So here y' are. Waitin' at an airstrip near Sydney so ya can head over t' Russia. Got some unfinished business there. 'Sides, there's nothin' left for me in Australia anymore.

Dat's right, LeBeau. Jus' pretend that y'got somet'in in yer eye. Pretend dat it don't really bother you. Nothin' bothers you. You de patriarch of de T'ieves Guild. It's probably just some sand or somethin'. Just that an' not tears.

Then

"Where'd you get this?"

"From a contact of mine in Japan," said Zoe. "Apparently, the X-Men decided to make a move on the Jigoku crime syndicate not too long ago over there."

"Why would de X-Men be interested in Jigoku?" asked Gambit.

"You tell me," replied Zoe. "From what I can tell, it began when someone described as Magneto broke up a coke shipment."*

"Couldn't be Magneto," stated Gambit. "He's too busy runnin' 'round Genosha.** Could it be Quicksilver?"

( *In X-Men Omega #30 **Check out current issues of Fallen Angels - Dino )

"Not unless Quicksilver has magnetic powers all of a sudden," said Zoe.

"Hmm..." muttered Gambit. "You find anythin' on Tante yet?"

"Possibly..." replied Zoe.

"Any idea on her location?"

"Moscow."

"You positive on that?"

"Not yet," replied Zoe. "I need some more time to be sure. I'll check with some contacts over there."

"Find out an' get back t'me via cell phone," ordered Gambit.

"Where are you going?" asked Zoe.

"Bishop said he doesn't know where de X-Men are,* but y' just told me dat someone lookin' like Magneto broke up a drug shipment down under."

( *In Bishop #6 - Dino )

"And...?"

"De X-Men used t' have a base in th' outback. I'm thinkin' dat's where they might be."

Well, at least one o' de benefits of bein' head of de T'ieves Guild is that I get to fly first class. Unfortunately, de champagne is flat, de in-flight movie is bad, an' I prefer honey roasted peanuts t' dry roasted. Normally, in a situation like dis, I'd be flirtin' wit' de stewardesses - pardon, flight attendants - but I got too much on my mind right now.

It's been almost a week since Bishop an' I took out Bullseye,* but I'm still no closer t' findin' out who sent him. What I do know is dat he's not talkin'. Didn't really expect him to, either. Bullseye's as good at the assassin game as I am in de t'ievin' game. I'm almost surprised that he's not part o' de Assassins Guild himself.

( *In issue #8 - Dino )

Somet'in' big's goin' down. There's more t' this den I can see. For one, dis Goatreaux woman. I find it kinda hard t' believe dat she's my daughter.* An' if she is my daughter, then who's her mother? I don't know anyone named Goatreaux, specially not a woman. Could be an assumed name, or it could be someone I'll meet in de future.

Someone's messin' wit' my life. An' once I find out who it is, dere's gon' be hell t'pay.

( * Gambit encountered Goatreaux in issue #4 - Dino )

"This is your captain speaking. We are about to make our final descent into Sydney and we ask that you fasten your seatbelts, and return your seats and tray tables to their upright and locked positions. All carry-on luggage must be placed underneath the seat in front of you or in the overhead compartment bins, and electronic devices must remain off for the remainder of the flight. Thank you."

'Bout time. This is de last time I fly commercial. Next time I got someplace t'go, I'm stealin' a Quinjet.

If I remember de X-Men's files correctly (yah, there were those rare times when I'd accidentally look at 'em), den this must be de outback town they used t' be based in. Used ta be th' base o' th' Reavers, a group of killer cyborgs 'till de X-Men kicked 'em out.*

( *WAAAAY back in Uncanny X-Men #229 - Dino )

I suppose it's not a bad place t' live. No X-Mansion, o' course. But dem's de breaks.

Not really sure where t' start. Whenever I heard 'bout dis place, I always thought it might be some sort o' complex in de middle of th' wilderness. But it's really just a town dat looks like somethin' outta a Western.

Just gotta figure out where in dis town dey might be. F'r all I know, dey might each have a buildin' t' themselves.

'Fore I got a chance t' make any sort o' move, I get tackled t' th' ground by somet'in big an' definitely not friendly!

Whatever it is, it's on my back, an' it's breathin' down my neck. I hear a low growl come from it, an' figure it must be an animal o' some type.

Den, I make out somet'in else in de growl. Somet'in dat sounds an awful lot like, "LeBeau." An' suddenly, I know dat it definitely is an animal, just not th' type I was plannin' on encounterin' out here.

"Creed..." I reply.

"Long time, Cajun," he replies.

"Not long enough, Vic."

"Yer in th' wrong neck o' th' woods, gumbo. Gimme one good reason why I shouldn't gut yer Cajun ass right here an' now."

"I'll give y' one, mate," another voice replies. Don' recognize him as one o' de X-Men from when I left, but de voice is vaguely familiar. "Get off him or we're gonna have us a little barbie."

"Stay outta this, Allerdyce," warns Creed. "I'm just takin' out an intruder."

Allerdyce? An' Creed's here, too. Was de base overrun?

"I'm only gonna tell y' one time, Sabretooth," warns Pyro. "Off. Now."

I feel th' temperature begin t' rise around us. Dat can only mean dat Pyro's ready t' turn up th' heat. Sabretooth does as he's told an' gets off my back. I quickly slide back an' get t' my feet, whippin' out my bo-staff an' several cards in de process.

"What've y' done wit' de X-Men?" I ask.

"Not up on current events, I see," replies Pyro. "We are X-Men."

Somet'in tells me it's gon' be a long day...

"What are you doing?" asked Blink.

"Pietro asked me to monitor the different world broadcasts to see if anything comes up," replied Joseph. "After our success in dealing with the Jigoku, it looks like this proactive approach is working."*

( *See X-Men Omega #30-32 - Dino )

"But you're not even touching the keyboard, you're just watching the screens," noted Blink.

"I'm using my magnetic powers to switch between different networks," replied Joseph.

"And you're able to take all that in at one time?"

"I'm not really paying any attention to the actual images and sound, just the magnetic waves they're riding in on."

"Oh..."

The door opened, and Blink turned around to see Pyro standing there. Gambit was standing behind him.

"Wakey wakey, we got a visitor," he said.

"Gambit!" exclaimed Blink. She ran up to him. "When did you get here? How did you know how to find us?"

"Slow down, petite," replied Gambit. "I jus--"

He stopped once he noticed the man with the long, silver hair. Joseph hovered a few feet above the ground.

"Hello Gambit," he said. "It's been awhile."

"Joseph...?" muttered Gambit. "But... how? I saw y' die..."*

( *Back in X-Men #87 - Dino )

"I got better,"* Joseph replied with a smirk.

( *In X-Men Omega #13 - Dino )

"X-Men don' seem t' know how t' stay dead," said Gambit.

"Why are you here, Gambit?" asked Joseph.

"Unfinished business," replied Gambit. "Rogue around?"

"Umm..." muttered Blink. "She's kind of... off..."

"Yeah..." said Joseph. "She went for a... um... a... a walk alone..."

"She did?" asked Pyro. "I thought I saw her leave with Quicksilver."

"Any idea where?" asked Gambit.

"Probably over th' hill," replied Pyro.

"T'anks mon ami," said Gambit. He walked out of the room, and both Joseph and Blink tossed cold, hard looks at Pyro.

"What?" asked Pyro.

"Gambit and Rogue used to be an item," replied Blink. "He doesn't know about her and Pietro."

"Rogue would've wanted to break it to him gently," said Joseph. "But now, he's going to run into them."

"...oh," said Pyro. "Heh... oops?"

What's happening to you, Betsy? Why won't you let me in?

That's the thought constantly running through the mind of Warren Worthington III as he flies through the Australian sky on wings of pure light. How he got them is still a mystery. Originally, he thought it was possibly due to Apocalypse's tampering. But now? Now he's not so sure.

However, his own problems are the least of Archangel's worries. Right now, his mind is completely focused on his fellow teammate and lover - Betsy Braddock, the telepathic Psylocke.

The sensations are strange. As he flies through the air, he can feel the wind through every single one of his "feathers." But how can that be? They're made of light. How can he feel anything through them? Or is he just imagining that he can feel them?

A small explosion drew Warren's thoughts away from his personal problems and directly toward the action. He dove downwards, spiraling through the night sky. He pulled up and raced towards it. Although he could feel sensations through the wings, somehow, in some way, he felt no physical strain from using them like he did with his original, feathered wings.

Archangel landed at the small crater and found... nothing.

What is this? he thought. No fragments, no bomb casings... nothing. I didn't see anyone over here, and I don't remember any power signature.

He stood, and suddenly, he felt an odd desire to extend his "talons" - a manifestation of his power which caused his fingers to extend in length and to become sharpened. They caused no physical effects, but instead, created great mental pain and anguish within the victim. But why would he want to extend them now? There was no obvious danger... or was there?

"TAG!"

Warren fell to the ground as his assailant struck him. He rolled just in time for his assailant to land on his chest. Her face was inches from his, her long, purple hair falling down over them. Her exotic, Japanese features made her the most beautiful woman he had ever laid his eyes on, and the red mark over her left eye seemed to enhance her beauty in some strange way. Her breasts were pressed up against his chest, and she held his arms down at his side. She looked directly into his eyes, and she had a seductive smirk upon her lips.

"You're it, lover," she said. Her accent betrayed her appearence. It spoke of a proper British upbringing in countless boarding and finishing schools - dripping with the sophistication the aristocracy enjoyed.

"Then shouldn't you be running?" asked Warren.

"Why would I want to do that?"

She pressed her lips up against his in a passionate kiss.

"I've got you right where I want you."

"Did you cause that explosion?" asked Warren.

"What explosion?" asked Betsy. "I was lonely, so I psi-scanned your location and teleported over here."

"There was an explosion over here, that's why I landed."

"I don't know anything about that," said Betsy. "And to be quite frank, I don't give a sod. I'm just here for one reason and one reason alone. Now, what do you say we go somewhere a tad more private and stay there until the sun comes up?"

"Betsy, mmm--"

She cut him off by pressing her lips to his once more. When he broke the kiss, he looked directly into her eyes.

"Betsy, we need to talk," he said.

"Talk?"

"About what's going on with us... with you."

"All right, Warren," said Psylocke. "We'll go somewhere private, and we'll talk. About everything."

"Good."

Betsy held onto him as the mark over her face began to glow, and they slipped into the darkness.

From the distance, a man dressed in robes watched them and smiled.

"Soon, X-Men..." he muttered. "Very soon."

He tossed a small rock into the air, which exploded.

"There's nothin' more romantic than a full moon..." muttered Rogue. "Look at it - you ever see somethin' so beautiful?"

"No..." Pietro Maximoff replied. He had his arms draped around his companion. "Nothing at all."

"Pietro..." muttered Rogue.

"Mmmm?"

"Yer not watchin' th' moon."

"I know."

He moved his face closer to her's, his lips beginning to part. He closed his eyes, as did Rogue, who began to open her mouth slightly as well. The connection was slow and gradual, yet before either of them could get into the kiss, the ground was rocked by an explosion.

"WHAT THE DEVIL?!" exclaimed Quicksilver. "Who dares?"

"I dare."

"Oh no..." muttered Rogue.

Remy LeBeau stood on the hill, a card glowing with energy in each hand. His glowing red eyes were filled with rage.

"Someone wanna explain t'me what's goin' on here?"

"No," replied Quicksilver. "Because, to be quite frank, it's none of your business, LeBeau."

"Lady's spoken for, mon ami," said Gambit. "Dat makes it my business."

He took a step forward, and Pietro noticed that the angle of his arms shifted slightly. He was getting ready to hurl the cards.

"Don't go there, LeBeau," warned Quicksilver. "You don't want to."

"Really?" asked Gambit. "Den let's just see how fast y'are, Quicksilver!"

Gambit jumped back as the kinetically charged cards left his fingertips. It was child's play for Quicksilver to easily dodge out of the way. Before Gambit had a chance to react, Quicksilver was in his face - or more accurately, Quicksilver's fist was.

"Dat's a low blow, Maximoff," noted Gambit. "Y' learn dat from yer poppa?"

"You push too far, LeBeau," said Quicksilver. "You come to our home, you start trouble on our grounds, and fighting back is a low blow? If you keep pushing, I just might push back."

"Yer welcome t' try."

"ENOUGH!"

"Rogue, you don't understand," said Quicksilver. "I was just..."

"...didn't give me much of a choice, chere," said Gambit.

"Ah honestly can't say ah care," noted Rogue. "Pietro, could y' please excuse us?"

"No."

Rogue turned to him and offered him a cold stare.

"Y'heard de lady, mon ami," said Gambit. "Maybe y' should run across a few oceans an' read yer daughter a bedtime story."

"Okay..." said Quicksilver, brushing past Rogue. "THAT TEARS IT!"

He moved at supersonic speeds and grabbed hold of Gambit by his coat. Being shoved up against the ground of a hill is painful - especially when it's done at several hundred miles per hour.

"Now you've gone too far, LeBeau!" he roared.

"Y'know, when y'get angry, y'look just like..."

"SHUT UP!" exclaimed Quicksilver, driving his fist into Remy's face.

"Sorry 'bout dat, did I strike a nerve!"

"No, but I'm about to!" exclaimed Quicksilver as he pulled his fist back to strike Gambit again.

*WAP*

"Enough," warned Rogue. Pietro's fist was gripped in her hand. The block was perfect. "Pietro, go back t' th' hotel."

"No chance in hell," Pietro stated.

"Don't make me hurt yah."

Pietro glanced back down at Gambit with hatred in his eyes. Then he pulled his fist away from Rogue and raced back down the hill.

"Gee, I wonder where he gets de attitude from."

"That's enough, Remy," warned Rogue. "Ah want y' tah give me one good reason why ah shouldn't have let Pietro beat th' livin' tar outta yah."

"What's goin' on, Rogue?" asked Remy.

"Ah'm movin' on, Remy," replied Rogue. "Everyone's gotta eventually shake off th' previous relationship an' move on tah somethin' new."

"But we never broke anyt'in off..."

"Really?" asked Rogue. "Tell me, Remy. How can yah maintain a relationship when yah don't call an' don't write?"

"Rogue, y'don' understand..."

"No, ah understand perfectly - ya'll were too busy with other matters tah bother droppin' in t' check up on me or even t' pick up a dern phone! Now gimme one good reason why y' couldn't do any o' those things!"

"I'll give y' t'ree," replied Gambit. "My father died, Tante was kidnapped, an' I had t' battle it out wit' Bullseye."

"Oh..."

"But obviously, none o' dat mattered t' you, eh chere?"

"Y' think that this was easy?!" demanded Rogue. "Is that what yah think? That ah just woke up one day an' decided, 'hey, why don't ah start seein' Pietro?' Ah got news for ya, mistuh - it took me a lot o' time tah get over th' way ya'll just up an' left. An' y' didn't just leave me - ya abandoned me. What other choice did ah have except tah move on?"

"HE'S A MARRIED MAN!!" exclaimed Gambit.

"Never stopped you from gettin' involved with me."

"Dat was a totally different situation an' y' know--"

Rogue silenced him by pressing her bare finger against his lips. He pulled back in shock, but then stopped. He reached his hand out, and his bare fingers touched hers.

"Yer powers... I can touch you..."

"Ah've done it, Remy," she said. "Ah can control mah powers now."*

( *She discovered how in X-Men Omega #23 - Dino )

"So dat's why y' leapt on de first t'ing dat came along?"

"Ah so desperately wanted tah wait for ya," replied Rogue. "But then we had tah abandon Warren's estate an' we ended up here. An' ah tried t' locate ya'll, but ah had no way of gettin' in touch with yah. Meanwhile, ah was growin' closer t' Pietro, an' one thing led t' another..."

"Stop..." said Remy. "Please stop..."

"Remy, ah'm sorry..." said Rogue. "Ah never meant t' hurt ya."

"I love y', Rogue..."

"An' ah loved ya, too..." said Rogue. "At least ah thought ah did. But now... ah've moved past that. Ah'm really sorry Remy, ah wish there was some way ah could make this up t' ya."

"Don' bother..." replied Remy as he began to walk off towards the distance. Rogue watched him go with a heavy heart, and after a few moments, Pietro rejoined her on the hill. He placed his hand on her shoulder, but she pulled away as she began to felt her eyes moisten.

I keep t'inkin dat maybe things would be different. Everyt'in's about choices, I s'pose. Choices an' consequences.

An' I screwed up. Big time. But dere's not much I can do about that now. So how do I change t'ings? I can't go back. An' I can't just move on. Love, she a complicated mistress. She kick you, she beat you, she drag you t'rough de mud—an' still you come back f'r more. Y'd t'ink dat after gainin' a rep as a womanizer y'd be able t' get over one Southern belle who y' only slept wit' once.*

( *According to Scott Lobdell, it happened off-panel Inbetween Uncanny X-Men #149 and #150 - Dino )

But y' can't. An' why not? F'r awhile, I t'ought dat maybe my attraction t' Rogue was based on de fact that she was de ultimate challenge - a woman who couldn't be touched. Maybe at first it was, but after some time, it became more den dat.

I fell in love.

So here y' are. Remy LeBeau. Former X-Man. Traitor t' mutantkind. Patriarch o' de T'ieves Guild. Former husband an' a possible father. Future witness. De t'ief of hearts had his own heart stolen by de least likely candidate.

Everyt'in I ever was Rogue, belongs t' you. I may not have been sure of it before, but now I know - I loved you, chere. As much as any one man can love a woman.

An' now, 'cause I was bein' selfish an' 'cause I was runnin', I lost you. An' here I t'ought dat losin' Jean Luc would be de greatest tragedy of my life, I found dat it's losin' one, simple woman.

A woman who took my breath away.

"A FAMILY AFFAIR"

by Brent Lambert

Candra flew down towards the house of FoH leader, Darren Thibodaux. She was here this night to have her own little bit of guilty pleasure. With her TK she unlocked the golden door and stepped into the quaint little home. Darren was watching a movie with his wife and two children when they were surprised by the beautiful Candra who was garbed in flowing red robes. The blonde simply smiled as she used her TK to throw the four humans into the closest wall. The woman and two children had sweat forming on their brows and their bodies were quivering so much you could almost hear it.

"Whoever you are mutant get out of my house!" Darren yelled defiantly trying to maintain composure in front of his family. Candra simply waved her hand and the entire Thibodaux family was stark naked. She then moved in close to Darren and yanked a pubic hair from his body. He winced slightly trying not to give the mutant the privilege of seeing him in pain.

"I'll leave after I have some fun first. You know I was around before the myth of the tooth fairy started, but I guess you don't want me to tell your boys that yet. I see they haven't hit that age yet," Candra said as she looked down at the two young boys' genitals with a grin plastered on her face.

"Leave my children alone you madwoman!" Ms. Thibodaux shouted angrily.

"Speaking of teeth... watch this," Candra continued on as if the woman had never said anything at all. Suddenly the misses and her children's mouths were wide open. Candra snickered as the screams began. With each tooth that was pulled out by telekinesis she felt a thrill. Darren's stomach churned as he watched his family undergo horrible torture and agony. Eventually the screaming stopped, as there were no more teeth left to pull. The children passed out from the pain and Ms. Thibodaux couldn't see
straight from the pain she was feeling.

"Please let my family go! They're innocent! Show some mercy," Darren pleaded and if he could have groveled at her feet he would have. Candra responded to his plea by throwing back her head in maniacal laughter.

"Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be a cannibal?" Candra asked Darren. Horror filled the eyes of the man as uncertainty filled his mind. Candra blinked and the nipples of the entire Thibodaux family were severed from their bodies leaving behind bloody wounds. The removed body parts were placed in front of a horrified Darren.

"Well, I guess you get to find out today don't you Darren? Eat up," Candra smiled at both the disgust of Darren and the moans of the wailing children. To make Darren even more disgusted she licked some of the blood off one of his children. The man cringed as the weight of his situation finally hit him. He began to cry immensely his body caving in and out with each breath.

"Hurry up now Darren before I'm forced to do something rash," Candra taunted as she motioned towards his wife. Darren began to eat the flesh before him little bit by little bit till he was done. The overwhelming humiliation and utter disgust choked Darren so much he could barely speak.

"Welcome to the world of freaks now Mr. Thibodaux," Candra said coldly as she began to walk towards the door. Before she vacated the property she heard three sickening snaps and the agonized screams of a grown man. Being a mutant was good indeed.