# Tommy Cole — Short Fiction character guide

> Tommy Cole in Short Fiction by Philip K. Dick.

**Role:** major

**Also known as:** Thomas Cole, Cole

**First appearance:** 0008-second-variety

## Snapshot

A wandering handyman with a cart full of tools and a rumbling stomach, yanked out of his own century by a time-travel accident.

## Who they are

Cole survives by trading odd jobs — repairs, carpentry, sharpening — for meals and pocket money, drifting through a world where two silent dots crossing the sky make him uneasy. He has no stake in the future's wars or its machinery, only a craftsman's competence and a hunger that keeps him moving. His accidental arrival in a strange era turns a nobody into the one loose piece a powerful Commissioner cannot afford.

## Relationships

### [Peter Sherikov](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_43_se/characters/peter_sherikov)

_friendship_

Peter Sherikov and Tommy Cole are close allies, with Tommy often acting as a loyal companion and confidant to Sherikov.

### [Security Commissioner Reinhart](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_43_se/characters/security_commissioner_reinhart)

_professional_

Security Commissioner Reinhart interacts with Tommy Cole in an official capacity, likely as interrogator or overseer.

### [Steven](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_43_se/characters/steven)

_friendship_

Steven and Tommy Cole are friends, sharing a supportive and loyal relationship.

### [Peter Sherikov](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_43_se/characters/peter_sherikov)

_friendship_

Peter Sherikov and Tommy Cole are close allies, with Tommy often acting as a loyal companion and confidant to Sherikov.

### [Security Commissioner Reinhart](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_43_se/characters/security_commissioner_reinhart)

_professional_

Security Commissioner Reinhart interacts with Tommy Cole in an official capacity, likely as interrogator or overseer.

### [Steven](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_43_se/characters/steven)

_friendship_

Steven and Tommy Cole are friends, sharing a supportive and loyal relationship.

### [Peter Sherikov](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_43_se/characters/peter_sherikov)

_friendship_

Peter Sherikov and Tommy Cole are close allies, with Tommy often acting as a loyal companion and confidant to Sherikov.

### [Security Commissioner Reinhart](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_43_se/characters/security_commissioner_reinhart)

_professional_

Security Commissioner Reinhart interacts with Tommy Cole in an official capacity, likely as interrogator or overseer.

## In the story

### [The Variable Man](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_43_se/chapters/the-variable-man)

The titular 'Variable Man,' a 20th-century repairman who is an unpredictable anomaly in a deterministic future.

### [II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_43_se/chapters/ii)

A fixer from the past, transported to the future; tired, hungry, and trying to survive.

### [III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_43_se/chapters/iii)

Cole is the variable man from the 20th century, captured by Sherikov and brought to the labs.

### [IV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_43_se/chapters/iv)

The variable man; revealed to be alive and working on the bomb turret; captured and slated for euthanasia.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_43_se/characters/tommy_cole
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_43_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_43_se/characters