"So...that's basically all of it." I finished, filling in the others in on our talk with Camden. "I didn't want to commit to anything without consulting anyone. Being the leader is one thing, but signing you all up for military service working on commission for gear without asking seemed like a dick move." Benny snickered a bit at that.

Jessie, who was the person whose opinion I was here for, nodded. "I appreciate you checking, but yeah, I'm down for that. Helping people is what I'm here for. You really think we could get a set of armor made for Randall? Because that sounds crazy expensive." Despite her words her tone was eager. Apparently it sounded as cool to her as it did to me to outfit her giant animal companion with high ranking armor.

Everyone else seemed just as eager for the new gear, and we quickly confirmed everyone was interested. Once that was done, I moved onto the plan. "That said, I think waiting a bit to get a better handle on the local environment before we sign up. Training doesn't start for another three days anyway, so it makes sense to make the most of our time. First thing I want to talk to Anna about who exactly we're going to be fighting. The rest of you can do whatever, just let me know if you learn anything interesting."

We all split up, but rather than going with Callie, I decided to spend some time with my sister. Chelsea and I both headed downstairs to find Anna and ask about the local power dynamics. "So...how is it to be out on your own?" I asked my twin as we headed downstairs. "Must be pretty jarring."

She chuckled at that. "You have no idea. I'm definitely still getting used to it. I've been sleeping in the past few months. I'm always expected to be awake at the crack of dawn back home for training. Here I can just...be. It's lovely. I've also had a great time getting to know your friends. They've been so welcoming. I really appreciate you bringing me along with you, Shane."

"I'm happy to have you here." I said with a laugh. "Though that sleeping in thing isn't likely to last. Military trainers are pretty infamous for being strict about timetables."

As we'd been talking, we were strolling around the inn, with the expanded residential portion it was much bigger than expected. The place had five floors and dozens of rooms. Luckily Anna was down in the main bar area, so when we reached the first floor we found her easily.

The dark haired proprietress of the inn was washing and drying glasses behind the bar. I didn't see a bartender, though there had been one last night. Maybe she took shifts. She smiled as we walked up. "Ah, well if it isn't two of my favorite guests. What can I do for you?" I was pretty sure everyone was her favorite guest when she talked to them, but it was nice to get such a warm greeting.

"Hey Anna." I said, sitting down at the bar. "We were hoping to get some info about local politics. The movers and the shakers. We were talking to Tolbert and it looks like we'll be working with him so we want to know what we're up against."

She smirked at the question. "You sure you can afford it? My services don't come cheap. I have the best sources on Stratholme, and more than a few throughout the empire at large. Even a basic information package from me is bound to be more than you can afford."

"I'm sure we can figure something out." I said with a laugh, thinking of my wish power. I hadn't used any wishes today, so I was in a great position to bargain from. "Can we get some of the Shepherd's Pie by the way?"

Since we'd prepaid for meals, she didn't charge us when dishing out the delicious smelling meal, just retreating to the kitchen and coming back with two heaping bowls of potatoes, meat, and veggies. "So." She said, setting them down in front of us. "What exactly do you think you could pay me that would be worth my time? You lot aren't even Barons yet."

That drew me up short as I squinted at her thoughtfully. I'd never actually checked what rank Anna was. She didn't feel stronger than us, but I knew from Zeke that it was easy for strong Ascendants to keep that suppressed if they felt like it. Was Anna a D-ranker? I couldn't imagine her being any higher than that. How the hell had we picked this place out of all the others if she was high ranked? What were the chances? Fucking Fate Sense.

Whatever rank she was, it wasn't higher than Zeke, obviously. There was only one C-ranker on this planet, so we were safe enough to negotiate. Especially if she was D-rank, since that was just past the limit. "Well, that depends." I said smoothly, reaching into my pocket to pull out my WCP card. Aside from giving me access to branches, it also acted as a form of identification. "What do you want?"

She blinked, eyes snapping to the logo on the card. "Ah." She said thoughtfully. "That would explain the looker who came along with you. Seemed odd for such a powerhouse to be puttering around with a group of kids. Do you have a stock of scrolls, or can you actually grant wishes?"

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

"The latter." I said bluntly. "Six per day. And I'd be willing to trade for information, if that's something you're willing to discuss."

That got a laugh from the innkeeper. "Of course it is. I can't think of anyone sane who would turn down a wish. You're a bit young, so I'll need to keep it on the lower end of extravagant, but I'd still be interested. Though of course the limits will effect what kind of information I'm willing to trade."

Her familiarity with the process brought me up short. I expected her to recognize the crest, but this was a bit much. It finally occurred to me to ask the question I hadn't bothered to ask before now and probably should have. "Wait...do we have a branch on Stratholme?" Realistically I should have assumed that. We'd had several on Callus, and that was a much lower ranked planet.

"Of course you do." She snorted. "Three of them actually. Though one is in Crenwick, which is clear on the other side of the planet, and another is in Velholm, which is in the ice caps. The closest is in Roarfield, the capital. We don't merit an actual Wyndham obviously, though there has been a member of the family passing through now and then. Still, a resident Wyndham is bound to draw some attention."

While some people might have considered this a threat, or an attempt to gain leverage, based on her tone it was clear to me that Anna was giving me a friendly warning. She was an information broker, and I'd given her information. If I wanted to make sure she didn't sell it to anyone I needed to make preparations to keep it from spreading.

Luckily, I had an easy means of doing this by virtue of my geasa. I'd already planned to include the cost of keeping my bloodline to herself as one of her wishes, but I appreciated her pointing it out for me just in case. At the moment though, I really wanted to hear more about the local WCP. "I imagine the branch head is one of the Viscounts?" I asked, trying to focus.

"One of them." She agreed. "Though no one is sure which. The WCP operates a bit more in the shadows in the Empire. They aren't an illegal organization, but they keep a low profile because of the stricter legal precedent. Makes things easier for everyone. The capital branch head goes by Drelan. No one has seen his face that I know of."

That was interesting, closer to the way they did things in Velan than in Rajak. If anything it would keep them out of our faces though. No reason for them to be all the way out in Saltzberg if they were laying low.

Knowing there wasn't a time limit on that information though, I was more willing to wait. "Alright. We can talk about that later. I need information on who we're going to be fighting for Tolbert. If we're doing wishes we could use a place with more privacy. Don't exactly want to advertise."

Frowning, she turned to call back into the kitchen. "MATTIE!" She bellowed. "Come work the bar for a bit!" After a minute, a small blonde woman around my age in an old fashioned dress stepped out, looking annoyed.

"It's my break." She said belligerent. "Why can't Lionel do it?"

Anna rolled her eyes. "Because Lionel is unloading the kegs. Do YOU want to unload the kegs?" Her glare made it clear that the question was not rhetorical.

Mattie put her hands up in surrender. "I was just asking, gods. I'll do it. But since I'm working through my break I get to keep all my tips right?" Despite backing down from the presumably backbreaking work of loading kegs in this ridiculous exhausting planet, the girl didn't back down, her amber eyes narrowed like she was getting ready for a fight.

"Fine." Anna sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Keep your tips. But I'm checking the bottles when I get back. No freebies, and no pouring drinks for yourself when you pour them for customers."

When the blonde nodded, Anna gestured to us and escorted us to the back of the inn, into a storage room packed with everything from glassware to burlap sacks of potatoes. "Not afraid to mouth off to the boss, is she?" I asked as we stepped inside. "I'd recognize that complete disregard for authority anywhere. She your daughter?"

"Niece." She said with a laugh. "Lionel is her brother, and neither of them are nearly afraid enough of me. I take it you're related to your guardian."

I shrugged. "My dad's best friend, but basically yeah, he's my uncle. I suspect he gets just as exasperated as you by my own antics. So, here's how this will go. You make a wish, I let you know if I can grant it, and if I can, you offer the information you think it's worth as payment. Assuming my power accepts, I grant the wish and then we move on to the next one. Your last wish will be paid with a geas keeping you from divulging my secrets. Understood?"

This was a perfect solution to a lot of my problems actually. Because wishes concerning secrets were so expensive, information was at something of a premium to me. Since Anna had it to spare, we both got what we wanted out of this. She mulled it over, then nodded. "Sounds straightforward enough. Now, for my first wish..." She trailed off, clearly too excited to pick the first one. Eventually her eyes lit up. "I wish for a copy of Baron Clairdon's trade manifest."

Wish detected. Grant wish?

I confirmed, and the values for the wish scrolled across my vision in purple flame. I'd expected not to be able to grant it, since that sounded like secret information, but apparently wishing for a physical object was a way to partway negate the issue because it was just within my parameters. I blinked in surprise at Anna, who grinned at me. "I told you." She said with a chuckle. "There have been Wyndhams here before. In payment I'll offer everything I know about Baron Clairdon's forces."

Assuming he was someone relevant, I confirmed the wish, then held out my hand. The building electricity in my body welled up and manifested in my hand as a small leatherbound book. Anna took it gingerly from my hand, flipping it open and then rifling through it. Snapping it shut, her eyes returned to me. Thus began my crash course in Stratholme's local politics.