D20 Modern: Devin Cole

[Puppy Kicker]

Devin Cole is played by actor Nicholaus Brendon (Xander from Buffy the Vampire Slayer). He's a hard-working kid who's had one too many bad turns in life. He works long hours at his construction job and is a good worker. He's up to his ears in debt as he tries to support himself and his little sister as well as pay off some money he had to borrow from a local crime boss. When he is especially down, and can find the time, he spills his feelings out into his poetry.

Devin Cole (Dedicated Hero 1): CR 1; Medium-size human; HD 1d6; hp 7; Mas 13; Init +0; Spd 30; Defense 11, touch 11, flat-footed 11 (+1 class); BAB +0; Grap +1; Atk +1 melee (1d6, baseball bat); FS 5 x 5; Reach 5; SV Fort +2, Ref +0, Will +3; AP 1; Rep +1; Str 13, Dex 10, Con 13, Int 12, Wis 14, Cha 10.
Occupation: Blue Collar (Craft [structural], Drive, Repair).
Skills: Craft (structural) +7, Craft (mechanical) +4, Craft (writing) +2, Drive +3, Knowledge (earth & life science) +2, Listen +6, Profession +4, Repair +3, Sense Motive +5, Spot +6, Treat Injury +8, Read/Write (English, Spanish), Speak (English, Spanish)
Feats: Alertness, Builder, Simple Weapons Proficiency.
Talents: Healing Knack
Allegiances: Family, Good
Backgrounds: Debt (3), Nemesis (1)
Possessions: Wealth 3, ’69 Chevy Pickup, Baseball Bat, Cell Phone, Basic Mechanical Toolkit

Character Introduction: Devin Cole

“It’s my liiiiiiiiife, it’s now or never. I ain’t gonna…”

You listen to FM 99 for hard rock. What the hell is this Bon Jovi crap? You flick off the radio in frustration and crank the windshield wipers up to high. The rain has always gotten you down, some nights worse than others. This is one of those nights. It’s pouring here in Williamsburg and it’s a crappy night to be out driving. In fact, it’s a crappy night to be out doing anything.

---​

Thirty Minutes Ago:
It was a crappy Monday to begin with, working for a crappy boss on a crappy construction site in the non-stop crappy rain. You’d just settled down with a crappy light beer to some crappy sitcom when you got the crappy phone call.

Your little sister started looking worried about the time you said “Look, I can’t pay that right now,” and she was already looking up the phone number for a babysitter by the time you said “Sure, I’ll do it. This’ll pay off the debt for this week, right?” You hung up the phone and asked her to get a babysitter for a few hours while you went out to take care of some business. She agreed of course. What time will you be home? Don’t know. She nodded. Good kid. Makes the crappy days easier to deal with. You stormed out into the rain and hopped into your truck. It started, eventually.

Some thug you’d seen a couple times before met you four blocks away. He handed you a locked metal briefcase and gave you the instructions you needed. “Go to the McDonalds at the intersection of Route 17 and Victory Blvd in Yorktown. It’s by the Wal-mart. You’re looking for a big guy, scars, brown hair, a leather briefcase. Make the trade. Meet me back here at 0200.” You took the briefcase and tossed it in the seat next to you. Probably drugs or money.

---​

The drive to Yorktown is wet and miserable and dangerous, but you survive. You pull into the parking lot of the Wal-Mart and look over at the McDonalds. Looks pretty empty. Good, you don’t want too many people seeing these transactions. You don’t know how your life ended up at this point, doing trades for Sammy in the middle of the night, but it’s better than being dead, or worse, losing custody of your little sister.

---​

Five months ago:
“Look man, I need the cash.”

“Everybody needs cash, bro. Ya unnerstand tha terms, agree to tha terms, the money’s yours. I don’t care what ya do wit’ it.”

“I understand and I’m good for it. Just got to get on my feet.”

Sammy Nickels nodded and pulled a paper bag from behind the counter. “’s all here. Wanna count it?”

Of course you wanted to count it, but that’s not how you did business with Sammy. “Naw, I trust you.”

“Of course ya do.” Sammy grinned, flashing two gold-plated incisors. “First payment due next month. Don’t make me be aggressive in the collection process.”

“Of course not. I’m good for it.”

The money was gone by the end of the week – lawyers, doctors, mortgage. When the next month came and you couldn’t pay, Sammy was very understanding.

“Just do me a favor and I’ll let you off this time.”

“Sure Sammy, whatever you need. Thanks for being understanding.”

The incisors flashed again. “My pleasure, D-man. Just don’t screw me.”

“Of course not, Sammy. I wouldn’t dream of it.”

---​

You sprint through the pouring rain and slam through the door into the McDonalds. No big guys with briefcases that you can see. A few college-age kids and an old guy sitting together, that’s all. Could have been you sitting there, joking with your college friends and getting all warmed up to make something of your life. Not in the cards for you, though.

You order a Number 1 with a Dr. Pepper (can't really afford to supersize) and have a seat in a quiet corner. The conversation at the student’s table is getting loud, but you ignore them as you munch your fries. A few minutes later a big ugly guy stumbles through the door, carrying a duffle-bag and a little leather briefcase. A little older than you, big and kinda mean looking. He gets something to eat at the counter then approaches you.

Guess it’s time for the deal.

---​

To read more about Devin Cole as he is played in our "Tears in Hell" campaign, and to get an idea of how to play him in your own, visit the "Tears in Hell" story hour.

 

[Puppy Kicker]

Devin Cole Character Background

The following is the character background presented by Devin's owner.

Devin Cole Character Background

Devin Cole was born in southern California on the twelfth day of February in 1982. His mother, Susan, and father, John, lived the perfect American life in suburbia. His father was a young banker and his mother lived quietly at home raising their infant son. Three days after his third birthday Devin’s mother received a call telling her of her husband’s tragic death due to an accident during a business trip. Devin’s father was in a small prop plane that went down somewhere in the mountains of Colorado. The bodies of his father and his father’s two friends were never found. Devin’s father had gone to Colorado to look into a small aviation firm his bank was considering financially backing.

Because the accident was ruled to have not happened “on the clock” the bank was ruled not liable for the death and other than money that just barely got them free of a few failed investments Susan had nothing.

Devin’s mother seemed lost to all her friends during the next few months. Her parents took her and her child Devin in to help her get through her grief. Devin’s mother slowly began to come back to her senses and about a year later she took a job at a little restaurant to make money. She had dreams of getting her own place with Devin and again getting out from under her parents wing. Susan gained a few new friends at her new job and quickly found herself unfit to raise a young boy. Her partying, drinking, and minor drug use nearly got so out of hand that her parents considered throwing her out of their house and adopting Devin themselves.

It was then that Susan met a young man in the army. He was perfect for her and her young son Devin. She was soon clean and after a very short courtship they had their own place living in housing provided by the army. The housing was not great but they had food a roof and love and they were again happy. A few months later Susan’s husband received orders to transfer to Fort Eustis, a little base in Virginia. When Devin was 10 Susan gave birth to her second child, a little girl they named Lisa.

Life went on relatively normal until Devin was about 16 years old. It was then that his mother developed a rare muscle disease. This only added to a failing relationship between Susan and her husband and within months of her diagnosis Devin’s step-father left to move closer to his family back in California. Susan and her two children were again alone. Susan, much too weak to work, relied on Devin to provide for her and his sister. Thankfully the medical bills were still mostly being paid by Devin’s step-father’s insurance plan and Susan received a small sum of child support each month from Lisa's father, but the monthly bills and food still fell mostly to Devin.

Work and school began to get to be too much for the young junior so he was forced to give up sports just weeks before he was due to receive his varsity letters.

Devin worked up until the day he graduated high school and maintained decent grades. He has never had much of a social life, for his mother needed almost 24 hour care and the bills for the apartment, his sister, and mother demanded that work come second only to the care of his dieing mother and young sister.

On a rainy Tuesday, June 12, 2001 Susan passed away. Devin fought hard in court to retain custody of his sister fighting even her father for custody of Lisa. He won strangely and has had her ever since. His job in construction is a far stretch from his dreams of being a doctor or lawyer but this dreamer has been busy with work and home life rebuilding the area since a hurricane in 2003. Work is just finally slowing down for Devin and he is terrified for the overtime he was getting on the job was the only thing keeping the bills paid and his sister safe and off the streets. Once already Devin has had to sell almost more then he owns to provide food in the slow winters and he doesn’t want to feel that pinch in this summer. Lisa is nearing her 12th birthday and he desperately wants to give her the party of her dreams…he needs help.