• Published 6th Jul 2012
  • 3,195 Views, 112 Comments

To Turn a Life Around - TheEngineer



Our pathetic hero Matthew Anderson has found himself in a very odd situation as he stumbles upon

  • ...
8
 112
 3,195

Shadows

Chapter 9: Shadows

I woke up this morning feeling strangely refreshed, despite my current situation.

Huh, no nightmares last night.

I hopped out of bed and made my way to the shower.

...

I came downstairs, ready to take on my Sunday morning... Except I didn't see anypony.

Where could they be?

I walked slowly towards the kitchen, choosing to not panic just yet. Maybe they're somewhere else in the house and I haven't seen them yet. I took a few steps past the kitchen doorway when..

"Surprise!" shouted three feminine voices. I jumped slightly at my obvious surprise, turning around to see the source of the shouts.

I saw Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash and Twilight all standing next to the doorway, massive smiles plastered on their faces.

"What?" I asked plainly as confetti came out of nowhere, landing on my hair and all over the floor.

"We wanted to thank you for everything you did for us!" Twilight explained.

"So we set up a little surprise party!" Pinkie added.

"With one of Pinkie's amazing cakes." Rainbow added with the slightest drooling sound. I was dumbfounded.

"What?" I asked again, not quite sure if this was reality.

"Didn't you hear us, buddy?" Rainbow asked with a tilt of her head, "This is all for you!"

"Guys, you really didn't need to do this for me." I said modestly, glancing at the confetti all around me.

Pinkie Pie motioned towards the table behind me, I looked over to see a chocolate cake covered in white and pink frosting with blue letters that said: "Thank you for everything, Matthew."

"What are we going to do then, throw away the cake?" Pinkie asked in disbelief.

"No, no! This..." I trailed off staring into the cake-y frosting, "Looks delicious." Pinkie's smile grew even wider.

"Well, let's get this party started!" Pinkie began, only to be cut off by Twilight.

"Remember Pinkie, this is supposed to be low key. No loud music." Twilight reminded, Pinkie Pie's mane deflated ever so slightly before poofing back up again. How does she do that?

We all sat down as we replaced our breakfast with an awesome cake.

Hmm, the cake was not a lie after all.

...

"Pinkie Pie, when did you even make this? I have to say it's the greatest cake I have ever had the chance to taste... Ever." I complemented between mouthfuls of chocolate cake.

"I baked it over night when everypony was asleep! I tried really hard to not wake anypony up, but Twily and Dashie eventually came over to help me out." Pinkie explained, waving a fork in the air. Don't question it Matt, you know what happens when you do and you do not have enough Advil for that.

"Really guys, thanks. This is more than I could have asked for." I said.

"Hey, no problem big guy. You're the one who made the most sacrifices here." Rainbow replied.

We had some small conversations until we were all done eating. Twilight and I got into planning out our next few steps after we cleaned up all of the confetti, of course, Rainbow was nowhere to be seen at this point.

"So, Matthew. When can you get us the ground Quartz?" Twilight asked.

"I was thinking of ordering it through mail, but that might take too long. Maybe I can find a store and pick it up today." I replied.

"Okay, good."

"So, how much more time do you need?"

"It might actually take more time, It is really hard to tell at this point." Twilight said hesitantly.

"Okay, as long as you're making haste."

...

I looked up on a few stores that might sell quartz and found one that is actually relatively close to the overhaul base. It's a place called Gems and Minerals.

I told the three mares that I would go buy the quartz that they needed now and that I would be back after lunch, and made my way to the car soon after.

...

Another long ride to the city, for such a desperate time, there's one thing in my day that truly does not want to change. I switched on the radio and drowned out my thoughts as I drove to my destination alone.

...

Damn, barely any parking spots around here. I thought as I neared the mineral store's address. I scanned for any potential parking spots, I soon spotted a large green van start pulling out of its parking spot. Bingo.

I took the parking spot as soon as it became available, and was soon given a dirty look from some lady that wanted the same spot. Parking is such a competitive activity.

I hopped out of my car and walked over to the store, it was just one block down. Sure enough, right where the Internet has pointed me to was the store I have been looking for. It just wasn't what I expected it to be.

So much for modesty... I thought as I took in the lavish details of the glorified stone dealership. With a shrug, I opened the door and walked inside. There was a bald man behind a counter in a black suit with a rose red shirt underneath.

"Welcome to Gems and Minerals, how can I be of assistance?" The man said with a practiced smile.

"I'm looking for quartz." I replied simply. I was still taking in the details of the shop, the inside was decorated in an oriental manner. There were paintings of many cultures everywhere and the walls seemed to be made of... Bamboo? Why?

"Well, I can certainly help you with that!" the man said with a small cheer. I'm not one to judge, but my gaydar is going off right is.

"Uh, thanks. What's your name again?" I asked hesitantly.

"Philip Twain at your service. Please, follow me." Philip said as he motioned me to a display case. Inside resided six sparkling gems, lit by a single light from above.

"Here are our most prised pieces of quartz." he announced. I had no idea that quartz was so expensive looking, normally it's really cheap.

"Uhh, how much would one of these dent my wallet?" I asked incredulously.

"Well, the most affordable one you see here goes for around two-hundred dollars-"

"Whoah, hold on just a minute there. I was looking for something more... Modest." I interrupted. Philip gave me a stern look.

"Oh, I see. Follow me, right this way." he said as he turned to the back of the store, I followed.

Philip then opened a panel on the back wall that contained a sort of container, not unlike those large craftsman tool cabinets.

"Huh." I muttered quietly.

Philip ignored me and shuffled through the codes on the drawers. "Ah, here." he announced as he pulled one of the drawers open, revealing a tray of dozens of white and clear stones, "I believe this was what you were looking for."

"This is exactly what I was looking for, thanks." I replied happily.

"Well, not that it's any of my business, but what exactly are you using these for?" Philip asked with the thickest tones of curiosity.

I paused for the briefest moment before replying, "I'm... An Earth science teacher, I need some quartz for one of my lessons on crystal formations." I said with my greatest poker face.

"Oh." Philip said, his expression brightening, "And here I thought you were getting married! I'm so terribly sorry for jumping to that assumption, I just never thought a person of your looks would be a teacher."

"That's fine." I replied awkwardly, "How much for two of these?" I asked.

"Well, for you... I'll give you a teacher's discount, how does twenty dollars sound to you?" Philip offered.

"Perfect! Here you go." I said, fishing out a twenty at a surprising speed.

"Ha! You certainly are a teacher, please, wait until I get these wrapped up for you and your receipt is printed out." Philip responded with a hearty laugh. He didn't even check for a teacher's ID.... Either he's stupid or I'm just that charismatic, I will probably never know.

"Well, if you insist." I said lightly. Philip nodded, took two stones out, one clear and one white, and took them over to the counter.

Philip wrapped the two stones in a practiced motion and put them in a small paper bag. The bag had the shop's logo on the side. I handed Philip the twenty and he handed me my receipt.

"Thanks Philip." I said in a friendly tone.

"No problem, do come again!" Philip replied. I then left the store and made haste for the car.

I'm not exactly sure when I'm going to need more quartz, but I probably won't be coming back here.

...

"I'm home!" I announced as I walked in through the front door.

"Hey, how did it go?" Rainbow asked, being the first to see me.

"I got the quartz Twilight needs, and nothing bad happened today... So pretty damn well, I'd say." I replied. Twilight came out of the library as if on cue.

"Hey Matthew, you have it?" Twilight asked excitedly.

"Yeah, here." I replied, handing her the bag. She took it in her mouth since she's storing her magic for later.

"Wow, I can't believe it... We're actually going to go home aren't we?" Rainbow thought out loud happily.

Pinkie Pie then jumped out of seemingly nowhere and attacked me with a massive hug, "Yay Matty! Remember when I said 'cheers to going home someday'? Someday is almost here, yay!" Pinkie exclaimed as she suspended herself of the ground.

I giggled at Pinkie's antics, "Yeah, almost hard to believe huh?" I replied.

"Well, that's only going to happen if I get back to work. So, if you will all excuse me." Twilight added before walking back to the library.

...

Today wasn't so bad, no men in suits followed us today and my car wasn't sabotaged. Rainbow and I got to exchange music today as well, pony music is very vocal from what I've heard so far.

Dinner today was more talkative than normal too, it almost felt like being with family... Almost.

Pinkie Pie was also showing us some of her party tricks, including hoof shadows... How she managed to make a swan with just hooves I will never know.

All in all, I managed to go to bed peacefully. There wasn't much in my mind to torment me right now, there was just the fact that I had to go to work tomorrow.

.......

*BEEP!* *BEEP!* *BEEP!* *BEEP!* *BR-!*

I shut off my alarm and jumped out of bed and into the shower in a practiced motion. I was out five minutes later, drying myself quickly and putting on a pair of dark brown slacks and a crisp blue shirt with a black tie. I ate breakfast hastily and brushed my teeth as I packed a bag with casual clothing to change into later.

By six in the morning, I was out of the house. Professional attire, messenger bag and skateboard in tow.

I got in my car and drove off to work, successfully avoiding anypony from waking up.

...

I drove into the parking lot of the hangar, humming happily to the Beatles. Once I parked in my respective spot, I hopped out of my car and made my way to the lockers, where I put on my coveralls and clocked in for work...

"Anderson! Come into my office!" Mr.Simmons called from his office once I stepped into the work zone. I noticed that the previous shift had already hauled a new plane into the hangar. It was an A-320, a very old girl indeed, I shook my head and made my way to the foreman's office.

"Yes sir?" I asked professionally.

"We need to talk." he said softly, he motioned me to come inside and take a seat, and I did so.

"What about sir?" I asked, pretending to not know what this was about.

"It's about Thursday. Are you okay?" Simmons said, cutting to the chase as usual.

"I'm fine Simmons, I just lost my interest in the position during the interview."

"And made a fool out of me in the process, I was the one that recommended you to begin with, and you dared to show that kind of temper to men who have worked in the FAA longer than you have lived." Mr.Simmons said, tensing up a bit.

"I'm.. Sorry, I kinda lost it when that Goldleaf guy turned out to be completely soulless." I apologized genuinely.

"It's okay son, I understand what you went through and I'm willing to sacrifice myself just a bit for you. But, you have to understand that becoming a heartless person is simply what happens to man who does this line of work for as long as a man like Goldleaf." Simmons said. I looked up slowly at him in surprise.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"He has a side job in the NTSB Matthew, he has seen a lot of failures and a lot of death in his lifetime... More than his fair share actually, eventually all of those things make a man numb to the rest of the world, make them look at everything objectively and only that. I'm sure that he didn't actually mean you any disrespect, he's just the product of suffering and torment."

"Why are you telling me this, sir?"

"Because Matthew, I don't want to see the same thing happen to you. It would break me to see such a promising man lose his humanity to his experiences. Listen to Mr.Naidoo's advise and move on before you are simply a copy of what Goldleaf has become." Mr.Simmons said genuinely, putting a fatherly hand on my shoulder.

"Thank you sir, I will do my best to make sure that doesn't happen." I replied.

"Heh, you always do. Here" Mr.Simmons replied as he handed me the dossier on the plane in the hangar.

"That A-320 needs its starboard flaps repaired before this aircraft get overhauled, the pilot asked for a change of tires and hydraulic fluid too." Simmons announced to me, returning to his normal, professional stature.

"Consider it done, I'll tell the other crew chiefs." I replied before leaving the office.

...

I gathered the other crew chiefs and informed them of our next job. We all split up the workload evenly and then we set off to gather our crew members to start the overhaul process.

I had finished giving my crew members the situation report and we set of to repair the two starboard flaps that had apparently taken some damage during a landing. Three of my crew are going to remove the damaged skin, Dobson and I are going to get the rivet gun ready for when we are going to put in the replacement skin.

I was at one of the work stations, connecting an air hose to the rivet gun we were going to use when someone approached me.

"Excuse me, do you know where I can find Mr.Anderson?" the man asked. I glanced at his identification on his left breast pocket, he was part of the NTSB.

"Lucky you, that's me you're looking for." I replied, dropping what I was doing to see this conversation through.

"Oh good, well, I'm in the process of an investigation right now. An Airbus 330 crashed in California two years ago, and your name came up in the paperwork." the investigator announced the alarming news.

An A-330? "That's terrible, I don't quite recall the incident... Was everyone okay?" I asked.

"Sadly, no. fifty-four people died in the crash and seventy-six people were severely injured. I came because two bolts that were securing the vertical stabilizer were signed by your name a month before the crash, but those same two bolts were nowhere to be found in the crash site." the man said. I gulped, this is very bad news. But I was never a pencil whipper! Shit, I could lose my job for this!

"I see," I began, "I believe that we should be discussing this with the foreman present." I declared, the man nodded and followed me to Mr.Simmons' office.

I knocked on the office door, "Come in!" Simmons called from inside. I walked in with the investigator in tow, Simmons' expression grew serious once he saw the NTSB was involved in this conversation.

"Hello, are you the foreman in this facility?" the investigator asked.

"Yes, Mr.Simmons, and you are?"

"Mr.Witt, it's a pleasure."

"Likewise, so, what's this about?" Simmons asked suspiciously.

"Well," Mr.Witt began, motioning me to sit next to him, "An A-330 crashed in California around two years ago. While doing our investigation, we found that Mr.Anderson had signed for two bolts securing the vertical stabilizer just a month before the crash. Those two bolts were nowhere to be found on the crash site."

Simmons leaned back on his chair. He understood what this meant if I couldn't prove that it wasn't my fault. "Well... This is quite serious." Simmons said in surprise.

"Indeed, I came here to set the record straight." Mr.Witt replied.

"Wait," I jumped in, "You said A-330 right? We don't get many of those here, what series was it?" I asked, putting a lot of hope into this one idea.

"It was a...", Mr.Witt began as he searched through his case file, "Two-hundred series."

Shouldn't he know that information off the top of his mind? He has worked on this case for two years after all.

"Two-hundred.... I don't recall ever actually seeing the two-hundred series of an A-330 before, I remember working on the hundred and the three-hundred series, not two." I thought out loud.

"That's some very compelling information," Mr.Witt replied, I saw a gleam of happiness in Simmons' eye, "Can you prove it?"

Oh no...

That gleam in my foreman's eye was gone.

"I'm afraid that I don't have any paper evidence of that, sorry." I replied weakly.

"Well then, I'm afraid that I'm going to have to suspend your licenses for some time until this investigation is over." Mr.Witt concluded, "You will not have permission to work on anything aviation related, power plant and airframe alike, for eight months. During that time you will rerun your training and you will either be allowed to return or be terminated. That last decision is for your company to decide." Witt replied. My heart sank when I processed that information, I will surely be fired if they somehow manage to prove me guilty. There are many other people just waiting to replace me, why would they keep me when they can have someone with a clean record?

Mr.Witt left the office, left me to my thoughts until Simmons interrupted them.

"I'm so sorry that you have to go through with this..." he said.

"What now?" I asked glumly.

"Now I have to fill out a whole lot of paperwork and you wait for a month or so until you get your training schedule in the mail. Sorry, but you're going to have to relearn everything in aviation. I wish there was something I could do to stop this, but this is something you're going to have to go through, they will probably lower your pay some."

"Okay, I guess I will be seeing you sometime later." I replied, leaving to collect my belongings.

...

It was near the end of my shift when I left, I changed into my casual clothing before leaving, and took my sweet time walking to my car. There's no rush anyway.

I climbed slowly into my car and started driving, I didn't quite know where yet, but I needed to keep my mind busy.

...

I drove aimlessly until I found myself at a park, I impulsively decided to find the nearest parking spot, got out of my car and pulled out my board. I soon found myself riding on a small, paved road with walls made of many trees.

I may have lost my passion, but at least I haven't lost my release. I continued kicking along the road, following wherever it offered to take me, my passes slowly becoming more frustrated. I continued along until the path took me to a circle of bricks surrounding a small fountain with a statue on it, a war memorial.

I jumped off my board and let it roll off to the side, there's no one around to steal it anyway. I have never seen this place before, but it had a familiar feel to it. There was a plaque on the statue, only somewhat hard to read because of that fountain.

"We remember those who have fallen, but we cherish those who got back up and moved on". I read quietly to myself, the bottom of the plaque said: In loving memory of those who have fallen in Syria.

I looked away from the memorial and looked around for my board, I eventually found it and picked it up, only to find myself sitting at the edge of the memorial circle. I was staring blankly at the blue sky.

...

I eventually made some peace with the fact that I will lose my job, and passion, entirely and was now beginning my drive home.

Get up and move on... That's one phrase I have heard people tell me far too many times, they don't understand how hard it can get to move on, how so much in life can go so wrong. Yet, I still yearn to move on, and still try my push forward because going back simply isn't an option.

I've thought about ending it before, ending it all. It was actually a dominant though in my mind at one point, the day after I learned my family died. For a very long time, that thought would be a poison in the back of my head. Every time that I held a knife, leaned close over a ledge or worked near the power tools in the hangar, that one thought would linger: I could just end it now.

The only thing that has ever stopped me from actually doing it wasn't fear, it was hope. Hope that one day I will be at peace with myself and the pain wouldn't be there anymore, and now I'm so close too.

I spotted a flower shop and my mind stopped, how long has it been...?

I found a place to park and bought fifteen pink roses, and then, made my way to the cemetery...

...

The grave markers were right where they should be, still new looking. Mother, father, sister, aunt and uncle all in a single row... All so peaceful looking.

"I'm sorry I wasn't there, I miss you all so much..." I spoke quietly. After a long moment of paying my respects, I placed three roses at each marker, reminiscing on cherished memories while doing so.

I then turned around and headed home.

...

When I arrived home, I found all three mares sitting on a couch and staring at the front door. What worried me was that they all had worried expressions on their faces.

"What?" I asked innocently.

"Where the hay were you? We were worried sick!" Rainbow exclaimed first.

"Why didn't you tell us that you would be coming home late today? You had us thinking something happened to you." Twilight said in a much calmer tone.

"Did something happen to you Matty?" Pinkie asked slowly, being the only one to notice that I was upset.

"Well, I lost my job... That's what happened to me today." I said flatly. There was a unanimous gasp.

"Why would they fire you?" Rainbow questioned sadly.

"Well, apparently a plane I had allegedly worked on crashed a month after I worked on it. This was two years ago, and they recently found out that the parts that I had signed for were not present in the crash, so they could only assumed that I signed without actually doing anything and ended up killing... A lot of people." I explained.

"Did you really do what they think you did?" Twilight asked.

"No." Replied genuinely, "I'm not a pencil whipper."

"That's not fair, you should go back and tell them that you did nothing wrong!" Pinkie suggested.

"I told them that I never worked on that plane before, I've never even seen an A-330 two-hundred series before. But without solid proof, I've got nothing." I replied, defeated.

"What are you going to do now?" Twilight asked.

"Find a new job... Eventually. Technically my license only got suspended, but I know my company doesn't accept employees with a casualty count."

"Matt, I'm sure you will get another job, somewhere where they will truly appreciate you." Rainbow encouraged.

"Maybe... So, Twilight, how much longer?" I asked, changing the subject.

"I know for sure that we will be ready tomorrow." Twilight replied confidently.

"Alright," I began with a small clap, "Now that there's good news, let's eat some dinner."

We all ate dinner happily, mostly happily. At least nothing tragic happened today.

------------------------------

Ted Kimell was sitting at his office desk, rapidly going over files and reports. He knew someone was following his tracks, so now he had to cover them. The files of the three females that do not belong on this world sat in front of him, reports of certain and somehow connected covert ops and reconnaissance reports to the side. He knew how to find the people that were after him, and he could get them before they got either him or his friends.

Ted knew that all he had to do was find his hunter and pull the strings he has to pull, the only factor he didn't have control over was time. He had to buy his friends time, blow the horn before the danger arrives.

Ted jumped at the sound of his office phone, he picked up, "Yes?"

"Mr.Kimell?" it was the lady in the lobby.

"Hey Elizabeth, what do you need?"

"There's someone here to see you."

"Could you tell me who it is?"

"Won't say."

"Tell him I'm busy."

"Okay."

"Oh, and one more thing."

"Could you hold a message for a friend of mine?"

"Of course, who would that be?"

"Matthew Anderson."

"Oh."

"Is there a problem?"

"No, not at all! What would you like to tell him?"

"Tell him that he will need to leave. He'll understand, and I trust you will keep this confidential." Ted Kimell said sternly.

"No problem... When exactly do you want me to send this?"

"When something happens to me." Ted replied.

"Oh... Okay then." Elizabeth replied worriedly.

"Thanks. By the way, would you like some dinner tonight?"

"Me?... Of course, I think that would be lovely" Elizabeth replied quietly, Ted realized that there must be someone in front of her.

"Well, see you after work. I won't hold you any longer."

"By-" Ted hung up and got back to the task back at hand, he wanted to get this done soon.

...

Ted continued working, he was the last man on this floor now, he was mostly sure of it. He stopped dead in his tracks when he heard muffled footsteps just outside of his door, his heart began pounding at a concerning rate as he realized what this might be.

Oh no, the boss. He thought quickly as he removed the three mare's files from his desk.

He watched as the doorknob turn as he picked up a pen and pretended to be doing what he was supposed to be doing... The only problem was that the person who walked in wasn't his boss.

"And who might you be?" Ted Kimell questioned his visitor suspiciously, he then spotted a pistol with a silencer being drawn from behind the man. Ted quickly reached for the gun in his desk, only to realize it wasn't there. He widened his eyes in realization.

*pfft*

The unknown visitor watched Ted Kimell's body slump forward on his chair, and then removed the silencer from the pistol and placed the weapon in Ted's limp hand before leaving with no witnesses.

---------------------------------------------------------