Traveling Through Tales

Chapter 1 Usual Day At The Office?

In the year 2022, a young office worker found himself at his desk with its surroundings filled with thick manuals, books, and self-made notes. The books and papers towered over him as he was a man of small stature, at best he was about 5 feet tall when standing at attention.

This was fitting as his stereotypical Asian heritage was present in his features which made him look younger than his actual age of 27 years old. From outside of the room, you could see his dishevel black hair peeking over the mountains of books.

And Just behind the sight of his black hair were the tools of his trade, a computer and a bag of safety equipment stored in a corner of his office which looked as if it had gotten too much use as the steel toed boots had its fair share of scratches, nicks, and faded smudges that looked of old grease.

While the sight of this kind of equipment seemed out of place for an office worker, this was normal for him as he would have to crawl and climb through the ships he needed to inspect and then write the corresponding paperwork to make the repairs.

As he is finishing up his most recent round of quiz questions with his mentor, he was elated that he would soon be able to cross off another requirement on his skills and training packet. It would be another small step to his goal of truly becoming an expert in his field of study as a ship engineer.

He dreamed of one day being able to confidently do his work with enough confidence that he would be able to help his fellow coworkers and ensure the safety of the sailors of the ships they sailed.

He imagined himself with his coworkers having discussions around a large table and as they were bouncing ideas off one another they were also cracking a few jokes that would then cause a round of laughter which would help lighten up the mood.

They would then end the meeting and would have come to a decision on their next plan of action that everyone agreed upon.

The office worker's imagination came to an end as his mentor began to close the conversation as she began to start her usual routine of post quiz questions. In the past, every time they would finish their sessions of quizzing, his mentor would berate him for his failure to answer what the mentor believed were simple questions.

While true from the view of the mentor of over 10 years of experience, this was difficult for a new hire like himself who has only been on the team for a single year. The office worker would then say that he will try to improve, but the mentor would then continue to berate him and question him on how he will improve.

Like all the times before, his mentor asked him these usual questions in a very forward manner, which the office worker could interpret had a hint of disdain and contempt directed at him in her words. Mentally brushing off the negativity from his mentor, the office worker began to speak his answer.

"Previously the readings were too much to remember due to the total pages in the manuals are over a hundred pages, so a solution we discussed before was to write down notes to ensure I would understand.

I have done so in a format that is more comprehensive to myself which I believe has helped me to improve as the number of questions I can answer this time showed much better results than last time. To further improve I want to include …."

"Let me stop you there, Show me your notes."

Interrupted by the mentor, the office worker slightly stalled but dutifully turned his attention to his computer. His focus seemingly sharpened in an instant, his eyelids noticeably widening as he swiftly moved his hands to operate the computer and brought up the 20 page long typed document.

The pages were filled with only words in a single space format which left the page almost devoid of white spaces. The mentor then asked.

"So, these are your notes? The notes that should say or interpret what the manual says?"

"Yes."

The office worker affirmed with confidence as if to pressure him the mentor responded by taking a couple minutes to read his notes with an intentional glare and then turned her head to look at him.

With a heavy and harsh tone, the mentor shouted.

"YOU ARE LYING TO MEEE."

The office worker's mind was slightly shaken by these words but kept his composure calm on his face. He gave a questioning look at his mentor and thought to himself.

'What does she mean by lying? What have I done? Did I do something wrong? I won't get any answers by keeping silent, so I better ask.'

"What do you mean that I'm lying?"

"You have stated incorrect designations and terminologies in multiple sections of your notes."

The mentor pointed to a few words on his screen and the office worker just looked at them, confused by why this would be an issue. He had related the information he read to a personally well-known idea or word that would make it easier for him to more quickly remember and readily understand the information, so what is the problem?

Knowing that he could bring up why he used these so-called incorrect designations and terminologies, he knew from past experiences that he wou;d again be met with more criticism on how he should do his work.

He had always agreed with his mentor's "advice" and chose to instead withhold his words. He trusted in his mentor and believed that she was doing this to help him improve.

"I see, I'll be sure to use the exact wording next time. Best not to cause any future miscommunications from simple wording, am I right?"

A light chuckle escaped the office worker's mouth, as he attempted to crack a joke, but the mentor scoffed at him. She looked at him as if she was looking at dust.

A dust that was would soon drift off out of sight. Fortunately for her, this would soon happen as a lunch break was approaching, and she could finally have time to herself away from the office worker. Not wanting to stay another minute the mentor told the office worker.

"We will review your incorrect answers after lunch, be ready."

The office worker smiled and responded in kind.

"Sure thing and thanks again for your help."

The mentor looks at him, but instead of responding she turns away and leaves his room. As she moved out of the room, the office worker was able to see his fellow coworker and desk neighbor.

He was the office worker's previous mentor and the look on his face had eyes slightly widened as he tried to keep his mouth from forming any discernible emotions, but his fear towards the mentor could be seen by the office worker.

The office worker could also see the disappointment his fellow coworker had in him and relief that the mentor was out of the room.

The office worker, not minding the looks of his two senior coworkers, turned his head to his computer and began his review. In less than an hour he was able to answer all the questions he missed.

He begins to quiz himself to ensure that he would remember this key information. As he was quizzing himself, he dreamed about the future.

He was getting quite old, at the age of 27 he still did not have a girlfriend and all the friends he knew were somewhere else in the world chasing their dreams.

He had already lost contact with so many of his past friends and fellow college graduates. They either stopped responding to his attempts to reach them or were in places where he could not reach them.

Thinking that he would try again to reach out to his past friends, he reminisced on his personal history. There was warmth, joy, and the sweet tastes of many of his favorite foods.

BBQ meat on a hot summer day was a luxury for him and the warmth of the sun and food were not the only things that kept him from going cold. The warmth in his heart when he was with his friends brought a joyful ear to his eyes as he believed that they were all going to stay friends.

Before he could think in more detail of why he had become so separated from his friends, a sudden voice called out to him.

The sight of the supervisor's signature black hat was peeking around the corner of his office entrance and under that hat was the supervisor's familiar face. He had dropped by to see the office worker and called out to him.

"Please, come with me. We need to have an informal …  meeting with the branch head"

The office worker replied to his supervisor that he will be there as he begins to close up and save his work. But it was at this moment, the office worker's life would change, and he could feel it as if by instinct.

A chill had shot down his spine and a breath of air was caught in his throat as the mention of the branch head was ominous. This was compounded by the seriousness of the supervisor's expression that conveyed that he was holding back some form of negative emotion.

All of this was quite foreboding, and the officer worker picked up on this.