After we watched the match, we invited them to the party we'd heard about from the Heavensong Tower. Callie was sure after that showing, they would definitely get some attention. We agreed to meet up the next day for the party, and Callie made her wishes for the day, and again the next morning, paying me another thirty G-rank chits, and getting another thirty points of Perception, bringing me up to a full E-ranked chit worth of personal funds.

We met up with them around sunset to head for the party, which was apparently formal dress, so I got another use out of that suit from the Gala. We drove to the address on the card together, and by the time we got there it was dark. Benny, Celine, Jessie, Abel, Mel, and the Spear Legion came, but this was a younger generation party so Zeke, Stella, and Melinda stayed home.

"I'm starving." I announced as we headed into the nondescript building. "You guys think they'll have any decent food there?" The area of the party was eerie, we'd come to a back street where the lights were dim and there weren't many people. I'd have thought it was a trap except I could see a few other formally dressed people our age filtering into the building, so I guessed the people here just prized secrecy.

Callie chuckled. "Probably. Formal parties usually have decent stuff. Canapes and the like. I hope they have crab puffs. The gala didn't and I really love those. They were basically the only good part of some the parties I went to as a kid."

Benny rolled his eyes, faux-muttering to Celine. "These two, I swear. We're lucky Nightstrike is so obsessed with loot or I'd worry they would eat us out of house and home." When he caught us looking he stuck out his tongue at us, and I flipped him off.

Deliberately raising my voice, I stage whispered to Callie. "Did you know that when Clockwork was a kid, he used to have a phobia? Specifically, he used to be terrified of owls."

"They're creepy!" He rebutted with fervor. "What kind of animals can turn its neck all the way around? You're the weird one for not being bothered. They swoop up mice and small mammals and shit out whole skeletons. It's horrifying. They're like living nightmares."

I cracked up at his defensiveness, but we didn't keep sniping. The bouncers at the door were well hidden, but when we got close enough they resolved from the shadows to block our way. Probably some kind of Stealth Skill. "Invitations?" The one on the left said blandly. I fished out the card and handed it to him, and he inspected it and then handed it back with a nod, ushering us in.

The inside of the building was much more lavish than the plain exterior would suggest. This place was probably a hotel based on the decor, and a fairly upscale one, but most likely catering to more...discrete clientele. It made sense some of the shadier forces from the WCP or even among the visitors wouldn't want to stay in a noticeable spot. "Well." Said Jessie as she took it all in. "This is much less dramatic than the last party, but I feel more comfortable here I think."

She wasn't wrong. "I get what you mean." I said contemplatively. "It's stuffier but less otherworldly. The lack of crazy illusions helps, but the lack of E-rankers also makes it feel less restrictive. We're among peers so I don't feel so stiff."

"Well I'm glad to hear it." Said an amused voice. I jumped slightly as we all spun to se Alec, looking just as harmless and pleasant, with a bland smile in place as he virtually appeared out of nowhere. What a creepy guy. "I'm glad to see you could all make it." He smiled at Lament and co. "And you brought friends, the Spear Legion if I'm not mistaken. I heard about your showing in the second round, very impressive. Please, make yourselves at home, mingle and get something to eat. I'll be around if you need me."

I expected him to stick to us and be a pain in the ass, but he just waved and melted into the crowd heading into a large ballroom. Not everyone was in the Ballroom though, there were sporadic groups in the halls and hanging around, people who felt more comfortable talking then dancing or shuffling around the edges of the more formal setting.

Surprisingly, we ran into some old friends. Megan, Riley, Sydney, and their fourth team member, Sam, had noticed us walking around and come over to greet us. Megan, being the more gregarious, was the one to flag us down. "Hey guys. Good to see you. You guys got invited to this too huh? That Heavensong Tower sure has some pull to arrange this many guests across this many arenas."

I hadn't considered that actually, but she was right. "I wonder how they booked this place." I said with interest. "It doesn't seem like it would be common knowledge. Interesting group of people. Anyway, what's their purpose for all this do you think? Like sure, getting information on other teams and making connections, but there were parties already happening where they could do that. Why throw their own?"

Callie shrugged. "If I had to guess these are all the teams they consider a threat. Speaking of which." She turned to Megan and Sydney. "Congrats on passing your second round you two. Kind of wish we'd seen your fight, but maybe next time. Who did you end up against?"

Megan grimaced. "Treepoem Grove. I don't want to talk about it. Suffice to say they were annoying to beat. Riley did most of the heavy lifting on this one, though we should be playing a bigger role as we move on. Heard from Sloane you all took on Divine Stainless Temple and even beat a Master Candidate. Damn impressive."

Another voice cut in. "Divine Stainless Temple?" We turned to see a few teenagers around our own age in incredibly upscale looking clothes. The one at the front, a girl with short black hair and a bright smile, held out a hand as we noticed her. "Oh, sorry to interrupt. I'm Laura, from the Solemn Vow Guild. If you guys just took on Divine Stainless Temple you must be the team from the Starchaser Pavilion."

Callie took her hand, looking slightly uncertain. With our Master Candidate going against another it made sense they would have heard of us, but the timing on that introduction had been a little too coincidental. Like they'd been waiting for us. I hadn't heard of them, but Callie either had or was pretending to make them feel better, because she took Laura's hand with a smile of realization. "Oh, Solemn Vow. I've heard of you all."

Laura looked pleased. "I'm glad, because we're going to be facing each other sooner rather than later. I have it on good authority that you're going to be our next opponents. I couldn't believe my luck when I heard you mention Divine Stainless Temple."

I couldn't believe her luck either. Literally. I didn't believe for a second that her 'bumping into us' was a coincidence. Callie didn't tense externally, but I felt a burst of suspicion over the bond. "Well isn't that funny. I guess we're in luck too, getting to meet our future opponent so early. We didn't even find out who our fight would be against yet. And we checked."

Abel had come up basically empty handed looking around. He'd been given a date and time but not told the enemy. Presumably they were waiting until the last minute because so many teams had been so prepared. Which gave rise to the obvious question, how had these people known who they were fighting when no one else did?

Laura just smiled disarmingly. "Ah, well you know, we've always been good at making friends. We'd love to be friends with you all too actually. You seem like impressive people. It can be so uncomfortable navigating situations like this. Don't want there to be any hard feelings between the teams after the matches. I feel like if we form a good rapport now, even if you were to end up losing we could still be friendly. We could even try to cheer you up. I'm always generous with my friends."

That...had been an attempt to get us to throw the match. I wasn't the most politically savvy person around, but even I had enough sense to see that they wanted us to fold. Callie's demeanor cooled, her smile becoming forced. I personally didn't begrudge them the attempt, but it seemed like the unfairness of trying to bribe us had upset my girlfriend. Not that I thought we should take the deal, but you don't know if you don't ask. I didn't blame them for trying.

"That's kind of you." Said Callie frigidly. "But I think we have our hands full at the moment. We already have quite a few friends. Maybe we can make some time to get to know you after the tournament. Don't worry about hard feelings on our end though. We don't plan to lose, so it shouldn't be an issue."

Laura seemed more amused than offended, putting both hands up in surrender. "No problem, just something to think about. I know that you probably have high hopes for this tournament, but I wouldn't count your chickens before they hatch. Certain parties have a vested interest in making sure the proceedings happen in a specific way. Teams like you and I are just boats on the current. Best to know when to dock and get off the water."

That had sounded threatening in terms of words used, but her tone was almost...apologetic. Like we weren't the only ones in a bind here. Someone was pushing certain teams to give up in order to get their personal picks through the rounds. My immediate thought was that it was the Cult, but not everything could be because of them right? Then again Pietro's presence showed they weren't even trying to be subtle about their involvement in the tournament, so maybe it was them.

With a cheerful nod, Laura turned and strolled away, her lackeys going with her. I turned to Callie. "What the hell was that?" I was sure she'd caught more about what had just happened then I had.

I felt a tug as she resonated her Stealth Skill to prevent anyone from hearing us. "That." She said grimly. "Was a complication. Solemn Vow is a Guild, which is a type of organization most common in the Empire. With Pietro showing up, it means that at least two factions have teams in the tournament. How they managed to get them entered I have no clue, but it seems like the factions involved are starting to apply pressure."

"Wouldn't that be against the rules?" I knew they were pretty open about interference in the WCP, but the Unity usually put on a more upright face.

She just shrugged. "Maybe. They tried to bribe us first, the threat was potentially just a warning. It's possible it wasn't even coming from them, they might have been trying to clue us in to the Cult's policy of doing the same. This system borders Cult territory, so there's no way they don't have other teams in the lineup. The Empire probably does too. We need to talk to Zeke and my uncle. This just got a lot more complicated."

This tournament was a much bigger deal than expected. I knew getting Impact in advance was huge, but this was more attention than I'd expected for something so low stakes. I could see how Natalie had been drawn here. In fact. "Let me get in touch with my cousin. I haven't talked to her since things started, and I think we're due for a sit down." I wanted to know what the fuck was going on. Because I was pretty sure this was more dangerous than I'd been told.