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X-treme Wrestling Federation »   » Archives » XWF War Games 2022
War Masters 4: The Artist
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Thaddeus Duke Offline
Lionhearted
Management Lv. 2


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Some of everyone

(cheered; very rarely plays dirty but isn't lame either; many likable qualities)


#1
07-25-2022, 07:50 PM

Once again we start in the future - 25 years from now, where the world is at War, and that the main focus is on Mastermind’s kids. They are now adults fighting in a war, and trying to survive. We have seen so far that Vinnie and Jacob, Mastermind’s two oldest twin sons, having to take cover from yet another air raid by bombs raining down. Then his twin daughters Margaret and Bernadette are trying desperately to reunite with their siblings after being forced apart. They have made it to a spot, the exact same spot, where their brothers unbeknownst to them had to find cover quickly, and Jacob dropping his ring.

Bernadette found the ring, while Margaret found something else.

“I think I found something,” Margaret says.

Bernadette was looking at the ring, hoping with all hope that this was a coincidence and that her brother Jacob was okay. She looked over at her sister.

“What?” asks Bernadette. “What did you find?”

“Two sets of tracks,” Bernadette answers. “Looks like they're running. One off in that direction,” she says with a point.

“And the other in that direction, going the opposite way.”

Bernadette stands up. “I guess we'll have to split up,” she says to Margaret. “Which I don’t want to do.”

“No me neither,” Margaret agrees. “We don’t have a choice, if they're Vinnie and Jacobs footprints then we can’t afford not to.”

“Do you know what this reminds me of?” Bernadette asks of her sister.

“Something Dad said?”

“Yes, you got it right,” Bernadette confirms.

“What did he say?”

“He was talking to the boys about being an artist,” Bernadette begins. “Where if you were an artist, like he was with his wrestling then he would have to change his character traits up. Keep on evolving.”

“Dad never evolved,” Margaret argues. “He always kept to the Mastermind theme.”

“That’s true,” she concedes. “But he always had situations in his career, when he had to change his Mastermind theme up. Either for the good or bad, to keep his career flowing. I remember him telling Vinnie once, that the best person who he saw as an Artist within the XWF was a guy called Thaddeus Duke, who he could never beat.”

“So what does that have to do with this situation?” Margaret asks.

“We have to stay positive and keep thinking that the boys are going to be okay,” Bernadette replies. “If we devolve our thinking now, then that’s not going to be good for us or them. Maggie you go that way, I’ll take this way… And hopefully I’ll see you soon.”

The girls made the difficult decision to follow their own paths...


Woolworth Tower || Tribeca – New York City || 3:12 AM


Even though we’ve been staying at our Safe Haven estate through the summer, with three days of work for Lion’s Guard Entertainment at Chris Page’s Cannabis Cup, Lauren and I had stayed the weekend at our primary home in New York City. After three days and nights of straight up partying, it’s safe to say we were pretty exhausted.

We couldn’t have been home and in bed very long before my phone started ringing.



You know what it’s like when you’re exhausted and your phone rings? You hear it, but it doesn’t really register in your brain what’s happening. For me, it’s always been like an out of body experience. You hear it, you want it to stop. You just want to sleep, but you have no control over your faculties to do anything to make it stop.

”Babe,” Lauren says through her own tired exhaustion.

”Hmm?”

”Phone,” she replies.

”Call ‘em tomorrow,” I reply as King of Kings stops. For a moment, Lauren and I fall back to sleep before again the song interrupts.

SMACK!

Unintentionally… well, probably… Lauren backhands me in the face jarring me to my senses as the song fades out again.

”WHAT THE FUCK!?”

”Either answer it or shut it off Thad,” she orders. ”I need my sleep if I’m gonna happy and chipper tomorrow night at Massacre.”

Rolling to my side I grab the phone off my nightstand.

”Hmmm,” I say while looking at the missed call log.

”What?”

”It was Theo.”

”We don’t know a Theo,” she answers as she cuddles up next to me.

”My uncle,” I remind her. ”Or… my brother, if you can believe what my grandfather said.”

”You don’t work there anymore Baby, go back to sleep,” she reminds me.

”Yeah,” I agree reluctantly. ”Yeah you’re right.”

Beginning the process of powering off my phone, it suddenly lights up again and starts ringing.



Dolly Waters.

”Ugggghhhhhhh.”

Y’all already know.

”I can feel you smiling,” she says as I look at the screen. ”Don’t you dare fucking answer it!”

”I have to Babydoll,” I protest.

”Answer it and I’m hitting you,” she insists.

”Heyyy,” I say after hitting speaker phone.

WACK!

”OOOOF!

In fairness, she did warn me. Nevertheless, the shot to the family jewels sends me rolling from the bed to the floor.

Thad?

”One sec,” I say from my face down position on the floor as I nurse the ‘boys.’ Before my departure from the XWF Dolly and I had a tag match. In the run up to that match, her and I got a little candid with each other. A result of that saw us share a kiss and while normally it’s not a big deal for either of us to ‘stray’ from our marriage, certain things will draw ire from the other. Feelings are never to be involved and with Dolly Waters, there’s always been feelings. So one might image how well that revelation went over with my wife.

Not well.

Not well at all.

”Thad, you there?”

”I hit him in the balls Dolly, he’ll be with you in a minute,” Lauren answers her.

”Why did you...”

”It just seemed like the right reminder,” she interrupts.

”Okay I’m here,” I say while the pain still courses its way through my lower back.

”Home wrecking bitch,” Lauren says under her breath.

”What’s up?”

”Did I call at a bad time?”

”Well I’ve been working and partying for three days straight so I was sleeping finally, but no it’s not a bad time. What’s wrong? Everything okay?”

”War Games.”

”Truth or Consequences.”

”What?”

”I don’t know I thought we were naming pay per views.”

”Well, you said if I ever needed you, that I should call right?”

”I did, but Dolly I haven’t even been gone for two months. They haven’t even had time to stop hating me and start remembering me with fondness yet.”

”Really?”

”What about Corey?”

”Pretty much retired,” she argues.

”Pretty much I just hung out with him during Cannabis Cup. Where, you know, he had a match. A couple of them in fact.”

”Whatever, you in or not?”

”Of course I’m in,” I reply quickly. ”Call me tomorrow.”

”Good night Thad.”

”Good night bitch,” Lauren chimes in.

”She really doesn’t like me much, does she?”

”Uhhhhhhh...”

”No.”

”Good night Dolly.”

Mastermind’s Mansion


Leaving our bags behind in our rental car in the driveway of Mastermind’s Mansion, Lauren and I venture up the walk to the front door. Just as I’m set to knock, the door opens on its own ever so slightly.

”The fuck?”

Looking at Lauren, I just shrug.

”It’s like something out of the Addam’s Family,” she jokes. ”This dude got a Lurch in there?”

”I don’t know,” I answer in a hushed tone. ”Mastermind has always been a strange cat.”

Pushing the front door open, my wife and I step inside.

”Hello?” I call out and my words echo in the large darkened foyer. Off to our left a light ignites. Instinctively, we venture toward the light. As we reach it, another light ignites and soon, we’re being guided on our path to wherever by these mysterious lights along the interior wall.

Coming to a stop in a large corridor, we go no further.

”Thaddeus,” comes the voice of Mastermind from a room to my immediate right. His voice nearly startles me as I turn in his direction. Ahead of us, sat perched in a throne atop a few steps is the man himself, Mastermind.

Starting inside this would-be Thinking room, I stop suddenly. Looking at the man brings back a lot of memories. We spent some time over the years as adversaries but what strikes me most of all is…

”Oh my God,” Lauren says. ”He looks just like your father.”

”Yeah,” I agree quietly as we approach the bottom of the steps. The Thinking room, I didn’t realize it at first, but it’s decorated in the same way my own was decorated. Knowing Mastermind, that’s by design.

”Good of you to come,” Mastermind says from his Thinking Chair.

”Not really sure why I’m here,” I admit.

”You’re here because I’ve summoned you,” he says.

To which, I just about laugh. I mean, not in a disrespectful manner, but… ”Have you ever known me to bend the knee to anyone?”

”You’re not here to bend the knee Thaddeus,” he says as he makes his way down the steps to face me man to man.

”He really is so small,” Lauren jokes.

”And your name is?” he asks of my wife.

”Lauren,” she answers.

”Lauren, be quiet,” Mastermind instructs. A big part of me wants to smack him around for disrespecting my wife but another part of me knows how irritating she can be… I get it. ”Walk with me, Thaddeus.”

Taking a leisurely stroll out of the thinking room and into the hallway, Mastermind starts to explain why it is that I’m here.

”I know of your own wars Thaddeus,” he begins.

”Listen Mastermind,” I interject, stopping him on our path to wherever we’re headed. ”I don’t know what you got up your sleeve, but my wars are over. The Illuminatus has been disbanded, my military liquidated. My father is dead and in the ground.

“Whatever it is you think...”


”I know that,” he interrupts as we resume our walk and talk. ”But what of future generations?”

I can only imagine I know have a quizzical, puzzled expression upon my face.

”Thaddeus, 25 years from now,” he continues on as we turn left into a brightly lit almost entirely white room. ”The world will be at war once more. Vinnie and Jacob face great peril.”

”Who the hell are Vinnie and Jacob?”

”My sons, Mrs. Duke.”

”Mastermind,” I try hard to quickly gather the words. ”This might sound cold and callous but, what do I care about your kids 25 years from now?”

”Did you miss the part where I said the world would be at war?” he asks.

”No, I heard that part.”

”Oh forgive me,” he says with a tap on his head. ”You thought I meant the world except the United States like world wars of the past?

“No Thaddeus. Warfare will break out on such hallowed ground as Los Angeles, Chicago...”
he leans in real close to me. ”And New York City.”

”Wait, what?” the normally mocking nature of Lauren turns a lot more serious.

”So while I’d be using your expertise and experience in war time strategy and tactics, and while I’d be using you very much to help my sons… Thaddeus… what of little Talon? Caty? Frankie?”

Spying the contraption with its bluish glow, I turn my head toward Mastermind.

”They’ll be of age then Thaddeus and I should remind you that world wars are all hands on deck. I know you left your war days in the past in an effort to salvage the future of your children but war will find them anyway.

“Unless you help me.”


”Is that it?” I ask, pointing toward the bluish glowing contraption.

”The Taimarus,” he answers as I step toward it. ”You’d start on a mission in the past, before we go to the future.”

”Where am I going?”

We, Lauren corrects as she steps beside me next to the Taimarus.

”What?”

”Your kids are my kids, Baby,” she reminds me quickly. ”I need to help.”

”Just step inside,” Masterminds tells the both of us. ”You’ll know where you are once you get there.”

Mastermind steps beside me and slaps me on the shoulder. Leaning in and dropping his voice to a whisper, ”Something tells me you’ll like this.”




Just when I think I’m out, they drag back in. Kicking and screaming and yelling “fuck you” at the top of my lungs. See, I was always down to come home. I always will be. While I didn’t expect to take a call so soon, one can only wonder how far this downturn in the XWF is going to go. Last years War Games, where by the way, it took not one but two of the greatest professional athletes in the entire history of this industry to defeat me and bounce me from the event.

Namely, Corey Smith and ALIAS.

Now all three of us are missing from the everyday XWF roster and they gotta call in reinforcements. They gotta dip into their bag of past stars and beg guys like me and Chris Page, who by the way, they wouldn’t let compete here because he lost his latest retirement match to a man I humiliated on free television last year in Robert Main.

Kudos to the XWF for sticking to their guns… not so kudos to them for falling on such desperate times that they started backing up the Brinks trucks just to fill out their War Games card.

I might receive a tongue lashing for publicly acknowledging the downturn, but that is exactly what it is. Last years War Games had Alias and Corey, me and Doc D’Ville, Dolly and Main, Charlie and the Brotherhood of Bobsleds or whatever the fuck they were called.

Last year, they even had a waiting list for the inevitable ‘this is too hard I need to pull out so I’mma fake an injury so I don’t look like a bitch’ crowd. This year the card is filled with the esteemed likes of Calypso, Game Girl, LSM and Tommy Wish. Names like Jenny Myst, Elijah Martin, and Hanari Carnes.

Jesus.

Fucking.

Christ.

I’m gone for two months and the XWF is barely recognizable. It’s no fucking wonder they’re begging the Thaddeus Duke’s and the Chris Page’s of the world to come back so they can even sell tickets to one of the biggest pay per views of the year. Aside from maybe four names on this card, not a single one of them will put asses in seats but as the XWF world always will, they’ll play with the hand they’re dealt.

Don’t misunderstand me, I’m not at all complaining about coming back for one night. I love the XWF. It has always been my home and it always will be home. But I was hoping I’d be able to stay away for more than two months without that call telling me they needed my help.

Black and blue courses through my veins.

I’m more than happy to help.

I’m more than happy to come home and remind all these sons of bitches just who the real stars are. I’m happy to remind the XWF brass just what they lost when I walked out the door. I’m happy to come home and remind the whole lot of you just who the Lionheart really is.

Yeah, it’s too soon.

But no I don’t mind.

See, for the last two years of my life I spent my time building not a legacy, not even a dynasty, but a god damn empire. From one big rivalry to the next. From one big match to the next. From one championship to the next. And on and on it went for two years solid and not a soul could out perform me. Now, I’m not saying those roads I paved didn’t have some potholes pop up now and then, but the moral of the story isn’t just the outcomes ladies and gentlemen. It’s the journey I took you on along the way and that my friends, is what I left behind when I took my uncharacteristic quiet exit after Leap of Faith.

My life has never been about endings, but all the meat in between that took you there.

See, I’ll never refer to myself as a “GOAT” or the “best” at anything. I don’t ever need to tell you what I am, all I ever had to do was show you. For two years solid I put together a resume that will withstand the test of time. I put together a resume worthy of the Hall of Legends.

No, I am not yet enshrined in immortality alongside the Chris Page’s and the James Raven’s of the industry, but denying my worthiness for it is a futile endeavor. I am that fucking guy.

Again, it’s too soon for me to come back here, but I understand they needed me. And when Dolly Waters calls, Thaddeus Duke will always listen.

So when Dolly Waters says “Thad, I need you brother, War Games.” My only response is “fucking yes.”

For one night only, XWF, your daddy’s back.

Welcome to the one night only revival of the Thaddeus Duke Show.




[Image: NDdOtwO.png]

[Image: wgqr9W2.png]
74-31-1
Semi-Retired


1x  XWF Universal Champion || 3x  XWF Xtreme Champion || 1x  XWF Supercontinental Champion (First)
1x  XWF Hart Champion (Last) || 2x  XWF Television Champion || 1x  XWF Tag Team Champion
1x  OCW Savage Champion || 1x IIW Tag Team Champion  || 2x  SOTM (9/20, 7/21)
2021 Male Wrestler of the Year (shared w/ Alias) || XWF Hall of Legends
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