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Thaddeus Duke · (03-25-2017)

Monday, March 6, 2017 | 4:19 PM | Parts Unknown | Italy

A despondent Sebastian Duke travels the Italian countryside. Alone. No more is the Knights of the Illuminatus Guard protection detail. No more is the constant travel companions of the typical Illuminatus motorcade. No. Sebastian Duke, the once King of his own world has been beaten down without a single person laying a finger on him. It is unknown where the former King lays his head at night. He's not been in contact with his brother Theo. Not in contact with Matthew Long, the former Illuminatus Intelligence chief. No one. Nothing. It's just the defeated former King left alone to think.

Several hours ago, around noon to be precise, maybe against even his own better judgment, Sebastian sent his son Thaddeus a text. A simple text. Not one laced with anger or sadness. Just simply a text that read: "I love you. Can we talk?"

It's been a little more than four hours and no matter how often or how little he checks his phone, Sebastian remains without a response from his only kid. He may not admit it openly, but it hurts him.

Meanwhile, back at the Illuminatus Compound in Connecticut...

Thaddeus sits at the head of a long wooden table deep in the depths of Asmodeus' lair. The secret room beneath the tiny house in which his grandfather lived out the majority of his life now serves as a sort of situation room for the new era of the Illuminatus Brotherhood. It's deep under ground. It's secure. It's bomb proof. It's the best place to conduct secret meetings.

Seated to his right, perhaps symbolically, is the former Illuminatus Guard Captain, Jim Edwards. Thaddeus Duke's best-friend and right hand man. Across from Jim sits Air Force Commander David Brunson. Beside Brunson is Army Commander Jorge Valencia. Across from Valencia and to Jim's right is Illuminatus Navy Admiral Keith Johnson.

Missing obviously, any sort of intelligence officer.

"Is my grandfather secure in the crypt?" Thaddeus asks Jim. The Illuminatus hastily abandoned Vatican City but they were sure to secure the remains of Father Asmodeus and Jacob Anderson, Sebastian Duke's equivalent to Jim Edwards.

"Father Asmodeus is home. Jake too."

Thaddeus nods and moves on. "Commanders where do we stand, by the numbers? David?"

"Sir, we have the Air Force. You were Air Force and they remember. They know who it was during the war that went into missions with him and got himself shot down," Brunson says with a slight smile.

Thaddeus smiles back, "I didn't build the thing. It's not my fault the controls stopped working.

"How many Air Force deserters?"

"75,000 strong, sir. About 5,000 remained loyal to your father."

"Jorge?"

"We're split roughly down the middle," Commander Valencia begins. "It's somewhat of a surprise, but we can work with it."

"Split down the middle is a real challenge, Commander. Don't say we can work with it because you don't know."

"The Special Forces are 100% behind you, sir. That's why I'm sure. 40,000 troops including our most highly trained operatives? I'll take that any day of the week."

"Admiral?"

"Admiral? You call him David and him Jorge, but I'm Admiral? Is this a black thing?" asks the hot headed black Admiral of the Illuminatus Navy.

"I hate the name Keith. Besides Admiral Johnson is a bit funny."

"We'll see how funny it is when I tell you we lost the Navy."

"Not that funny. No."

"We have a battleship and a few subs. INV (Illuminatus Naval Vessel) Asmodeus, the flagship is on board. Your father has control of 90% of the Navy. Our manpower is at about 10,000 give or take. And around a four ships in total."

"Four?"

"Nigga did I stutter?"

Thaddeus stares blankly before shaking his head. "...No..."

"We managed to lose half of the military. The Illuminatus is effectively split into two equal parts. We'll have a tactical edge on the ground. We'll have air superiority. They'll win on the water.

"This is a nightmare."

"Not to mention he has Long," Thaddeus adds, referring to Matthew Long. "We have no intelligence bureau. We have Catholic intelligence but... That's not a viable long term solution. At least I don't think it is."

"We need a guy."

"We definitely need a guy."

Back in Italy, Sebastian Duke continues to roam. He's now in Rome evidenced by the famous Roman landmarks he's passing. The former Illuminatus leader looks at his cell. Still, no text response from Thaddeus. The XWF's former King of Darkness hits a button on his rear view mirror. "Call Thaddeus," he states. "Calling Thaddeus," the automated voice confirms. The line though, does not begin to ring. Instead, he gets the automated phone operator voice: "The number you are trying to reach, is no longer in service."

"Son of a bitch," he says aloud.

"I'm sorry, I do not understand. Can you please repeat that?"

"End call," the former King states as he rounds a bend.

"I'm sorry, I do not understand. Can you please repeat that?"

"I said, En... Oh fuck it!" he says as he loses his patience and rips the mirror from the windshield. He tosses the mirror with its shredded wires out the window and proceeds on, stopping just outside the Vatican gates.

"No entry, sir." says a Swiss Guardsman through the opened window.

Sebastian is not the smartest man in the world, but he's smart enough to realize that those are Swiss Guard at the gates and not Illuminatus Guard.

"What's going on here?"

"I'm sorry sir. The gates are locked by order of the Holy Father himself. I'm told it shouldn't be long. Maybe another day or so. Try visiting then."

Sebastian stares out the windshield into nothingness. He tries to wrap his head around what he was just told when it hits him. "Damn him," he states, condemning his son for relinquishing Vatican City back to the Catholic Church.

Back at the Illuminatus Compound, Das Wunderkind paces in front of a crackling fire within the library. An arctic blast has kept New England cold even as it nears the spring season.

"Hey Thaddeus," Jim says, poking his head into the library. "The Pope is on line one."

Thaddeus takes a seat and selects line one, "Good evening, Father."

"Good morning Thaddeus," the Pope begins. "Your father was here."

"Did you talk to him?"

"Regretfully I did not. I very much would like to have seen the look on his face when he figured out the Church regained control of the Vatican."

"How do you know he was there?"

"The Swiss Guard did not recognize him, but security footage certainly did."

"Was he alone?"

"As far as we could tell."

"So then he knows the Illuminatus has vacated the city. You'd best be served by placing the Swiss Guard on high alert. Lock down the city if you haven't yet.

"Father, I need some advice."

"The city is locked down and I appreciate your advisement.

"What is it I can help you with?"

"I need a guy."

"I realize the past transgressions of some of our priests, Thaddeus, but we're not pimps."

Thaddeus laughs a little. It was a welcome change as he hasn't had a good laugh in quite some time. "No, Father. What I mean is I need a man here within the Illuminatus to act as a liaison between myself and Catholic Intelligence.

"I need a doer.

"I need a fixer.

"I need a guy that can be trusted. I need a man that will get things done without failure. I need a man that doesn't mind getting his hands dirty if need be.

"I think you know what I mean."

Silence from the other end.

"I need a tough man with a no nonsense approach."

"Lincoln Tritter," the Pope replies emphatically.

"Come again?"

"I have the man you're looking for. His name is Lincoln Tritter. He's an American no less. He's probably our... most special asset.

"Once upon a time he was a priest himself. Until he was defrocked by the diocese in Savannah for roughing up a little boys father for... well... you can draw your own conclusions there.

"Since then though, he joined our intelligence service and he's been a valuable... tool... for lack of a better word, for the last decade and a half."

"This Tritter. Where would I find him?"

"That's cute.

"You don't find him, Thaddeus. He finds you."

Two nights later, Sebastian Duke departs Logan Airport in Boston by car. He's determined to see and speak with his son and without being able to reach him, his only other option is to attempt to reach him at the Compound. He travels south on Interstate 95 as fast as the rented Ford Explorer will go. Through Boston, out of Massachusetts. Into Rhode Island through Providence and finally into Connecticut. He speeds in and out of New London before finally veering off the interstate in Old Saybrook.

He takes the back roads that wind toward the coast before making a right hand turn on to Galileo Drive. Miles down Galileo Drive rests the Illuminatus Compound. As the former leader of the Illumninatus Brotherhood nears an unmarked driveway, he slows and turns left. He hammers the accelerator for the duration of the mile and a half it takes to get to the outer gates.

Sebastian Duke steps from the Explorer and approaches the gates. Armed Illuminatus personnel man each side, both inside and out. "Open the gates," he demands of Zacharias, one of the Illuminatus originals loyal to Thaddeus Duke.

"I can't do that," Zacharias informs his former leader.

"Is he here?"

"I can't answer that," he replies.

Sebastian nods in understanding. "I know he's here."

Zacharias dead stares at Sebastian Duke.

"Can you at least tell him I'm here?"

"Mr. Duke," Zacharias begins.

"What?"

"Excuse me, I wasn't referring to you." Zacharias points back toward the mansion sitting high upon the hill. "I was referring to that one.

"He knows you're here."

"Zacharias," Thaddeus says as he steps into the light and toward the gates. "Thank you, but I'll take it from here."

"Yes, sir," states the guard as he steps back from the fence while not taking his eyes off of Thaddeus' father.

"Thaddeus," Sebastian says, cracking a slight smile for the first time in a long time.

"Is there something I can help you with? I'm about to sit down to a Pittsburgh salad."

"What the hell is a Pittsburgh salad?"

"It's a steak and french fries on a fucking bed of salad. What the hell do you want?"

Sebastian's look turns more serious. Perhaps realizing for the first time that there's nothing left in this relationship. "I was prepared to let you lead. I was going to step back, let you take the reigns. I was ready to let it all go because you were right."

"And?"

Sebastian reaches through the gate and grabs Thaddeus by the throat and pulls him into the gate. Thaddeus with his face pressed hard against the gate holds off his guards that were about to gun down his father.

"You said you wanted to protect your grandfathers dreams, boy. Imagine my surprise when I find out you gave the fucking Vatican back to the Church!"

Thaddeus smiles through the pain of having hard iron fencing forced upon his face. "I wish I could have seen your face."

Sebastian shoves the young man and Thaddeus stumbles backwards, loses his balance and falls on his ass. The former leader paces outside the gate, not once taking his eyes off his son. "I promise you kid. You've opened the gates of hell. You've done something you can't undo.

"I'm gonna bring every last fucking brick of this god damn Brotherhood down on your head!

"You little shit, I'm gonna cut you down!" Sebastian Duke turns toward his still running Ford Explorer.

"Hey pops!" Thaddeus calls out as he stands and brushes himself off. "Illuminatus Three is fueled and waiting at the airfield. Consider it a gift."

His father hesitates, then climbs into the Explorer and hightails it away from the Compound. Wondering whether or not he can trust his kid with the gift of a personal aircraft, he chooses to creep slowly and take a different route to the airfield. Flying commercially as he did to get here in the first place isn't ideal.

Thaddeus stands near the gates pacing back and forth while staring at his phone hesitating to hit send on a text that reads: "Silver Explorer SUV" He finally hits send and a few moments later, gets a response: "Approaching now."

Thaddeus considers... Then replies: "Do it."

"The Progeny" then flips through his contacts and selects "Dickhead" and begins typing: "Happy birthday ass" he hits send...

Sebastian Duke rolls the Explorer to a stop and steps out. He stands with the door open and looks out onto the tarmac where Illuminatus Three sits waiting, just as his kid said it would be.

As he closes the driver side door, he feels his phone vibrate in his pocket. Walking toward the aircraft, he reads the text from a blocked number: "Happy birthday ass"

BOOOOOM!

Illuminatus Three explodes. The blast sends Sebastian Duke flying backwards and landing a few feet away. The landing knocks the wind from his lungs. He lies there writhing and moaning a little. He fights to his feet as he begins to get his wind back and looks on at the burning fuselage.

He gets another text from the same blocked number: "Bring it on old man. I'm game if you are. Consider that a warning of what I'm willing to do. ;-) "

Sebastian loses his temper and throws his phone like a baseball. Not really paying attention to his position, he winds up hitting the Explorer, cracking the windshield and shattering his phone.

The deposed leader drops to his knees and stares at the flames. The realization hits him like a ton of bricks. He's officially lost it all. And he can no longer hold back his tears.

So the questions now, becomes clear: Where does Thaddeus Duke go from here? Where does Sebastian Duke go from here? What happens now that the Illuminatus is split from itself?

Threaded Mode \| Linear Mode The Broken King: RP #6
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