PSAS: The Era of Greatness: Cole MacGrath Intro

The front glass of a boat's bridge vibrates from the sound of thunder erupting from a distance. A thunderstorm is slowly getting itself ready to take place in the middle of the ocean, with the sky covered in black thunderous clouds and with no land in sight. Amidst the ocean lies a small fishing boat, sailing deeper into the ocean. The boat has a two-floor bridge on the back end, with two fishing cranes reaching from the center to the front end of the deck. In the center of the boat lies a black coffin, with its lid half open on its upper half.

A man wearing a rain coat comes out of the bridge and walks along the side of the deck, walking towards another man with a raincoat, who is slightly short and pudgy, with black hair swept backwards, and is wearing a pair of sunglasses with black frames. He is staring at the dark clouds with his hands in his pockets.

"I just got a call from one of my boys. He said that the storm is gonna pick up in a half 'an hour." The boat operator said, "We can only go for a mile or two more, then I'll have to take us back to shore. I know you wanted to go farther, but I don't want to take any chances out here on a night like this."

The other man lets out a quick sigh, "You do what you gotta do." He replied slightly irritated. The operator furrowed his brow upon noticing the tone, but decides not to act upon it as he then turns around to get back at the bridge. He suddenly stops as he looks over his shoulder, seeing the figure inside the coffin. He turns towards it with a sad expression, "He... really was something, huh?"

"He was more than something," The other man replied as he turns towards the coffin, and walks towards it, "He was a hero that everyone needed; a friend that I needed the most. I couldn't have asked for anyone better." The man with the sunglasses stares at the body in the coffin, scratching his chin while feeling emotional. He is man of leisure, always trying to avoid work and make an easy living. However, when it comes to dire situations, especially when good people are involved, he'll strive to make things right for everyone -- Zeke Dunbar.

The boat operator rubs his head as he takes a quick look at the clouds, and then looks back at the man, "I can get little closer to the destination point. Be ready to get wet soon; it's gonna get hectic in just a bit."

"Thanks." Zeke nods with a smile at the boat operator, who then leaves back to the bridge. Zeke stands alone in the deck, as he looks back at the coffin with a sadden look once again. He turns away, knowing that there isn't much time left before the boat reaches its destination, where his friend - his 'brother' - will be able to rest in piece. Memories begin to pop in Zeke's head, making him feel even worse. Zeke rubs his forehead to calm down as he takes a few steps forward near the side of the deck. He puts his hand back in his pocket as he stares at his reflection on the ocean floor, watching the image distort continuously by the boat's movements. Zeke then looks up at the dark clouds, hearing the sound of thunder coming from within them. The sound is soothing to Zeke, as it recalls a memory of his dear friend.

4 years ago...

After an evacuation of a flooding in part of the city of New Marais, two men can be seen in broad daylight, parkouring across the empty buildings. One of the men is Zeke - who is wearing a white t-shirt, thick grey shorts, white sneakers, and sunglasses with yellow frames - running behind another man around his age.

The man running ahead is taller than Zeke, standing in 5'10 ft/1.77 m tall, and is also much leaner and has a balanced muscle tone. He's a Caucasian man in his early 20's, with a light skin tan, a shaved head, a light stubble beard, and tattoos akin to stars and wings on his arms. He wears a sleeveless white shirt, grey jeans, and black and white sneakers. Him and Zeke jump onto a rooftop below them, as the man rolls onto his feet upon landing and quickly sprints forward without losing his momentum. Zeke follows him as he jumps down onto the rooftop, but stumbles onto his chest, groggily getting back up to his feet as the other man has already jumped onto the rooftop ahead of him.

"No way I'm going down like that!" Zeke grunts as he hurries his pace to catch up with the man. "Ha!" Zeke does a long jump across the air, landing right on top of the edge of the rooftop. As Zeke stands straight, his foot slips back from the wet tile he is standing on, causing him to fall off the building. "Ahh!"

"Gotcha!" The other man exclaimed as he grabs Zeke by his arm and hauls him onto the rooftop. "Whoa!"

"Wah!" The two land on their backs side by side, breathing heavily from that near death experience. They both looked at each other, with their eyes widen in fright. They then chuckle, as a he then burst into laughter a few seconds later. "Ah ha ha ha! Ah hell! This is what I get for trying to make an effort."

"Heh heh heh!" The other man sits up, wiping the sweat off his brow, "You're better off saving that strength for your toilet hours. You might get done quicker that way." He said with a slight gravel in his voice.

"Hey, some of us enjoy our bathroom breaks more than others." Zeke replied with a smirk. The other man gets up on his feet, and then reaches his hand towards Zeke. Zeke looks at the man with a smile as he then grabs his hand, and pulls himself up. "Tsk... I guess that makes us even for pulling you up a while ago."

"Nah. This is on me. I still owe you one." The man replied as he overlooks the flooded town. He is a guy who always plans things out before going into action, many of those choices being unethical and dangerous at times. But whatever he decides, it's always for the best for him and for every good guy out there -- Cole MacGrath.

"That's good to hear. You're getting the beers tonight." Zeke replied, taking up on Cole's words. Cole chuckles as he shakes his head, and starts walking around the rooftop, seeing the church of St. Ignatius from afar. Zeke walks to Cole's side, and sits back down as he wipes the sweat off his forehead.

"I can never get tired of this place," Cole said, still staring at the church, "It's a shame we still have to get back to Empire City in the morning."

"Hah... YOU have to get back. I can stay here as long as I want. It's one of the many perks of having no obligations."

"I'm glad you have your life set." Cole replied sarcastically, "As for me, I already used up all my sick days this year. My boss is gonna get on my ass if I don't show up for duty."

Zeke then sits on the ground with his legs stretched out, "Man, you need a better job. It's bad enough that you're a delivery boy, but wanting to stick with it as a career is just stupid. You're never gonna get any real dough working there for the rest of your life. You might as well work at a coffee shop; at least it wouldn't be as exhausting as what you're doing now."

"I'm making enough to live the dream." Cole said while looking over at Zeke. He then looks back over at the church, "I enjoy biking around the city; the place is like a jungle, and I'm the king of all of it." Cole then extends his arm forward, "When I go full speed, biking in between trucks, going past startled folk, I feel like I'm flying across the air, with nothing slowing me down in sight. Handing packages to people is like a hero reaching his destination point to save the day, even if some people he meets are as**oles. And even here, this place feels like a new land for me to fly around in. The world is a small place for someone worried about promotions and living space. As long as I can spread my wings, I'm livin' the good life."

"Hell, man. Either you've been reading too many comic books, or you've been smoking something you haven't shared yet."

"Ha! What about you, Zeke?" Cole asked while turning towards Zeke, "What keeps you... Zeke-ish?"

"Well..." Zeke gets back up on his feet, "Unlike you, I took shop classes, so I know a thing or two of this country's main necessities. I know enough that I can do as little as make plans for new tech in my own company, and have my employees to make them in my stead. I can just sit back and relax while I have college graduates take out my trash and keep the floors clean. That's a life for a true king."

"Sounds like you already have it made," Cole smirks, "Too bad you're busy leaving pizza stains on the couch."

"Ho ho. Why don't you be a hero and deliver me something to clean it up."

"All right, let's make a bet." Cole then points to the rooftop ahead, "Last one to reach the building at the end has to clean up the couch."

Zeke twirls his head in a circle, "Like I can beat you, but I'm sure as hell ain't gonna back down!"

Cole smirks as he readies himself to run, "See you at the end!" The two then start dashing forward, making their way to the building ahead. Cole jumps over to the rooftop, having a big smile on his face as Zeke rushed after him with a smirk.

Present time...

Zeke sadly looks at his best friend in the coffin, placing his palm over the lid. After a long and rough battle, Cole MacGrath, a conduit who used his powers for good will and to protect people from harms way, sacrificed his life, as well as the thousands of conduits in the world, to stop a deadly plague capable of killing millions of people all over the world. Since the incident back in Empire City, Cole has stopped many dangerous people - humans and conduits alike - from taking over the cities he adored, preventing them from ruining countless lives with their new world order. His death has made him a hero amongst the people, a patron saint for New Marais, the city where he learned to 'fly'.

Cole lies dormant in his coffin, with a barely visible scar on his right cheek, and is wearing a white t-shirt with gray sleeves, blue track pants with three thick white strips going across each other on the center of the right legging, and a pair of dark blue sneakers with white soles. He sleeps peacefully with his hands cupped over his stomach, as Zeke wipes the tears from behind his sunglasses. Zeke mouth furrows in sadness as he looks at Cole once more.

"I love you, Brother. I sure as hell gonna miss you." Zeke then pushes the lid over the coffin's upper half and closes it, putting an end to Cole's heroic tale.