Disclaimer: Those you recognise, probablly belong to Marvel Comics; Those you don't... Well... They probablly belong to Marvel too... :o)
Timeline: This starts off just before The attack of Sauron, in Uncanny X- Men 353 or so. I don't know if Gambit has ever encountered Sauron before, so I'm just going to make this a first encounter.
Notes: Italics are thought, bold is computerized speach and Bold Italics are Telepathy.
A dark figure sat in the shadows overlooking a lake glistening in the sun and disturbed only by the revels of three happy and innocent youths. Melding with the darkness, he waited for an oppertune moment to enter the Mansion.
He had wanted to wait until most of the X-Men were gone. It would have been better that way. He wouldn't have to look into their eyes and see the hatred that was kept there, reserved for him. The X-Men had been his family. It was not biological, but deep in his heart he held a place for them that was larger than he ever thought could be for total strangers. He had trusted them and they spit that back in his face without a second glance. Not that he didn't think he deserved it, it just hurt like a physical blow. He winced at the thought of the trial and decided to put it out of his mind.
Watching as Ororo opened up a rain cloud on Bobby's head Gambit chuckled to himself. Good for you Stormy. 'Bout time somebody did that t' him.
It was then that something caught his eye a just past the others. There was something lurking in the shadows there, just as he was. It too was watching them, but it had a different mannor about it then he did. It was almost as if it were stalking... no that wasn't right... hunting... them.
At first it appeared to have the essence of a wounded animal; afraid, maybe wounded and holding the air of desire to be left alone, but there was something esle that drew Remy's attention to it. There was a certian hungering presence that lingered in the air around it, and that feeling made Ganbit uneasy. His desire here was to get into his room unnoticed and gather some of his gear: his picks, his uniform, some cash, the keys to his Harley and most important of all, the small chest that sat on his night stand.
The last thing he had wanted to do was to reveal himself to the others, especially not with HER here. Rogue. Of all the people there it was HER whose eyes Gambit feared looking into most of all. He had seen the hatred there before and it chilled him to the bone. It tore him up and froze him mute. It was worse then the cold of the air that had been around him at the time and it had been harder to survive.
The unusual sound of Bobby shifting to his ice form started him from his reverie and drew his attention back to the lake. maybe I won' hafta show m'self t' de others afterall, he thought as he saw Wolverine head in the dirrection of the intruder. Logan was stomping with a look of pure determination written on his face.
He then noticed that Bobby wasn't too interested in following Wolverine and frowned. Bobby appeared to be more interested in whatever was in the lake. Was there someone else there that Remy hadn't noticed? He pondered at their attention and noticed what they were really looking at. Thought de ot'ers 'ready knew that Ol' Blackbird was down dere.
He had already 'found' the X-Men's unused airplane during his and Bishop's encounter with the Jauggernaut last summer. He rubbed his shoulder where it hit a piece of metal as he was skidding accross the water. It had been pretty badly cut but they had been so busy that no one paid him any mind.
Fearing that nobody had gone with Wolverine he started to get up to help him but paused. Wolverine woulda tol' de ot'ers if he t'ought he couldn' handle it. He reassured himself. He c'n handle it. As if un cue he heard a blood curteling scream and saw Rogue taking to the sky. Maybe not! he thought as he got up and started running to where the others were.
He cursed himself for not haven followed his instincts as he came around the corner and saw Wolverine laying in a heap on the ground. That, however, was not nearly as heart wrenching as when he saw that Ororo and Sam had taken to the sky and were fighting each other as the others were duking it out on the ground. "What de Hell?" He muttered to himself, standing just outside the battle lines.
Jubilee was there, and she and a big guy, whom Gambit recognised as Maggot from his trial, were currently squared off against Bobby and a girl Gambit knew to be named Sarah, the young Morlock known to most as Marrow. Gambit, however, knew her more... intimately. She a member of de X-Men now? Not important... he considered the X-Men in front of him. Mind control, ma'be...?
With a fearal roar that would put Wolverine to shame, of out of the sky dropped the creature he had noticed before. It was at a top speed dive headed dirrectly for Jubilee. She didn't even seem to be aware.
Gambit's stomach rose to his throat. No one would help her unless he moved now. Leaving his cowardace behind him in the guttar the Hero in Gambit sparked and he started in a dead sprint as fast as he could for where Jubilee was standing.
She turned to look at him with a stunned and confused gaze shining in her young eyes. Gambit was immensely grateful that this creature hadn't noticed him earlier else it would have planned ahead for his intervention. It appeared he had only cut off the rational part of Lee's mind. She wasn't going to counter attack, because she couldn't be sure if he was friend or foe.
At the last possible moment she ducked down to avoid his 'attack' and he connected instead with the man/dinosaur hybrid who hadn't even noticed his arrival until that point.
The two of them skidded together accross the ground, with Gambit on top of the rather large lizard. It let out a large growl as they slowed to a stop, and threw Gambit off with both a speed and strength that he had not been expecting. He was forced to him quickly revaluate his advasary from his origional assumptions.
They both climbed to their feet and faced each other with twin expections of surprise. The creature --mutant?-- stood with his hands on hips and glared at him. "Where did YOU come from?" It-- he?-- snarled.
Gambit was slightly amused to hear the him talk; He again had not been expecting it. It shouldn't have suprised him after living in the same house with Beast for so long. "Was 'bout t' ask you de same t'ing 'Homme'," he baited, taking out a deck of cards he had pinched from a small time hustler playing games on the Street in Downtown New York. He mentally thanked himself for that small prank as it had given him anumition.
The creature's eyes started to glisten and he stared straight into Gambit's. "The name is Sauron, boy. You would do well to remember it."
Gambit squinted as a suddon desire to do anything that this Sauron told him overcame him. He shook his head to clear his thoughts Not dis Cajun Homme! He thought as hard as he could towards his attacker.
Sauron who seemed shocked by Gambit's perseverance muttered "Hmp," thoughtfully in reply and took out a gun and a knife from his belt. "Hard way it is then." He stated to himself and charged the disoriented Cajun at top throttle. He fired three shots that Gambit barely dodged and jumped him. Gambit went down with him easily and rolled out of his grasp like an eel. They both stood and faced each other only about two or three metres apart.
Gambit spun kicked the gun from Sauron's right hand, bringing the two of them a few steps closer. Sauron swung at him with his newly freed hand but Gambit dodged, taking a few steps back as he lifted three charged cards and threw them at his assailant.
Sauron, not knowing what his opponent's ability was and not wanting to find out, leapt over the cards and came up rolling under Gambit. He lifted himself on the enertia of the small explosion, lodging his knife into Gambit's abdomen. "Impressive" he muttered as he rolled away. "But not impressive enough!"
Gambit fell back onto the ground clutching his wound and grunting in pain. Didn' even SEE de damn knife. Sloppy! Merde, Sloppy! He blinked and noticed Sauron kneeling down over him, reaching down for his forehead. Sauron's thoughts creeped into hisown and something inside Gambit's mind snapped. His instincts took over and he lashed out at Sauron over the mind link that he was stupid enough to bring back up. In a wordless scream, his mind cryed out as loud as he could bare.
The assult took Sauron down easily. He pitched forward landing fully on Gambit. At his touch Gambit could feel the strength drain even farther from his frame. He tried to get enough to push the larger mutant off him, but found he wasn't strong enough.
He felt the world disappearing around him where suddonly the weight resting upon him was lifted from his form. Looking up, he saw Jubilee and Sam standing over him. He opened his mouth to say something, but no sound came out. As he started to black out, Jubilee threw her arms around him and started crying.
To Be Countinued...