The days wishes were used on attacks. I was able to get two from Callie, though she had to rest after the first before giving the second. It seemed that drawing out the attacks worked the same as just executing them, and her full power blows weren't so easy to toss around. Vitality seemed to have a lot to do with energy and recovery time, and I made a note to remind her to keep up with that one.

Luckily I had other roommates, and I was able to get two attacks from Cark and one healing burst from Jessie in case of emergencies. Callie and Cark put theirs into Might while Jessie put hers into Vitality. The points this time had increased though, because I had FINALLY broken through whatever barrier of stats kept my wishes limited to two points. Now I could trade three points per wish, and that would be a huge boost to our power going forward.

Unfortunately I wasn't willing to burn five wishes on training, so I could only keep the attacks in reserve for now. I was planning to up my stockpile since I could feel my body wasn't at capacity yet, but I'd have to make sure not to waste all my wishes on attacks. I still had to boost my own stats. My new combat style would help make sure I didn't fall behind, but only if I kept up with the progress I'd already been making. The extra stat point per wish would help with that.

I wasn't surprised I'd gotten it though, because I remembered the other candidate being able to do three points already, and she'd been G ranked too. It occurred to me as I had that thought that though my style of stat distribution increased versatility, it wasn't necessarily the only way. It was possible other candidates stuck to the stats they were born with and because of that were only able to grant specific kinds of wishes, just at a greatly enhanced pace. I even briefly considered that strategy, but dismissed it. My power was too versatile to sacrifice that for some temporary convenience.

The more wishes I could grant the more people I had to draw from for skills and stats. With all that done for the day though, we headed back down to the circus to check in at the pavilion. We still had a mission to complete. We needed to figure out which faction Melissa was colluding with and hopefully talk her out of it, possibly roping her in on our own side.

When we arrived at the pavilion, most of the members weren't there. Alden saw us come in and grinned widely, waving us over. "Well if it isn't our four newest recruits! Good to see your smiling faces." He glanced at me sideways. "And creepy blank mask I suppose. Anyway what can I do for you kids today? Not too busy around here right now so I'm free to chat if you need something." He reached into a pocket and pulled out a bottle. "I have refreshments. I always carry a few bottles of the good stuff on me."

I rolled my eyes, but didn't turn him down. "Do you have any black cherry?" He grinned and passed me a soda, while Callie asked for a watermelon flavored variation. I popped the cap and took a sip. "These must be expensive, can you afford to keep giving them away for free? Also where are all the others? It was a lot more lively here last time we came. I expected there to be crowds."

He let out a snort so loud it shook his beard. "Don't be daft boy, we have lives. We don't all just sit around the pavilion all day waiting to punch each other. As for the drinks they aren't cheap, but I make decent money. Friendly wagers on the outcome of battles you know." He gave me a wide and somewhat terrifying grin. "Of all the active pavilion members, I'm the one with the most wins under his belt, but those damn fools keep trying anyway."

I admit, I kind of wanted to fight him after hearing that. It would be a great way to build up reputation here. But I wasn't stupid, if Alden was at the top of the heap here he was way too strong to beat in a sparring match. With all my new tricks I might have been up to fighting him if we went all out, but I liked the guy, and I wasn't willing to do that. He'd been nothing but nice to us, and even if that had been useful to make a good impression (which I couldn't imagine it would be) I would never do it.

Benny spoke up. "Well, can you tell us a bit about people close to our own level? You've seen us fight, and since you're an experienced combatant you might be able to suggest someone who can push our limits." He sounded as intrigued by the possibility as I was.

Alden guffawed at the question. "See, this is why I like you kids. That's the proper pavilion spirit. Sure, come on over and sit down. I can give you a few suggestions." He led us over to the seats off to one side of the dirt ring, and when we sat down, Jessie and Benny both picked out drinks.

Jessie sipped her chocolate soda (I hadn't known that was a thing and I was kind of curious how it tasted) happily and made a noise of appreciation. "This is so good!" She gave Alden a warm smile. "If you need any healing in the future you can feel free to ask me. I'm pretty good at patching people up, and you seem really nice! Thanks again for how welcoming you were at the party the other day."

It was hard not to feel good when Jessie was smiling at you. Her cheer was just infectious, and Alden obviously thought so too since he grinned right back. "I'll keep it in mind lass. I don't get wounded much, but it's always nice to have a decent healer on hand. They're usually damned expensive to work with. Not that it ain't worth it, but the damned Peace Lord snaps up most of them for his faction and their rates are outright extortion. Luckily there are more than a few who joined up with the other factions so his goons can't bully them too much."

Jessie's eyes went wide. "The Peace Lord is that bad? He sounded like a pretty nice guy, and Sanctuary Hall is in E district right? Do they have a branch down here?" She avoided mentioning our meeting, which was smart, but still set us up for lots of information. I was reminded how Jessie used her cheerfulness and easy nature to draw out conversation and info from plenty of people. I hadn't seen it in action personally much, but it was an effective method from what she'd told us in the past.

This time was no exception. Alden was happy to complain. "Oh, aye. He runs that group like some kind of doctor street gang. Anyone who doesn't join up is considered a 'misguided healer' and the members treat them with contempt and make trouble for them under the guise of trying to be helpful and educating others. Sanctuary Hall doesn't have branches exactly, but it does have a presence through all the districts. It acts like something of a healer's union, and since healers are everywhere so are they. It's one of the things that make them so irritating. Everyone still treats them well though, since they're needed. You'll even see them around here at times, I'd avoid healing independently if you spot them."

Callie looked disturbed. "Will Jessie have trouble with them if she doesn't join a faction?" We'd basically decided to join the Beast Lord Garden anyway, or at least I had. Melinda was nice enough, and I trusted her to actually treat us fairly far more than I did the Peace Lord, especially after hearing that. The Nothing was a complicated issue I'd rather avoid. Callie wanted to do things on her own, so she wasn't likely to be comfortable being forced to join up with her uncle. With Melinda having two E rankers to hold down the fort I wasn't worried about the strength of her faction either.

Alden frowned thoughtfully. "Might be something happens, can't say for sure. My advice is to make an effort to find someone to take you in. Being free and unfettered is always best, but some powers are desirable enough that having a tree to shelter under is basically a necessity. Healing is a sought after gift, and if you don't have any backing there are some folks who aren't against using force to make sure they have access to it. The pavilion isn't something to sneer at, but that's only down here. With your gift I'd bet you can get a low level position at least with one of the big factions."

"Anyway, we can talk about that later." He said with a dismissive wave. "For now you wanted some input on who would be the most challenging fights. I assume you'd like those challenges to within your ability to complete?" I just nodded at him, sad he couldn't see the droll look through the mask. "Well, that makes it a bit trickier. I know plenty of folks you kids would struggle with, but if you want something relatively close I can oblige."

He paused for a minute. "Alright, well for the shadow girl I'd say your best bet is Gust. He uses this odd form of wind manipulation that lets him turn to air. Provides him good mobility to avoid attacks and get in close. It'll be a rough fight, but it'll also be educational as hell. You're going to need to do some quick thinking to pin him down and beat him. Gust is a little power dependent though, so you have a decent shot at pulling it out if you can counter him."

"As for you." He turned to look at Benny. "Probably Mountaincrusher. He's not actually earth based, his body turns into metal, but given your versatility and the tricks I saw, your biggest weakness is putting down people who can take a real beating. Mountaincrusher isn't too high up the ladder here either, so you have a chance to turn things around, all you need to do is stay on your toes and think."

Jessie waved him off as he looked at her, clearly not interested, and he nodded before turning to look at me. "Last but not least you should fight Fang. He's strong, fast, and damn skilled, but his power is mostly just increased regeneration from a Vitality multiplier. He's a good dummy for training on if you can survive him, and I can tell your biggest weakness is the lack of experience or foundation." He shrugged. "They'll all be tough fights you might lose, but from my point of view those are your best chances to grow, and that's really what we're all looking for here."

I nodded along as he spoke. I could tell he meant what he said, and I couldn't deny those were pretty valid points. I'd been thinking about that issue with my combat style to start with. Plus if we were walking Vitality I had a boost from Jessie that would not only heal me up but also give me an energy surge that would last quite a while during the fight if I needed it, which should let me keep up. I mulled it over for a bit before finally deciding to go for it. "So where do we sign up?"

A broad grin split Alden's face. "Lad, I knew there was something I liked about you. That's the kind of spirit I like to see!" He gestured over to one side. "Right over there is a table you can use to sign up for battles. Remember the names I gave you and just tell them you want to engage in a sanctioned match." His grin took on a vicious tint. "Remember to try your best. I'll be betting on your victory. Winner even gets a share of the profits from whatever bets the pavilion pays out, so work hard for both of us!" He clapped me on the shoulder and I suddenly had the sinking feeling that this might not be as good an idea as I'd though earlier. Oh well, too late to back out now.