Airport Security

"We still got over 3 hours left. I think I'll go get some breakfast. You coming along?" Isabelle asked, trying to flirt or perhaps just make the time go faster.

"No, sorry, I've got things to do," Jack replied.

"All right then, see you in a couple of hours."

Jack did not reciprocate her farewells. His mind was somewhere else, running wild with frustration, almost making his head throb. In the backpack stood utility out of alien metal - more noticeably - his device and radio that would most certainly get stopped by security.

Sure, the 2 boxes full of chemicals and nutrients trapped delicately in spatial air could be disposed of, along with the multitool. They weren't a necessity. But his other 2 things were. To the point of facing off multiple nations if it were needed but that would prove troublesome, especially while being so far from his destination.

Jack thought of ways to sneak them through. Acting like they were just harmless toys would be difficult, for they looked like futuristic bombs. Tipping off the men in charge would have a very low success rate, not even mentioning the fact that he was almost broke. God, he wished he hadn't left the invisibility cloak behind.

He went into the men's room - almost clocking in the wrong one - to cook up a plan. After seconds of pondering, Jack decided to absorb the 2 boxes on the spot. Using the earthling's way to nourish the body was also a possibility for him while in human form. He would need to get accustomed to the taste of food but that was only a small impediment.

*Sniffff* *Ahhh*

"Feeling the taste of home right here," Jack said while sniffing and snorting, beginning the process of absorption.

Such emergency packages would generally be used as a means of escaping hunger if branded on planets without air. But they could also be utilized as a temporary power-up, which could last for a few days and up to a month.

Jack's felt empowered, high from the sensation of supremacy (overdosed, in fact). But he couldn't savor it fully. His mind was sending him signals that the situation wasn't in the green yet.

His multitool, which he called a Morpher became a ring, an ordinary silver ring that could easily pass as an engagement ring if worn on the ring finger.

Now, arriving at the great problem, what should he do with his two other devices?

"I think I got it," he finally said after much thinking and several test runs.

He left the bathroom and looked at the big clock hanging in the hallway.

[10:36]

He had a little under 2 and a half hours left. That was enough. He went outside, walking a speed up and jogging at times. He needed to find a shop that sold clothes.

"That's it!" Jack exclaimed after getting a peak at a sports shop, selling workout equipment.

He entered the shop and scanned thoroughly, searching for something that would fit his size. He picked some pants from here, a jacket from there, and a pair of sports shoes and socks, along with some anti-sweat t-shirts, amounting to roughly $135 which he paid in cash.

"Damn inflation, our reports seem to have been heavily outdated."

He took the labels and price stickers out and crammed all the clothes and the pair of shoes in his backpack. If he were to be checked out at the airport, having no clothes with you while on vacation would seem too odd, raising unnecessary trouble. He realized that even as an alien. The system wasn't much different from his planet.

He got back up to the airport where he saw that he still had around 2 hours to go so he started inspecting the area. He saw the metal detectors up ahead and that gave him confidence. They weren't as advanced as the ones on his planet so he figured he could pull it through. He had a plan.

He went back into the men's room - this time without someone yelling behind him that he'd gotten the wrong door - and began his preparations.

[Simple guide to smuggling contraband as an alien 101]

STEP 1: Transform into original form.

STEP 2: Insert the contraband inside the tummy. (P.S. Not to be confused with gulping the contraband inside the ventriculus.)

STEP 3: Use the molecular reconstruction to turn into the desired form while keeping the foreign objects inside.

STEP 4: Create a molecular barrier around the contraband to block incoming and outgoing signals.

STEP 5: Profit.

After practicing it a couple of times, Jack was confident he could keep them inside for the entire flight if he had to. But preferably not, it would've caused a terrific tummy ache.

Jack walked to the security line and later got to the detectors.

'This is it. If my plan fails now then I'll have to annihilate all these stupid humans," he thought.

But thankfully for the passengers and personnel on that day, they got to live another day. Jack's plan worked.

He walked forward, got his bag checked and they let him through. First thing first, he went to the bathroom and extracted his toys from his stomach. He exited and saw Isabelle who was lying on a chair - not moving a muscle - waiting for the plane.

"Hey," Jack said while he approached her.

Isabelle did not respond. She seemed to be napping. Jack sat next to her, not interrupting her sleep, gazing at her sparkly-dark-amber hair. The color seemed to please him.

'Funny creature. Late by oversleeping in the morning and now she could be late again. I hope she set the alarm-' He thought, stopping his thoughts from finishing the sentence.

'Was I feeling compassion just now? To a mere human? Mongrel and Advin would've laughed in my face if they had heard me. I guess exhaustion has gotten to my mind. I'll get some rest once I am on that plane.' He thought.

And after an hour and a half later, the announcement had been made.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we would like to inform you that flight [364] [Galápagos Islands - Las Vegas, USA] is now arriving at gate number [11]. Please have your boarding passes and identification ready for boarding. Thank you."

"That's ours Isabelle, wake up," Jack said while pocking at her shoulder.

"Oh? Jack? Hey! Sorry,- I mean thank you, I must've fallen asleep," she said as she collected her body together and sat up from the apparently so comfortable plastic chair.

They both got to the gate and waited to be signaled to go inside the plane. While taking steps inside, Isabelle asked:

"By the way, what seat you've got?"

Jack looked at his ticket again to make sure and replied with "11D".

"Oh, then we'll be together. I've got 11C. It's a long 24-hour flight. A chatting partner would be great."

"Right..." Jack said, feeling unenthusiastic. Now that he was on the plane, her help didn't interest him much and he just wanted to sleep at that point.

'At least her voice isn't irritating,' he thought.