Cole Pruitt (Dead Frontier)

"If there’s one thing I ever want you to know, it’s that I never put the blame on you for that. I never even thought about blaming you for it. And if I could change what happened, and have her be here, or him, but it meant losing you for the last six months, I wouldn’t do it. Because there’s a reason you’re still here, okay?"

- Cole to Billie, regarding the deaths of Hannah and Finn

Cole Pruitt is the main protagonist of Dead Frontier.

Pre-Apocalypse
Cole worked at a call center before the outbreak. He was unhappy with his job and would rather have pursued his dream of being a screenwriter. Cole also dated Hannah Fleetwood, but they broke up before the outbreak began. Cole was also best friends with Micah Jones. He had a mother who, unfortunately, passed a few years before the apocalypse due to an unknown illness, and Cole has explained his discontent with his father's unwillingness to support either of them during his mother sickness.

Volume 1
Cole had his first encounter with one of the infected in the early days of the apocalypse. He was walking home from work, like any other day, when he saw a commotion across the street. He saw two men apparently fighting, but when Cole intervened, he found out it was much more than that. One of the men was eating the other, but as Cole ripped what he thinks to be a cannibal away from the victim, the man tried to eat him. Cole killed the man and ran home in a panic, believing he just murdered someone.

As Cole spent time with his friend Micah at his apartment, they turned on the news and saw the chaos in many of the world's major cities. A reporter explained the situation and described an outbreak of 'cannibals'; Cole soon made the connection and realized the man he killed was one of the infected people.

The next day, Cole decided to leave the city with Micah and meet up with his ex-girlfriend Hannah. Cole had another close encounter with an infected outside of his apartment, but he and Micah fled just in time. They drove to the suburb of Calumet to Hannah's parents' house. Cole was overjoyed that Hannah was safe, but was quickly frustrated by the rudeness of Hannah's father, Mick.

Hannah and Cole soon took a trip to a nearby Walmart to stock up on any necessary supplies. The trip took a turn for the worst, however, when they were nearly trapped in their car because of a large group of infected. They were saved by a mysterious stranger, later on discovered to be Gord Ramos, who picked off the walkers from the roof of a small shop.

They continued to the Walmart after escaping the infected and found two strangers already searching the store, Billie Starr and former MMA champion Dwight Miller. Afterwards, four hostile military officers entered the store, but Dwight took them out; the two new strangers then took Hannah and Cole to their group of suvivors, who were taking refuge in a Super 8 motel a few miles from the Walmart.

Volume 2 & Volume 3
Cole quickly migrated from the Fleetwood residence to the motel with Micah, Hannah, his parents, and Gord, believing it to be more secure staying with a group. He learned that one of the survivors, Dommmy Moretti, had family near where he lived; being one of the last people in the group to see the state of the city, Cole offered to help Dommy find out the fate of his family. The trip went downhill quickly; the highway leading back into the city was overrun by a horde, and Cole was separated from the rest of the group, along with Billie. He hurt his leg trying to escape, with his injury hindering their ability to head back to the motel. During this time together, Billie and Cole learned a bit about each other, showcasing the start of what would become a strong friendship.

Cole's first experience killing the living occurred while separated with Billie. Several men happened to pass by their location and feigned friendliness, but quickly turned hostile towards Billie. Cole had no choice but to kill them to protect her. They found a car and stayed there the night, while Cole's injury steadily got worse.

Eventually, they came across a family, Randy, Rita, and Luke Evans, who offered to take them in until Cole was better. They also provided Billie and Cole with gas to get back to the motel. This whole ordeal was confusing for Cole; in just a few days, they encountered two completely different groups of people, teaching him there's no way to know who to trust. When they reached the motel safe and sound, Billie and Cole have happy reunions with the rest of the survivors.

Volume 4
To be written.

Volume 5
To be written.

Volume 6
To be written.

Volume 7
To be written.

Volume 8
To be written.

Volume 9
To be written.

Volume 10
To be written.

Volume 11
To be written.

Volume 12
To be written.

Volume 13
To be written.

Personality
Cole usually avoids taking on major responsibilties, for his lack of experience in that regard and a fear of failure. However, in the cases of loved ones or friends in danger, he may take the leap and take the lead if he must. Throughout the course of the story, Cole begins to come to terms with the necessity of making tough decisions.

Cole can be hotheaded and easily frustrated when it comes to matters he's passionate about. When faced with loss or immense stress, Cole goes into a state of reclusion, or anger. The best way for him to release those frustrations is through violence, which he'll sometimes take out on infected.

Cole has a hard time letting go, and lets mistakes follow him, such as his infidelity against Hannah before the outbreak.

As the apocalypse has drawn on, Cole has found himself understand the value of trust; therefore, he'll usually take the side of his friends or those in his group.

Micah Jones
Micah was Cole's best friend since elementary school. They were very close, as evidenced by Micah being the first person Cole calls after his first encounter with an infected in Issue 1. Micah's death was Cole's first major loss during the apocalypse, and he was devastated.

Hannah Fleetwood
Cole and Hannah's relationship is very tumultuous, leading to a difficult break up a few months before the outbreak. However, Cole cares about her deeply, and they decided to restart a romantic relationship. Cole was devasted by her capture and subsequent assault, and tried several times to help her recover from her depression and alcoholism. Cole wasn't happy when Hannah expressed desires to start going on supply runs and contributing more, thinking she was in no condition to. However, he eventually allowed it. While Hannah was on her run, the one that would eventually lead to her demise, Cole tells Robbie he'd like to propose to her, hoping that, after six years, they could move forward in their relationship. Those plans would prove to be impossible when he receives the news Hannah was bit and subsequently turned. Months later, he's still shaken by her death.

Mick Fleetwood
Cole's feelings toward Mick were clearly negative. Their negative attitude towards each other stems back to years before the apocalypse. He wasn't really affected by his death, but moreso saddened that Hannah had to witness it.

Abram Welsh
Cole initally harbored a great amount of respect for Abe and his abilities to lead. That respect turned into a brief hatred when he and Cole disagreed about whether or not to rescue Hannah from Charlie Bodin.

Billie Starr
Cole has considered Billie a close friend ever since their separation from the rest of the group in Issue 10. She is one of the people he trusts the most. They could relate because of their mutual losses of their significant others, but they dealt with those losses differently, leading to a period of hostility between them. Cole also placed some of the blame on Billie for allowing Hannah to turn. They eventually do make up when they reach the Hyatt Regency Hotel, and their relationship is taken to the next level when Cole kisses her on a supply run. However, Cole expresses regrets with his decision and decides their relationship should remain platonic.

Adam Dugall
Adam is one of the last survivors from the Super 8 hotel, and thus Cole has a great amount of trust in him. Cole was distraught when Adam was shot twice by Hector Petit and tries to make sure Adam has as enjoyable a recovery as possible.

Hiro Kamura
Cole doesn't have a positive impression of Hiro, and considers him to be pompous and intrusive. He'd rather Hiro keep his distance. Cole's dislike for him grows stronger when Hiro assualts him, his intentions being to convince Cole to stop trying to divulge the secrets of the Hyatt.

Joe Fitz
Cole enjoys Joe's company, but also pities Joe after the deaths of his two grandkids.

Lucy Brinkley
Cole was initially attracted to Lucy, but denied her advances as he was still perturbed by Hannah's death. When he found out she ratted him out to her father, Alexander, he'd rather not have anything to do with her. During the two month time jump in Volume 13, Cole had a change of heart and reached out to Lucy for a strictly sexual relationship, still put off by her personality.

Alexander
Cole respected Alexander's efforts to rebuild a society at the Hyatt Regency Hotel, but once Cole dug a little deeper and discovered dark secrets Alexander has been hiding, he questions the man's leadership, leading that previous respect to diminish.

Jake Rice
Jake and Cole had a connection over losing both of their mothers, and several times, Cole has reached out to Jake to make him feel better. After Jake shows in interest in smoking, believing it to heal the pain of his mother's death, Cole shuts him down and informs him that there are better ways to deal with his sorrows.

Killed Victims

 * Riley
 * 2 of Ivan's unnamed friends
 * Numerous counts of infected
 * One of Charlie's unnamed guards
 * Dylan Ackerman
 * Marsh
 * One of Roxie's unnamed men
 * Toby
 * Billie Starr (zombified)
 * Walter

Trivia

 * Cole is a contestant in the UFSW Hunger Games.
 * Cole is currently USFW's character of the month for August.