The Thin White Duke

The Thin White Duke

The Duke surveyed his prey with icy intensity. What were they doing in the ruins of DC? There had to be a reason for their betrayal. There's nothing here except for rubble, mutants, and Rivet City, or at least that's what the Duke thought. How stupid could they be? To leave the Duke without killing him, and come to downtown DC. The Duke grew up in these buildings. He knew of every little shortcut, trap, and sewer. They couldn't have picked a faster place to die. Still, the Duke couldn't kill them yet; he had to know what they were doing first. Why they abandoned him.

"Should we attack, Grand Duke?" asked a scruffy little man named Syd. He trembled and bobbled with excitement.

"No. They are too big, we shall strike when they separate. They know that they should have killed us, let's let them sweat a little" Answered the Duke.

"Yes, sir" replied Syd, his tremors of anticipation taken from him.

The Thin White Duke looked down at his former followers from the ledge of the three storied office. They stopped walking and filed into and old grocery store. The Duke remembered sleeping there for a couple nights as a teen, and these [censored]s brought him back. Not only had they taken his title, they also brought him back here. Humiliating. He was no longer a duke, or maybe he was. A duke of five men, a joke. Now he was nothing more than a skilled mercenary, or and overpowered raider. The Duke clinched his wiry fists in anger and turned around, his men staring at him.

"We'll get these traitors, Duke" reassured Jackson, a dark man about as tall as the Duke, around 6'3', but much larger. His rough features flashed something friendly then immediately reverted back to distant and violent. He wiped down his Minigun, the only thing he showed any care for.
"
They're good as dead, Lord" said Andy, the sniper. He was the only one who didn't wear some sort of combat armor. He thought that it messed with his aim.

"I've got some surprises for these [censored]s" said Barrett. His first name is John but everybody call's him by his last name, Barrett, because there was already a John in the old Clan. Barrett was a particularly sick son of a [censored], even in The Dukes eyes. He isn't that great of a shot but he is fearless, and loyal. Something the Duke really likes in his men. He is also very good with explosives which can be extremely useful in some situations. He's been known to clean up captured and injured enemies with his Chinese Officers sword.

The only man who didn't say anything was Johnson. He was a decent soldier but he didn't belong here. He knew about the plan to leave the Duke and was ready to go before the Duke asked him to go on his hunting expedition along with Syd, Jackson, Andy, and Barrett. He was scared [censored]less, and knew deep down that the others think he would have gone with Jacob and the others. Every minute was hell. Expecting to get called out any second, having to worship the Duke like a living God. Just being around these psychos is bad enough. One word from the Duke and Barrett is cutting out his heart, and eating it in front of him. He just had to play along for now, Johnson thought.

"Yeah" said Johnson.

"Yeah, what?" asked the Duke.

Johnson paused "We're going to get them"

"Kill them?" asked the Duke again.

The Duke could be very scary. He didn't have any color to him. His pale, ghostlike complexion contrasted sharply with his Jet black armor. Even his beady eyes looked all pupil. His imposing figure stood over you like one of DC's ruined buildings. He wasn't very thick, but his arms were so long they looked like they could stretch over and choke you. His voice was the worst. All the emotion stripped away, you never knew which way he was going. Johnson had never seen anybody like him, it was like he was from another era.

"Yes, Duke. For betraying your rule"

"My rule? The Duke doesn't have any rules. I merely try to provide for my men. Try to be a fair Duke. I thought I was fair Duke. Do you think I was a fair Duke, Johnson?"

"Yes, my lord"

"Then why do you think my men would leave me?"

This was a trap, and Johnson knew it. "I don't know, Duke"

"I think you do" said the Duke, A newfound nastiness in his voice.

Johnson knew what was happening. He pulled put his Shotgun before anybody could respond.

"PUT IT DOWN, JACKSON"

"Shush Johnson, you're going to wake them up" whispered the duke.

Jackson gently put his minigun on the ground. "It's not loaded anyway" he said.

"NONE OF YOU MOVE" snarled Johnson.

"Hey, if you think I've been a bad Duke then you're welcome to leave anytime. Seriously, join the others. Jacob saved you a spot right between his legs."

Johnson thought for a moment. He could start yelling, and maybe wake the others up. No, he would still have to make a move or he would be dead. After the first pump into the Duke, there would be three others. Jackson is the slowest and is completely unarmed, so get him last. Andy is the best shot, so take him out second, and take out Barrett after that. Then drop Jackson before he could do anything. What if Jackson had a pistol or something? This would require perfect shooting and some luck. Wait, where's Syd?

Before Johnson could make a move he felt sharp teeth tear into his neck. It was Syd. Syd threw the gun out of his hands, and proceeded to bite all over.

"Hahahah that [censored] can't even count" crackled Jackson.

"Syd, get off of him" ordered the Duke

The Duke walked over to Johnson and stepped on his neck. Blood gushed out of the holes that Syd had created and Johnson let out a furious howl.

"Yep, should have killed me."

"[censored] you"

"It hurts putting down a good man. Don't make this harder than it already is. Tell me what the others are doing here in the ruins."

"You're nothing. You're no Duke, you're just a deluded [censored], who draws crazies like yourself. You're no better than a raider."

The Duke stepped harder on Johnson's neck and even more blood gushed out.

"I think you're the deluded one, my friend. You've lost a lot of blood and you're not thinking straight."

"Please?..stop" begged Johnson.

"Just tell me, I know you know. You and Jacob were inseparable. Do you think I'm stupid? Just tell me and this will all be over"

The Duke eased his foot off of Johnson's neck as he began to talk. "We heard about huge contracts in Rivet City from the Radio a couple months ago when we traveled through the Capital Wasteland. We planned on leaving whenever you went out. Everybody followed us because you are such a [censored]head" said the hoarse voiced Johnson. After he managed to get through the last sentence he lifted his head up and spat on The Dukes shoes. The Duke turned around and walked away.

So they were going to Rivet City. It all made sense to the Duke now, as he began to formulate a plan in his mind.

"Syd, Barrett. Finish off what's rest of him. I want to talk to you when you're done Barrett."


Thoughts? I may have another part either tonight or sometime over the weekend depending on what I'm doing. Of course if no one likes it then nevermind........

If no one comments on it i'm not going to spend the time to write another part............

I actually like it.

It reminds me completely of the move escape from new york

Snake plisken, the Duke of York and his pimp-mobile, good times.


Yeah, keep it up.

AND to everyone out there, this does not count as thread necromancy.

I love that movie. I was pretty disapointed when I saw escape from LA, but it was still fun.

Thanks for reading, I'll have to check out your fanfic. I know the Duke and those other guys sound like "uber" characters but they really aren't, this was my first piece.

It was pretty good. 9/10

This.

Part 2

Jacob awoke the men, ate his instamesh and began his journey to rivet City with one thought on his mind: he should have killed The Duke. In all likelihood The Duke would never find them, and even if he did he could never stand up to 23 men, all with heavy combat experience. Still they should have killed them. 23 against five. Heck, Jacob and the others took out Barnes, Rogers, Joe, and Mack without a single casualty. If Jacob had more time to think it out the Duke would surely be dead. He just had no idea so many people wanted to go. Apparently he wasn't the only one who thought Travis had gone insane. Jacob almost laughed at himself for thinking of Travis as "the Duke".

The men walked through the shattered remains of their ancestor's once great City. Every piece of rubble, every towering building, and rusted up car was proof of their greatest mistake, and greatest triumphs. Years ago people who looked like me, and talked like me, lived and thrived in these buildings, with these metal machines without knowing what killing, radiation, or survival was all about, Jacob thought. A totally different world. Jacob thought about what he missed too.

"This place is more torn up than that [censored] in megaton" said Brock, a blond man with lots of facial hair and no mental restraint.

"Ha, yeah, you should have seen this place ten years ago. This was the capital of giant mutant freaks." Said Jacob.

"There's Muties here?" asked Jim, the youngest of the whole group, barely in his twenties.

"Yeah, well, I don't know. Like I said, I haven't been here for years, but before there was a Mutie camp around every corner" answered Jacob.

"That three dog said that some brotherhood of steel have been cleaning out the place" said Tom a middle aged man with a slight stomach, which was odd considering that just about everybody else in the group was rail skinny or toned up muscled.

"Yeah, we're getting our contract from the brotherhood, or at least getting our contract from the guys paying the brotherhood" said a balding man named James.

"No one contracts the Brotherhood of steel. They practically run this place" said one of the older men named Crenshaw. His insulting tone got under just about everyone's skin. "I don't think they would have and operation like this considering they hate wastelanders" He finished.

"Yeah, well, there's definitely?.." Jacob stopped in mid sentence at the sight of five people with bulky power armor, carrying everything from Gatling lasers, and laser rifles to flamers and an odd looking rocket launcher rounded the corner. The two groups stood face to face, twenty feet apart. Jacob and his men readied their weapons, as did the suits of power armor.

"Halt" cried the center suit, which was an odd thing to say considering both groups had been in a complete stop after they became aware of each other.

"What are you doing here? Are you Talon?" asked the same center suit with robotic authority.

"If they were Talon they would already be firing, and besides they don't have the armor" murmured another suit, more laid back but just as robotic. The center suit ignored him.

"No. We come seeking a contract about water escorts in Rivet city." Answered Jacob.

"Ahh, yes" said the center suit as he walked over to greet Jacob continuing to talk.

"I'm Paladin Rutski of the Brotherhood of steel and we?.." After six casual steps toward Jacob a blast from the ground engulfed and blew paladin Rutski into the air. Before his Gatling laser could hit the ground lasers and bullets hurled into each other, along with the gruff voices of the mercs and the robotic brotherhood of steel.

"IT'S A TRAP" screamed one of the brotherhoods.

Jacob dived on the ground to avoid the incoming lasers. A blue streak rushed past his head hitting a Merc in the chest, instantly turning him into dust. After this terrifying display of power the Mercenaries separated and ran toward which building they were closest to in the enclosed and claustrophobic street. Jacob unloaded a round from his Assault rifle into the body of one of the suits, without him even flinching. After the last bullet the suit grabbed his neck and his Gatling laser lowered and began firing into the cement with the removal of his stabilizing hand. Sensing his weakness, the others fired on him until a final shotgun blast from Tom sent him to the ground for good.

After precious moments fiddling around with his weapon one of the brotherhood suits of armor lifted his Tesla canon on his shoulder and fired at the building opposite of Jacob, missing the men, the blast briefly disappeared into the building they were using as cover before issuing a blast that sent the men scurrying out into the open, target practice for the stationary brotherhoods lasers. With all the fire drawn away, Jacob and the men from his building rose up and unleashed overwhelming firepower on the unsuspecting brotherhood until they gave in and fell to the ground. The smoke cleared and the men stared at each other as if to see if they were still alive. Brock finally broke the silence.

"Those [censored]s were tough"

Jacob began to look around, as did everybody else. A couple men were holding their wounds, and one man, Thurgood, was moaning on the ground, blood squirting out of the wound his hand was faultily covering. Nothing to bad until the mound of bodies of men used as a diversion. One body was still squirming around in the blood and flesh. Oh great, Jacob thought, another poor son of a [censored] bleeding his guts out. The figure rose and jumped away with amazing agility for a man within an inch of his life. The figure displayed amazing mortality as his head rose to show the face of the child. It was Jim.

"WHAT THE [censored]" shrieked Jim rubbing his body as if to shake the death off of himself.

All eyes went to Jim as he stared at the pile of body's he had just borrowed out of.

"What the [censored] indeed" said Jacob.

-----------------------------------

I'll try to finish off the rest of part two tommorrow morning but can't promise anything after that. Comments and criticisms are greatly appreciated. Thanks.