It took a couple of days for Chris to get the hang of this new body. At first he had trouble sorting through the various sensations he was experiencing. Sights, smells, physical sensations, even taste was something new to him. Having never experienced physical existence before, he found the whole ordeal to be exciting.
He also felt a bit foolish for completely forgetting that earth existed in the first place. While humans were definitely weaker than other species of life, they were notably different in a couple of ways. The first, Chris realized, was their capacity for emotional connections. He saw a lot of parents with children, couples holding hands, and kisses being shared in full view of the public. This warmed his heart and it made him feel like he was witnessing something special.
The other incredible quality that humanity possessed was seemingly infinite creativity. The technology didn't impress him so much as their ability to express life through art. Stories, music, paintings, and so much more were all expressions that conveyed a sense of sacred understanding.
Having witnessed all of this in such a short amount of time left him feeling convinced that if any planet held the secret to true happiness, it was earth.
To that end, he kept referring back to the cooking magazine that he had discovered in the house when he first arrived on this world. It held many recipes but none seemed to make people as happy as the cupcakes featured prominently on the front page.
"Yes, I would like whatever is required to make cupcakes." Chris had found a local supermarket which was full of humans procuring nourishment.
"Cupcakes?" A woman asked with a raised eyebrow. She couldn't tell if the handsome young man in front of her was insane, on drugs, or perhaps just messing with her.
"Yes, that is correct. Specifically, I want to make these." Chris held up the magazine while pointing to the cover.
The woman stared at it before shaking her head.
"Mister, I don't know if you're crazy or just messing with me. Either way, all of our baking stuff is in aisle 2."
The woman pointed towards a large aisle near the back of the store. Chris was elated, he was one step closer to his goal.
The aisle had a few people in it, mostly older humans who were reading boxes of different stuff that were unrecognizable to him. He briefly wondered if his other siblings knew anything about the planets in their own universes. He was willing to bet not since, to his knowledge, he was the only one that dared to defy his parents in such a way.
Putting such thoughts out of his mind, Chris began to explore the many different size boxes that were displayed in a dazzling array of colors. Bags of something called 'sugar', 'flour', and even 'pancake mix' caught his attention.
Luckily, an older woman noticed that he was holding the latest copy of that particular cooking magazine.
"Excuse me, young man, but are you interested in baking?" The woman had a sweet, trembling voice that made Chris smile. He could instantly tell just by looking into her eyes that she had lived a good long life with a heart full of kindness.
"Actually, I'm interested in making cupcakes," Chris replied while holding up the magazine for her to see more clearly.
"Ah, well that is a good start for anyone looking to get into the art of baking. Have you ever made cupcakes before?" The woman drew closer as she attempted to help him sort through the overwhelming amount of ingredients.
"I have not made something like this before. I'm hoping to learn so that I can make a cupcake so delicious, it will unlock true happiness."
"Well dear, baking with love is one of the most noble ways to bring happiness to anyone's life."
Chris smiled widely at her comment. This was the confirmation he needed, a divine signal, that he was indeed on the right path to discovering true happiness. The one thing that had been eluding him for so long was finally in reach.
"You'll need cupcake batter, eggs, milk, butter, and of course, frosting. Oh, I know!" The old woman reached into her brown handbag and pulled out a small white card that had writing scribbled across it.
"Here, you can have this. I have other copies of this recipe written down around the house so don't worry about taking it. This recipe will show you how to make cupcakes."
Chris felt like he had been given the greatest gift of his entire celestial existence. He reached out with trembling hands to carefully take the recipe, holding it as if it were the most fragile and most beautiful thing in all of creation.
"I must repay you for such charity."
"No, no dear, that's quite alright. I just love seeing young people like yourself getting into baking. It's becoming a lost art these days."
"I cannot accept no for an answer. What is something you always wanted?"
"Well, I don't know how to answer that. I have lived a good life, full of blessings from the heavens. I can't think of anything I need or want." The old woman was sincere which moved Chris even more.
To leave this saint of a woman with nothing in exchange would be an unacceptable slap to his personal honor. He frowned while thinking, what could he give someone who needs or wants nothing? He snapped his finger as his face suddenly lit up in excitement.
"I have the perfect gift to give you! Wait right here!"
The woman's mouth fell open when Chris waved his arm, opening a large portal into a vault that was full of weird objects. Some of them were glowing and looked completely alien to her. The woman began to sweat nervously, was she having a stroke?
Chris walked into a treasure vault then proceeded to rummage around through a ton of stuff. Things that looked like cups, coins, some kind of weapon, weird technology all flew around as he tossed things looking for something that the old woman couldn't even guess at.
"Aha!" Chris exclaimed as he held up a small crystal bottle full of a glowing, amber colored liquid.
He stepped out of the portal, waving his arm once more. There was a popping noise as the portal vanished. The woman was speechless, she was absolutely convinced that she was having some sort of medical crisis. That or she had passed away in the baking aisle, perhaps this was what heaven looked like?
"For your sacred gift of immeasurable worth, I present to you, this bottle of ambrosia. It's a powerful material derived from fruits that are only grown in my parent's royal garden. They gave it to me one year as a birthday gift but I didn't really see a use for it so I chucked it."
Chris, not understanding why the woman was so still and speechless, gently grabbed her hand before placing the crystal bottle in it.
"You drink that liquid and you will have immortality along with incredible powers, basically you'll be a lesser goddess."
The woman blinked at him. It was true then, she had died and gone to heaven. This was paradise, a world of unending life full of baked goods and handsome young men. The woman quickly pulled the top off of the bottle, downing the whole thing in one big gulp.
Chris beamed at her with pride, he knew that one day he would find some use for that ambrosia.
The woman smiled at him, waved, and then turned away. Chris watched her wander off, noticing that she was now glowing with a soft golden light. Yep, that ambrosia was pretty strong stuff he thought to himself.
***
Nearly an hour later, Chris found himself walking down the street carrying several large plastic bags full of cupcake ingredients. The alchemical supplies had been gathered, now he needed a lab in which to work on his research. Problem was, he had no idea how to find a lab or anything resembling one. Back home, he had a large alchemy chamber in his palace. It was stocked with all kinds of different ingredients but none of them could serve as the building blocks for his latest experiment.
He also didn't have any human money as he found out when he took some plastic shopping bags and loaded them with his necessary supplies. The cashier yelled at him loudly as he left, Chris simply smiled and waved. He told the young woman that he would be back soon with payment, he also promised to share one of his divine cupcakes with her as a reward for her assistance. If he unlocked true happiness then why shouldn't he share it with humanity? He didn't see a use in hoarding something like that.
Chris suddenly stopped walking, he found himself standing outside of a large brick building with large dusty windows. The building had the word, 'bakery' on it. The older woman had called cupcake making, 'baking'. This couldn't be a coincidence. He also saw a sign on the door that said, 'for sale'.
Thanking his lucky stars, Chris decided that this would be his building now. He would set up shop here, brew these cupcakes, then share them with everyone.
The door was locked but Chris barely noticed this as he pulled the handle. The quick groan of metal was oblivious to him as he became lost in thought about how to start his work.
The door shut behind him with a soft clang, he found that the inside was a bit dirty. Dust covered nearly every surface but it was still a nice place. There was a large glass display case and a large dining area with tables. Chris carried his ingredients past the display case where he noticed another door. This one didn't have a handle which delighted him.
He pushed through the door and found himself standing in a kitchen that had a lot of metal surfaces complete with an assortment of tools that were unknown to him. He wasn't worried though, he would easily figure these instruments out in due time.