Gambit

__** Remy LeBeau / "Gambit" **__

__**History **__

Abandoned at birth due to his burning red eyes, the child who would one day become Remy LeBeau was kidnapped from his hospital ward by members of the New Orleans Thieves' Guild who referred to the child as "le diable blanc" - the white devil. They believed he was the child that had been prophesied to unite the warring guilds. Soon after, Remy was placed in the care of a gang of street thieves who raised the child and taught him the ways of thievery.

Later, when he was around ten years old, Remy attempted to pick the pocket of Jean-Luc LeBeau, then-patriarch of the Thieves’ Guild. Jean-Luc took the boy in off the streets and adopted him into his own family. As part of a peace pact between the Thieves’ Guild and their rivals, the Assassin’s Guild, a marriage was arranged between Remy and Bella Donna Boudreaux, the granddaughter of the head of the Assassin's Guild. However, Bella Donna's brother Julien objected to the marriage and challenged Gambit to a duel. Remy killed Julien in self-defense, but was excommunicated and banished from New Orleans in an attempt to maintain the nonaggression pact between the two guilds.

Remy wandered the world as he plied his skills as a master thief, aided by his mutant power to charge objects with explosive energy. He employed playing cards he charged with kinetic energy as his trademark weapon. At one point Remy had approached the master geneticist Mr. Sinister for help in controlling his powers. Sinister removed some of Remy's brain tissue to reduce his power levels, thus affording him a greater degree of control. As a result, Remy was now in the geneticist's debt, and Sinister subsequently charged the thief with assembling the team of assassins called the Marauders. Remy did not realize that Sinister would employ the Marauders to massacre the underground mutant community known as the Morlocks. Seeing the horrific results of his actions, Remy attempted to stop the massacre but was almost killed by the Marauder named Sabretooth. However, he did manage to save one young Morlock girl who would one day grow up to become the X-Man named Marrow.

Eventually, Remy encountered Storm, a member of the outlaw team of mutant adventurers known as the X-Men. Storm had been transformed into an amnesiac child who had turned to theft as a means to survive. Remy helped her escape her enemy, the malevolent psionic entity known as the Shadow King, and they became partners. Later, when the X-Men's founder Professor Charles Xavier returned from a long period of traveling in outer space, Storm sponsored Remy's admission into the X-Men. Remy soon fell in love with his fellow X-Man, Rogue, blessed and cursed with the ability to absorb other mutants' thoughts and abilities through skin-on-skin contact. The feeling was mutual, but the two soulmates were condemned never to touch. At one point, Rogue left the X-Men after she kissed Remy and absorbed a portion of his memories, learning of his role in the Morlock Massacre.

Remy then had many adventures, such as bonding with a dead mutant wraith, working for New Sun, serving as patriarch of the Thieves’ Guild in his father’s stead, and leading a team of X-Men. Remy was later framed by mutant businessman Sebastian Shaw for the death of the Australian crimelord named Viceroy. With the assistance of Rogue, her team of X-Treme X-Men, and former Triad member Red Lotus, Remy was able to clear his name. Soon after, Remy became embroiled in the X-Treme X-Men's fight against an alien invasion of Earth. He was captured and used as a power source for the invaders to open a portal that would allow their full invasion fleet to pass through and complete the conquest of Earth. The process was halted by the enigmatic villain known as Vargas, who plunged his sword into Remy's chest. Remy survived, but found that he had lost his mutant abilities. As a result, he and the also-powerless Rogue sought to live a normal life together and retired from the X-Men.

However try as they might, a normal life was not for them to lead as the pair soon became embroiled in the X-Treme X-Men's fight against the mutant predator Elias Bogan. After Bogan was defeated, the X-Man named Sage used her mutant ability to "jumpstart" Remy's mutant powers and he rejoined the team.

During Apocalypse's most recent bid for power, Gambit became Apocalypse’s horseman, Death. As Death, Gambit attacked his lover Rogue and his former group X-Men. Cyclops arrived with The Avengers to stop Apocalypse and his Horsemen. Apocalypse finally lost, and seemed dead for a while. Sunfire, Apocaypse's other Horseman, rescued Death from battle and they escaped.


 * School's Out / High School Never Ends **

After the X-Men defeated Apocalypse, Sunfire left with Gambit to help him clear Apocalypse's brainwashing and live as entirely new beings, only to then be approached by Mister Sinister. Gambit returned to his original appearance and powers (presumably with the aid of Mr. Sinister) and reemerged as a member of the Marauders. On a mission for Mr. Sinister (involving obtaining knowledge of the future) Gambit and Sunfire encountered Cable on the recently evacuated island of Providence. Before the fight Gambit said, "I dropped that whole new look, wit' the help of a friend." Gambit and Sunfire attacked Cable, eventually forcing him to activate a self-destruct sequence destroying the entire island. Gambit and Sunfire escaped empty handed.


 * Welcome to Paradise / Hotel California **

Gambit finally leaves Mr. Sinister and the Marauders behind. Gambit begins searching Australia for Rogue in the company of Professor Xavier. Gambit, however, is unsure of this venture, mainly because of Rogue's request that she be left alone. He and Xavier both agreed that if Rogue did not wish for their help or presence, they would do as she wished and leave her be.

When Gambit and Xavier make it over the plains, they find a completely mismatched landscape. Fearing it is Rogue's doing, they go in and find various parts of Rogue's past being projected around them, including her fight against Nimrod and being captured and beaten at Genosha. Gambit finds it hard to control his emotions seeing Rogue in so much pain, but Xavier reminds him that none of it is real. While in the Genosha prison cells, Gambit and Xavier find the Shi'ar parts hunters and they are told what is happening. They discover that Danger is the one causing the projections and is using Rogue's input from Danger Room sessions. Xavier decides it is better to find Danger first, coming to the conclusion that Danger is trying to push Rogue to some sort of realization.

Eventually Xavier, Gambit and a group of Shi'ar pirates manage to shut down Danger. However, the Professor reactivates her and she defeats the pirates in turn when they attack Gambit and Xavier. After this, it is revealed that Rogue's powers never truly developed past their initial "nascent" stage, which was the reason why her powers never functioned properly. The Professor, now aware of this fact, uses his telepathy to tear down the mental walls that kept Rogue's powers from developing as well as removing the mental echo of Mystique. Finally Rogue kisses Gambit, with no ill side effect, revealing that she is in control of her absorption power.


 * My Generation / Children's Crusade **

Later on Gambit joins Rogue in fighting against Norman Osborn’s corrupt H.A.M.M.E.R. agents. They also work alongside Danger, the sentient Danger Room. In the battle, Gambit is easily swatted aside by Osborn’s agent, Ares. Danger and Rogue come to his aid which eventually leads to Rogue absorbing Ares's powers. Gambit then blasts him unconscious. Having for the moment absorbed some of Ares's power, Rogue easily dispatches a small group of H.A.M.M.E.R. agents and proceeds to steal their tank, along with Gambit and Danger.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Cyclops then orders Gambit to destroy the Omega Machine chair that Osborn had built to neutralize mutant powers. Gambit makes his way into the H.A.M.M.E.R. headquarters. There, he fights H.A.M.M.E.R.'s mutate guards Hijack and Input. Hijack is easily defeated, however Input is another story. Input uses his telepathic abilities to enter Gambit's head and discovers there are still left-overs from Remy's "Death" persona. Death re-emerges and defeats Input, and absorbed him into a playing card, which turns black upon doing so. Afterward, Rémy somehow returns to normal, with a smile on his face. Gambit then completes his mission, destroys the chair, and returns to the X-Men. When he made it back, Gambit got angry at Cyclops, but suddenly had trouble with mood swings and left the group. He changed back into his Death persona, and remembered how Apocalypse told him he would never be the same after undergoing the changing process.


 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Valley of Lost Souls / Empire of the Damned **

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Gambit is struggling with controlling his Death persona and is not involved with any X-teams at the moment.

__**<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Powers and Abilities **__

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">//Molecular Acceleration//: Remy has the power to take the potential energy stored in an object and convert it to kinetic energy thus “charging” that item with explosive results. He prefers to charge smaller objects, such as his ever-present playing cards, as the time required to charge them is greatly reduced and they are much easier for him to throw. The only real limitation to this ability is the time required to charge the object. The larger it is the more time it takes. Most charging takes place through direct skin contact. The power of his explosions is dependent on the mass of the object he is charging, for example, a charged playing card explodes with the force of a grenade. Gambit can also use his powers to accelerate an object's kinetic energy instead of converting its potential energy. For example, he can charge his bo staff with enough power to level a house.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">//Enhanced Agility//: Gambit's ability to tap energy also grants him superhuman agility and dexterity which gives him an added edge. He has used to his advantage by developing a unique acrobatic fighting style.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">//Static Interference//: Remy has the ability to create static due to the charged potential energy always in his body. This static shields his mind from detection from telepaths. Although reportedly uncomfortable for the parties involved, this shield does not prevent telepathic invasion.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">//Hypnotic Charm//: Gambit has the ability to "charge" the kinetic energy within a person's brain, allowing a subtle influence over any sentient mind. This power allows Gambit to compel others to believe what he says and agree with anything he suggests. More powerful minds have proven immune to Gambit's charm.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">//Toxic Transmutation//: As Death, he has the ability to convert inert materials into toxic substances; for example, transforming breathable air into poisonous gases.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">//Bilingual//: Remy is fluent in English and Cajun French. He knows some Japanese, but he is not fluent.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">//Expert Marksman//: Gambit can throw small objects such as cards, bolas, knives, and balls with great accuracy.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">//Master Combatant//: Though not on the same level as Captain America, Remy is a skilled fighter. He often employs martial arts, street fighting, and acrobatics. He is trained in the martial arts of Savate (French kickboxing), and Bojutsu (the art of using a Bo staff). Nick Fury even referred to Gambit as "One of the best hand to hand fighters I've ever seen".

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">//Master Thief//: Remy was raised by the Thieves’ Guild of New Orleans to be a master thief. He can open locks, pick pockets, employ stealth, and has other skills related to this.