Gambit

"Everyone c'n relax. Gambit 'as arrived."

Information
Background= ''Tragic is a good way to describe Remy's early childhood. When he was five years old his mother took him to a bus station in New Orleans Louisiana and bought him two Hershey bars. She told him to go into the men's room, use the facilities and be sure to wash his hands. When he came out the woman, now just a face he can barely recall, was gone. To this day he still has the wrapper of one of those candy bars.''

''He grew up on the streets, taken in by an older boy named Pike. Pike took care of allot of kids. Taught them how to hustle tourists, pick pockets, made sure if you were sick you got to the clinic on North Rampart, and that everyone was fed. When times were exceptionally lean, Pike would even sell himself so that none of his charges would ever have to. When he was 9, Pike disappeared, and Remy never learned what became of the boy. It was later in that same year that Fate and the life of Remy LeBeau would have a head on collision of monumental scale.''

''He hadn't eaten in two days, and hunger steeled his nerves. He made the approach calmly, not looking at the target or avoiding him with his eyes. I'm just another boy on the streets, ignore me. The bump, the dip the wallet felt hard and was made of real leather. Expensive. And then there was a hand on his wrist. Remy had been caught, and as his eyes jumped to those of his mark expecting fury and anger. Instead there was nothing but amusement in those dark eyes. The man looked down at the young boy and said in a casual voice "Yah 'ungry pup?"''

''A few weeks later, Remy lay in the bed at Jean-Luc LeBeau's home, grateful for the rest, though he'd never confess to being the least bit tired. He remained deeply uncertain about this man, despite the kindness he'd shown Remy so far-- or perhaps because of it. Nothing was free on the streets, but for the life of him, Remy couldn't figure out what this man wanted from him. Little things like wearing the clothes LeBeau brought him and brushing his hair were simple enough. And he could endure the endless corrections about how to stand and how to behave at Misseur LeBeau's table and how to eat with the knife and fork that were so much less efficient than his fingers... He heaved a sigh he hoped couldn't be heard by the two men on the other side of the door. But this reading...Merdi! Remy was well aware that the hundreds of signs that lined the streets of New Orleans meant something. In fact, he knew them all on sight and a bunch of other words as well. But it was downright baffling that LeBeau wanted to break each of the words up into pieces and give different names to all of the parts.''

''"Pere, are y' sure y' wan' t' continue wit' dis?" The slightly muffled voice from the other side of the door belonged to Henri. He was LeBeau's oldest son, and the only other member of the household that did more than simply tolerate Remy's presence.''

"O' course I do, Henri. He'll get it eventually."

''Henri barked a laugh. "Oui, if y' pound his thick head against de wall enough times, he prob'ly will." He sobered abruptly. "But what're y' tryin' t' accomplish here, eh? Y' keep tellin' me dis boy's special-- different-- but he's half-grown already an' as wild as dey come. What good he gon' be t' de Guild if y' can' even teach him de most basic t'ings?"''

''Remy's hands closed unconsciously into fists at the flood of information. Different? Special? How? Why? What 'things'? What did these people really want? A hard knot of fear tightened his gut. His instincts screamed at him to run now while he had the chance. But instead he remained frozen in his place outside the door, waiting for LeBeau's answer.''

''LeBeau's chuckle was hardly reassuring. "Do y' know what our resident gutter snipe did yesterday?" There was a short pause. "He managed t' sneak an entire handful o' Miss Adelle's treats, right out from under her nose."''

''Remy's mouth began to water at the memory. He liked Miss Adelle, the family's cook. She was a big, cheerful woman and though she didn't seem to like him particularly, her absolutely wonderful food more than made up for that. He'd never tasted anything like her molasses treats. He'd been more than a little angry when she limited him to only one of the sweet, sticky candies. She'd rapped him smartly across the knuckles with her wooden ladle when he tried to take another one despite her warning, and that was when he'd decided that he would have to get a little sneakier if he wanted any more of them.''

''"I watched him, Henri. He sat in de corner o' de kitchen, sulkin', but what he was really doin' was watchin' Adelle. She was busy fixin' de dinner, so she didn' notice dat he was timin' her." There was a significant pause. "He only had a five second window, but he was across de room, got what he wanted an' was out de door. No excess motion. No wasted time. Adelle jus' stood dere wit' her back turned. She never heard a t'ing."''

''Remy found it strange that he seemed so pleased. He was also dismayed to think that the man had been watching him. Remy had not had even a suspicion that he was there, and that was a little scary. LeBeau was the quietest man he'd ever met.''

''"So de boy c'n steal a few candies." Henri didn't sound pleased like his father, and the fact that they knew what he'd done made Remy nervous. Still, LeBeau was happy with him, and his word was law in the house. No one would do anything to him that LeBeau didn't approve of.''

''"De boy made a pinch, Henri." LeBeau sounded like he was trying to impress something on his son, but Remy couldn't quite follow his meaning. "A blindingly simple one t' be sure, but a pinch none de less. De mind is dere. So are de instincts. He jus' needs t' be taught."''

"But taught how t' read, Pere? An' how t' use a fork? By de time dis boy's ready t' apprentice, he'll be grown. De apprentices his age are startin' t' learn circuits an' chemistry. How can he ever keep up?"

''Remy's mind was whirling. He still didn't understand what LeBeau had in mind for him, but it was beginning to sound like a long-term thing. It also sounded like Henri didn't think he could do whatever it was. Somewhere deep inside that assessment angered him, but on the surface it barely fazed him. A gutter rat was a gutter rat, after all. Life was a matter of staying alive and finding enough to eat. Remy had never spent much time considering anything beyond that.''

''"I'll make y' a wager," LeBeau said, sounding smug. "I get three months t' teach him t' read. Not jus' his name or anyt'ing like dat, but t' really read. If I'm successful, y' agree t' stand wit' me when I adopt de boy, an' y' agree t' help me teach him."Adopt? Remy thought dazedly. As in a real family? A last name? Dat kind of 'adopt'?''

''"An' if y' can' teach him, Pere?" Henri still sounded skeptical.''

''Remy found himself holding his breath. His heart was pounding in his chest for no reason he could define, except that he'd never thought about having a family for real. That was just a dream, a happy story to tell the little ones to help them fall asleep when their stomachs were painfully empty.''

''LeBeau sighed softly. "If I can' teach him... I'll send him back t' de street. Wit'out y' support, de Council c'n outvote me on dat."''

''Henri uttered a snort, but after a moment he acquiesced. "Very well. I agree, Pere."''

There was a shuffle of bodies moving, then Remy heard the sound of a door opening and closing and he guessed that Henri had left by one of the other doors to the room.

"Remy, come here."

''Remy jumped a foot at the sudden command from inside. Heart pounding in terror, he turned instinctively to run, but something stopped him and he instead found himself going to the door and creeping cautiously into the room. LeBeau sat in one of the beautiful chairs that populated his house, his legs crossed and his hands folded calmly in his lap. He did not seem the least surprised to discover Remy eavesdropping outside the door. In fact, he was smiling.''

"Did y' hear, Remy?"

''"Did I hear what, Misseur?" Remy was pretty good at playing innocent. His Red on black eyes lending the child an impish demeanor.''

''But Remy had heard, and that is exactly what he did. It took almost all of the time Jean-Luc gave him, but Remy learned to read. And every day he forced himself, much harder than Jean-Luc forced him. Soon he was passing those of his age group in skills, and not long after even the advanced classes were not testing the burgeoning thief's skills. It was one of the happiest moments of the boy's life when he stood in a shadowy cavern among a hundred faceless nameless men, standing beside Jean-Luc as the elder claimed the boy as his son.''

''Not long thereafter, Remy met a girl. He was 14 then and it was well not love, more like a Hurricane Hormones at first sight. Bella Donna Boudreaux was an Assassin. At 14 she had already ended the life of another human being, and she stole Remy's heart with her first impish smile. There was no doubt that when they turned 18 they would be married, unifying the guilds and cementing a peace that had been long desired for three hundred years. And that was what happened; in a storybook ceremony the two were married. Then things went to hell.''

''Julian Boudreaux was drunk, and insane. There were even rumors that he held an not very fraternal interest in his own sister. As Remy and Belle were leaving the church he was standing there with a sword, challenging Remy to a duel. It was a whirlwind fight. Julian was a much better swordsman, there is no question, but he had been drinking or maybe he wanted to die. Remy pierced his brother-in-laws heart, and was immediately arrested by the Guilds and banished from New Orleans.''

''Anger and fury rolled in Remy as he left the city of his birth his blood on fire. He swore he would return, and there was only one way to do that. A Master Thief could go anywhere without any counsel's say so. Now all he had to do was become a Master.''

''In London he studied under master forger Jessie Blackstone, learning how to make documents that would let him become anywhere, at any time. In Paris he met Henri Deveroux, a B&E artist and grafter worthy of Monet or Picasso. On his first lesson he had pointed Remy at a building and asked if the Cajun knew anyone who was living there. After telling Henri that he didn't, the Frenchman smiled. "Yah have 5 minutes for me to see you in one of those windows." It had taken Remy 3 minutes and 27 seconds to talk his way into a little old French lady's apartment. In Canada Remy met Stephen "Bug" Daniels. This hacker, who weighed in at 345lbs and had a body odor that could stop a truck, showed Remy how to take tens of Millions of dollars while sitting in Tweety boxers, eating Cheetos and downloading boot leg porn. He had been trying to figure out what his next movement would be when he received a delivery. A heavy parchment with a Wax seal. He finished reading it, exhaled, and then made reservations for the next flight to Hong Kong.''

''Xio Tsung was the Guild master of Hong Kong's Thieves guild, and as the way these things are rated, the greatest thief in the world. And he was willing to personally endorse this young Maverick, now two years out of exile, to take the Masters' test. When Remy's score was tabulated he was ranked third. The third greatest thief in the world.''

''He returned to New Orleans to hugs and laughter. He was the second member of his family, second only to his Father, to have become a master and was the youngest man to do it in remembered history. The Guild had a long memory too. That night he was wined and dined as a returning hero. He was toasted and celebrated. He smiled as he as he laid down in that comfortable bed, dreaming of seeing Bella the next day. Instead he woke with a knife plunged in the pillow beside his head attached to a note. Demain, ce sera dans votre crne. Quitter la ville. Ne pas revenir. --- Tomorrow it will be in your skull. Leave the city. Do not come-back again. Remy left New Orleans before sunrise.''

''He drifted for some time after that, until one day a chance encounter with a little girl sent Remy’s fate on a new path. Her name was Storm, that’s about all she knew. They met while robbing the same house in fact. They helped each other escape that night, and in the months that followed became the best of protégé’s. It was too good to last, of course and when his little Stormy got her memories back Remy’s world seemed on the verge of shattering once more. The X-men came for her, of course, but were unable to restore her to her proper age. She begged the man who had been her savior and mentor to come with them, grudgingly…he accepted.''

''Remy brought something…different to the table as an X-man. While he was certainly a capable fighter and his powers were extremely useful in offensive manners, it was his skill as a thief and infiltration expert that Professor Xavier saw as most useful. And with Storm no longer able to fulfill her role as team leader, the two teams were dissolved and reformed. Scott would lead the Red team. This would be the strike Force arm of the X-men, while Remy would lead the Black Team it’s infiltration and silent insertion specialists. It was Scott’s job to take his team and destroy the armies of rampaging Sentinels, It was Remy’s Black team’s duty to steal the plans for those Sentinels so that they could be analyzed and weaknesses found.''

''He served on the X-men for several years afterwards, before an alarm went off in the War Room. The brightest minds in the world were on the Holoscreen; Hank of course was in the War room facing Tony Stark, Hank Pym, Victor Von Doom and even (and Remy had to look twice before his brain would believe his eyes) Reed Richards of the Fearsome Four. There was also an Agent Phil Coulson of SHIELD there, talking about something called Incursions and dimentional overlap. Remy couldn’t begin to explain it all, or any of it when… Well it was the start of an interesting day.''
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The Sheet
Powers= Kinetic Charge | Advanced | ''Remy’s first and most obvious power is he can make things go boom. He does this by taking impurities in his own body and forcing them into other objects. These extra molecules in turn squeeze and hyper accelerate the ones that are already there causing the object to reach critical mass and explode with Hyper kinetic energy. He has the ability to time this explosion while he throws the object or simply gets away from it like a time bomb.''

Kinesthetic Sense | Average | ''Remy can sense the motion of objects around him, allowing him to track things he cannot see. He tends to rely on this ability even more than his standard 5 senses, however he must dampen it down significantly in areas with allot of motion such as large crowds or even heavy rain.''

Mutated Eyes | Weak | ''Remy’s Red on black eyes allow him to see into the infra-red range of the spectrum, and in fact if deprived of his powers that is all he sees. That is to say his eyes are physically mutated and his power lets him see what the rest of us do.''

Silver Tongue (Limited Empathy) | Average | ''Remy has very limited Empathy and has had very little practice with it. He can basically talk someone into doing something they would have been inclined to do regardless. For this power to work the person must be looking in Remy’s eyes, be able to hear his voice, and understand what he says.''

Master Thief | Master | ''Remy’s skill as a Master thief is nearly unparalleled. Before his arrival he was ranked #3 in the world, and number #2 in the United States. There are very few places on earth that Remy could not break into with a little time, planning and resources, and very few items that he could not steal with the same.''
 * -|Skills=

Savate | Skilled | ''Remy is trained and extremely well versed in the French Kickboxing style known as Savate. If forced into unarmed combat this is what he relies on.''

Hapkido | Skilled | Hapkido is a style of Bo fighting that Remy adapts when using his staff to fight with.

Weaponry | Global | ''Remy uses two main weapons. The first is a collapsible bo staff made out of the near indestructible metal adamantium. It expands from 12 inches to 6 feet. He also uses two devices attached to both of his forearms. These devices can hold up to two decks of card each and with a flick of his wrist can feed between 1-4 cards into his hand.''
 * -|Resources=

Wealth | Multinational | ''To quote the great Woody Allen, 'I've been rich and I've been poor; I prefer rich, if only for monetary reasons.' Within hours of arriving from his own world, Remy used his particular brand of talents to secure a large nest egg. About the equivalent of Five Million Dollars.''

Handsome | Remy is devilishly handsome, even beautiful by some standards in a dangerous sort of way.
 * -|Pros=

Charming | ''Even without his 'Silver Tongue' Power, Remy is a charming SOB. He can usually talk his way into almost any situation... and talk his way back out again.''

No Power Blindness | ''When deprived of his powers, Remy can not see in the "visual spectrum." His Red on black eyes are designed to see into the Infrared, and he retains this, but since chairs, tables, etc. Are the same temperature as walls and ceilings he is in many ways blind. He /can/ however see people (though with very limited depth perception) and items whose temperature varies drastically from the ambient temperature around him.''
 * -|Cons=

Light Sensitivity | ''Remy’s Red on Black eyes are extremely sensitive to bright lights. He wears dark sunglasses during daylight hours, but even looking into things like a fireplace can be painful.''

Kinesthetic Overload | ''Remy uses his Kinesthetic Sense much like a fifth sense, and just like bright lights or ear splitting sound, filling an area with excess motion can be detrimental to the Cajun. He can lessen this effect by dampening his Kinesthetic Sense down, like squinting against a bright light, but if it happens suddenly enough it can leave him feeling nauseous and off balance.''

Relationships
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Logs
First Player= Log | Summary

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