I arrive at Smith Fountain, and look around.
“Not looking good, Moya. Sick people all over the place, and the water in the fountain is black,”
There were sickly people everywhere, throwing up a thick, black sludge.
“All right, get over there. We need to find a way to stop this,”
I hear someone talking in the distance.
“C'mon, breathe! Breathe!”
It was Trish.
I approach her, when she notices me she snaps.
“What are you doing here, Cole?!”
“I was checking out what was going on at the fountain,”
“As far as I’m concerned, you caused this, so why would you care now?!”
“Look Trish, I know what that guy said—”
“My sister is dead because of you. And so are thousands of others,”
“I swear. I didn't know what was in that package,”
“I don't want to hear it. You want to help? Fine. You can start by closing that valve over there — it's jammed and I can't turn it. That's how the black tar is getting into the fountain,”
I turn and a valve with a large wheel is a few feet from the fountain. I grip the wheel and try to turn it with some force, it turns after some effort but then the black tar spews out and sprays all over my face and eyes.
“Ah! Shit.. what the..”
“Ugh. It's all over your eyes — I need to get a solvent out of my car. Follow me,”
My vision is blurry..
Suddenly, a female voice starts talking.
“I've been watching you, Cole. Waiting for this moment. Anticipating it,”
Her voice echoes through my head.
“...who's... doing this…?”
I do my best to flow Trish with my impaired vision.
“She hates you. Loathes you. Your power frightens her. She'll never love you. I can make you forget about her. Everything you shared, gone like a whisper. No more pain, no more heartache,”
I try to push her voice out.
“...you're... not real…”
I hear Trish’s muffled voice call out to me.
“This way!”
The woman continues.
“You're mine. Body and soul. We'll be together. Always,”
Trish stands in front of me.
“Hold still,”
She sprays my face with the solvent and takes me out of the mind trip.
“Thanks,”
“That's the only time I'm helping you, Cole. If you get that stuff on you again, you're just going to have to wait for it to wear off,”
She runs back to Smith Fountain
“I took care of the fountain, Moya. Had to shut off the feeder pipe that led into it,”
“There are a couple more water mains in the area,”
“Gotcha. I'll turn those off and see what happens,”
YOU ARE READING
The Legacy of Cole MacGrath
ActionOn another typical day in Empire City, a bike courier, Cole MacGrath, is delivering a package that would change his life permanently.
