Outside the shop, the Bone bells chime. Eventually you crack and ask him what they took.
The Glim-sculptor's squeezebox
The Solitary Glim-sculptor brushes some fish bones off a stool and sits down. He blinks slowly, as if doing so takes great effort. 'They took my squeezebox. Used to play at the Medusa's Head. Made me happy. Gone now.' He looks impossibly sad.
He continues in a gurgling whisper that makes you think of slit throats and hanging. 'Don't know who took it. Devils about when it went.' He shrugs distressingly mobile shoulders.
Despite the glim on display, he's obviously not rich. He offers you something for taking on the case. It's… hard to say what it is, exactly. A thing made of black coral. Part of a sculpture, perhaps? The Glim-sculptor admits it's worthless by itself. But find its partner, and it will take you to Flute Street. Where? Never mind, it's an interesting case anyway.
[Opportunities to pursue this case will arise in time.]

An occurrence! Your
solving cases around London Quality is now 3!

Gain: 1 x A Fragment of a Black Coral Sculpture

1 - An Enigmatic Fragment
Conducting your Investigation
Once you have agreed to take the case, the following Opportunity Cards will appear from time to time.

The glim trade
Unlocks: solving cases around London 3
The Solitary Glim-sculptor isn't wealthy, but his shop holds a considerable quantity of disturbing glim jewellery.
Work the glim angle
Perhaps this case is related to the glim trade. It's worth looking into.
A likely approach
The glim trade is as brisk and merry as ever. Glim flows from the cavern roof to the glim-skimmers and catch-boats and then through the jewellers to the citizens of the Neath. Although the shop of the Solitary Glim-sculptor lacks customers, an urchin tells you that sometimes a cart draws up and takes the whole stock. She's heard them talk about Loot Street.
The urchin can't be the only one to notice the glim stock, unnerving though it is. Perhaps you should investigate the local villains, see if they're planning anything. The Ambitious Footpad and her gang sometimes squat in nearby sheds - could she be involved?
Watchful increase
solving cases around London increase

Music at the Medusa's head
Unlocks: solving cases around London 3
The Solitary Glim-sculptor used to play his squeezebox at the Medusa's Head.
Down the pub
Unlocks: 50 x Greyfields 1879
Provide a few rounds and you might hear something useful.
This one's sober enough to talk sense
'That funny-looking fellah with the squeezebox? Ah, Gawd! Sounded like there was a cat in there. Still, it made him so 'appy to play that we only threw him out now and again. Grumpy bugger most of the time, but when he played, 'is 'ead fair looked like it might crack open from the smile. No, 'aven't seen 'im around in a while. Cheers!'
Persuasive increase

Lose: 50 x Greyfields 1879
solving cases around London increase

The Solitary Glim-sculptor
Unlocks: solving cases around London 3
The Solitary Glim-sculptor is an odd sort of client. Perhaps you should look into the fellow a little.
A matter of privacy
No! The bond between consulting detective and client is sacred and unbreakable. You will respect your client's privacy.
A rare breed
A consulting detective who refuses to poke a nose into someone else's private life? Who would have thought? Still, you're sure you've done the right thing.

Steadfast increase (capped somewhere < 7)

Austere increase
Spy on your client
The Solitary Glim-sculptor is an odd cove, to say the least. Perhaps there's more here than is obvious.
A Rubbery visitor
Your client's life is not a whirl of social activity. He opens and shuts his shop. He visits the fishmonger. A passing dandy peers into the shop window and hurries away. On the second night, though, the Sculptor has a visitor.
The figure wears a hat pulled down low, a long coat and a scarf over his face, but the sinuous, boneless gait of a Rubbery Man is unmistakable. You don't see what happens inside the shop, but the Rubbery Man leaves with a box under his arm. You follow him, but he shakes you off somewhere near Mrs. Plenty's Carnival. Intriguing.
Watchful increase
solving cases around London increase

The devils of Spite
Unlocks: solving cases around London 3
The Solitary Glim-sculptor saw devils around his shop when his beloved squeezebox was stolen.
Look into the matter
Unlocks: Connected: Hell 1
Devils haunt the margins of Spite, picking off souls here and there. Perhaps they'll talk to you.
(Watchful challenge.)
A momentary slip of the mask?
You spend an hour tracking devils through Spite. Then you turn a corner near a silk-market and find four of them waiting for you, smiling. They are interested in your interest. You explain the case and mention your client, the Solitary Glim-sculptor. Four toothy smiles are replaced with four sour pouts.
'Oh, him. Well, we want nothing to do with his sort. Why would we? No, we've not seen his wretched squeezebox, and we wouldn't care if we did. Good day to you.' Hmm. It's odd for devils to be so disdainful.
Watchful increase
solving cases around London increase
Gain 55 Cryptic Clue
You've learned enough…
After solving cases around London reaches 5 the following story become available in all locations including the The Shuttered Palace.

The missing squeezebox
Unlocks: solving cases around London 5
The case is coming together. You're nearly there.
Lay it all out
You've done enough legwork. It's time to put the pieces together. If the Solitary Glim-sculptor had a parlour, you'd be calling the suspects into it.
It's plain now
Your client is an odd sort. Nocturnal meetings with Rubbery men, the disdain of devils. That sort of thing. But the business with his squeezebox is the most straightforward thing about him.
One of Spite's many small criminal gangs saw the glim stock and thought they might make some money. Their leader, the Ambitious Footpad, saw the desperate pleasure your client took in playing his squeezebox. She stole the box, hoping to make your client craft some glim jewellery suitable for actual sale. You make your report to the Constables and they arrest the Ambitious Footpad without delay. You grab the squeezebox before it gets lost in the evidence chest. You should head to Spite and decide what to do about it.
Watchful increase

An occurrence! Your
solving cases around London Quality is now 6!

Gain: 55 x Cryptic Clue
available in Spite

Decide what to do
Unlocks: solving cases around London 6
You have deduced that the Ambitious Footpad stole the Solitary Glim-sculptor's squeezebox as a means to blackmail the sculptor into making something saleable. You have the squeezebox and the Footpad has been dealt with, but how should you approach your client?
Return the squeezebox for some glim
The fellow's shop is loaded with glim. He can hand some over, if he wants his squeezebox back.
The noise! The noise!
The Solitary Glim-sculptor's eyes light up as he sees his squeezebox. He agrees to give you glim - he grabs a double handful from the shelves and pours it into your upturned hat.
The worst music you've ever heard fills the shop as you examine your haul. A few saleable bits in there. Some of the odder pieces have a look of the Correspondence about them. Perhaps you'll learn something from studying them. You bid the Solitary Glim-sculptor a good day, cover your ears, and escape from the terrible racket.

An occurrence! Your
solving cases around London Quality is now 7!

Gain: 200 x Glim
a Scholar of the Correspondence increase
Connected: Rubbery Men increase
Return the squeezebox for secrets
He's an interesting sort. You'll give him his squeezebox when he tells you a little more about himself.
From Flute Street
The Solitary Glim-sculptor's eyes light up as he sees his squeezebox. You tell him you know about the visits from Rubbery men. The disdain of devils. He'll have to explain himself if he wants the thing back.
'Not from here. From… Flute Street.' He points downward with a grey finger caked in glim-dust. His throaty whisper is barely understandable. 'Collect glim. Carve glim for the Flukes. The time will come. The time will come.'
You get nothing else from him. The time will come? Flute Street? Can you make anything of this? You hand him his squeezebox. He starts playing. You bid the Solitary Glim-sculptor a good day, cover your ears, and run from the terrible racket.

An occurrence! Your
solving cases around London Quality is now 7!

Gain: 150 x Cryptic Clue

Connected: Rubbery Men increase
Return the squeezebox without delay
Perhaps you're an upright sort. Perhaps you've grown fond of the Solitary Glim-sculptor. You're going to hand the squeezebox back with no mention of payment.
Flute Street again
The Solitary Glim-sculptor's eyes light up as he sees his squeezebox. You are pleased to return it to him. There will be no further expense - his generous gift of a… thing was more than adequate. The sculptor is taken aback by your generosity. You see that he is not often the subject of kindness. He says that he will whisper your name when he next visits Flute Street. He starts playing.
You bid the Solitary Glim-sculptor a good day, cover your ears, and run from the terrible racket.
Magnanimous increase OR
Magnanimous hasn't changed, because it's higher than 6
Steadfast increase OR
Steadfast hasn't changed, because it's higher than 6
Connected: Rubbery Men increase

An occurrence! Your
solving cases around London Quality is now 7
The gratitude of the Glim-sculptor
The following opportunity card will appear after you have solved the Glim-sculptors case.

A present from the Solitary Glim-sculptor
Unlocks: solving cases around London 7
The Solitary Glim-sculptor appears at your door with a little gift. How nice! But what is it?
A little package of his work
Glim carved into shapes that make the eyes bleed and the hair fall out. How lovely!
What a nice present
You take the package of glim from the sculptor and open it up. Your vision swims. After a while you remove the blood from your eyes and carefully place the package in the sideboard. Perhaps you'll study that tomorrow. Or throw it in the river.

Gain: 50 x Glim
a Scholar of the Correspondence (1 change point) increase OR a Scholar of the Correspondence hasn't changed, because it's higher than 6

Nightmares increase (1 change point)

Wounds increase (1 change point)
The key to Flute Street
It's the other half of the coral sculpture! The Solitary Glim-sculptor thinks that you are ready to see Flute Street.
[This opens the way to Flute Street. 20 storylets of the mysteries far below the Neath. What are the Rubbery Men up to down there? What else lurks in the darkness?]
Requires 25 Fate