The airport

You’ve always wanted to travel, but never had enough money. Now you can go anywhere free of charge, and when you arrive, you’ll be waited on hand and foot. All you have to do is ask. Not to mention the mile high club.

You arrive at the airport and take Erica’s car to the parkade. For a moment, you’re stumped by how you’re going to pay for parking. Before long, however, you are able to find someone and “convince” them to pay for you as long as you’re gone.

As you enter the airport, you are bowled over as someone runs into you. “Watch where you’re going, moron!” yells the retreating figure in Mandarin. You start to get up, ready to run after the guy, when you remember that you don’t speak Mandarin. How did you know what he was saying? How did you even know what language he was speaking?

You look around for someone else not speaking English. Hearing some French nearby, you walk over to a pair of old ladies.

“Excuse me, what time is it?” you ask them quickly.

“It’s nearly 10:30, young man.” says one of the ladies. You hear the French words, but your mind seems to automatically translate it into English. You mutter a thank you and walk off.

On the way to the pre-departure area, you find more non-English speakers and strike up a few brief conversations. Each time, they speak in their native language and you understand them perfectly. One man even compliments you on your Arabic. Apparently, the Voice gave you the power to identify, understand, and be understood, in any language. You hadn’t even considered the language barrier when you left for the airport, and appreciate the Voice’s foresight.

You finally make your way to the pre-departure area. Through the windows, you can see a number of planes getting ready to leave. Jumbo jets are driving to their loading ports, and you can see a few private jets fueling up too. That raises an interesting question...