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[Story] Oversized and Overqualified
🕑 Added 2024-10-01 16:33:47 +0000 UTCHi Hi ✨
This is the last post from September, an idea of one of you! I tried making this story a little more casual, covering some more daily activities of a tsa agent. The thing is that she's 7'8. Hope you enjoy reading her day to day working at the airport. For Tiers 3 & 4 members, you can find 7 extra images including some other agents and travellers! Find the full resolution images in your folders, remember, still in the September folder. Cheers!
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Oversized and Overqualified
"Next!" The booming voice echoed through the security checkpoint, causing a few heads to turn. TSA Agent Samantha suppressed a sigh as she waved forward the next passenger in her queue. At 7'8", she towered over most of the travellers, her muscular frame barely contained by her specially tailored uniform.
"Good morning, sir. Please step into the body scanner," Samantha said, trying to soften her naturally imposing presence with a friendly smile.
The businessman, barely reaching her chest, gulped visibly. "Uh, yes. Of course." He shuffled forward, casting nervous glances up at Samantha.
As the man positioned himself in the scanner, Samantha's colleague, Jake, a 5'10" man who now seemed almost diminutive next to her, leaned in. "You know, Sam, I think you're getting better at not scaring the passengers."
Samantha snorted, her shoulders shaking with suppressed laughter. "Gee, thanks, Jake. I'll add that to my resume: 'Skilled at not terrifying civilians.'"
The scanner beeped, and both agents turned their attention back to the screen. Jake squinted at the image. "Looks like we've got something in the left pocket. I'll do the pat-down."
Samantha raised an eyebrow. "You sure? Last time you had to pat down someone my size, you nearly pulled a muscle reaching up."
Jake's face reddened slightly. "I can handle it, Sam. Besides, we can't have you doing all the pat-downs. That's not fair to you or the other agents."
"Alright, alright," Samantha conceded, raising her hands in mock surrender. "Have at it, shorty."
As Jake approached the businessman to perform the pat-down, Samantha turned her attention to the next person in line - a woman who, like her, had been affected by the FMG-35 virus. The woman stood at an impressive 7'4", her muscular arms straining against the fabric of her blouse.
"Step right up," Samantha called out, gesturing to the scanner. "Don't worry, this one's been calibrated for our new dimensions."
The woman grinned, relief evident on her face. "Oh, thank goodness. Last time I flew, they had to do a manual pat-down because the old scanner couldn't process my 'anomalous body structure.'"
Samantha chuckled. "Tell me about it. I've been on both sides of that particular joy. Go ahead and step in when you're ready."
As the woman positioned herself in the scanner, Samantha heard a yelp from behind her. She turned to see Jake rubbing his shoulder, a sheepish look on his face.
"You okay there, Jake?" she asked, trying and failing to keep the amusement out of her voice.
"Yeah, yeah," he grumbled. "Just... reached a bit too high, too fast."
The businessman looked mortified. "I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to-"
"No, no, it's not your fault, sir," Jake assured him quickly. "You're free to go. Have a nice flight."
As the businessman scurried away, Samantha turned back to her own queue, where the Amazon woman was just stepping out of the scanner.
"All clear," Samantha announced. "You're good to go."
"Thanks," the woman said, then hesitated. "Hey, um, this might be a weird question, but... do you know if they've changed the airplane bathrooms yet? Last flight I was on, I could barely fit through the door, let alone... you know."
Samantha grimaced in sympathy. "It's hit or miss, honestly. Some airlines have retrofitted their entire fleet, others are still catching up. If you're flying Airbus, you should be okay. Boeing's a bit behind."
"Great," the woman sighed. "Guess I'll just have to hope for the best. Thanks anyway!"
As the woman walked away, Samantha noticed a commotion further down the security line. A group of college-aged guys were nudging each other and pointing not-so-subtly in her direction.
"Dude, check it out," one of them stage-whispered. "Think she could bench press the metal detector?"
His friend snickered. "Probably. Man, I wouldn't mind getting patted down by her."
Samantha rolled her eyes, used to such comments by now. She caught Jake's eye, and he gave her a sympathetic look.
"Want me to say something?" he offered quietly.
Samantha shook her head. "Nah, not worth it. They'll be through soon enough."
As if on cue, the group reached the front of the line. Samantha fixed them with her most professional stare. "Gentlemen, please empty your pockets and step through the metal detector one at a time."
The guys sobered up quickly under her gaze, suddenly seeming much younger and smaller. They complied without further comment, though Samantha noticed their eyes widening as they passed close to her, the top of their heads barely reaching her shoulders.
Once they were through, Jake leaned over again. "You handled that well. I would've been tempted to flex on them a little."
Samantha snorted. "Please. I'm a professional."
Just then, their supervisor, a petite woman named Linda who now looked almost comically small next to the Amazon TSA agents, approached. "Samantha, we've got a situation at the oversized luggage scanner. Mind lending a hand?"
"No problem," Samantha replied, already moving to follow Linda. "Jake, you good here?"
Jake waved her off. "Go on, Sam. I've got this covered."
At the oversized luggage scanner, Samantha found two of her Amazon colleagues struggling with an enormous crate. Even with their enhanced strength, they were having trouble maneuvering it onto the conveyor belt.
"Need a hand, ladies?" Samantha called out, already rolling up her sleeves.
"Sam! Thank god," one of them, a redhead named Alicia, puffed. "This thing weighs a ton. We can't get a good grip on it."
Samantha positioned herself at one end of the crate. "Alright, on three. One, two, three!"
With a collective grunt, the three Amazon women hoisted the crate onto the conveyor belt. The machinery groaned slightly under the weight but held steady.
"What's in this thing anyway?" Samantha asked, wiping her brow.
Linda, who had been watching from a safe distance, consulted her clipboard. "According to the manifest, it's scientific equipment. Some kind of specialized microscope."
As the crate passed through the scanner, alarms suddenly blared. Red lights flashed, and everyone tensed.
"Well, that's not good," Alicia muttered.
Linda quickly typed something into her tablet. "The scanner's picking up some unusual readings. We're going to need to open this up for inspection."
Samantha nodded, already reaching for her gloves. "You got it, boss. Where do you want us to set it up?"
Linda pointed to a nearby inspection area. "Over there should work. I'll get some of the guys to set up a privacy screen."
As Samantha and her colleagues carefully moved the crate to the inspection area, she noticed a commotion near the regular security checkpoint. A group of passengers were gathered around, pointing and whispering.
"What's going on over there?" she asked Jake, who had wandered over to help with the privacy screen.
Jake shrugged. "Some celebrity, I think. I heard someone say it was that basketball player who grew to like 8 feet tall after the virus."
Samantha's eyebrows shot up. "Seriously? I thought that was just a rumor."
"Guess we'll find out," Jake replied. "She's heading this way now."
Sure enough, a moment later, the crowd parted to reveal an absolutely towering woman. Even among the Amazon TSA agents, she stood out, her head nearly brushing against the ceiling of the terminal.
"Holy sh-" Samantha caught herself, remembering where she was. "I mean, wow. That's... something."
The basketball player approached the oversized luggage area, ducking slightly to avoid the overhead signs. She was pushing a custom wheelchair, in which sat a much smaller, elderly woman.
"Excuse me," the player said, her voice surprisingly soft for her size. "I was told to bring my grandmother's wheelchair here for inspection?"
Linda, looking even tinier next to the enormous athlete, stepped forward. "Yes, of course. We'll need to scan it separately. If you could just help your grandmother into one of our airport wheelchairs for a moment?"
As the basketball player carefully lifted her grandmother - the motion looking almost comical given the size difference - Samantha couldn't help but stare. She'd thought she was tall at 7'4", but this woman made her feel positively petite.
The grandmother, seeming entirely unfazed by her granddaughter's size, patted the giant woman's arm affectionately. "Now, now, Lisa. Don't you go intimidating these nice TSA folks. They're just doing their jobs."
Lisa smiled down at her grandmother. "Of course, Nana. I wouldn't dream of it."
As Lisa straightened up, her head bumped against one of the overhead lights, causing it to sway dangerously. She winced, ducking her head. "Sorry about that. Still getting used to... all this."
Samantha found herself stepping forward. "No worries. We've all been there. Well, maybe not quite there," she added with a chuckle, gesturing to Lisa's incredible height. "But I remember the first few months after the virus hit. Couldn't go through a doorway without ducking."
Lisa's face lit up with relief at finding someone who understood. "Oh god, yes. And don't even get me started on clothes shopping. I thought it was hard finding tall sizes before, but now?"
"Tell me about it," Samantha commiserated. "I've got a cousin who's a seamstress. She's been making a killing with her 'Amazon Apparel' line."
As the two chatted, Jake and Alicia worked on scanning the wheelchair. Linda, meanwhile, was on her radio, presumably calling for assistance with the mysterious crate.
"Alright, ladies," Linda called out after a few minutes. "The wheelchair's clear. Ms. Johnson, you're free to go. And Ms. Wright, if you could return to the crate inspection, please?"
Samantha nodded, turning back to Lisa. "It was nice meeting you. Good luck with... everything."
Lisa smiled, carefully maneuvering her grandmother back into her custom wheelchair. "Thanks. And hey, if you ever want to play some basketball, look me up. I could use some opponents closer to my size."
As Lisa and her grandmother made their way towards their gate, Samantha returned to the crate. A small crowd had gathered, held back by security cordons.
"What's the verdict?" she asked Linda.
The supervisor frowned. "We're still not sure. The readings are... odd. We're waiting for a specialist to arrive. In the meantime, I need you and Alicia to open it up so we can take a look inside."
Samantha nodded, putting her gloves back on. "You got it, boss. Alicia, you ready?"
The two Amazon women positioned themselves on either side of the crate. With a nod from Linda, they carefully pried open the lid.
Inside, nestled in protective foam, was what looked like a tangle of metal and glass. Samantha leaned in for a closer look, her enhanced height giving her a perfect view into the crate.
"It does look like some kind of microscope," she confirmed. "But I've never seen one quite like this before."
Just then, a harried-looking man in a lab coat came rushing up, out of breath. "Wait! Don't touch that!"
Linda stepped forward, her hand raised. "Sir, please calm down. Are you the specialist we called for?"
The man nodded, still panting slightly. "Yes, Dr. Everett. I'm from the CDC. That equipment... it's highly sensitive. And potentially dangerous if mishandled."
Samantha and Alicia exchanged glances, their hands frozen above the crate.
Dr. Everett continued, "It's a specialized microscope, yes, but it's designed for studying... well, studying the FMG-35 virus. The samples inside are live."
A hush fell over the gathered crowd. Even after three years, mention of the virus that had so dramatically altered society still had the power to cause unease.
Linda's eyes widened. "Live samples? Here? In an airport?"
Dr. Everett nodded grimly. "We're transporting them to a new research facility. It's perfectly safe as long as the containment unit isn't breached. Which is why," he added, looking pointedly at Samantha and Alicia's hands hovering over the crate, "it's crucial that it's handled with extreme care."
Samantha slowly withdrew her hands, suddenly very aware of her strength. "Right. So... what do you need us to do?"
Dr. Everett sighed, running a hand through his thinning hair. "If you could just... very carefully... close the crate back up. Then we'll need to move it to a secure area until we can arrange for proper transport."
As Samantha and Alicia gingerly closed the crate, Linda turned to the crowd of onlookers. "Alright, folks. Nothing to see here. Please return to your gates or continue through security."
The crowd dispersed slowly, whispers and speculative glances following in their wake. Samantha couldn't help but overhear some of the comments.
"Live virus samples? Here?"
"Do you think it could cause another outbreak?"
"Maybe it'll make the men grow this time!"
Samantha shook her head, focusing on the task at hand. As she and Alicia lifted the crate to move it to a secure area, she couldn't help but reflect on the strange turn her life had taken. Three years ago, she'd been a college student studying criminal justice, average height, average build. Now, here she was, an Amazon TSA agent, casually lifting equipment that would have required a team of people before.
As they set the crate down in the secure room, Alicia voiced what Samantha had been thinking. "Pretty wild, huh? To think that the thing that changed us so much is right there in that box."
Samantha nodded, her expression thoughtful. "Yeah. It's easy to forget sometimes, you know? This has become our normal. But moments like this... it really brings it all back."
Dr. Everett, who had been hovering nervously nearby, cleared his throat. "Thank you for your assistance, agents. I know this must be... personal... for you."
Samantha turned to the scientist, curiosity getting the better of her. "Doctor, if you don't mind me asking... why are you transporting live samples? I thought the virus had run its course."
Dr. Everett hesitated, clearly weighing how much to say. Finally, he sighed. "The truth is, we still don't fully understand the FMG-35 virus. Yes, it's no longer actively spreading, but we don't know if it could mutate, or if there could be long-term effects we haven't seen yet. And then there's the question of why it only affected women, and why some women were unaffected..."
He trailed off, seeming to realize he'd said more than he'd intended. "Anyway, that's why we need to keep studying it. To be prepared, just in case."
Samantha nodded slowly, a mix of emotions swirling inside her. Fear, curiosity, and a strange sort of gratitude - after all, without this virus, she wouldn't be who she was today.
"Well," she said finally, "I hope your research goes well, Doctor. And... thanks. For working to keep us all safe."
As they left the secure room, Alicia nudged Samantha. "Hey, you okay? You look like you're a million miles away."
Samantha shook her head, coming back to the present. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just... thinking about how much has changed. And how much might still change."
Alicia grinned, flexing her impressive bicep. "Well, whatever comes next, at least we're well-equipped to handle it, right?"
Samantha laughed, some of the tension dissipating. "Right. Now come on, let's get back to work. These oversized bags aren't going to scan themselves."
As they walked back to their stations, ducking under doorways and squeezing past bewildered passengers, Samantha couldn't help but feel a renewed sense of purpose. Yes, her job could be awkward, challenging, and sometimes downright absurd. But it was also important, and in its own way, a testament to humanity's ability to adapt and carry on, no matter how dramatically the world might change.
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