We all go to strange places in our dreams but that night when Adam Jones was out cold after drinking himself nearly to death, he truly fell down the rabbit hole.
The last chuck of time he remembered was losing his one shot at 3 Michelin stars, because of who he used to be; the addict, the drunk, the terrible person, and friend. He remembered drinking until he could no longer feel, as he made his way to a bridge. Then it all went blank.
He awoke by a waterfall, in a strange place, a place made entirely of what appeared to be food. Was this heaven? He touched a flower that was actually a hamburger, with each petal made of a single 'component'. Hamburgers were something he always loved. Even from fast food restaurants, he could appreciate the effort put in to every aspect- from the ingredients to cooking process the end product was always consistent. It was food for the masses, a base idea from which innovation could bloom.
Close by was a tree that appeared to produce potato chips. He was in awe of his surroundings when he suddenly saw a purple snake several stories tall. (Maybe this wasn't heaven?)
That thought quickly left when he saw (as the creature lowered it's massive head)the snake had a rider, a man with long multi colored hair who could only be described as 'angelic', like something out of a painting.
"You appear to be in need of assistance" the angel said in a very theatrical voice.
"I don't know where I am." Adam said the only words he could think to say. (This was too weird.)
"Well lets start with who you are. I'm Sunny one of the 4 heavenly kings." Sunny extended his hand for a handshake while bowing.
"Adam Jones, I'm a chef…" he said shaking his hand.
Sunny's eyes lit up. "A chef! From what restaurant?"
"uh..Langhams," he said, secretly hoping there would be no follow up questions.
"hum, never heard of it, how many stars does it have?" Sunny asked.
If Adam was truly dead he had no honest answer. "uh..2."
"Well that explains it, you must be new to the area. A friend of mine is head chef at a 6 star establishment."
6? He had no idea what the rating system was here but this Sunny guy seems to consider 6 to be impressive, maybe that was the best possible score.
"Until then you can be my guest. I can get you some clean cloths and defiantly a shower." Sunny offered.
Adam really had no choice, (unless he wanted to just wonder around.) And Sunny seemed like a nice enough person."Sure, that sounds great."
"Lovely, please, climb aboard my snake." Sunny loved beautiful things and there was something about Adam that he found deeply beautiful, even if he smelled like booze and body odor. "Shoes off please, and hang on tight." The snake had a 'seating area' on top if it's head, so people who did not have Sunny's powers could ride without getting thrown off.
"Holy c-p!" the snake was moving faster than a car. In a matter of minutes they arrived at Sunny's multi-level tree house (more like tree mansion). True to his word he was given fresh clothing (although Sunny's fashion sense was questionable at best.)
Sunny tried to talk to Adam about where he was from or even what he was doing in the middle of a cloverger field. But Adam had more questions than answers and since Sunny loved to talk about himself the topic of conversation was shifted.
"What are the 4 heavenly kings?"Adam asked as food started to be served. Everything looked like it had been plated to appear more elegant or extravagant then it really was, but on closer inspection-that was just what the item was. The most perfect specimen, cooked very simply in a way that accented the color or shape of the item.
But what the dishes lacked was taste and (in some cases) texture. He was polite and quietly listened to Sunny's description of each dish (most had medicinal purposes- which explained allot). This was Sunny's style; beauty, health, simplicity.
"The short answer is we're high end big game hunters. We make our fortunes selling creatures that are uncatchable by even the military. These creatures are gourmet delicacies, but can also level entire cities." Sunny explained while taking a sip of white wine.
"But there are only 4 of you?" Adam felt the need to ask, since that job seem like it would require a larger team.
"Only 4 that operate at our level, trained by the former leader of this nation. I suppose when the times comes I will train an apprentice or two. That is the point of life, to pass on your knowledge and gifts to the next generation, so when you leave this mortal coil the world will be in good hands."
"What do you do?" he asked, motioning that he meant 'what's with the hair'.
"Our powers derive from the senses, touch, taste, sight, and sound" With that Sunny swished his hair making the entire room glow.
Sunny's power was touch, Adam could suddenly feel everything around him, every shape, every texture, every temperature. The 4 heavenly kings represented the 4 senses of a great chef. In moments the sparkle subsided.
"Anyway, have you been to the Central Gourmet Wholesale Market?" Sunny asked.
"I can't say that I have." he hoped that was a normal answer.
It was, the market, sometimes called the 'world market' was very high end, so for a 2 star chef to say he had never been was not uncommon.
"I will show you tomorrow, it's on the way to see friend Komatsu!" Sunny said in his happy voice.
Adam didn't sleep, yet the next day he wasn't at all tired, (which made sense, if this was all a dream.) He stood on Sunny's balcony overlooking what appeared to be a normal forest, under a normal looking moon, with a sky full of creatures; beautiful and freighting beyond all reason.
True to his word (and because he had carcasses to unload) Sunny took Adam to the world market at around 8 am.