"He's Here"

“He’s here,” one of the government workers shouted in Cole’s ear.  He didn’t know which branch he was from, but he had the earpiece, black coat and tie, and tinted sunglasses typical of big-time government agents. Cole wondered if he could be CIA.

Cole nodded, and the agent turned and started walking briskly up the nearby hill away from the immense crowd.  The noise was deafening: more than five hundred thousand people were jabbering excitedly about what was about to happen. Unnoticed, Cole and the agent weaved their way through the clumps of people away towards the hill looming over the park where everyone was gathered. As the two walked briskly up the slope, the people became sparser until the two were removed from the crowd completely. Distracted as he was, Cole couldn’t help but marvel at the morning sun lighting up the glass skyscrapers in the distance.

As the two reached the summit, the agent stopped and motioned towards a silhouette under a tree a few yards away, looking away down the opposite side of the hill towards the end of the park and the empty streets and dirty back-alleys.

“Alright Marcus, you remember the speech?” He asked hurriedly as he jogged up and equipped a microphone onto the silhouette's collar. “I have another copy here in case you lost-“

“I remember; don’t worry,” Marcus sighed, turning around to face Cole. “Although it kills me to have to disappoint all these people. Did you see how many turned out? Must be hundreds of thousands!”

“Yes, around five hundred thousand,” Cole muttered. “Marcus, this isn’t a joke. I need to know for certain that you’ll-“

“I will, I will. How many times do I have to tell you?”

“Marcus!” Cole growled, “This people think you’re the new messiah! Do you have any idea how critical this situation is?” He glared into Marcus’ eyes. “I’ve seen a crowd turn into a bloodthirsty mob in less than a second. These people are dangerous!”

Marcus turned around to look back towards the back-alleys. “What about you, Cole?” After a breath, he added slowly, “Don’t you think that there is something to be said about a government who holds so much fear of its own people?”

“These are radical times,” Cole answered in the usual urgent tone Marcus had come to expect from him. “The people are looking to new leaders, new policies…  I don’t know.” He wiped the sweat from his forehead with a handkerchief. “Everyone is agreed that times are bad, but the people need to put their faith back into the government, not you! These people are convinced you’re divine, for Christ sake! If they got their way, there would be total anarchy and you know that!”

For a few seconds both men were silent. Cole looked out towards the massive crowd, which had begun chanting Marcus’ name. Marcus was still looking away towards the back-alleys.

“You know what you have to do Marcus,” Cole said as he looked back towards him.

“Yeah,” Marcus replied. “I know.” And with that he turned and began walking slowly towards the edge of the hill.

The grass was soft and still wet with dew, and a light breeze blew against Marcus’ hair. As he stepped out from under the tree, the light from the morning sun lit up his face. A deafening cheer ran through the crowd, and Marcus let it vibrate through him for a moment. Cole glanced anxiously towards the government agent a few yards away, who was nervously fidgeting with his earpiece. And then, all fell silent. Cole looked up to see Marcus with his hand raised. He was about to speak.

He better remember that damn speech, Cole thought to himself. He wiped his forehead with the handkerchief again.

“My friends,” Marcus began. He paused, and glanced back at Cole. When their eyes met, Marcus couldn’t help but smile. “My friends,” he began again, turning back to the crowd. “A new age has begun!”