The Long Nightmare Pt 2
Miller had him, he was sure of it. No one could survive a blast of that magnitude, he thought to himself as his lips curled into a wicked smile. He walked triumphantly toward the fallen X-Man with such fervor as he could taste the spice in the man's blood. Victory was his.
He stood over the motionless body of the thief and let out a slight chuckle as if to add a final insult before taking his life. Slowly he crouched down and sniffed the stench of burnt flesh like a man in a rose garden. Remy's body staggered and fell just before the ledge of the roof to his delight. It would have been a pity to have lost this opportunity due to some freak accident. His lips began to smack as he leaned over and reached for the man's shoulders so that he could turn him over. Slowly he turned the man over but before he could realize just how easy it was there was an explosion.
"You t'ink Gambit that easy?" He spoke quietly to no one in particular. "De bad guys they getting too predictable...Gambit might need t'get a harder job." Letting out a slight laugh as if it would alleviate the aching of his body.
He watched the psychopath fall fifteen stories to his death but somehow he figured that that wasn't the end of his troubles.
He had to retrace his steps and hazard a hold on reality, or at least try and find the right path on which to begin. It wasn't that long ago he left this city to fight a threat to both human and mutant-kind alike, at a facility that created genetically altered assassins. The whole battle seemed easy as one team distracted the perimeter defenses and held them at bay, while the other snuck into the dome structure to bring the place down from the inside-out. The rest was all very hazy, but Gambit was the squad leader in charge.
One thing was for sure, New York wasn't left in a devastated heap of rubble when they left.
So many questions filled his mind with a clue or an answer far for him to even fathom. Gambit felt like a kid in a toy store who knew there was an interesting toy placed up high with no grownups to get it for him. He was on his own and he knew the answers to his questions weren't going to come easy. Lately it seemed that lady luck was the only lady he couldn't charm. To make things worst there wasn't any electricity, nor was there an easy way off of this building other than taking the stairs.
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Nights like these made her think of New Orleans in the spring, the warm still air that hinted at the blistering hot summer to come. The silence gave off a false sense of security much like a night in the Big Easy. The silence was uncharacteristic of this city, but by now it had long since replaced the busyness of New York.
"The Desert. Fitting." She muttered to herself
The locket in the palm of her hand had been the center of her attention at the start of each evening since she got here. Out there was the man who held her in this picture, a man she loved, a man she had once admired, a man she now wants dead. Hatred filled the void that was the emptiness he left and soon vengeance would bring her contempt with content.
"I'll find you Remy, and when I do...till death do us part." Her voice strong with emotions that most fear, balling her fist tight as the locket shuts.
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Summer was approaching lifting the cooler air and carrying it to another region of the globe. The warm breeze caught him by a rather pleasant surprise as it ran through his hair and he found it funny how it reminded him of Rogue. He had not seen her in quite some time and due to recent events, he knew it would be even longer before he can look upon her alluring beauty.
The breeze hit him as soon as he stepped out onto the street after descending fifteen flights of stairs. He sat down for a few seconds to rest and he noticed that the sun had begun painting the sky with the wonderful orange and pink colors on it's palette. It was a moment he wished he could have enjoyed forever but the sounds of feet scuffing the ground jerked him back into his survival instincts. Reaching under his tattered trench coat Gambit grabs hold onto his Z'noxx Bo-staff. With but a thought it stretched out to it's full length and he spun around to face his foe.
He hadn't gotten any rest from the last encounter with that psychotic killer and just then another stood a few feet away. Gambit knew this blood thirsty mutant like the back of his hand, if the other wanted to kill him he could've done so. With his mind and body elsewhere it would have been no hard task but this monster loved a challenge as much as well as a good hunt.
"Been a long time Gumbo. Almost missed that scent of yours...I'm figurin' I give you a head start b'fore I rip out yer guts." His voice was more a snarl as he spoke, saliva dripping from his canines. He was a gruesome sight and one that Remy would give an arm not to have faced this very moment.
"Creed." He responded in a low growl as his eyes narrowed to little slits so that the hue of his eyes were completely red.
Sabretooth.
This man represented the very hatred in Remy's soul and he knew it, it amused the other to know he knew how to push the Cajun's buttons. Within seconds the larger mutant pounced Gambit to the ground, even he knew that the X-Man was at a disadvantage. His speed was surprising but "Gumbo" was full of surprises as he countered with a low blow using his staff. The Z'noxx weapon had the ability to increase the pain upon the victim, needless to say, it bought him the time he needed to give chase.
He ducked into alley after alley trying to further the distance between himself and the threat. Despite his lack of rest, he covered two blocks when he heard a thundering roar that undoubtedly came from Sabretooth. He needed to find some place to make his stand and he needed to do it soon.
On the prowl he stalked close to the shadows provided by the large graveyard like city buildings, Victor Creed loved the hunt but most of all he loved the thrill of it. He could smell the fear in most of his victims and taste the anticipation that it was fueled by. Remy LeBeau was different from any of his other prey, he wasn't afraid, not the way the others were. This was the challenge he was looking for and next to Wolverine there was no one he wanted to maim more.
He paused as he came upon yet another of the city's canyons once the scent grew stronger. He could smell the mixture of spices and smoke that engulfed the mysterious card slinger. With help from the shifting wind he pinpointed the other's whereabouts and narrowed it down to the far alley across the street. The hunt was always fun but now it was time for the kill.
He entered through the other side of the building making sure he was careful enough to avoid detection. He followed the scent to the third floor and found it led to an apartment down the narrow hall. He walked in a crouch down the hall using all his hyper-keen senses to pick up any sign of movement. All of the door had been either kicked in or removed from their hinges so their was no need to do it himself. He got to the apartment and ducked in quickly after making sure there were no surprises.
Following his nose he entered each room and searched for his quarry but to no avail. Something was wrong, the scent was strong in the master bedroom but he couldn't find him anywhere. He looked beside the bed and found a pack of Gambit's cigarettes sitting in an ash tray, every last one lit and burning down slowly to the filter. It was a ploy to throw off the scent but Creed knew he was close as he backed away with an expression on his face that mirrored his fury. Suddenly he caught a glimpse of the Cajun beside him sitting on the fire escape, facing the alley and not him. Good.
He ran up and ripped his claws straight through the trench coat but it was that and nothing more. Rage began to overcome his sense of control and he quickly grew tired of the charades. He hated being played for a fool and knew that Gambit also knew how to push buttons. Where was that damned Cajun?
Soon after the question entered his mind the answer came with a powerful kick to his nose. The guy had been under the fire escape hiding under his scent, using Sabretooth's abilities against him. He pulled himself up and over the railing with such acrobatic grace and agility. As soon as he connected with Creed he used the force of the blow to push back toward the alley and dropped. It was a short free fall and he tumbled onto the garbage below. The other quickly recovered and watched as Gambit again made a run for it, but not without realizing why. Creeds eyes grew wide, he didn't have enough time to react.
The explosion rocked two city blocks and almost brought down the side of that building. The kinetically charged fire escape was the biggest thing he'd ever used his power on and one could see that he was fighting for his life with one desperate move after another. The battle had been won, but Sabretooth's healing factor would eventually make light of the damage inflicted. That meant an enraged psychopath would soon be looking for more than just revenge, driven by something far worse than a blood lust.
Gambit needed time to rest, even if it was a short amount, that last move was more dangerous than it was bold. It took a lot out of him and his lungs were more like an inferno as each breath he took stung with the fury of a raging fire. He was fatigued-to say the least.
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Sleep didn't come easy for him. However, he found he slept the whole day but he remembered waking every hour on the hour. Remy had become the hunted and not only by his 'normal' rogues gallery, no it seemed the whole city was after him. This was all like some bad dream-no, it was more like a long nightmare.
A piercing scream filled the night air and the Cajun knew that this was far from over. He shot to his feet and hurried over to where mid town used to be with one thought on his mind, this was a trap. As he got nearer the sound of the woman screaming had been washed by the growling of that insane monster, Victor Creed. The massive beast held a woman over his shoulders, but they were too far for him to make out who it was.
Creed knew Gambit too well, he knew that no matter what the hero would walk into this trap. There was no other choice for him, women was his weakness and a weakness was something that could be exploited. The fun was about to begin and Remy knew he would find his answers within the cathedral, so he pressed on. Once again into the unknown.
He alighted onto the street with athletic grace as he barely made a sound. His metallic boots found a pile of debris that was soft enough to absorb the landing. Sometimes dis t'ief be too lucky, he thought to himself as he let out a slight grin to show his approval. Damsel in distress and the Cajun thief to the rescue, it was the story of his life. No one could be sure of his motives though due to his mysterious demeanor, but his goal was well known.
He stepped carefully through the ravaged street, avoiding a sprain on his ankles. He needed to be at least at fifty percent if he wasn't at his best and sprains of any sort would do no good. It was awkwardly dark within this canyon of the dead city and to add to it he knew that he wasn't alone out here. The suspense was thick and he wished he knew the writer of this tale, so he could strangle him.
In all seriousness, Remy could joke all he wanted but he believed only one man shaped his destiny and that was none other than himself. Fate may hand you cards but it's up to you to know when to play them. Of course fates does deal a lot of bad hands but no one is that lucky.
It was time to find out just how bad this hand really was as he entered the door of the cathedral. Despite the darkness outside the place was clearly illuminated as if only the house of God received light in times of darkness. The place was large and the ceiling very high, with stained windows telling tales of this ancient palace, and in the very center of the altar was a huge cross. Beauty was much lesser a word to use to describe this wonder but that monster had tainted it.
There was somebody other than a statue of Jesus tied to that crucifix and it didn't take Gambit all that long to figure out who it was. That monster tied her to the cross! He ran ahead to the altar as fast as he could so he could be certain she was still alive. It didn't matter to him that Creed was still unaccounted for and that he could jump out at him at any moment, no it mattered not.
Only the girl mattered.
As he drew closer to the cross, the once still body of the woman began to move about and before he knew what was going on, she was standing before him-armed.
"Bella Donna!?!" The shock in his voice mirrored by the expression on his face.
"Glad you remembered my name...what would y'poor ol' wife t'ink if you were t'forget?" She offered a tight smile as her lips thinned and her eyes narrowed.
Stepping behind the cross was yet another surprise, it was the man whom he'd faced the evening before. Apparently, Judas Miller was still breathing. A fall from that height should have killed the man but he stood there with that crazed grin upon his face like a child locked in a toy store. Still no sign of Creed. Then, his back began to burn as his skin tore at the very tips of Sabretooth's claws, he could feel the warm blood trickle down his spine, the pain overwhelming all of his other senses, his heart beating faster. Remy LeBeau never knew fear like this before, then again, he never blacked out before several of his enemies before.
Before he blacked out he did what any man would do in his situation-he prayed.
To Be continued
