Kessler

Kessler tells Cole of a Beast that will attack Empire City in the near future. Kessler knows this because he is actually Cole from the future, if he never met his future self. Following this, Kessler is the proof that Cole lived his life normally, married Trish with Zeke as his best man and later developed his abilities. The Beast attacked then, and he fled with his family. He uses a new time-traveling device for a "one-way trip back in time".

Kessler had Cole deliver the package with the Ray Sphere inside, which created the blast. Kessler also organized the Quarantine and the finding of his past self. He killed Trish to make sure Cole "hadn't been tied down by emotions" as he grew stronger, more ruthless, and became capable of making impossible decisions to fight The Beast. However, Cole begins to have a hatred of Kessler surface, and is determined to fight The Beast his own way. This being said, the time comes for him to fight Kessler and Cole defeats him (likely due to Kessler's old age).

As Kessler dies, he reveals all of this to Cole via a vision.