Episode 3
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Previously on "Gladiators." Abruzzi got into a gunfight with Gaines and Mandy. Gaines and Abruzzi were both shot, neither fatally. While Gaines and Mandy snuck away for some off the books medical attention, Abruzzi was taken to the local hospital. This meant better medical care, but he's also vulnerable to any gladiator who goes after him. Tyler and Jamal agreed to fight to the death, guarded by our soldiers. Kalil became increasingly erratic and illogical, taking several civilians hostage at a local McDonalds, and was shot and killed by Alan York. Now, as we enter round three, Alan has immunity, and 13 other gladiators must kill or be killed. Who will be the next to fall? And who will ultimately win this contest? Only time will tell.
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9:03
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All of the gladiators got the alerts on their cellphones. Kalil was dead, and Alan York had immunity for now. The crowd outside the McDonalds came up to Alan, congragulated him, asked for his autograph. Alan's new friend, colonel Mcnamara, realized that he had chosen well in this alliance, very likely one of them would be the champion. Only reverend Clarence seemed to dissaprove of his actions. Clarence had promised Kalil he'd be safe, and Alan broke his promise for him. But that was irrelevent, the other cops even offered to take Alan to the local pub, celebrate his victory, enjoy life while he still could.
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9:06
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Sarah saw the alert, she no longer had immunity, any other gladiator could come in and kill her. The doors were locked, the alarm would give her at least some warning should they try and break in, and she planned to sleep with her gun under her pillow. Tomorrow, she would have to track down another gladiator. The nazi was going to fight a different gladiator tomorrow night, maybe Sarah should go after the child molestor. Sarah figured she could live with herself a lot better if she took him out. For now, she needed a little rest.
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10:26
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Bobby and Julia were in the middle of their wedding night, when they saw the alert on their phones. It was now round 3, Kalil was dead and Alan York had immunity. Julia and Bobby knew that their days were numbered, they had decided they would both die rather than kill. But still, seeing that one of their opponents was dead, made them scared. The big time killers might go after each other rather than these two star-crossed lovers. But every gladiator who fell meant they were one step closer to being killed.
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11:31
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Alan York enjoyed drinking with his old buddies, and colonel Mcnamara. But he knew he needed to get some rest while he could. Tyler and Jamal were scheduled to fight at 8pm, which meant Alan's immunity would only last another 21 hours, at most. He needed to rest and prepare himself for round 4, because that was coming soon.
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6:30
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With less than 14 hours until his fight with Jamal, Tyler went to see his ex-girlfriend Mary. Mary wasn't too happy to see Tyler, she tried to leave that nazi crap behind. But she and Tyler did have a baby together.
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Mary: Go away Tyler.
Tyler: Please, I just want to see my kid.
Mary: He's not going to know about you.
Tyler: Well I might be dead in 14 hours, and even if I win another 12 people have to die for me to live.
Mary: I thought you'd be thrilled about something like that.
Tyler: Maybe it's scarier than I thought. Please, just let me see my son once before I die.
Mary: Fine, ten minutes.
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7:14
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Jamal also knew he might die today, and before the fight he wanted to reconcile with his mother. She wasn't exactly thrilled that her son was in a gang, or to be part of this barbaric reality show. But she was glad that her son was alive at least for now.
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Mother: I warned you that the wages of sin is death.
Jamal: You were right mama. But it is what it is.
Mother: You sold drugs, dropped out of school, maybe even killed someone. And for what? That gang leader payed you and the others in free pizza and game tokens.
Jamal: Seemed like a good idea at the time.
Mother: That was worth your soul?
Jamal: What if there is no soul, no god?
Mother: You cannot erease God merely because you don't like what he has to say. Your only hope is to go to this reverend, and maybe he can help lead you to God's forgiveness.
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8:37
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While she was eating breakfast, Reese received a call, from Lindsay.
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Reese: What do you want?
Lindsay: I thought, maybe we could get this over with.
Reese: Like what, an old fashioned pistol duel?
Lindsay: That sounds like a dignified, honorable end for one of us. At least this way, one of us gets immunity for a few hours.
Reese: Deal. I say a neutral spot, high noon.
Lindsay: That is acceptable.
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9:18
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Doctor Saulstein came to see his patient, John Abruzzi. Abruzzi was awake, but felt completely numb. He prayed that was a temporary result of medication, because if it was something else, he was really screwed.
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Abruzzi: Please doc, tell me I'll be okay.
Saulstein: You will live. But it will be at least a week before you can move again.
Abruzzi: You don't understand, I need to be able to move right now.
Saulstein: I am well aware of this "game."
Abruzzi: So you tell me I won't be able to move for a week, you're telling me that I'm a dead man on furlough.
Saulstein: For what it's worth, I am sorry.
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9:27
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Mandy and Gaines strategized over their next move. They were checking with some of Parker's old friends, trying to find out which hospital Abruzzi might have been taken to. He was vulnerable, and now would be the best time to strike, when they could still get some brief immunity for taking him down.
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10:35
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Reverend Clarence came to see Alan York and colonel Mcnamara.
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Clarence: Feeling proud of yourself?
Alan: I got immunity for a few more hours, so yeah.
Clarence: I gave that man my word.
Alan: He was a drug-addict, and he was holding innocent people hostage.
Clarence: He was surrendering.
Alan: How long would he have lived? In a few days, phase 2 begins and the soldiers would have just killed him in prison.
Clarence: Maybe, but he would have gotten to say goodbye to his son.
Mcnamara: It's kill or be kill reverend, take your pick.
Clarence: I have.
Mcnamara: I've chosen a different path, so has Alan here.
Clarence: Such a pity, I fear this means we won't be going to the same place.
Alan: We'll see.
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12:03
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Reese waited at the designated spot. Lindsay was running late. Maybe she was scared, not that Reese could blame her. Still, one had to die right now, the other one might at least get immunity. Then Reese saw something. It was Jeffrey, the gladiator who molested six children and killed at least one. He seemed oblivious to her being near. But he was also leaving, going home most likely. Reese decided she'd rather get immunity for killing this creep, so she began following Jeff.
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12:06
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Bobby and Julia were having lunch in one of their old hangouts. They were finally married, as they always knew they would be. But the other part, having children together, that part would never come about. Then they saw something, Reese, she seemed to be following another gladiator. They couldn't see who her prey was, and decided not to get involved.
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Lindsay also saw Reese stalking her prey, the child murderer. If Reese would rather try and kill this creep than her, Lindsay was okay with that. And if Jeffrey won this, well at least he wouldn't be a threat for a few hours.
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12:15
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Reese snuck into Jeffrey's house, planning to sneak up and murder him. But Jeff turned the tables on her, and knocked her unconsciouss. She woke up after a few minutes, by which time Jeff had her all tied up.
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Jeffrey: Sometimes the best hunters trick their prey into coming to them.
Reese: You going to kill me, just get it over with.
Jeffrey: I intend to. But first, I plan to have a little fun with you.
Reese: You're a sick bastard, you know that.
Jeffrey: So I've been told.
Reese: God, Please protect me.
Jeffrey: You believe in God?
Reese: Yes. I've accepted Jesus Christ as my personal savior.
Jeffrey: Me too. We might even see each other in Heaven pretty soon. But first, a little fun.
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The following is an excerpt from an interview with major Harris Barnes, conducted during round 3 of "Gladiators."
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Interviewer: Major Barnes, can you tell us a little about what to expect tonight?
Barnes: Certainly. Two gladiators, Jamal and Tyler, have agreed to fight it out one on one. Under the rules, they have the right to ask for our assistance during the first phase of the game. We essentially make certain that noone interferes, no other gladiators, no bloods or aryan brothers.
Interviewer: What if one of these gladiators tries to flee during this single combat?
Barnes: Officially we have the authority to kill them for that, but we'd prefer not to use lethal force. If one gladiator seems like he's running, they could just be trying to lure their opponents into a trap. We'd rather give them the benefit of the doubt.
Interviewer: Tonight you and your soldier protect them, but in a couple of days or so you'll be hunting them.
Barnes: Correct.
Interviewer: Suppose that two gladiators do this during round six? Once that ends, would you just shoot the winner?
Barnes: No, we'd give them a customary hour to flee. Believe me, we want a good show as much as the audience.
Interviewer: Glad to hear it. I'll get out of your way and let you get back to your work.
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3:33
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Lindsay came to see reverend Clarence in his church.
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Lindsay: I'm scared reverend.
Clarence: That's understandable.
Lindsay: I'm scared that I'll die, and there will be noone to take care of my baby.
Clarence: Don't you want your son to be proud of you?
Lindsay: Very much, but that won't matter if I die. If I die, do you think God will forgive what I did to protect my child?
Clarence: I don't know. You do have a better chance of earning his forgiveness if you refuse to kill.
Lindsay: Let someone kill me? Take the chance that my son will be left all alone? I know that Bobby and Julia would rather die than be apart, but if she were pregnant they might do things differently. I'm sorry reverend, but I'll do what I have to do for him. And I'll take my chances that God will punish me for it.
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6:06
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Jeff had enjoyed raping Reese. He knew he'd have to kill her soon, but he still wanted to wait. He knew about the upcoming fight between Jamal and Tyler. Whoever won would have immunity, but only briefly. Then Jeff would kill Reese, and have immunity. Hopefully he could stretch out his immunity longer. But before that could happen, Sarah came into his house. He couldn't get to his gun, and she came in blasting. All Jeff could do was flee, and he did indeed get away in time. Sarah had failed to kill, but she saw Reese still tied up, still unable to get up. Killing her would get Sarah immunity again.
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Sarah: I'm sorry. I wanted to take out the child molester, but he got away. It's kill or be killed.
Reese: Wait, you know about the fight between Jamal and Tyler?
Sarah: What about it?
Reese: The fight's scheduled for 8 pm. You kill me now, your immunity lasts maybe two hours.
Sarah: Better than nothing.
Reese: But you wait until after the fight, immediately after, maybe your immunity lasts longer than two hours.
Sarah: I know your argument is entirely self serving, but you're not wrong. Okay then, I'll wait until after they're done to kill you.
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7:56
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Both Tyler and Jamal had arrived, ready to fight to the death. They were surrounded by the soldiers, the very soldiers who would be hunting one of them down in the next couple of days. They didn't yet know about Sarah planning to kill Reese once they were done, they didn't know about Gaines and Mandy, as well as Alan and Mcnamara, looking for Abruzzi to kill him when he was most vulnerable. Their respective friends had come to cheer for one side or the other. Reverend Clarence was here, trying to make one last plea, to each man, to not participate in the killing. But each man was more concerned with their immediate survival then what God might or might not think. They each stepped into the "ring." It was one circle, each man could fight with their bare hands, or whatever rocks might be on the ground. The fight was short, but brutal. Once Jamal got the upper hand, he just kept banging his head against the concrete. He did this until major Barnes confirmed that Tyler was dead. Round 3 was over, Jamal had immunity for round 4.
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The following is an excerpt from Tyler's last recorded message.
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Tyler: I know I'm not a good person, I've done some bad things, I got a lot of hate in me. I always thought something like this, where I could kill n...s and jews would be fun. It's actually a lot scarier than I thought it would be. Yeah, I'm afraid, and that makes me angry. I'll try to direct this anger towards the other gladiators, rid the world of some trash, make the world a safer place for my son. Who knows, maybe I'll even win.
