Chapter Ten: Gambit's Tale
The characters in this fic, by and large, do not belong to me. The X-Men, and related characters, are the property of Marvel Comics. GI Joe, and related characters, belong to Hasbro. The Delgado children (Althea, Brittany, Daria, Quinn, and Claudius), Xi, Sgt Snuffles, and the Eloi belong to Red Witch.
RogueFanKC- Ultimate loss for Essex? Maybe, maybe… As for the ultimate battle, it's going to be a while from now, but it is coming. Oh, yes it is…
L1701E- Sinister has his reasons. They will sort of align with his comics motivations, but this is my version of an Evolved Sinister. He's not quite the same guy he is in the comics (although he is heavily drawn from them).
Cammy- Thank you very much. I'm a comics fan myself, and I'm pretty certain that we won't ever see the massacre in an animated format. It's far too heavy for TV aimed at children- which most cartoons are. As for Illyana- her story is another thing that may never be covered on TV, but then again, if Wanda can be locked away in an asylum for years, then a trip to Limbo and a meeting with Belasco may be in the cards.
"WHAT?" Thorn yelled. Several people started barking questions.
"Excuse me," Mole began. Nobody heard him.
"Excuse me," he tried again. Still no response. This meeting was like a meeting back home- no time to get sentimental now, Mole old chap. He remembered how the Blob once got everybody's attention.
"SHUT UP!" Mole screamed at the top of his lungs. Miraculously, everyone did. Mole winced. That hurt his throat.
"Perhaps if we just let this young man tell us his story then we'll get all of our answers."
"That sounds like a good idea," Hawk agreed. "Gambit, I want you to tell us everything you know about them."
"How you got mixed up with them would be a good start," Xavier nodded.
Gambit looked into his lap, and then looked back up.
"Okay. Remy tell you everything."
***
I left home when I was sixteen years old. I had my reasons, but let's just say that thievin' lost its thrill for Remy. I was on de streets of New Orleans for awhile, and then I got to wandering. I met him when he was bein' attacked- yes, I'm gonna explain who he is, jus' give me a minute.
Anyway, he was being mugged. I don' know why I got involved, but I did. Only, it turned out that I didn't have to. The man, he was a shapeshifter- no, it wasn't Mystique. I've been saying 'him' the whole time, haven't I? And yes, I'm sure it wasn't really Mystique. I could be wrong, but if Gambit is wrong, then that was the most elaborate scam that he has ever seen.
Anyway, after we drove the punks off, the man thanked me, and we got to talkin'. He was the first person I know that used the word mutant to describe me. All I knew was that I could make things explode, sometimes. He offered to teach me how to control my powers. I had no home, I kept blowin' things up, of course I said yes. He said his name was Essex, Nathaniel Essex.
Anyway, after a while, Essex started talkin'. He said that a war was coming. I thought it was between mutants and humans but he said, no, it was between mutants, and it would decide the fate of our people. He said that there is a mutant, an ancient and powerful one that wants to set mutants at each others throats to see which ones are the most powerful. He said that this guy was locked away, but wouldn't stay that way forever, that he had devoted his life to stopping this mutant.
Did I believe him? Yes, I did. Why wouldn't I? This man took me in, helped me control my powers. What else could I do but believe? And yes, I asked what I could do to help. That is where the Marauders began, wit' me an' him. He said that he wanted to assemble a group of mutants dedicated to watching out for this nutjob, and to stoppin' him when he showed his face. I said that I would be one, and not only did he agree, but he decided it was time to find others.
We went all over trackin' them all down. The first one, believe it or not, was from Bayville. It was the man who was made outta glass. He called himself Prizm, and so did we. He said he had a fallin' out wit the group of mutants he was living with. They wanted to join a group of sewer people- who I later found out were the Morlocks- and he didn't want to live in a sewer. The second one was Scalphunter. Essex recruited him himself. Don't ask Remy how- all I know is that I wake up one morning and there he is, actin' like he's been there from the beginning. The first lady of the group was Vertigo- and she was a pain, actin' all high and mighty. She was on the run from the cops. I thought it was for stealing, but later I found out that she gets her kicks from using her powers on people in high place or near subways. She gets 'em dizzy, and makes them fall. One time, she decided to try pushing somebody over herself, and got caught.
The others came in pretty quickly after that. Harpoon was brought in by Scalphunter, and Riptide and Arclight came in not long after, then Blockbuster, then Scrambler. Our little group was complete, Essex said. Non, I do not know about the green-haired magnetic girl. She must have come in after I left.
Why did I leave? Well, you Joes may remember this. There was a Gulf War veteran named Abraham Lincoln Kieros- yeah, I see some of you remember. For those that don't- he was the guy who made people believe in Gulf War syndrome when he went crazy and drove his car off the road. It was in the papers and the news for a while. No, he didn't try to commit suicide. His accident- that was the Marauders. Essex sent us after him as a test. See, he's a mutant. Essex said that the nutjob was very interested in this guy, and was gonna recruit him at any moment. We were sent to stop that. We followed him for a while, and then one night we ambushed him. He was drivin' along, and had to take another way to get where he was goin'. I, I uh, I caused a little rockslide on the road he wanted to take with a properly placed card. So, he goes on his detour, and he's all alone on the road. Vertigo used her powers on him, and I'm like, what are you doing? He could crash! And she says, I know. I cannot describe the tone she used, but it sent shiver down my spine, and not in the good way. Anyway, Prizm used his powers to blind the man. I thought it was meant to stop him, but it, it… it caused him to crash, just like he wanted it to.
I'll never forget the way the car burned. I wanted to go check on the man, but the others wouldn't let me. I thought we were supposed to persuade the man to the right way of thinking, maybe get rough, not, not… I didn't know it would happen! You gotta believe me! Gambit is a thief, not an assassin! I did not know that they wanted to kill that man! But, knowing that he survived, and in what kind of condition… maybe it would have been better if he had died like they wanted him to.
Anyway, when we got back, I was gonna complain, but Essex was all, oh well, these things happen. I couldn't believe it! The others started laughin' at me. They were like, what did you expect? We're here to kill people. Essex was pissed, but not because they misinterpreted his orders, but because they let me know. As you can imagine, I didn't stay with them much longer.
After that, it's a bit predictable what happens, non? I am chased by them, and I find Magneto himself, and he takes me in. After Essex, Magneto was a relief. He is clear and obvious about what he wants, and he even tells you why he thinks he knows humans and mutants can't live together. I… it was only when he tried to kill Toad that I finally saw him for what he was.
I'm not telling you everything? No, I'm not. The things I'm not saying have nothing to do with the Marauders, but with me.
Why would they attack the Eloi? Hmm… that, I can't say. If Essex wasn't feeding me a line about why he's doing what he's doing, maybe he thought that the Eloi were working for the mystery mutant. I don't know what he thinks- I don't think I've ever known what he really thinks.
***
Remy looked down into his lap again. Rogue was staring at him, mouth open.
"For what it's worth, I believe you, son," Hawk said, placing a hand on Remy's shoulder. "You've been duped twice, but you've always been able to realize your mistakes, and you've always been able to leave."
"Yes," Xavier agreed. "In fact, I'd say it's a mark of your character that you've been able to leave in those situations. Not many people would have the strength."
"Thank you," Remy mumbled.
"Well, if that's all you know, I think it best if you leave us to discuss this."
"Wait, Professor," Hawk interjected. "Gambit, you spent a large chunk of time with the Marauders. You know their hideouts."
Remy looked up. He looked fierce.
"Just say the word, and I'll lead you to all of them. But I'm coming!"
"Me too," Rogue said firmly, and took Remy's hand. "I haven't even met these guys, and Ah hate them already."
"Count us in," Thorn growled, and the Outriders nodded.
"There's no guarantee they haven't set up a hideout that you don't know about, Remy," Xavier reminded him (and everybody else), "but I agree with the General. This bears investigating. We just have to decide who goes and who stays in case there is an attack on the Institute."
"Do you think that the Marauders will know where we are?" Mole asked him.
"It's possible, and it's a possibility we can't ignore."
"Agreed," Hawk said grimly.
"What do we tell the X-Man and the Misfits?" Ororo asked.
"Tell 'em the truth," Remy said. "It's easier that way."
"Are you sure?"
Remy looked at Rogue. She smiled, and took his hand. The message was clear. And as long as she was behind him, he could take anything. Remy smiled.
"Yes, I'm sure."
***
"What?" Scott exclaimed. "You mean you, all this time, you-"
Remy looked him in the eye. "Don't t'ink I'm proud of it. I'm not."
"And I thought we worked with the scum of the earth, yo," Todd said. "But you got us beat!"
"Why didn't you say anything about these people?" Scott asked, ignoring Todd.
"It never came up. Besides, how do you say, 'Excuse me my friends, but Remy used to work with psychopaths and murderers?'"
"We already knew that you did when you came to us in the first place!"
"I'll choose to believe you're talking about Pyro and Sabretooth," Wanda told Scott in a very dangerous voice.
"If I'd known that this was gonna happen, I'd have said something," Remy said, half to himself.
"Well you didn't, so it doesn't matter now," Althea told him. "The important thing is that you can lead us to them so we can kick their asses. RIGHT?"
"Right!" Most of the teenagers and some of the adults agreed.
"As much I agree with the sentiment, I think it best if not everybody goes along," Xavier interjected.
***
After much arguing, it was decided that each team send a delegation for the 'search party.'
The X-Men sent Gambit, Rogue, Shadowcat, Nightcrawler, and Wolverine. After much more arguing, the Misfits settled on Wavedancer, Xi, Quicksilver, and the Scarlet Witch. Willow, Mrs. S, and Claw represented the Outriders. The New Mutants sent Cannonball and Magma along. Low Light, Roadblock, Cover Girl, and Spirit came on behalf of the Joes. Sean Cassidy came by himself. It was a very tight fit, but everybody got aboard.
On the X-Jet, Xi grabbed Cassidy's bare arm. After a moment, he nodded.
"Are you aware you can fly with your powers?" Xi asked.
"Not all me youthful experimenting was with LSD and men, boyo," Cassidy laughed. "I tested out me powers, too."
"You're a mutant?" Kitty asked.
"That I am. I'm a screamer." Everybody but Xi shot Cassidy a blank look. "I can generate highly intense sonic waves, which I can use to shatter object, or, as Mr. Xi there said, fly. I'd give ye all a demonstration, but I'm told it's a mite painful in close quarters. Moira says I make Celine Dion sound like a bass, but she has a way of exaggerating everything."
"What can you shatter?" Willow asked.
"Oh, just about anythin', if I scream loud enough and long enough, that is. The only thing I haven't been able to break yet is adamantium, but everything else… of course, if I go at it for extended periods of time, I lose my voice."
"I know you!" Amara suddenly exclaimed. "I remember you from Rahne's pictures. You're her, er…"
"I'm her adopted mother's boyfriend, lass. There probably should be a term for somebody like that, but there isn't one yet. What does she say about me?"
"Well, she said that you're the head of security at her mother's lab. You're also very handsome, you think you're much funnier than you really are, that you've got a great singing voice, that her mother is trying to get you to give up smoking, and that you're one of the kindest men she's ever met."
"Really?" Cassidy blushed. "Remind me to ask Moira to raise her allowance, then."
"How do you know the Professor?" Rogue asked.
"I met him through Moira. And I met Moira shortly after I left Interpol."
"You used to work for Interpol?" Althea asked, suddenly interested.
"Aye. Why d'ye ask?"
"Did you ever work with a spy organization called AUNTIE?"
"Never mind," Kurt said quickly. He knew where this was going.
"Aye, I have," Sean answered.
"Ever work with an operative named Matthew Burke?" Althea went on.
"Burke? Aye. A glory-grabbing dog, that one. He's almost as good as he thinks he is, I'll give him that much, but he's a right pain in the arse. He's the one that first called me Banshee- and the damn name stuck. Just because a man is bisexual is no reason to stick him with a woman's name!"
"Okay, that's too much information," Pietro shuddered.
"You're right lad. But enough of that. How do you know him?"
"Oh, he used to teach us," Althea said, innocently. "And he's Kurt's biological father."
Sean looked at Kurt. "So you're the son he's been saying he has. I can see the resemblance- more to your mother, though."
"You know my mother?" Kurt asked.
"Aye, unfortunately."
"Did you have sex with her too?" Pietro asked, snickering.
"Well… she was in disguise and I was pissed out o' me mind at the time."
The Misfits burst out laughing.
***
"Well, here we are," Remy said as the combined team crept up to an abandoned mansion outside of Biloxi. "Home sweet home."
"This was the old base of operations?" Roadblock asked.
"Oh, yeah. We stayed at a few places, but all the training facilities and everything else were here."
"Mrs. S?"
"I don't sense anybody," Mrs. S frowned. "Of course, since we know they have telepathic blockers implanted, that doesn't mean much."
"I'll sweep the place." Pietro did it before anybody could say anything.
"Nobody's home," he reported.
"You idiot!" Althea hissed. "Going into a place when you don't you what's waiting for you is dangerous!"
"It's what we always do!" Pietro whined.
"Not when we can stake it out first!"
"It could have been a trap," Cover Girl told him sharply. "They apparently have files on the Misfits, so they'd have to have them on the X-Men, too. They'd know that Gambit's with the X-Men, and that he'd lead us here when he found out who was behind the attack."
"Oh. Right," Pietro said, sheepishly.
"Idiot," Wanda muttered as she slapped him upside the head. "Think before you do something stupid like that!"
"Sorry, I just, I-"
"You want to get them. We know, Pietro."
"We all want to get these guys," Kitty said.
"Not like we do, Kit-Kat. You had to stitch people back together, but you didn't see the fighting."
"And not like we do," Willow told him. "You saw the fighting, but you haven't lived with those people. They weren't your friends."
"Anyway, it looks like they changed HQ's," Claw grunted.
"It's what I'd do if one of mine went rogue," Logan agreed.
"Should we check it out anyway?" Kurt asked.
"Yeah," Low Light said. "For all we know, they could be holed up in some kind of sub-basement."
"I agree," Banshee nodded.
"How vulnerable is Shadowcat to explosions?" Mrs. S asked Logan.
"I don't know, but I don't want to risk anybody if I can avoid it."
"Amen."
"Hmm… Quicksilver didn't set off any sort of mines," Claw mused. "Maybe it would be safe for us to take a closer look."
"I can, like, phase through the ground and see if there's any kind of basement, Wolverine."
"Roadblock?"
"Go ahead, Kitty. The rest of us will be here. If anything strange happens, hightail it back here pronto!"
"Right." Kitty vanished into the ground. A few minutes later, she returned.
"You guys gotta see this!"
Everybody joined hands, and Kitty phased them through the ground.
"If I never do this again, it'll be too soon!" Banshee thought. He wasn't claustrophobic, but the idea of going through solid ground? Ugh.
They emerged in a room. It had a large computer system and a table in the very middle. The table had a large map on it. Logan looked at it.
"I recognize that layout. It's the Bayville sewer system."
Everybody froze for a moment. Then it hit them.
"They're gonna go after the Morlocks!" Kitty shouted.
"Time to go!" Roadblock called.
In the scramble to get to Kitty, a very audible click was heard. The computer console activated.
"Hello, X-Men, Misfits," Scalphunter drawled.
"You son of a-" Low Light started.
"If you've found this, then that rat LeBeau told you all about us. Hello, Remy. I know you're there because you're the type that would want revenge for a perceived slight. Honestly, I don't know why the X-Men let you on to their team, as you've already fled three different groups you once called kin."
Remy stiffened, and began to mutter curses in French.
"As I'm sure you've noticed, we plan to attack the Morlocks next. Not that you'll have any time to save them. Goodbye." He console turned off, and hidden vents opened, releasing yellow gas into the room.
"Kitty, now would be a good time!" Spirit shouted.
Kitty grabbed Sam and Mrs. S, and the others quickly formed around her, except for Kurt, who latched on to Althea and Sean and teleported out.
Less than a minute later, all were outside the old mansion. Sam whistled.
"Well, that was-"
He was cut off by the mansion exploding.
"Very mature, the need to be sure," Roadblock said to nobody in particular.
"Uh huh," Pietro agreed.
"Well, what are we all standing around here for?" Mrs. S demanded. "We have mutants to save!"
The group raced to the X-Jet, and were soon breaking speed records to get back to Bayville.
***
The Morlocks were sitting around the main chamber of the Alley. Nobody felt much like talking, not after finding Tommy that morning. She was the first Morlock to die, so nobody knew what to do with the body. Finally, at sunset, some of the Morlocks took her body to the park and buried it. The rest spent the time since then coming up to pay their last respects. Callisto ordered it to stop after a while- she said that the rest could say what they had to tomorrow, as she was afraid of somebody noticing groups of mutants all coming to the same place in the park within minutes of each other. Not many liked it, but Callisto was in charge. So the Morlocks sat, or lay on their pallets and cots in the Alley. None of them were sleeping- visions of Tommy's body kept flashing through their minds.
Suddenly, Caliban jumped up.
"Mutants are coming!" he hissed.
Well, thus ends the story of how Gambit was a Marauder. I had to make his reasons for leaving different from the comics, for obvious reasons. Those of you who recognize the name of the victim will see where I'm heading with this (as far as motivations are concerned). For those that don't- wait and see… Anyway, next time, we find out what the others were doing while the search was happening.
Next time on "The Mutant Massacre:"
Chapter Eleven: Arrival