C1 Prologue

Very quietly I take my leave,

As quietly as I came here;

Quietly I wave good-bye,

To the rosy clouds in the western sky.

Ethan stood on the top of One World Trade Center, the tallest skyscraper in New York City. Gazing at the sprawling Manhattan skyline, a sense of overwhelming pride welled up in his chest—pride that had long since faded into despair. Once, he’d been a rising star in America’s footwear industry. He’d built Ethan Enterprises from nothing, turning it into a $100 million empire, and his "Dream" brand sneakers had become a household name across the country.

Young, ambitious, and wildly confident, he’d thought he was invincible. He’d recklessly acquired two dozen clothing factories, expanding his business at a breakneck pace, but his management and production teams couldn’t keep up. Workers slacked off, managers bungled operations, and a $50 million clothing shipment to Europe was fully returned for quality issues. To make matters worse, his vice president embezzled millions and fled to Switzerland.

Banks hounded him for loan repayments, creditors showed up at his office daily, and workers protested for unpaid wages. In the end, Ethan was $40 million in debt—his dream, his empire, everything was gone. He spent every day in hiding, exhausted, broken, and ready to end it all. Clad in a full set of his own Dream brand gear, he stood at the edge of the skyscraper, ready to jump.

He took one last look at the glittering city below, then leaped. He wanted to melt into the blue sky and white clouds, to escape the pain, to find peace in another world.

Very quietly I take my leave,

As quietly as I came here;

Quietly I wave good-bye,

To the rosy clouds in the western sky.

The nightmare was over.

But another nightmare was just beginning.