Marvel: The Sandman Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Risen from the Sand (1/3)


"Goddammit Luke! Where is the coffee!"


The hoarse and unpleasant voice of the fat man shouting from the corner rang in my head. 


"You went to prepare it fifteen minutes ago!"


It was awfully unpleasant to listen to his voice. But worse was being ordered around.


"Just two more minutes, sir."


The more careful and caring one is with their ingredients, the better the food or drink tastes.


And with coffee, it was the same.


"If you are even a second late, I will fire you!" 


The man kept shouting, but I was focused on the coffee.


With coffee, I did not prefer the usage of machines. So, everything was done by hand.


From grinding the beans to forming the froth with careful stirring motion; everything had to be done with care and love.







And while it took a while, the aroma was proof that it was worth that wait.


I could pretty much hear the people gulping thickly simply because of the coffee's aroma.


But sadly for them, it was for the bossman. And even if I hated working for the man, I was being paid by him.


"Here you go, sir."


Serving the coffee, I was well aware that the gazes on my back wanted the coffee as well. 


The fat man took the cup near his face before inhaling the fragnance, instantly making his eyes widen.


"Luke, remember that the only reason I still have you working here is because of your cooking skills," He said, "Even the coffee that you brew smells exquisite. And if not for that, you would have been jobless."


I really hated this man, but the pay was decent and the job was rather easy as compared to working in a hectic restaurant.


I was only assigned to cook for the high level employees, which included the HODs, the managers and a few other officials.


Which means I can get quite a bit of rest as compared to other places.


"But no one would expect someone as well built as you to be such a good cook," The man sounded amused and I honestly couldn't blame him.


I really couldn't.


I was indeed built for something like a bodybuilding competition or a fighting competition.


"I just like spending time in the gym," I lied.


"With that body you can even work on the heavy lifting field of work," The man laughed, "But I wouldn't want the person best at cooking to get hurt."


If you have a skill that is valued by others, you will naturally be pardoned from having to crawl like the talentless.


Even with a skill as simple as being a good cook.


"I am simply a cook, sir." I disliked the man but he was still my superior, "But I am glad you liked the coffee."


I wanted to go back and go out shopping for a few bits of furniture, but apparently my luck wasn't so good.


"There will be a test run tonight," The fatso said, "And you are going to be serving the heads of the nuclear and energy departments alongside the generals who are a part of this test run."


I was quite dissapointed that my plans were entirely ruined, but thankfully it wasn't for nought.


"Don't worry as you will be paid for working till late," He grinned, "And if you can impress the heads with your food, maybe your salary will increase further."


"I'll try my best, sir." I assured the man, aware that this was a great chance.


One of the reasons the salary was so high was the fact that this project was being funded by not one, not two but seven billionaires who were in good terms with corrupt government employees which gave them a lot of money to spend.


Of course, the majority went to the project –which had to be high because it was a nuclear project– and the rest was spent on the infrastructure and the employees.


They did not want to risk any accident or any employee screwing their radiation based tests because of low salary and hence focused on keeping the workers satisfied.


Which included me as well.


"I'll take my leave for now then, sir."


I had something that I needed to check and so it was best if I could get some sort of relaxation for the time being.


"I hate when people ask for leave but you have earned it with this coffee," The man said, pleased with the drink.


And well, that was all that I hoped to hear.


…

…


Closing the door to my one bedroom apartment –which was surprisingly cheap thanks to worker benefits– I went through the news.


"One month, huh?"


I felt a tired sigh leaving my body, not physical tiredness but mental.


"The Menace Spiderman strikes back!"


I heard classic J. Jonah Jameson shouting through the television screen, blaming Spiderman for a robbery that took place.


Now, I didn't dislike J.J.


He was mostly doing his job and while many hated him, he wasn't exactly wrong. 


Heroes and vigilantes often took justice in their own hands by going against criminals which wasn't exactly legal.


But did that mean the heroes were wrong?


Of course, not.


It was just that neither party was at fault.


"But it doesn't matter. Not that I have powers."


By now it should have been clear that I was aware of the hero and villain deal. And how did I know of this?


Of course, because I have watched and read about them.


Shocker, isn't it?


But it all makes sense when you consider that I was shoved to live another life in the world of villains and heroes.


And there were two possibilities that I could look at.


The first was to stress about the possible end of the world by villains or being turned into a casualty during a fight –which was the most common reaction, and I am certain many would feel the same.


However, the second was to live my life as a normal dude working as a cook and not get involved into the hero and villain deal.


And I was happy with it.


The way I thought was far different than the average person.


I believed that there was no reason to get involved with the issues of the supernatural. The only reason people got involved was because of the fear that they might die as a result of something like Thanos' snap.


But I was well aware that whatever happened, the heroes always found a way to undo those disasters.


And were accidental deaths only a part of the marvel world?


Of course, not.


People died from falling pipes, burning houses, crashing cars and countless other variables even in the normal world. So, this wasn't that different.


Personally, I would just like to live a normal life and not get involved in such a mess.


I could have been happy if the knowledge of the future I held –not the heroes and villain story but the one about the general future– could help me earn money.


Unfortunately, this world was different from my normal world and stocks didn't move in the way I knew they would move.


So, there was no instant trade that would make me a millionaire.


"The recent robbery resulted in the death of a brave man who gave up his life to protect a woman from having her purse stolen!"


This surprisingly drew my attention.


"The brave man has been identified as Benjamin Franklin Parker who did not care about his own life and sacrificed himself to protect a helpless woman."


Oh…


So, it has started.


"We pay our condolences to the hero's family and ask the authorities to provide help to Parker's family." 


Uncle Ben died, huh?


Tragic.


He was one of the kindest people in superhero stories and he was the key reason Spiderman is such a wonderful hero.


It was sad but there wasn't much I could do about it. I can only empathize with his family.


Empathizing and wondering about their story, I didn't even realize that it was almost time for me to go to work. 


"Best to be a little early than to be late."


It was a great motto.


But only till you realize that you were to end up becoming a part of an accident just because of it.


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[[A/N: New story, this is not linked to the other stories which means no Marcellus, Kento or Jasper in it.]]