Tolomei is the daughter of Kanedias the Master Maker, and former lover of the Magus Bayaz.
History
Tolomei was the secret daughter of Kanedias, who was made to help him with his work, to handle materials that only the Maker’s own blood could touch; materials from The Other Side, left over from before the two worlds were divided, such as The Seed. Tolomei was very innocent. All her life, Tolomei lived in the House of the Maker, and had never seen or spoken to anyone besides her father.
For a time the Magus Bayaz lived in the House, and became bitter at what the Maker would not teach him. When Kanedias left to seek out materials for his works, Bayaz explored the House for secrets, and found his greatest secret; Tolomei. Fascinated with each other, the two became lovers, and she told him of Kanedias' experiments to incorporate material from The Other Side into his works. When Kanedias returned and found them together, Bayaz was forced to flee the House leaving Tolomei behind, barely escaping with his life[1].
After the death of Juvens, blaming Kanedias and swearing vengeance, Bayaz gathered the Magi from across the world and made war on the Maker; all of them, but Khalul. They put siege to the House of the Maker for twelve days, but even with all their Art, they could not make a scratch upon the gates. In the end, Bayaz begged Tolomei to open the gate, and the innocent girl agreed. The Magi fought Kanedias chamber by chamber, until finally Bayaz confronted Kanedias alone on a bridge high in the House of the Maker. According to Bayaz, Kanedias threw his own daughter off the bridge to her death, before Bayaz defeated the Maker and cast him down in turn. However, Yulwei remembers seeing Kanedias fall first followed by Tolomei, a statement that Tolomei confirms, claiming that Bayaz was trying to keep his secrets, potentially about the death of Juvens.
Both Kanedias and Tolomei were buried in the shadow of the House[2]. However, Tolomei had been "altered" by prolonged exposure to The Seed. She lay in her grace, somewhere between life and death, until she heard the voices of Demons on The Other Side. They offered her a bargain: her freedom for theirs, to become a deathly cold wraith, in return for throwing open the doors to The Other Side. For a thousand years now, Tolomei has been searching for The Seed.
The Blade Itself
When Bayaz returns to Adua, Tolomei searches his chambers at night. However, she is disturbed by Logen Ninefingers. She assumes the guise of his long dead wife, Thelfi, however Bayaz bursts into the room and uses his Art to expel her through a gaping hole in the wall.
When she learns that Inquisitor Sand dan Glokta is investigating Bayaz, Tolomei visits him in his quarters at night. In the guise of his mother, then Arch Lector Sult, and then her own voice, she demands that he find The Seed. She then disappears, a threat pregnant on the icy air left in her wake, leaving Glokta disoriented about whether it was merely a dream.
The next day, a mauled body is found in the Agriont. The body of Malacus Quai, whose guise Tolomei takes.
Before They Are Hanged
Tolomei in the guise of Quai, travels with Bayaz on his journey to the Edge of the World. Logen notes that Quai's personality has become noticeably more reserved, as does the Magus Zacharus when they meet him. In the Great Western Library, Cawneil is utterly perplexed by Malacus Quai. Curiously, Bayaz himself does not notice the change, or assumes it is one of Khalul's Eaters, and does nothing for his own reasons. Finally in Shabulyan, when Bayaz discovers he has been tricked by Kanedias to keep The Seed for himself, Quai/Tolomei is especially shaken by the news.
Last Argument of Kings
Tolomei again visits Glokta when they return to Adua, and demands The Seed. When Glokta protests that only Bayaz knows, she says if that old liar had it, she would take it from him.
When the Gurkish forces land in Midderland and begin to lay siege to Adua, Quai, Bayaz, Ferro, and Yulwei go to the House of the Maker to get weapons to fight Khalul's Eaters. While the others go get The Divider, Ferro explores the map and the series of moving rings above. In the centre she finds The Seed. While Bayaz orders her to take it to the palace, Quai finally reveals himself to be Tolomei. She admits to killing Quai and taking on his appearance before the journey to the edge of the world (the mauled body that Inquisitor Glokta investigated was Quai). While Yulwei fights Tolomei, Bayaz and Ferro flee. Despite promising to go back for Yulwei, Bayaz seals him and Tolomei in the Maker’s house.
References
- ↑ Before They Are Hanged, Scars
- ↑ The Blade Itself, The House of the Maker