Excerpt 2!
My current wordcount is 4141. Tonight's goal is 5000, which shouldn't be too hard.
This scene is a blatant excuse for filler/padding. 761 words recounting the gang's escape from Belize with the (under the law, stolen) artifact. This is also the first time we see Anthony's power. As always, all questions can be addressed at the wiki.
The spacious main hall of Philip Goldson International Airport was, as it always seemed to be, absolutely teeming with people. It was a sort of polite chaos, huge lines of people running straight into each other, travelers with too many children and tons of luggage appearing out of nowhere. And in the middle of it all, twelve seemingly unflappable security agents stood, examining every single piece of baggage.
“You are really sure that you’re sure about this?” Jack asked Anthony, though it came out more like a statement.
“Don’t worry about it,” he answered, with rather more confidence than he had a right to.
“First thing you’re doing when you get back,” Luke challenged Moira.
“Running a real bath,” she said, wistfully. “First food you’re going for?”
“You have to ask?”
“The greasiest Chinese you can find?”
“The buffet on 4th and Maine. First new movie.”
“New Spiderman,” she said, diffidently.
“There’s a new one?”
“Probably. First person you’re going to call?”
“Girlfriend,” he sighed. “I haven’t spoken to her since she came down. She’s gonna kill me. First television show?”
“Adult Swim.”
“Doesn’t count.”
“I don’t give a damn which show, just as long as it’s animated and chock full of nonsequitors and sarcasm.”
Their game continued for some time, as the group slowly progressed towards the baggage screening.
“Do you happen to know the penalty for smuggling antiquities out of the country?” Althea hissed into Anthony’s ear.
“Will you just relax? I told you; it’s going to work out fine.”
“I’m not going to Hattieville just because your ass though you had it covered.”
“Don’t worry about it,” Jack said, pretending to read over the flight information while plotting a likely escape route. “You’re friendly enough- I’d bet they’d let you work in the gift shop.”
“What do they sell in that place, anyway?” Anthony asked, trying to distract the others.
Jack rolled his eyes. “Oh yeah, I’ve totally been there,” he replied sarcastically. “Cause when I think ‘fun vacation destinations,’ a prison gift shop is the first thing that comes to mind.” He stopped for a moment, reconsidering the question. “Cakes with shivs in them, flowers for your bitch, cocoanuts with googly eyes- that sort of thing, I’d imagine.”
“What is it about googly eyed cocoanuts, anyway?” Althea asked, rhetorically.
“There’s a certain universal appeal to the round object with googly eyes attached,” Anthony replied. “You find them across all cultures. In American culture, it’s often the classic googly eyed pom pom, with optional foam feet.”
“I’m thinking that’s your next conference paper,” Jack told him, mentally measuring the distance to the front of the line. “‘Googly Eyed Spheroids: Examining a Cultural Universal.’”
“Are you sure they’re going to let you in?” Luke asked, nervously.
“For the last time, I’m from Spain, not Iran,” Ramon said, rolling his eyes. “I just let them scan my passport. I don’t even need a visa. Anyway, if everything else fails, I can just have Jack fly me in.”
Luke considered this. “Why the hell did we buy him a plane ticket, anyway?”
“Cause I kinda have a vested interest in him not ending up at the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico?” Moira interjected.
“That’s only because you-”
“Don’t go there,” Moira said, voice humorless.
Luke looked at her strangely. “I was going to say cause he’s responsible for your grade. What are you thinking?”
She sighed, a little relieved. “Never mind."
“You totally want to sleep with him too, but I wasn’t going to bring that up.”
“Thanks,” she said, sarcastically.
By this time, the group had reached the front of the line, Jack leading with Anthony not far behind.
“I sure hope he knows what he’s doing,” Ramon said under his breath.
“We’re traveling as a group,” Jack told the first guard.
“Please step this way and place your bags on the podium one at a time to be screened,” he said in a bored drawl. “We apologize for the delay.”
Anthony looked him hard in the eye.
“I don’t need to see your bags,” the guard said suddenly, in a voice that didn’t seem to be entirely his own.
Anthony stared harder. “All of you are free to go,” he added. “Take this group to the group security checkpoint,” he said to another airport employee who stood idle nearby.
“Did you just pull some kinda Jedi mind trick on that guy?” Luke whispered, clearly awed.
“Can we just get the hell out of here before George Lucas sues somebody?” Jack said, snatching his bag off the platform.
This scene is a blatant excuse for filler/padding. 761 words recounting the gang's escape from Belize with the (under the law, stolen) artifact. This is also the first time we see Anthony's power. As always, all questions can be addressed at the wiki.
The spacious main hall of Philip Goldson International Airport was, as it always seemed to be, absolutely teeming with people. It was a sort of polite chaos, huge lines of people running straight into each other, travelers with too many children and tons of luggage appearing out of nowhere. And in the middle of it all, twelve seemingly unflappable security agents stood, examining every single piece of baggage.
“You are really sure that you’re sure about this?” Jack asked Anthony, though it came out more like a statement.
“Don’t worry about it,” he answered, with rather more confidence than he had a right to.
“First thing you’re doing when you get back,” Luke challenged Moira.
“Running a real bath,” she said, wistfully. “First food you’re going for?”
“You have to ask?”
“The greasiest Chinese you can find?”
“The buffet on 4th and Maine. First new movie.”
“New Spiderman,” she said, diffidently.
“There’s a new one?”
“Probably. First person you’re going to call?”
“Girlfriend,” he sighed. “I haven’t spoken to her since she came down. She’s gonna kill me. First television show?”
“Adult Swim.”
“Doesn’t count.”
“I don’t give a damn which show, just as long as it’s animated and chock full of nonsequitors and sarcasm.”
Their game continued for some time, as the group slowly progressed towards the baggage screening.
“Do you happen to know the penalty for smuggling antiquities out of the country?” Althea hissed into Anthony’s ear.
“Will you just relax? I told you; it’s going to work out fine.”
“I’m not going to Hattieville just because your ass though you had it covered.”
“Don’t worry about it,” Jack said, pretending to read over the flight information while plotting a likely escape route. “You’re friendly enough- I’d bet they’d let you work in the gift shop.”
“What do they sell in that place, anyway?” Anthony asked, trying to distract the others.
Jack rolled his eyes. “Oh yeah, I’ve totally been there,” he replied sarcastically. “Cause when I think ‘fun vacation destinations,’ a prison gift shop is the first thing that comes to mind.” He stopped for a moment, reconsidering the question. “Cakes with shivs in them, flowers for your bitch, cocoanuts with googly eyes- that sort of thing, I’d imagine.”
“What is it about googly eyed cocoanuts, anyway?” Althea asked, rhetorically.
“There’s a certain universal appeal to the round object with googly eyes attached,” Anthony replied. “You find them across all cultures. In American culture, it’s often the classic googly eyed pom pom, with optional foam feet.”
“I’m thinking that’s your next conference paper,” Jack told him, mentally measuring the distance to the front of the line. “‘Googly Eyed Spheroids: Examining a Cultural Universal.’”
“Are you sure they’re going to let you in?” Luke asked, nervously.
“For the last time, I’m from Spain, not Iran,” Ramon said, rolling his eyes. “I just let them scan my passport. I don’t even need a visa. Anyway, if everything else fails, I can just have Jack fly me in.”
Luke considered this. “Why the hell did we buy him a plane ticket, anyway?”
“Cause I kinda have a vested interest in him not ending up at the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico?” Moira interjected.
“That’s only because you-”
“Don’t go there,” Moira said, voice humorless.
Luke looked at her strangely. “I was going to say cause he’s responsible for your grade. What are you thinking?”
She sighed, a little relieved. “Never mind."
“You totally want to sleep with him too, but I wasn’t going to bring that up.”
“Thanks,” she said, sarcastically.
By this time, the group had reached the front of the line, Jack leading with Anthony not far behind.
“I sure hope he knows what he’s doing,” Ramon said under his breath.
“We’re traveling as a group,” Jack told the first guard.
“Please step this way and place your bags on the podium one at a time to be screened,” he said in a bored drawl. “We apologize for the delay.”
Anthony looked him hard in the eye.
“I don’t need to see your bags,” the guard said suddenly, in a voice that didn’t seem to be entirely his own.
Anthony stared harder. “All of you are free to go,” he added. “Take this group to the group security checkpoint,” he said to another airport employee who stood idle nearby.
“Did you just pull some kinda Jedi mind trick on that guy?” Luke whispered, clearly awed.
“Can we just get the hell out of here before George Lucas sues somebody?” Jack said, snatching his bag off the platform.