Now, Brisa was absolutely certain that she had met this young lady before. As much as she tried, she failed to place where she had seen Catlin’s face. It was maddening. Wherever it was, it must have been at a party or another social event. Catlin was so fun to be around.
They went through the shuttle’s equipment shop looking for things Brisa could wear. To Brisa, all of the items looked dangerous or scary but Catlin looked completely comfortable around them. Catlin even looked a little disappointed at the selection. She was an interesting lady, funny, possibly dangerous, and familiar with places like West Drop.
“Why are you going to West Drop,” Brisa asked. She realized she had never thought to ask this before. Being a reporter, it was odd that she was so off balance. She could have the first mission jitters, even though it was a short mission.
“A friend of mine has some business in the area,” Catlin said as she picked out a frightening looking maul. She put it in the cart before continuing, “We are all going with him just to be safe.” Just then, Catlin had an inspiration. “Hey! You know what? Even after we get your gear, you shouldn’t be alone in West Drop. You can hang out with us until your mission is done.”
Brisa had to admit, that was exactly the kind of help she needed. “That would be amazing. I hope it won’t be a problem.”
“Don’t worry about it. My friends would be happy to meet a reporter from Champion’s Chronicle. We watch your station all the time.”
They kept searching through the shuttle shop for more equipment to complete Brisa’s gear set. Catlin did most of the picking: a cloth mask with a ghastly mantis head painted over the face; blasters and daggers, neither of which Brisa knew how to use; spike accented leather chest armor that was just a little too heavy; ordinary cloth pants; boots and gloves made out of plated metal that were defiantly too heavy. Each looked dreadful. They didn’t seem to look good together either.
Both Catlin and Brisa kept joking at just how unprepared Brisa was for real combat. Of course, combat wasn’t the goal. No one would know her lack of abilities unless they tried to fight her. The goal was to make her look like she was ready for combat. With the right look she could avoid trouble. Catlin kept promising her friends would be able to help her if things became dangerous.
Catlin walked to the fitting rooms pushing the cart while Brisa lagged behind carrying the maul Catlin had picked out earlier. Even with the guns and daggers in the cart, the maul looked the most dangerous.
They reached the fitting rooms when Catlin noted her admiration, “I knew you’d like that. That will be your primary weapon.”
Brisa blushed slightly. Catlin was right. The maul was pretty nice. Brisa posed with it but could only hold the pose for half a second. The maul was too heavy.
She looked at the rest of the gear. Not only were they made from different kinds of materials, they were all different colors. She trusted Catlin’s judgment but she couldn’t help but comment on the gear, “Th… they all look hideous.”
“You’ll fit right in,” was Catlin’s no nonsense answer, “Most adventurer equipment looks like this.” Having seen a great deal of the world, Catlin knew what she was talking about. In adventurer cities like West Drop, clothes were meant for function not fashion.
If Brisa showed up in matching armor she would become a target immediately. A matching outfit meant that either she had bought everything at a shop and was weak or she was an ace warrior that had high ranking enemies and a large bounty. “I just so happen to be a tailor and enchanter,” Catlin spoke into the fitting room, “If you need any alterations, it would be no problem.”
Brisa was trying to figure out where to put the more dangerous equipment Catlin chose for her. Brisa was proud when she first put on the reporter uniform but it had to go. She surely didn’t want to be attacked again. The event at the shuttle pad was horrifying enough. She would do anything to avoid landing in a rejuvenation center.
Still, she couldn’t help but think; this lady is really nice and is helping me too much. Is there a cost? “Why are you helping me,” Brisa asked.
“Are you kidding,” Catlin said. The gleeful response made Brisa feel like a bigger celebrity that Jaquan Zu himself. “My friends just wouldn’t believe that I met a reporter. They’ll want to meet you.”
“Are you sure our situation won’t be a problem for your friends. Remember that one lady I told you about in BigBad. I had no idea she saw me,” Brisa said looking at her scorched bowtie now discarded with the rest of her uniform, “She’s a real piece of work. I’m sure the other ones are dangerous too.”
Catlin giggled to herself before replying. “We’ve seen quite a bit of action too,” she said, “I don’t think we’ll have too much to worry about.”