X-Men: Gambit

This marks the second part of the my X-Men articles with the inclusion of Remy LeBeau, or as most know him by Gambit. Gambit is also one of the more popular X-Men characters among the fans due to his brash personality, while also being charming, and his unique power. He is a mutant who can take an object and turn it into kinetic energy, his signature object is playing cards. The smaller the object the less time it takes to charge it, and easier it is to throw. Thus his playing cards are always at hand, and seem to never run out oddly enough. With this mutation he has superhuman abilities such as agility and advanced endurance to the point that he adapted a unique acrobatic fighting style. He also sports a lightweight body armor while also using a extendable metal staff.

Remy LeBeau was born in New Orleans, Louisana which explains the Cajun accent he has. When he was born he was kidnapped and later on raised by the LeBeau clan Thieves Guild. They believe he was prophesied to be the one to end the war between the Assassins Guild and the Thieves Guild and frequently called him the "Le Diable Blanc" (The White Devil.) A gang of street thieves taught him the ways of thievery and with the skills he used them to get by. When he reached the age of 10, he used them to pick the pocket of the patriarch of the Thieves Guild. His name was Jean Luc LeBeau. Jean Luc took him off the streets and adopted him. On his 15th birthday he and his cousin Etienne went to their "Tithing", a ritualistic initiation test for young members of the Thieves Guild. There mission was to steal from a powerful mutant by the name of Candra. Candra capture the two of them and sold them to a slaver named Pig. Remy, however, was able to escape as his powers manifested when he entered his teenage years and at that point he was right in the thick of it. Pig quickly caught up to him, and when he did is the point that Remy found his signature attack of using a playing card that Etienne dropped to charge kinetic energy to. By using the card, he took out Pig's eye. Remy and Etienne ran and jumped into the ocean where the Thieves Guild were able to rescue them, however Etienne had drowned.

Later on in Remy's teenage years he was hired by Dr. Nathaniel Essex (Mr. Sinister) to retrieve his stolen diaries from the Weapon X facility. Remy and the Thieves Guild accepted the mission. Upon being stuck in the bitter cold, he remembered some jackets that he saw in New Orleans. When he got back home he found a jacket that he liked, so much in fact he never got rid of it and wore it constantly. When he finally entered the facility, he witnessed Wolverine running out in a rage after his skeleton was bonded with adamantium. Deeper in the facility, he found the stolen diaries and opened them. The information inside of the diaries were a bit sensitive and he didn't trust Essex or for that matter, to hand them to him. Thus he burned them for safe measure. He returned home to a disappointed Thieves Guild and even more disappointed Essex. His decision caused a bigger rift within the Guilds, and in order to reconcile the two the prized young members from both were to be wed. In this case it was Remy and Bella Donna Boudreaux, the granddaughter of the head of the Assassins Guild. However, when Bella's brother Julien objected to the marriage he challenged Remy to a duel. Remy killed Julien in self defense and as a result he was banished from the Thieves Guild and New Orleans in order to keep the non-aggression pact between the Guilds.

After being cast out from the only place he could call a home, Remy wandered the world alone. He applied himself to become a better thief and mastered his powers. He made his card trick into his signature power and at one point approached Mister Sinister for help in controlling his powers. Sinister helped by simply removing a part of Remy's brain. Remy felt that he owed Sinister and was tasked with leading a team called the Marauders that the Sinister assembled. The team consisted of Sabretooth, Riptide, Blockbuster and Prism. However, Sinister simply employed the Marauders to massacre an underground group of mutants by the name of Morlocks. When Remy figured this out he no longer wanted any part of Sinister, despite how much he had helped him with his powers. Before leaving, he decided to fight the Marauders back alongside the Morlocks and in the process was nearly killed by Sabretooth. He did save the Morlocks and the Marauders dispersed while one Morlock named Morrow went above ground. Morrow would later on in her life join the X-Men.

Once again on his own wondering the world he eventually stumbled upon Ororo Monroe (Storm) who was a member of the X-Men. Storm had been transformed into an amnesiac child who had turned to theft as a means to survive. Remy of course seeing her thievery, decided to help her and escape from her enemy. After defeating their enemy, the two became partners which led to his introduction into the X-Men. Storm stood up for him, seeing how he dropped everything to help a stranger while the others were cautious of a lowly thief. Frequently as a member of the X-Men he challenged the orders given out by Cyclops. He felt as if he were in ways better than him, so he didn't always respect his opinions, much like Wolverine. Remy, however, did fall in love with one his fellow X-Men, Rogue. Remy was labeled as a ladies man due to his charm, but no lady could hold up to the standard that she set in his eyes. Rogue was cursed with the ability to absorb other mutants' thoughts and abilities through skin on skin contact. Rogue also fell in love with Remy, but the two were condemned to never be able to express their love to each other. Their relationship was constantly tested in ways beyond intimacy. At some point, Rogue decided to leave the X-Men and gave Remy a good bye kiss. In the short kiss, she saw a glimpse of his memories and in fact saw his time as a Marauder doing harm to others. This affected their relationship negatively, but the two could never stay apart for long periods of time.