Chapter 120: Chapter 120

Chapter One Hundred and Five - Too-Quick Friends

The biggest issue, right out the gate, was that Fran took a liking to Jane.

Or, maybe not a liking but she didn't seem to mind it as Jane wasted the afternoon away, forcing Fran into different outfits.

Now, I'd be the first to admit that the time wasting was annoying, but as much as I disliked it, there was something I liked more, and that was cute women dressed provocatively, and Jane was providing that in spades.

Yes, I'd seen Fran naked before, and yes, I'd memorized every curve, but seeing someone naked in bed and seeing them look just a little embarrassed in a microskirt while Jane cackled was different.

Fortunately, Jane only had so many things she could squeeze Fran into. Her shop had more floorspace dedicated to guns and gear than clothes, and what clothes she had wasn't all meant for taller, bustier women. That limited selection was saving us at the moment.

In the end, Jane had Fran in a 'costume' and was instructing her to slowly spin around before us, as if she was at the centre of a runway.

The gear wasn't bad, which was the most annoying part of it. Jane had found stuff that was usable, of decently high quality, while also all being things that were 'off the rack.' If anyone tried to track us down based on gear alone, they'd discover that it could have come from any of a dozen shops across Fortress ENE.

Jane stood up, obviously proud of herself. "Starting from the bottom, you are wearing... rather boring combat boots. Sorry, they're what I have in your size. They're corpo surplus, but they're not bad. Steel-toes, some padding, shitload of laces. Ya know."

Fran nodded, flexing her feet in the boots. "Not as comfortably as my pumps, but I suppose fighting in heels is asking for too much."

"Babe, if you can pull it off, then kudos. Give me a week and I can source you some combat boots with stiletto heels."

Fran smiled demurely and brushed it off.

"Right! Next, some shin guards and knee pads. NetherGain surplus from their last gen equipment. I think they moved towards bigger, thicker protection. The new stuff is better, but it's heavier too, makes you walk funny. This is a good middleground."

Fran had a metal plate along her shin, with straps running behind her calf, all over a thickly padded dock-like thing that stopped just over the knee. The metal was painted a rubbery black, so it didn't stand out much.

"Do my thighs need to be so... exposed?" Fran asked.

"Yes, absolutely," Jane replied with a nod. "Are you familiar with the concept of absolute territory?"

"No?" Fran said, uncertain. "Should I be?"

"Darling, all things with a pulse should be," Jane replied.

Fran was in shorts. Not booty shorts, exactly, but not too far off. They were on the shorter side, with pockets and a decent belt that had a holster for a handgun to one side. Since Fran apparently didn't know how to use a gun very well, we'd stuck her with a simple nine-mil. The same Myalis Arms that I used at Luna Corp. It was reliable, had a good safety, and fat ironsights.

Anyway, the shorts... they were maybe a half-size too small, and squeezed in around Fran's thighs. I could see the vision Jane was going for, and it was good.

The top half of the outfit was a little more plain. A pretty tight, spandex-like material for the top, thick enough in some places to prevent chaffing, and smooth. It was long-sleeved, with a pair of bracers and elbow protection.

Her upper chest was covered by a light breastplate. Hard plastic covering half-inch steel plates. The kind of armour that a lot of corpo guardwomen wore. It left the belly uncovered a little, but that was often needed for flexibility. It wouldn't stop any bigger rounds, but it would prevent some E-ranker goblin from sticking a wooden spear through her chest, which is what mattered.

Then there was the coat.

It wasn't really a coat, more of an... artfully fucked up poncho-cape? The edges were ripped slightly. The poncho covered most of Fran's body except for her front. It had a tall collar that rose up to her chin, and swept down to just above the knees around her side and back.

"The poncho is C-ranked gear," Jane said. "It's designed for use in some portal worlds where the locals spit acid and shit at anyone passing by. It's pretty tough. Got it for cheap though, since it's used, but eh, it fits. Gives you a real distinctive silhouette."

This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. The source of thɪs content is 𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹•𝕗𝕚𝕣𝕖•𝗇𝗲𝘁

It did do that, and well, too.

The final pieces were a ballistic half-mask. It covered Fran's lower face, from the nose down. Hard plastics and steel, painted in the same black as the shin guards and bracers. It was gear meant to help a diver not get their face ripped off, but it was also the kind of dehumanizing corpo thing that some companies loved dressing their workers in.

"Ah, and the piece de resistance," Jane said, pronouncing it... correctly.

"You speak French?" I asked.

"That bitch-ass Coco Chanel was a toad, and she and her sort dragged the fashion world around for a bit," Jane said. "If you wanna talk fashion, you need to know a word or two."

Jane went to the back of the store, and I turned towards Fran. "Like the fit so far?"

"It's... a little different than anything I've ever worn," Fran admitted. She moved her arms up and around, shifting them through the material of her poncho. "But there's more mobility than I'd have in many of my dresses. I'll have to get used to the weight of the armour, but I'd rather have it and not need it."

She flicked her hand around, and with a snap-hiss, there was suddenly a beam of angry yellow light appeared in her hand. She swirled it around, expertly managing not to slice through any of the shelves, then she moved through a few guard forms.

"That's menacing," I said.

"Why thank you," Fran said. She dismissed the blade. "Will I even be able to use it? There's little point in a disguise if I use such an obvious signature spell."

"Hmm," I muttered. "You might want to invest in new spells, then. Maybe some that aren't as... flashy. Pardon the pun. That's part of what I do. As Deadline, I use one branch of magic. But outside of Deadline, I use another."

"You've learned an entire branch of magic just to further your disguise?" Fran asked.

Jane had returned, carrying three items. Two of them she tossed to me. "That's the upgrade to your gear," she said. "To better fit in with the princess here. And princess, wear this."

It was a hat. Fran took it, turned it this way and that, then chuckled before sliding it on. "This looks like a cosplay piece," she said.

"Yeah, it's close to that," Jane said. "Oh... damn, that brings it together. Give me a week and I can redo it, replace the liner, put in one of those bump-guards on the inside. But for now, damn."

The look was nice. The hat looked like a slightly oversized naval-officer's hat. A flat-cap with a skull badge on the front. Combined with the high collar and the partial face-mask... yeah, Fran looked like someone else. Someone dangerous.

"Give me a glare," Jane said.

Fran glared, and I could see the vision.

"Now, tell me that I've been a naughty girl," Jane said.

The glare intensified. Jane cackled.

"Alright," I said. "So... that'll do for gear, I think, right?"

"It really depends on what we'll be fighting to begin with," Fran said.

I nodded along. "We'll get to that... in another time. We're kind of too late for it now."

"Pardon?" Fran asked.

"Just... give me a minute with Jane?" I asked.

She acquiesced, and Jane glanced over, then came closer. "What's up, Beanstalk?"

"Alright, so, hypothetically, if I were to call you and I needed exactly what Fran is geared up with along with, uh..."

I finally looked at what Jane had handed me. It was another one of those poncho-capes, with a hat. The hat was similar to Fran's, a tight cap with a little brim on the front.

"Nice," I said. "This is kinda villainous, you know?"

"Yeah, and half of it was sourced from questionably legal places, and you're using it to hide your ID while doing questionably legal shit. What, want some pink spandex and a big DL on your chest? Maybe a cape?"

"Fair enough," I said. The intimidation factor was well worth it, in any case, and darker colours would blend in better in most portals. "Anyway, I need you to work me through what to ask you to get that exact fit."

Jane stared. "Okay," she said at least. "But I need you to promise me you'll explain all of this."

"Okay, yeah. I promise."