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Thaddeus Duke · (06-07-2017)

[duke]Present Day | 1:07 PM | Vatican City Gates | Rome, Italy [/duke]

The first shots clear the barrels of the tank turrets and begin to eat away at the reinforced Vatican walls. And with it, the first shots of the Illuminatus Civil War. Then a second round of shots. Then a third. Then a fourth and they’re through the concrete and to the first layer of steel plating.

”That fucking kid of mine has the air force. This would be so much easier,” Sebastian states to his driver.

If Sebastian Duke hated hearing the bell ring in the Vatican bell tower, he’s going to absolutely loathe what he’s about to hear. Over head, and all over Rome, the air raid warning amps up. Not exactly a stranger to war, Sebastian pokes his head out the window of the Humvee, looking around the skies. He sees nothing, and assumes the siren is possibly warning citizens of the danger that looms within the city due to his military presence.

Out of nowhere, one of Thaddeus’ jets fly low and overhead. Sebastian thinks he could almost touch it as it flies passed him, and nervousness creeps in. ”Fire on those jets!” he orders into the radio and without a second to spare, Sebastian’s ‘red’ Army opens fire on another overhead jet, again flying low.

Thaddeus is trailing behind some of his fellow pilots. Many were already in the air before he even got to his plane back at base. His heart is racing. He’s nervous, but not because of the battle that looms ahead. He’s nervous because he knows in his heart that there’s really only one way to end the incoming conflict with his fathers forces… at least with any finality. He deliberates in his mind, if he could actually pull that trigger. Actually cut down his own father. At times, he has no doubts that he could. Others, like right now, he wonders if he’s not full of shit.

”Umbra Mortis, ETA?” Jim asks through the radio.

Thaddeus snaps out of his thoughts quickly. [duke]”Thirty ticks, Onis.”[/duke]

”About time you join the party!”

[duke]”Do we have a visual on Redwood?”[/duke]

”Affirmative. He’s behind the front line of tanks.”

[duke]”Fire when ready. Save Redwood for me!”[/duke]

And like that, the Illuminatus Civil War is officially underway. With Thaddeus’ forces engaging the forces of his father, there is no longer any turning back. There is no hope for reconciliation. No hope for any type of peaceful resolution. War is here. War is now. War is no longer avoidable.

”I have a tank in my sights, but I can’t promise Redwood will make it through.”

[duke]”So be it. Clear them guns, Onis,”[/duke] Thaddeus orders, almost hoping Jim’s shot takes out his father so he doesn’t have to so that he can avoid that decision. This war may prove to be his toughest yet. He’s not used to having to make that type of decision. It’s easy when there’s no connection to your enemies. It’s just not the case this time. This time, not only is his father down there on the enemy side, those are his Brothers down there too.

”Fire one!” Jim shouts.

The tank is struck directly with Jim’s missile, flipping it over and engulfing it in flames just as Thaddeus catches a glimpse of the tanks ahead. With Jim pulling up and out of the target area, Thaddeus arms his guns. [duke]”Fire one! Fire two!”[/duke] he shouts, as he clears his guns. After firing, he pulls up and makes a pass over the city.

[duke]”Fucking moron!”[/duke] Thaddeus shouts, observing his fathers position.

”What is it?” Nikolai asks.

[duke]”He has himself boxed in! He can’t even fucking retreat because he has has entire force basically up his ass!”[/duke]

”Should we pull back?”

Thaddeus deliberates carefully a few seconds.

[duke]”Fuck no! Beat them back! Destroy whatever you need to. If he orders a retreat we’ll revisit then!”[/duke]

”Umbra Mortis! He’s got the Navy arriving!”

[duke]”How many ships?”[/duke]

”Half dozen, maybe more!”

[duke]”Steer clear of the sea. They can’t hit you if they can’t find you,”[/duke] he orders as he levels his wings with his fathers forces again. [duke]”Fuck this!”[/duke] he shouts. [duke]”Stay clear, I’m switching to the cannon!”[/duke] With rapid fire succession, Thaddeus engages the cannon, cutting down Illuminatus men and ripping through vehicles. Just as he pulls up, he catches his father darting off between buildings. As he flies away from the battle, he looks out the right side of his canopy, trying to determine where his father might have went.

”What the hell are you doing!? The ships can see you!” Jim shouts to Thaddeus through the radio.

Thaddeus snaps out of his trance and gets his head back into the game, just in time to see a missile launched from the flagship of the Illuminatus Navy, the ISS Darkness, and headed toward him.

”Bogey headed straight for you, General!”

[duke]”I see it, it’s under control!”[/duke]

”It’s a heat seeker, boss!”

[duke]”I kind of figured that much.”[/duke]

Thaddeus swoops a wide arch, with the missile hot on his tail and closing in fast. Pointing his jet toward the Darkness, he dives, bringing the missile along with him. With gunners on deck firing toward him but missing badly, he engages the cannons, firing rounds into the deck of the ship. Gunmen scatter across the deck darting out of the line of fire.

”Umbra Mortis, get the hell off the sea!”

[duke]”I have it handled, Sickle!”[/duke]

Thaddeus dives further, headed straight for the radar tower. Just as he nears the tower on the ship, he darts off to the right, but the missile can’t turn as sharp and detonates after hitting the ship. Thaddeus looks over his shoulder at the dozens of navy men abandoning ship as debris flies and burns all over the vessel.

[duke]”I guess things got too hot for them out there!”[/duke] he jokes.

”Could you get back over land and out of sight please? You’re making me nervous!”

[duke]”I’m inbound, don’t worry.”[/duke]

”Another bogey, boss! Looks like it came from the Saybrook!”

[duke]”Relax boys, I got things under control!”[/duke]

With the missile trailing him, Thaddeus heads back toward land.

”I’ll come help you out, partner.”

[duke]”No, stay away!”[/duke] Thaddeus shouts into the radio toward Sickle.

”That missile is closing fast! You don’t have time to do whatever it is you’re planning!”

”Nikolai, that’s a direct order from the highest in the chain of command! Abort your flight path!”

Nikolai fails to respond. Thaddeus looks all around trying to determine Nikolai's position but can’t seem to locate him.

[duke]”Sickle, I’m leading that missile into the tanks! Fall back!”[/duke]

A B-52 Bomber flies low. Just above the rooftops. It takes some hits from anti-aircraft guns, but the massive plane shrugs them off like they're nothing. Flying parallel with the gates of the Vatican, the bomber opens its payload doors and empties its contents.

One after the other, bombs drop on the red army tanks, blowing them to pieces and sending Sebastian's forces into full retreat. They have no real defense for attacks by air. The Bombers are just too big and the fighter jets are just too fast.

”Umbra Mortis, the ‘red’ Army is in full retreat!” Jim shouts, one, in excitement. Two, knowing Thaddeus' plan of guiding the missile trailing him into the tanks, that option is no longer available. "Can you guide that thing into a building?"

[duke]"No can do. These buildings are no longer abandoned. They're full of Roman residents and there's no fucking way I'm killing civilians in order to save my own ass."[/duke]

Radio silence.

[duke]”Sickle, fall the fuck back or I’ll kill you myself!”[/duke]

”300 meters and closing.”

With Thaddeus back over land, he finally sees Nikolai. From a rather high trajectory, he’s headed straight for Thaddeus.

[duke]”Jesus Christ, Sickle! You’re headed right for me!”[/duke]

”The tanks are destroyed and the ‘red’ army is full speed, abandoning the city!

“200 meters.” Jim shouts, keeping Thaddeus updated as to how close the missile is to him. "What about the sea? Could you take it back to sea and do what you did with the last one?"

[duke]"Negative.

"I'm just inviting more trouble."[/duke]

”Onis, its been a pleasure serving with you.”

”What the fuck are you talking about, Sickle? You’re to abandon your course immediately!

"Redwood's Navy is turning back to sea!

“100 meters!”

”Umbra Mortis! It has been an honor to serve along side you.”

[duke]”God dammit! Nikolai back the fuck off!”[/duke]

”Can’t do it, Thaddeus,” Nikolai replies, breaking protocol. ”You’re far too important to the cause. These men will fight without me, but they won’t without you.”

With the missile on his tail coming at a downward trajectory, and Nikolai coming toward him at a downward trajectory, Thaddeus can’t avoid what’s coming.

BOOOMMMMM!

[duke]”Nikolai you fucking asshole!”[/duke] Thaddeus cries out with a shaky voice.

Radio silence.

”Sickle is lost, Thaddeus...” comes the confirmation. You can hear the emotion in Jim's voice.

[duke]”FUCK!!”[/duke]

Thaddeus peels off after killing his radio. His fellow pilots join him in formation as he heads back toward sea. With his fathers Navy turning back to sea and aborting their mission, they leave the blazing ISS Darkness by its lonesome. A sitting duck.

[duke]”Turn and burn, men. Back to base,”[/duke] he says quietly, after switching on the radio. Off to his right, down on the water, he sees the ISS Darkness, still ablaze. He abruptly peels out of formation and arms his missiles. After sweeping down and coming nearly level with the stern of the crippled ship, Thaddeus clears his guns.

[duke]”For Sickle!”[/duke] he shouts with tears in his eyes.

”For Sickle,” Jim repeats, far quieter.

Without even knowing, Jim also aborted formation. He sent two missiles into the side of the Darkness, as Thaddeus sent two into the stern. The duo make an elongated loop as they watch his fathers namesake beginning list to its starboard side. The impacts were successful. Nikolai Putin, a friend to all in Thaddeus' air force may be gone, but the flagship of his fathers Navy, ISS Darkness has begun to slip beneath the waves of the Tyrrhenian Sea.

With their mission accomplished, Jim and Thaddeus rejoin the other pilots and head back to Anderson Air Base.

...Later That Evening...

Thaddeus, Commander Brunson, Jim and Lincoln Tritter sit around the situation room at Anderson Air Base. Thaddeus is a bit despondent and noticeably upset as the call from the Holy Father comes through. After hitting speaker, Thaddeus speaks.

[duke]”Good evening, Father. I just want you to know that I’m sending in ground troops to secure the city.

"They should arrive by morning."[/duke]

”And how are you, my son?” the pope asks, noticing the hurt in Thaddeus’ voice.

[duke]”I’ll be fine, thank you.”[/duke]

”You lost one, son.

"I watched from my chamber window."

Thaddeus chokes back his emotion. [duke]”Nikolai Putin, sir. He soars with the angels now.”[/duke]

”I’ll pray for him, son. Maybe you should too.”

[duke]”He intercepted a missile, to save my ass. It’s the most selfless act a man in this profession could ever perform.”[/duke]

”I’ll remember him, young Thaddeus, at this evenings mass.

“You and your men are welcome to join if you’d like.”

Thaddeus smiles slightly.

[duke]”I certainly appreciate the gesture, Father, but I have other matters to tend to now.

“This war, sir, I’m afraid its only just begun.”[/duke]

”I’m afraid you’re correct, son. Your father, he won’t take this lying down.”

[duke]”Yeah that’s for sure.

“Father, you take care and I’ll be in touch.”[/duke]

”And you Thaddeus.

“I’m here to listen, when you think you need to talk.

“I know you’re skeptical. But the God I serve, loves all of his children.”

[duke]”Thank you Father, good night.”[/duke]

”Good night son.”

Thaddeus ends the call and leans back in his chair.

[duke]”I’d like the room for awhile,”[/duke] he says as a tear falls from his eye. Without a word and hardly a noise, the other three men exit the room, leaving Thaddeus alone with his thoughts. No sooner do they close the door and Thaddeus’ phone starts ringing. He can’t find it initially as he tries to home in on the ringtone. He only finds it after missing the call. After looking at his phone, he can’t help but smile and laugh just a little.

[duke]”71 missed calls from Lucretia Diamond.”[/duke]

After sitting back down, he dials her up.

”Ohhhh THANK THE LAWWWWD! You made it, Boo!”

[duke]”71 missed calls, LuLu. Worried much?”[/duke]

”Honey you kiddin? It was all over the news! CNN shot the hole damn thing! That fuckin' Chris Chaos probably gon' call it "Fake News."

"That dumb nigga ain't got nuttin' so he keeps on callin' you fake. Mmmmmm I'd luv to give dat boy a piece a my miiind. He like that creamsicle in the White House. Dat nigga must have Spicer writin' his shit talkin' cuz ain't none of it make any damn sense. He prolly juss readin' it on camera.

"Covfefe Chaos!"

Thaddeus starts to laugh his ass off.

[duke]”CNN? I didn’t even know they were here,”[/duke] he replies after controlling his laughter.

”I was just flippin channels and the headline caught my eye: “Illuminatus Red Army Invades Rome.”

“That’s yo daddy’s army right?”

[duke]”Yeah.”[/duke]

”He done fucked up messin’ with my Boo! I saw it! He done blew up them people! Concrete and metal and body parts flyin’ all aroun’. Just despicable!

“But THEENNN…

“But then I saw yo planes flyin’ in and bombin’ the shit out them! Boo you put a hurtin’ on them motha fuckers real good!”

[duke]”Yeah I’m pretty proud of my guys. They’re the most elite air force in the world, thanks to my uncle.”[/duke]

”He gay right?”

Through his laughter, [duke]”I honestly have no idea.”[/duke]

”Is your plane blue?”

[duke]”The only one that is, actually.”[/duke]

”THAT WAS YOU!

“I watched you sendin’ bullets and yo daddy’s men flyin’ for cover.

“I’m sorry I called you so much, Boo! I saw that plane get blown up and I just had to make sure you were okay.”

[duke]”Thanks Lu, that means so much to me.

"That was Nikolai. He was a good man. Someone I considered a real friend.
He sacrificed himself for me. For the cause, too.”[/duke]

”I’m sorry for your loss, Boo. You must be devastated.”

[duke]”It hurts anytime I lose one of my men, LuLu. This one especially so,”[/duke] he admits to her.

”Alright, Imma let you get back to your boys now. I just needed to hear you for myself.”

[duke]”Thanks for calling, LuLu. Tell Rosey I said hi.”[/duke]

”Oh that little motha fucka. I will, I will. You take care of yourself now, ya hear?”

[duke]”I’ll do my best.”[/duke]

”Night boo.”

[duke]”G’night LuLu.”[/duke]

Somewhere within the darkness. Place and location unknown. Just darkness. Crickets, like the crowd reaction after a Chaos promo, but crickets nevertheless. The rustling of tree limbs in the cool spring breeze.

Light footsteps.

Click.

The camera light flips on, illuminating Thaddeus Duke as he stares into the hand held camera.

[duke]We the people,[/duke] he says quietly.

[duke]WE THE PEOPLE!

WE THE PEOPLE!

WE THE PEOPLE!

WE THE PEOPLE!

We, the people of the Xtreme Wrestling Federation and all of Duke Nation are fed up with your bullshit, Chris Chaos. If Jim Caedus and his "act" as you call it, is tired, then yours is beyond tired. It's so far beyond tired that it died three months ago and its about to get buried once and for all at High Stakes. Caedus may not be the best of anything but he's one hell of a competitor and already a better champion than you ever were. He may be a redneck. He may be a desert hillbilly. He's twice the man you'll ever be. Hell, Jenny Myst is twice the man you'll ever be.

Wait hold up.

Chris Chaos can go deep.

Chris Chaos can go comedy. Yeah, let us know when you're being funny and we'll light up the "laugh" sign so everyone knows.

Chris Chaos can go intense.

I hope this latest promo of yours isn't your Hail Mary pass, because if it is, you just got picked for six, homeboy. You're gonna need a successful Hail Mary to pull a win out here, Chris. And then you're gonna need to throw a few more. Say what you want about the number of promos I've released and how few you have. You were overconfident, just like you always are, against Gabe Reno and that dumb son of a bitch cut you down too. He walked out of Lethal Lottery wearing the gold you went in with. So... tell me more about how being calculated and methodical is the way to go when you're out to win your second Universal title?

Go big or go home, Chaos.

Do you think your promos are better by releasing fewer? Do you think they add up to more and hit harder by repeating the same tired "Thad's fake army" lines? Do you think I, or anyone else for that matter, give two shits whether or not you believe its real? Granted, I've talked a lot about your insistence that it isn't, but that's because it's laughable. It's like you went out and bought a 'talk shit for dummies' book written by Peter Gilmour. Not only are you reading it backwards, but every time you think you've opened a wound and broken through the ceiling of anything remotely intelligent, you walk right into another fucking door and you fall on your ass.

You're being outplayed, outclassed, out-sassed, out-thought, outsmarted, and outright owned every single time you open your fuckin' mouth.

You want to talk about my fake military never having helped me out. Chris, I'm not you. I neither want, nor do I need help to get by. Whether I win or I lose I do that on my own. You will never see my military trying to bail me out of a wrestling match. They're smart enough to know boundaries.

The question is, Chris, do you know boundaries? Do you know what lines you shouldn't cross? Because it sure is shit looks like you're going all in on this military thing, but rest assured, I'm holding aces, all you got is an unmatched 2 and 3.

You got nothing, Chris. So you resort to playing the role of the Space Shuttle Challenger. You're shooting for the stars alright, but just like the original, the Chris Chaos challenger is blowing himself up, right after take off.

Live
Action
Role
Playing.

Yes. Yes, Chris, everything I do is a game. Everything I do is all dress up and smoke and mirrors. Every gun I have ever shot was a cap gun and every grenade I've ever thrown is a water balloon. Every jet I've flown and bomb I've dropped is a Hollywood prop plane in front of a green screen and the bombs are all CGI. Every last one of them. You caught me, Chris. You called my bluff and now I have to fold.

You're 100% right.

Except for the part where its fake and playing a role and my gun is a fucking Desert Eagle and the caps are .50 caliber cartridges and my grenades go bang and hurt people and my jets are pretty real and are fun as hell to fly and the bombs make really big booms too and they kill a lot of people.

So yeah. I guess you're not right at all. How 'bout that? Whodda thunk?

Rip... stomach... intestines... feed them... more intestines... Yeah yeah, bodily harm threat that you'll never accomplish. You want intense, Chris? Have you ever actually felt human intestines? They're slippery as hell. Sort of like link sausage, only not nearly as firm. It's the reality of war, Chris. Someone is going to get shot. Someone is going to get a big ole hole blown in them. Some of us... get stuck trying to put their pieces back in their bodies where they belong.

Some of us never forget that. Some of us cradle them in our arms as they take their last breaths. If you've ever actually witnessed it, Chris, it takes on a whole new meaning that simply being a blow hard and talking tough, just doesn't cover.

We have a date in the desert, Chris. Its a date I want you to remember. I want you to remember it Chaos because all your grandstanding comes to an end. All of your claims about being the best, come to a definitive end. See, Heyman is a giving man. You'll lose the Universal title match, but at least you'll have a shot to get a shot to get another shot.

Bring your walking shoes, bitch, it sure as fuck is a long walk back to the end of the line.[/duke]

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