The smell of coffee wafted through the air then an ice cold glass was pushed against Jackie’s face as he shot up and immediately fell off the overlarge chair he had been placed in.

His body reacted before he was fully conscious as he involuntary threw out his arms and knocked the chilled glass of coffee before it floated mid-air and drifted across to rest on another table.

Falling down onto the grey concrete floor Jackie fell straight onto his behind as a gold necklace around his neck swung up and hit him hard in his forehead causing a minor cut.

Blood began to drip from the wound as he raised a hand protectively to his head and brought it back as he saw spots of blood on his fingers.

His temper began to rise deep within and remembering part of the training he had undertaken to keep himself fit and trim he threw one arm behind him.

One palm pushing on the floor and kept the other raised as he stepped back and onto both feet.

‘Back off. Just back off.’

He murmured the words as his conscious brain kicked in and reminded him that he was inside a mockery of one of his original designed Coffee Houses and this was meant to be his retirement day.

His eyes were clearer than before and despite having fell off a chair and had his head knocked by one of the golden necklaces he had decided to wear in his walk in wardrobe his entire body was fresh. Far fresher with not a single protesting ache or creak which accompanied his advanced age.

A soft voice called out as a hand reached out behind him and touched his shoulder.

A stream of energy ran into him, both calming him and stopping the minor cut on his head from bleeding.

said the feminine voice from behind him.

Jackie froze and then considered his options. If he was dreaming about the ball of fire in the young man’s hands and the burning coffee then why not carry on with it. And if this was another situation entirely then he’d roll with as well.

On his home planet of Terrus there had been superhumans once and even runours of gods and other fantastical ideas. All from ancient stories though and largely turned into fiction for the purposes of entertainment.

If he was truly honest with himself, he had grown bored of the corporate world at least a decade ago.

The true excitement in his life had been building something fresh, something new and engaging.

But he wasn’t able to deny those who looked up for him for leadership and holding onto the core values of his coffee company. Those he’d worked with for decades had retired or started their own firms as younger people took on more C-Level titles.

Regardless, he’d need to ask a question first. Or at least several before he turned his back. He had a rough idea that he’d see something special like he had with the young man but he wanted to be sure.

He wouldn’t have been the only person suddenly vanishing out of existence in the history of Terrus. Plenty of notable individuals had done so only to talk about adventurers they’d had or had come back half-mad. For the most part people just got on with their lives and tried to ignore it.

‘Wait. You just healed me. Correct?’ said Jackie as he closed his eyes to the mockery of a Coffee House and touched the skin on his forehead.

The voice from behind him lightly sighed as she spoke.

said the feminine voice behind him.

Jackie considered then pushed forward with more questions. He hadn’t expected to be the one who experience an event but he had spent enough time at the height of economic power and had done more than a little research into the history of Terrus to know exactly the right question to ask.

‘I need to know something. Please. Do you work for the Tourism Board and are you a Tourist? If you are then I’m asking you to leave this time zone and leave my family in peace.’ said Jackie as he squeezed his eyes shut and prayed to half-remembered myths of statue gods from his youth.

Pure silence met his answer as his body rose into the air and lifted up without his permission as he was sat down again on the same chair.

A scraping noise from the concrete in front of him reminded him of someone pulling a chair of their own directly opposite him.

Not my family. Not my family. Please. Please.

said the feminine voice which was now directly in front of him. From the sound of it she was close, not skin close but an arms length away.

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The distance of two chairs facing each other across a table. Not a Tourist. Good. Good. My family are safe.

Opening his eyes Jackie saw that he was in fact sitted down at one of the larger style tables which were clearly oversized for human use. The chair itself made him feel small despite his relative height but his entire body was fresh.

Directly in front of him resting between his hands was a cup of iced coffee but served inside a clay pot. The smell of it was fragant and far freshed than it had any right to be.

A woman sat opposite him with her hands neatly folded on her lap. She wore a long flowing blue dress which shimmered along with greenish hair with streaks of grey and a wry smile on her face.

Standing next to her was the same young man with mid-length hair he had seen holding the glowing ball of fire. His hands were empty and held tightly together and his head was slumped forward with a look of mixed anxety and embarrasment as a hint of red flushed his pale face.

The woman held up a hand and spoke without taking her gaze off of Jackie.

Sitting down, Jackie raised his hands without thinking and tasted the iced coffee in front of him. The taste was delicious and it was indeed Creamy Boozy Iced Coffee.

Smooth, creamy and rich with an aftertaste of frangelico. Just the sort of drink he’d loved when he’d been two decades younger in his fifties but had stopped due to concerns about his health.

‘Delicious. A hidden treat to itself but explain to me. I’m not dead am I?’ asked Jackie as he carried on taking small sips of the chilled drink.

The woman in the flowing blue dress shook her head before she raised a hand and the glass in Jackie’s hand filled up once more.

‘Not something I should be drinking at my age. My own kids, they’re all pretty old now, always told me I should aim to live for a hundred at least.’ said Jackie as the young man’s face reddened deeply and the woman in the flowing blue dress frowned.

said the woman as one of her hands clenched tightly.

Jackie was observant to recognise when a mother was annoyed at her child. He decided to give the kid a break. At least the coffee tastes good and using a clay mug was a nice touch.

‘No, no. Kids make mistakes, even when they grow up. I had to bail my own out a dozen times over. Ah, I never married so I chose to adopt some who lost their own parents after a conflict. Still, I became their Dad through hard work and plenty of tears. So you’re a Goddess called Vatn and your son also happens to be a god is called Linas. Nice to meet you both. Please, call me Jackie. Mr Imperial sounds like an old man. Which I am. Or not. You clearly did something to me and expect me to be shocked. I’ve dealt with geneticists before who claimed to be able to turn a human into something else. I even met a prodigy once. A young woman called Carissa Acqua who wanted to become capable of living in the oceans of Terrus. What’s your business plan? Or your order of business? Come on, I’m not stupid. I’ve worked in the corporate world long enough to know when someone wants something. Linas, you can apologise and I’ll accept it and we move on. Sound good?’ said Jackie as he finished drinking the entire clay cup of iced coffee. This time the woman in front of him who was a goddess from her actions and magic didn’t fill it up.

At his advanced age, Jackie doubted that his stomach and bladder would hold it for long.

He took a good, deep look at his hands. Turned them over and then applied themselves to his face and ran his fingers through his hair.

Either it was his imagination or his body had been rejuvenated, restored to relative youth.

Judging from the condition of his skin he guessed early twenties.

‘I’m young. You made me young again. Heh. Well, thanks for letting my kids and everyone at the old headquarters that I’m on a trip of a lifetime. The note was a nice touch.’

Jackie took in the mockery of a Coffee House and the young man standing before he placed the empty clay cup of iced coffee and ran the back of his hand across his mouth wiping it clean.

He pointedly looked at the young god called Linas and cocked his head to his side before he mouthed his thanks at the woman in the blue dress.

The young god wrung his hands together and raised his head, looking Jackie in the eyes for a split second before he spoke in a hurry and slumped his head once more.

An impression came from his voice which was pushing down Jackie. A presence which was making himself known was suppressing him and make him glad that he was already sitting down on the chair or he would have fallen again.

A wave from the woman in front of him caused the pressure to immediately drop as the young man vanished with an afterglow of white light.

‘He seems like a good kid. A little young, a little naive and over eager to please but weren’t we the same relatively speaking? Far be from me to ask the age of a..mature woman like yourself but I bet you were the same. I was. Got tricked out of my business funds before I wised up. All of this place was his work? Rough but from the heart.’ said Jackie as he spread his arms wide as though to encompass the entire Coffee Shop in them.

If he’d judged correctly, the son was looking to enter into the coffee selling business.

As for the fact they were gods his grandmother had told him stories of statues in which the essences of gods had been locked in.

There had been a secretive facility which had removed all traces of them from human history and memory. Experiments to contain them had succeeded as far as he was aware. Gods on Terrus weren't real.

Never had been. I loved you Nana but telling a six year old nightmare stories of ancient desert empires was a no-no. Your turn Lady.

Jackie folded his arms, leaned back in the oversized chair and waited.

The negotiations begin unless you’re reading my mind. In that case shall we begin?

The woman folded her own arms before she broke into a wide smile and spoke.

‘Mr Imperial. I do believe my husband would take a liking to you. You and him are similar in many ways. Despite his rough exterior he truly cares deep within. A contract. We shall sign a contract, to explain our situation is simple. We come from a world where is a market gap for coffee and you will act as a representative of my son in cooperation with him to first introduce and make it a drink of choice.’ said the goddess sitting opposite Jackie.

Turning his hands and feeling the smoothness of the skin on his face and the energy of youth within him once more Jackie returned her smile.

Coffee, magic and gods. Why not? Why not indeed.

Jackie reached a hand across the table to seal the deal. All contracts were based on trust and he’d take the initiative to gain a better deal.

After all, he had just retired.