Tension at the X-Mansion had been running high after Gambit's return from the frozen wilds of Antarctica. Half of the X-Men felt guilty for their abandonment of him and the other half felt that he hadn't suffered enough for what had taken place in the Morlocks' tunnels. In either case, most of the X-Men were filled with doubts about the Cajun thief and his sincerity about not being an agent for Sinister. The majority of them were half convinced that it was only a matter of time until he betrayed them, if not out of loyalty to Sinister, then for revenge over Antarctica.

When Sinister himself lead the Marauders to the X-Mansion and demanded that Gambit return to him, many thought that he would go. Angel even made a snide comment about how this was the Cajun's big chance to show his true colors. Which he did, but not as a Marauder like many had suspected. Remy LeBeau had stood up tall and spit his defiance into Sinister's teeth with a stream of blistering curses and a double handful of charged cards. At that point, battle erupted all across the front lawn.

Sometime during the fight, amid the shouting and the explosions, Scalphunter came up against Phoenix and he told her things that she wasn't prepared to hear. He told her that he and Remy had been friends long before Sinister had come into either of their lives. He told her that Gambit wasn't a killer, that Remy *hadn't* known about the plans Sinister had in store for the Morlocks. He told her that it was that fateful massacre that had caused the Cajun to flee Sinister's service with the full knowledge that to do so was to live forever with a mark on his head and a target on his back. Then, in a move that was completely unexpected, he opened up his mind to her and offered up *his* memories of what had happened.

Jean had been so stunned at the truths she had found in her enemy's mind that she had shouted out loud, "Oh my God! Remy was innocent!" Her cry of dismay and guilt pulled many of the X-Men's attention away from the battle for a quick moment. Unfortunately, a moment was all that was needed. Using the distraction to his best advantage, Sinister grabbed hold of Gambit and opened a blinding portal constructed of light. The last that any of the X-Men saw of their teammate was of him kicking and screaming his denial at being in the hands of his most hated enemy once again. Then, in the blink of an eye, the portal closed and they were gone.

Jean shared what she had learned with her teammates. Gambit had been little more than a kid at the time. He had known almost everything there was to know about stealing, but almost nothing of terrorism or genetic politics. He truly *didn't* know what was going to happen. The entire mission had been specifically step up that way to make Gambit feel he had nowhere else to go, thus forcing him to *stay* with the Marauders. Since he was fully healed from the surgery that Sinister had performed on Remy to help contain his out of control powers and he had already done several jobs as "payment" for services rendered, Gambit had been itching to leave. Sinister hoped that the death of the Morlocks would convince the Cajun that he was a killer. It didn't work the way he had planned, however. Remy's beta level empathy hadn't connected with the joy and thrill the Marauders had felt, instead, he had shared the pain and suffering of the Morlocks as they were slaughtered. Scalphunter had helped Gambit escape Sinister's clut
And now, Gambit was back in the hands of a madman. A madman with a grudge and the power to enact any revenge he might wish to seek on the thief. The X-Men immediately began to plan his rescue.

*

It had been almost three weeks when Cerebro finally located the base where Sinister was holding Gambit. Those three weeks were filled with tension and guilt as everyone did everything they could to locate their estranged teammate. Gambit's mutant biokinetic energy made him difficult to track as it was and Sinister was virtually invisible to their detection systems and those facts slowed the process down considerably.

However, as soon as the location of the base was determined, the X-Men were scrambling into position to affect Gambit's rescue. Cyclops, Jean, Storm, Rogue, Wolverine, Iceman and Hank were going. Psylocke, Angel and Cecilia were staying behind to get the Med-Lab ready for any eventuality. They didn't know what type of condition that Gambit would be in after three weeks with Sinister, but they wanted to be prepared.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Sinister stood between the two tables carefully checking all of the connections between Remy LeBeau and the clone that he had created from LeBeau's DNA with a strange sort of pride and excitement. The clone was perfect in every way, unlike all of the failed or flawed attempts that he had suffered through the past two years. There was something about LeBeau's mutant DNA that made this delicate process possible where other, lesser, genetic material produced flawed specimens when he altered the DNA chromosomes from XY to XX. This time, however, using Gambit's DNA, he was successful. All that he needed to do was literally copy all of Gambit's knowledge and memories for implantation into the clone.

Feeling anticipation begin to thrum through his cold veins, Sinister stepped back away from the tables and walked over to the main consol from which he would control and monitor the duplication of Gambit's thought patterns onto the blank slate which was the clone's mind. A cold smile filled with fanged teeth spread across inhuman features as Sinister punched in the startup sequence into the computer. A soft humming noise filled the air and several lights began to glow. There was a scratch-scratch-scratch sound from the duel EEG machines as they printed out the readings taken from both brains. Gambit's reading was in the normal, for him, alpha frequencies of 25 hertz and the beta rhythms of 14 hertz. The clone's was significantly lower. However, as more and more of Gambit's thought patterns were imprinted onto the clone, the discrepancy began to disappear.

Muted bangs and crashes could be heard dimly through his laboratory doors, but Sinister was far too involved with his experiment to do anything beyond make a mental note to punish his Marauders later for disturbing him during such an important operation. Instead, he tuned out the noise and concentrated his attention where it was needed. Fascinated by his own creation, Sinister watched as the two EEG's began to mirror each other perfectly in every way. With a strange sort of glee, he noted that when they came into synchronism, so did all of the other bodily functions of both Gambit and the clone. Respiration rate, heartbeat, synaptic responses, everything was aligned between his two test subjects. Just a few seconds more and then Sinister knew it would be safe to begin the delicate process of separating the shared mind into two separate ones. It was a complex and exacting procedure that required his full attention focused on the task to prevent any mishaps and it would be a real shame for him to have come so c
His burning red eyes glued to the monitor, Sinister reached out for the keyboard to begin the separation procedure when the door to his operating theatre blew apart with a deafening bang and a bright red concussive blast. Turning to face the doorway, Sinister found himself face to face with an angry Cyclops. The rest of the X-Men were ranged out behind him and the once dim sounds of battle roared loudly.

"Oh mah Gawd! Remy!"

Sinister had only a quick second to recognize the voice as belonging to the X-Men known as Rogue when his enemies began to charge into the room. Fear sizzled along his nerve endings, not for his own safety, but for his experiment.

"No! Don't disturb him or..."

Sinister never got to finish what he intended to say. One of Cyclops' optic blasts hit him full force in the chest and he was flung backwards away from his monitoring consol. Wild whipping wind came out of nowhere to whirl about the room, tugging at his cape and sending his papers and instruments flying to the floor. A sizzling, crackling sound was the only warning he had to duck as Storm flung a lightening bolt directly into his banks of computers and equipment. He turned to dash to his experiment so that he might be able to teleport Gambit and the clone to safety when he saw Rogue ripping the IV tubing and electrodes off of Gambit while the Beast did the same to the clone.

"No!!!"

He stretched out one hand toward them when he caught another optic blast in the chest followed by a solid hit with Phoenix's telekinesis. A second sizzling bolt of lightening took out another bank of computers just as Wolverine and Iceman slid into the room.

"Did you guys find him?"

Beast looked over at Iceman, a concerned look on his face.

"We found Gambit and much much more."

Sinister sneered with anger and frustration.

"Much more than you can even comprehend McCoy. And any damage to Gambit will be on *your* heads. All of you. Who *knows* how much harm you have caused by interrupting such a delicate procedure. I doubt if he'll ever wake up again after what you all just did."

Then, not giving them a chance to demand any answers to his enigmatic statements, Sinister teleported out of his lab to safety in a blinding flash of light and power.

"We should hurry back to the Blackbird posthaste. I would feel much better once we have our erstwhile Cajun companion and this other poor victim of the infamous Mr. Sinister under proper medical care. They are both currently unconscious, and I wish to begin my examinations at the earliest possible convenience."

All eyes swung towards Beast. Most of them reflected shades of both anger and confusion, but it was Wolverine who voiced their thoughts.

"Another victim? Who is it Blue?"

Hank McCoy scooped up the clone into his heavily muscled and blue-furred arms, his eyes scanning for any obvious injury.

"To be quite honest, my feral friend, I have never set eyes on the young lady before in my life, however, she is mysteriously familiar to me all the same."

Speculation on who the woman was and what she was doing there with Sinister and Gambit was cut short as Cyclops took control of the situation.

"We can figure out who she is later. Right now I say that we get both of them back to the Blackbird immediately. Beast can do his examinations on board while we head back to the mansion. We can't waste any more time here. The Marauders might still be around and looking to even the score."

Scott glanced around the room and began barking out orders.

"Wolverine and I will take point. Hank, you take the mystery woman and stay in behind us. Rogue, you follow him with Gambit. Iceman, Storm and Jean will take rear guard. Let's move out people."

Quickly and smoothly with the ease of long practiced teamwork, they arranged themselves into the prescribed formation and set off through Sinister's base. Lingering smoke, battered and smashed walls, puddles of water from melting ice and scorches from optic blasts told the tale of how ferocious the battle to reach Gambit was. They all were tense with wariness as they searched for any sign that the Marauders were lying in wait to ambush them. At various points in their journey, klaxons would sound out a loud wailing intruder alert and the dim red glow of the emergency lighting cast eerie shadows along the walls. Occasionally, one of Sinister's human research assistants would run across them, but they inevitably turned around and ran in the opposite direction, their white lab coats fluttering behind them. The X-Men met no further resistance as they quickly made their way back to the Blackbird.

Once onboard, Scott and Ororo made their way directly to the cockpit while Hank, Jean and Rogue went towards the back with their two patients. Hank and Rogue each set their burden down on a medical bed and proceeded to strap them in while Jean began to pull out the medical equipment and ready it for Hank's use. After a few tense moments of Hank running various scans and making cursory examinations of both Gambit and the woman, he stood up and looked into the tightly controlled faces of the two women standing with him.

"The good news is that there is no physical damage done to either of them that I can detect. They both seem to be exceedingly healthy. As to why they are both unconscious still, I'm not certain. It's possible that they are both under some form of sedation, but it is difficult to tell with the equipment I have access to here. I'll need to run full scans back in the Med-Lab as well as do complete blood work on the both of them in order to determine just what it was that Sinister has done, and indeed, was doing to them when we arrived."

Hank could almost see the tension begin to drain out of both Jean and Rogue, but Rogue looked over at him with her large green eyes swimming in tears that she refused to shed.

"Hank? Will... will Remy be all right?"

Hank sighed. He didn't want to lie to her or get her hopes up only to be forced to dash them to bits later. Still, he knew that this situation was very difficult for her and that she was holding herself responsible for everything that Gambit had suffered since his abandonment in Antarctica.

"From everything I can determine here? Yes, it appears that Gambit will make a full recovery. However, that is just a tentative diagnosis at this point in time. I'll be able to provide you with clearer answers once I've had the chance to get him, and the young lady, into the Med-Lab."

Rogue nodded, but she still seemed to be upset.

"Ah... Ah see. Is there anything that Ah can do to help?"

Hank offered her a small comforting grin.

"When we get back to the Mansion, I'm going to need you to bring Gambit into the Med-Lab. I'd prefer it if we could bring him there on that table, " he gestured to the medical examine table that Gambit was currently strapped to, "so as to prevent him from being jarred or bumped around. I would like you to carry it, and him, for me while I convey this other victim of Sinister's in the same manner."

Rogue offered him a watery smile and nodded her head with determination.

"You got it sugah. Remy'll never realize he's being carried, Ah'll do it so smoothly."

Just then, Wolverine came into the back and looked around.

"Cyke says to get ready. We'll be landing at the Mansion in about a minute and a half. We called ahead to let the rest of 'em know what happened. Reyes is preparing another bed for your second patient as we speak."

Hank looked up at Logan with a look of relief spreading over his face.

"That's excellent news. The sooner that I can get them both under proper care, the better."

Logan grunted in acknowledgement and started to turn to go, but then he stopped with one eyebrow cocked up. He stepped further into the room and over towards the mysterious unidentified woman. He leaned down over her slightly and inhaled deeply through his nose, the grunted again. This time in surprise.

"She smells just like Gumbo."

Hank, Jean and Rogue became very still.

"What was that, Logan?"

The feral X-Men shrugged his massive shoulders and thrust his stubble-coated jaw towards the woman.

"The girl. She smells like Gambit. *Exactly* like Gambit, in fact." He paused a brief moment as his eyes ran over her form. "Looks just like him too."

Hank bent his head down and studied his patient to see if he could detect what Logan had mentioned. He realized that once he stopped looking for things with a medical eye and a doctor's mind that she resembled Remy with uncanny accuracy. That was why she had seemed so familiar to him in Sinister's lab even though he knew he had never seen her before. She reminded him of Gambit.

"Yes, she does look remarkably like our Cajun thief. Perhaps she is a relative of his? One that Sinister acquired for his fiendish experiments?"

Rogue and Logan both shook their heads in the negative.

"Naw, that's not it. It's something different. Relatives smell similar, but not *this* similar. Only their *pheromones* smell different, and they're still very much alike. Only difference being is one's male and one's female."

Hank gave Logan an odd look, but before he could question him further Rogue spoke up.

"Remy don't have no family. Not like *that* anyway. He's an orphan and he never mentioned any brothers or sisters or cousins or nothing."

Then all conversation was cut off as the Blackbird landed and they began the process of carrying their two patients from the hanger to the Med-Lab. Organized chaos reigned supreme for several moments. Once Hank and Cecilia had them in the lab, they recruited Jean and Betsy to assist them and then had Scott remove everyone else with the promise that as soon as they had more information that they would let everyone know.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~



Several hours later, Beast exited the Med-Lab with Jean and Betsy and called the X-Men to the War Room for a team meeting regarding Gambit's condition. It didn't take very long for them all to assemble. Looking around the room, he was pleased to see that the majority of his friends seemed genuinely concerned for Remy's welfare. Only Warren and Bobby seemed to still harbor any ill feelings towards their injured companion, and Hank knew that with Warren it would take a long time to get over the pain he had suffered at what he perceived to be Gambit's wrongdoings. With Bobby it was different. His dearest friend was more angry at Gambit for the pain that Bobby felt Remy had caused Rogue. Everyone else seemed to have, at least for the moment, put everything aside while they waited for their teammate to recover. Clearing his throat, he began.

"Thank you all for coming. I have some news about Gambit's condition, as well as the young woman that we rescued from Sinister. Both Betsy and Jean have been working along side of Dr. Reyes and myself in diagnosing both of their conditions. Since that is the case, I will tell you about their physical condition, while Jean tells you about their mental."

Taking a deep breath and mentally preparing what he was to say, Hank continued.

"I was able to determine that, aside from being a little undernourished due to being fed intravenously, Gambit has come to no physical harm at Sinister's hands. While he was sedated, it was with nothing that would do any damage to him and it is working it's way out of his system even as we speak."

Many of the X-Men seemed to relax at that. He pushed on with his report.

"As for the woman. That's where things become... odd. Logan had mentioned to me in the Blackbird that she smelled identical to Gambit, and indeed, she also shares many physical attributes with him as well. More than we originally suspected, in fact. Because of that, I did some further checking once I determined that they were both healthy. It seems that the woman is a clone. The thing that is so fascinating is that she is a clone of Gambit himself."

A ripple of shock spread across the room only to be followed by a volley of shouted questions and confusion. Holding up his hands palms out, Hank motioned for silence once again.

"Now, I'm not sure *how* Sinister managed that. My knowledge of cloning techniques, while greater than most peoples, pales in comparison to Sinister's. That is *his* area of expertise. As far as I was aware, there was no possible way to alter the chromosomal structure of a DNA pattern from XY to XX or from XX to XY, which as you know indicates gender, without creating a cascade of genetic problems and hormonal imbalances within the altered clone. However, as far as I can tell, Sinister has finally found a way to do so."

He paused for a moment.

"In every way that counts, even down to a genetic and cellular level, that woman *is* Remy LeBeau."

There was stunned silence in the room and Hank took the opportunity to glance over at Jean. Her face was pale and drawn from her exertions and he figured that it would be best to turn the floor over to her quickly. Once they were done here, he was going to recommend that she get some sleep.

"That was when Dr. Reyes made an interesting discovery. It seems that both Gambit and his female clone are somehow in sync with each other. They both draw in a breath at the exact same time and they release it at the exact same time. Their hearts beat in unison and they even share the *exact* same brain patterns. When I noticed that, I asked Jean to scan them with her telepathy to see just how deeply this connection went."

With that, Hank stepped back and gestured Phoenix forward. She slightly smiled and nodded at him, then stepped up to the table.

"As many of you know, Gambit is never easy to scan telepathically. His biokinetic energy makes it very difficult. It acts to reinforce his natural mental shielding. However, for some reason as of yet undetermined, it was a bit easier to get through that psychic static into his clone's mind. I was able to scan her, even if not too deeply. However, it was deep enough to make a startling discovery. She shares a mind with Remy."

Another ripple of confusion washed over the room.

"Jean? What do ya'll mean that she shares a mind with Remy? That don't make too much sense."

Jean shrugged slightly and offered a weak grin.

"I'm sorry. I guess that was a pretty vague description. The way I understand it, when a clone is made, it is a duplicate of the person and if done correctly, it is alive. However, it also has no memories, no true thought patterns. The clone is, essentially, an adult with the unblemished mind of a newborn. That doesn't do anyone any good, especially the clone. In order to fix that, there are two techniques that we know of. The first way is by implanting false thought patterns and memories as a basis for behavior. That's a long and complicated process since you are, in essence, writing code to program a human. The second way is to merely record the original subject's thought patterns and memories onto the clone's mind. Most of the time, we see a combination of these two techniques. You start by downloading the duplicate thoughts into the clone and then go back in 'rewriting' what you don't want or like."

Jean flashed a sympathetic look over at Rogue, and then hurried on to complete her report.

"We think that what happened was that we interrupted this process when we took Gambit back. Right now Gambit's mind, his entire consciousness, literally inhabits two separate brains, two separate bodies at once. When I went into the clone's mind, I found Gambit there and no one else. They are, mentally at least, one person. Physically, they are two."

Once again stunned silence enveloped the War Room for a long moment. However, this time it was Wolverine who broke it.

"Jeannie? Can you separate them? Mentally, I mean."

Jean shrugged helplessly.

"At the moment? No. And neither can Hank. His lab is simply not set up to do this kind of delicate work. After all, Hank doesn't clone people and this type of procedure requires very specific equipment. As for me separating them with my telepathy? I can't.. At least, not now. I'd need to spend much more time studying Gambit's mind, and that's not easy because of his biokinetic shielding. That, and there is only one mind. It's not as if there were two separate minds intertwined. It is a single consciousness and if I merely rip it in half, neither would survive."

Hank stepped forwards again and cleared his throat to get everyone's attention.

"Right now, the only thing that we can do is more research into the possibility of separating Gambit's mind into two equal pieces in a way which will not harm either of them. To be honest, I can not even estimate how long such an endeavor would take, so until such time, we will all have to focus on helping Gambit to deal with and adjust to this unprecedented situation. Neither of his bodies have awoken as of yet, nor do we even know if he... they... will do so without assistance. However, when Gambit *does* awake, I can almost guarantee that he will be disoriented and traumatized by these events. We have no way of predicting how it will affect him to have his awareness divided into two separate bodies. Once Gambit is awake, we can then determine what should be our next course of action in accordance to his reaction and comfort level."

*

It was still very early in the morning, but Hank found himself wide-awake and walking into the Med-Lab to check up on Gambit. He had, truth be known, trouble sleeping last night between the excitement of the battle and the scientific discoveries of his teammate's unique medical situation, not to mention his worry that Gambit would awake to some serious complications due to that situation. A little voice inside his head kept insisting that the more information he had to work with, the easier it would be to help his friend when those inevitable complications arose. So, steaming mug of coffee cradled gently in one large paw and a small plate with two toasted bagels held in the other, Beast stepped into the Med-Lab.

They had felt it would be best if someone stayed with Gambit and his clone at all times for the simple reason that they could not be exactly certain when the Cajun would awaken, nor in what mental condition he would be in when he did so. Hank was certain that there would be confusion as to *where* he was, at least, right at first, plus there was every possibility that there would also arise a physical disorientation as well. So that was how he came to find Storm curled up in what he knew to be an uncomfortable chair, soundly asleep.

With a slight smile at Ororo's obvious dedication to her friend softening his features, Beast placed his breakfast down carefully on the table and then walked over to her. Reaching out with one large hand, he gently shook her shoulder. With a slight start, Storm sat up straight and turned blinking cat's eyes on him.

"What?"

His grin widened.

"Good morning, my dear lady. Though it grieves me to awaken you from your slumber, I am quite certain that the surface upon which you dwell is most uncomfortable. I fear that this dubious excuse for a resting place might cause you to acquire a crick in that most lovely of necks."

Storm flashed him a wry grin even as she stood up to her full height and stretched languidly.

"I must confess to you my friend, that chair *is* a bit awkward when used for sleeping upon. I had not meant to fall asleep at all."

Hank chuckled and shook his head slightly.

"I understand completely how you feel. I myself have often awoken only to discover that I had fallen asleep mid-experiment. In fact, one time I drifted off into slumber while typing up a paper to explain a recent discovery of mine and found that I had leaned against my keyboard sometime during my sleep cycle. I awoke to find that I had typed 56 pages of the letter M. It was most disconcerting."

Ororo's gentle laughter was like a breath of springtime fresh air swirling through the stuffy and enclosed Med-Lab.

"I can see how that would cause you some chagrin. It would also be quite dull to read, I suppose."

Beast flashed her a fang filled smile of true mirth.

"Very true I'm afraid, unless you hummed it out loud to the tune of Bonanza."

Storm's deep rich laughter filled the room and made Hank's eyes sparkle with happiness. It was good for him to see her smiling; she hadn't been doing that often enough recently. Then again, no one in the X-Mansion had.

"Thank you my friend. I truly needed to laugh like that. I feel most refreshed, both in body and in spirit. However, unless you have need for me, I would like the opportunity to enjoy some breakfast and to engage in my daily morning communion with the Goddess."

Hank smiled gently and made a gallant and surprisingly elegant bow gesturing her towards the door.

"Of course dear lady. As much as I enjoy your company, I would never be so selfish as to deprive others, most of all your beloved Goddess, of your time. I shall contact you if there are any changes in Gambit's condition, however."

Storm nodded her head and turned to leave.

"Thank you, Henry. I appreciate that."

As soon as Storm left the Med-Lab, Hank began to check on both Gambit and his female clone to make certain that they were both sleeping soundly and that they hadn't dislodged any of the monitoring devices in the course of the night. Once he was satisfied that everything was in order, Beast ambled back over to his desk. He checked over all of the information that Cerebro had monitored for him during the night while he ate his own breakfast. The sedative that Sinister had administered to Remy had finished working its way out of the Cajun's system, but that was the only change. In all respects, both the original male Gambit and the newer female model still were in synchronism with each other.

Popping the last bite of his bagel into his mouth, Hank considered that odd fact. Heartbeats, respiration, even brain activity was identical in both bodies, and yet they were technically two individual life forms. They were not connected physically the way a child inutero would be to its mother via a placenta. Instead, the only true connection was mental. One mind, two bodies. Literally. However, he couldn't also dispute that the two of them were identical in every way genetically as well. The only exception to that was the chromosome dictating gender. Likewise with their blood work, the only true difference between the two samples were the level of hormones. Obviously, the clone's blood contained far less testosterone and far more estrogen than the original.

Idly, Hank wondered if Remy's clone also shared his mutant gifts or if they were different. She had the x-factor, that was true, but he had been more concerned with their physical and mental health last night. Now that he knew that they would both recover, at least, he found himself musing on the subject of how the clone's mutation would manifest. After all, that was the basic reasoning behind all of Sinister's experimentation. He was trying to discover the secret to being able to manipulate DNA to produce specific mutations and powers to aid him in his battle against Apocalypse. And that was Hank's area of expertise. He was willing to admit that he wasn't as well versed as Sinister in the technical aspects of *cloning*, but as far as tracing out and mapping the x-factor to discover *how* it would manifest itself in an individual was *his* specialty.

And Sinister was aware of that. Hank was fully cognizant that it was Sinister's respect for his own ability to follow and chart genetic mutations that prevented Sinister from continuous attacks against the X-Men in order to capture those members whose genetics interested Sinister. With a sudden sense of morbid curiosity, Hank wondered how the other's would react if they knew that he, under the guise of Dr. Henry Blueman, often traded information and case notes with the world renowned Dr. Nathaniel Essex. Both he and Sinister knew just *who* they were dealing with, and they knew that the other knew, however, they both politely ignored that fact in order to further their own work and to insure the safety of various X-Men. In fact, several of Hank's breakthroughs while working on the legacy virus came about as a result of his contact with Dr. Essex. In return, Hank kept his iniquitous colleague updated on several aspects of his monitoring of Subject S, Subject J and Subject R.

He was sorely tempted to contact Sinister and demand some answers, but he wouldn't do that unless Gambit was in considerable danger and there was nothing that he could do to help him, or her, on his own. As fascinated as he was by this development, he was also outraged by it and he wasn't sure he would be able to be polite. Politeness was a necessity when dealing with Essex, otherwise, he'd just be inviting a full scale assault on the mansion once more as Essex attempted to reclaim Remy and the clone. No, this was all up to him. Cecilia was an excellent doctor and could patch up a banged knee or any other type of physical injury, but she would not be able to assist him with this. She simply didn't have the knowledge or experience. With a sigh, Hank set to work.

He ran scores of tests. He scanned, he poked and he prodded. He made numerous comparisons, not just between Gambit and the clone, but also between the both of them and other recorded and well documented mutations. He scribbled notes and equations, some of which he then scratched out and trashed. Finally, after several hours, he called Storm, Jean and Scott down to the Med-Lab for a discussion.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


"So... what exactly is the situation here, Hank?"

Hank sighed deeply and looked around at his three friends. Tiredly, he took his glasses off of his face and rubbed his eyes with one paw before replacing them.

"All of the sedative that Sinister gave to Remy has worn off and has completely left his system."

Jean frowned.

"But that would seem to me, at least, to be a good thing. Why aren't you happy about that Hank?"

Beast frowned as well.

"Because they are both still not conscious. As the sedative wore off, they should have slowly slid into a more normal sleep. Then, with all of the tests that I have been running, they should have woken up, if only briefly before falling back into slumber. Neither of them has done so, I'm afraid. So, I ran a few more tests and confirmed my suspicions. The frequency of Gambit's brainwaves has stayed absolutely the same as it was while he was under sedation."

It was always hard to read Scott's emotions because of his visor, but Hank had known him for many years and he recognized the tightening of his jaw and the furrowed brow on his forehead. Those two signs spoke louder than words that he was worried about Gambit. For some odd reason, that made Hank feel better knowing that his concerns were shared.

"What exactly does that mean?"

"Simply put, oh fearless leader, Gambit is unconscious. Not asleep, but unconscious. I still have hopes that he will be able to pull himself out of it himself, but he may not be able to simply because he is trying to stimulate *two* brains into that state of awareness instead of merely one. If he doesn't manage it himself soon, we may need to offer him some assistance."

"Could not Jean use her telepathy in order to pull Gambit's mind into this state of awareness that you feel would be healthier for him?"

Turning his head, Hank nodded at Storm.

"Yes, that was my thoughts as well. It would be a bit more difficult since, as I said, it involves two physical brains with a single shared mind, but it would be the easiest way. However, there is one other thing I feel I should mention for the simple reason that we may have to take precautions."

He noted that all three of them tensed slightly in concern. Sighing heavily, he continued.

"Physically, the clone is a true mirror to Gambit. Identical, but opposite. Male to female. Sinister created the same sort of dichotomy with Gambit's mutant powers as well."

Storm leaned forward in her chair, her bright cat's eyes piercing.

"What ever do you mean by that, Hank?"

"Gambit has always exhibited two separate mutant gifts. The one he is most noted for is his ability to charge inanimate objects with explosively released biokinetic energy. This power registers at the alpha level. He also has a beta level gift for empathy.."

A ghost of a grin whispered its way across Ororo's face.

"His so-called 'Charm Power' that he is forever blaming his luck with the ladies on?"

The four of them shared brief grins at that. Each of them had heard the young Cajun casually brag about his abilities to "charm" the ladies by swearing that it wasn't *him*, but his "Charm Power".

This time, Hank had physical proof that their flirtatious compatriot hadn't been lying or exaggerating.

"Yes, that's exactly what I mean. I know that we all have joked about his mentions of this 'charm' being nothing more than a less than standard set of ethics, however, I have been able to document the fact that Gambit *is* a beta level empath. And in the case of the clone we rescued, those powers are reversed. Identical, but opposite, just as with a mirror."

A slight frown hovered on Jean's full lips.

"I'm not sure I understand what you mean by the female Gambit's powers being identical, but opposite."

Hank grinned slightly, his obvious fascination with the concept shinning through despite his concern for his friend and teammate.

"Just that, Jean. The clone *also* is gifted with the ability to charge inanimate objects, however that particular mutant gift is set at a beta level. Gambit, the original male version, could most likely blow up an entire city block if he tried hard enough to do so. The clone, on the other hand, would be hard pressed to charge any object larger than a motor vehicle, if that. Not only that, I do believe that the original Gambit would be able to put more 'oomph' into the charge itself. Specifically, that he would be able to excite an inanimate objects molecules to a faster rate of speed as well as do so over a considerably larger area."

Scott snorted in disgust.

"I hate to say this, but that doesn't really surprise me. It makes sense that Sinister would want a version of Gambit that wouldn't be such a danger to him *or* his precious labs."

The other's nodded, but Storm had an odd look on her face.

"If that is truly the case, then I don't think Sinister knows our Remy as well as he thinks he does. Gambit may have the *ability* to blow up a building, but he has never done so. He seems to prefer to use his powers and gifts in much more subtle, but no less effective, ways. It is the mentality of a thief, I suppose. Leaving evidence behind is the fastest way to get oneself caught, and Gambit is, if nothing else, a Master Thief."

Scott seemed to ponder that for a moment, but it was Jean who seemed to truly see where Hank was going with this.

"What does that have to do with Gambit's empathy? Has that power also been altered by Sinister in the clone?"

Hank nodded and sighed, suddenly seeming tired.

"Yes, and that is the reason that I would advise we take precautions. As I have previously stated, in Gambit's original form, that gift is beta level. While we never took his claims of having a 'Charm Power' seriously enough to investigate it, it *is* there. It seems, just from casual observation and recollected fragments of conversation, to focus on making people that Gambit turns it on to be sympathetic to him. Even to a level that they would... desire him. Physically and emotionally. Whether that is simply *how* his empathy works or if it's the only way he's ever learned to use it, I'm simply unsure. The clone, however, registers this gift at an alpha level."

Scott nodded his head.

"So, the powers themselves are identical, but the power level for them are opposite? What's alpha level in one body is only beta level in the other, and vice versa?"

Hank nodded his head.

"Exactly."

Storm frowned in confusion and tilted her head slightly to the side in a manner that was eerily reminiscent of the Cajun in question himself.

"What I want to know is why you think that this would require special preparations? Have you foreseen some complication as a result of this discovery?"

Hank nodded his head and made a vague gesture towards the main Med-Lab room where both of the bodies that contained Remy's consciousness lay in a coma.

"Yes, actually. While the clone may only have the ability to biokinetically charge objects at a beta level, that's *still* a very destructive power and Remy might not be able to control it in two bodies at one time right at first. The same goes for the empathy, especially since Remy had *never* had to control it at an alpha level before, so it's very possible that he will lose control of it in one, if not both, bodies at some point in time. And while the empathy might not be a *physically* destructive power, it is very possible that it will effect those around him, or her, strongly."

Scott frowned, a thoughtful look crossing over what was visible of his face.

"I can see what you mean. I suppose that if the situation became dangerous enough, either for Gambit or those around him, we could always put a pair of Genosian Collars on them both to suppress their powers, but I would only suggest that as a last resort. Then, we could have them removed for specifically designed training sessions until Gambit *does* master that control. Still, I think that we should try less drastic measures first. I've been collared myself, and it always leaves me feeling as if I'm missing half of myself and I wouldn't want to do that to Gambit unless I'm forced to."

Hank nodded.

"I quite agree. I think that another option would be try and keep one body sedated while the other is awake so that Gambit can get used to the varying levels, but that would also restrict his ability to manipulate both bodies at a single time. And that is something that he would need to do if they are both awake."

Jean's face was serious and her brow was furrowed in concentration.

"I suggest that we warn the other's to keep their mental shielding up to try and counteract any effect by Gambit's empathy. Obviously, some have better shielding then others, but all of us have had *some* form of training in that respect because the Professor insisted on it. As for the charging power, I think it would be best if they were never left alone until we can determine that Gambit has if firmly under control. That way, if he, or she, accidentally charges something, that person can call it to Gambit's attention and he can focus on absorbing the charge back into his body."

Storm considered that for a brief moment and then nodded her head.

"I must agree with Jean on this. It is the kindest option to Remy and it also gives us the chance to see if he *can* handle this duality. If events prove otherwise, then we can always try another method to help him adjust."

*

Two long days later saw the X-Men once again being called into the War Room to discuss Gambit and his clone's condition. This time, Scott was leading the meeting and Hank was attending via a video-feed monitor from the Med-Lab. Rapping his knuckles on the table, Scott called the meeting to order and was faced with a room filled with concerned teammates.

"Okay. First off, I want to thank everyone who has volunteered to sit with Gambit so far. I'm going to ask that this habit continue, even if Jean and Hank are successful in waking him and or the clone. We aren't sure how well Gambit will be able to control his powers with his consciousness split between two bodies, so he will have to be monitored for that purpose. I know that you all were informed as to the nature of the clone's mutant gifts, so if any of you feel any type of reaction to that, please let Hank know immediately so that we can monitor it and set up training to help him with that."

Scott noted several knowing smirks and a few frowns at that thought, but he pushed on with the meeting.

"As you know, neither Gambit nor the clone has woken up yet. This fact has been of great concern to Hank, so today, Jean will attempt to use her telepathy to pull them both into consciousness. Because of this, I'm putting the mansion on Yellow Alert for the simple reason that we don't know how Gambit will react once he awakes. I would like both Rogue and Wolverine to be stationed outside of the Med-Lab while Jean and Hank do their thing."

Bobby frowned in concern.

"Do you really think that will be necessary?"

Scott shook his head.

"No, not really, but I want to have all of our bases covered. Most likely, Gambit will suffer from disorientation, however, there's also a remote possibility that he's convinced that he had gone insane and is still a captive of Sinister's."

Warren snorted softly and muttered under his breath.

"As if Gambit was sane to begin with."

*

Hank watched the monitors closely as Jean slowly sank into a trance-like state in order to establish telepathic communication with Remy's mind. He noted the increased mental activity as Jean's consciousness slid passed Gambit's shields and adjusted for it accordingly. It was a long process, but finally as Jean's forehead began to bead with perspiration, Hank's computers recorded the change in brainwave activity and frequency for both Gambit and the clone.

It was at that point that Hank felt his attention drawn to the female clone of Gambit. His eyes took in the glossy auburn silk of hair fanned out over the stark white pillow and he delighted in the deep red highlights. He found that the rich and vibrant color was a delightful contrast to her creamy ivory skin and he briefly wondered what that flesh would feel like as he ran his fingers along it. Longing swept over him as he gazed at her high delicate cheekbones and her soft full lips, lips that he decided were perfect for kissing and feasting upon. Then, he turned his head and allowed his hungry eyes to indulge in the delightful bounty which was her physical form. Slim toned limbs that were just as long and gracefully crafted as the male Gambit's, and yet the differences were amazing to Hank. Where Gambit's shoulders and chest were broad and muscular, hers were more gentle and less bulky with round firm breasts that rose up in a gravity defying manner from her ribcage. The same ribcage that narrowed down into
Just as he was reaching out to her with one large paw, both bodies twitched. That timely distraction viscously yanked Hank's mind back on his work as he turned towards the monitors once again. As his eyes scanned over the incoming information, he realized that he had nearly succumbed to the empathic "Charm Power" that he had once teased Gambit about. Chagrined and embarrassed, Hank made a promise to himself that from now on he would take Gambit's casual comments more seriously. Ruefully, Hank admitted that perhaps the uncontrolled empathy might be more of a problem than he had anticipated. While he was certain that Remy would enjoy having affectionate attention heaped on him, it might make him feel uncomfortable if that affection was aimed at his feminine counterpart.

Hank's speculation was abruptly cut off when Gambit suddenly catapulted into full awareness in both his original body and the clone simultaneously. With twin-synchronized gasps, both the male and female Remys jerked up into seated positions on their medical beds and yelled.

"*Non! Get away from me!*"

Dual shouts ringing in the air, Gambit and his female clone both reached up in identical movements and ripped the IV tubing out of their respective arms, then each performing the same exact movements, they both twisted and leapt out of the bed towards the right. Both the original Gambit and the newly formed clone moved with exquisite grace and precision, however, only the original Gambit had real strength and hard earned skill. The clone, on the other hand, had never before moved without someone else manipulating her limbs, and as such, there was little to no muscle tone and only borrowed skill. Due to this fact, it was hardly surprising that the original Gambit landed on his feet in a crouched defensive position ready and able to defend himself, while the female clone's body crumpled to the floor as soon as her feet touched it. After all, she had never even stood up before with help, let alone leaping up from a seated position to twist and flip through the air unto her unsteady feet.

Gambit rocked on his feet, a flash of confusion and pain washing over his face even as the clone rocked on her knees. Both of them turned to stare at Hank with wide open red on black eyes.

"*What de hell?*"

Standing up and holding both hands out, Hank began to slowly walk towards the fallen clone.

"Gambit, I need you to calm down and listen to me. You are back at the mansion now, we were able to rescue you from Sinister. You've been in a coma for several days since your return and you shouldn't be exerting yourself."

Both Gambits tilted their head slightly, and a tiny voice in the back of Hank's mind whispered that it was most likely to the exact same angle as well, but he pushed that irrelevant thought aside for the moment. He watched as twin red on black eyes glanced about the room and noted that both versions of Remy LeBeau looked at the same place at the same time. Then, once again, they spoke in sync with each other.

"*M. Bete? Dere be somet'ing wrong wit' Gambit, mon ami. I don' feel right an' everyt'ing looks... oddly doubled. An'... an' Remy's knees hurt, but dat don' make too much sense, huh?"

Hank winced internally. This was the one thing that he had been dreading, but it had to be done. He just hoped that Remy took the news a little better than he himself would.

"Well, Gambit. To be honest, I'm not really surprised about that. You see... Sinister... well, there's no gentle way to break this to you, so I'm going to come right out and say it. Sinister cloned you."

Gambit, both of them, blanched.

"*Oui. Gambit remembers dat. Not de most enjoyable way t' spend de day.*"

Hank nodded and swallowed. Now for the hard part.

"Yes, well. It's more complicated than that. You see, there was a slight... problem with the memory transfer procedure."

A clinical portion of Hank's mind made note that both the original Gambit and the clone tensed up through the shoulder area at the exact same time even as both faces became devoid of all emotion. Gambit's infamous 'poker face' had just made twin appearances.

"*What type o' problem, mon ami?*"

Hank cringed internally.

"It was disrupted at a crucial point and now your mind is locked inside of both bodies. That's why you 'feel' so odd and why your vision appears doubled. Your mind is perceiving reality from two different bodies and as such, it is receiving twice the normal stimuli."

There was a brief silent pause as Gambit absorbed this information, then both of his faces went starkly pale and fear etched over his features, male and female alike.

"*Please, M. Bete, *please* tell me dat y' were able t' rescue de clone too!*"

Confusion washed over Hank for a moment and then he realized that Gambit wasn't able to mentally separate his two bodies as of yet. His mind only registered *one* body even though he was disoriented by the stimuli of two.

"Yes, yes we did. She's right here."

Hank pointed to the ground where the clone had fallen. Blatant relief washed over both Gambit's faces as they sighed with relief.

"*Merci, mon Dieu.*"

Hank nodded and gestured to the clone on the floor.

"I'm going to help the... uh... clone version of you to stand up and get back onto the bed. Please brace yourself so that the... uh... other half of you doesn't fall over as well. But, um... before I do, I just want you to be prepared to see your clone Gambit. It is a situation that is stressful to begin with, but to add to that stress is the fact that Sinister has found a way to alter your DNA. Your clone is... different, than you are."

Both Gambit's nodded and no surprise showed on either of their faces.

"*De clone, she is a femme. Gambit knows dis, he watched her grow in Sinister's tanks. Didn't plan to share my head wit' her, but if it is between dis an' letting her suffer what Sinister had planned, I do it gladly.*"

Moving slowly, Hank reached down and gently scooped the clone off of the floor. The original Gambit rocked on his feet and clutched at the edge of the bed even as the clone clutched a fistful of Hank's blue fur.

"*Sacre mere! I felt dat!*"

Hank chuckled lightly and carefully set the female down on her bed. Then, walking over to the male Remy, he offered one large blue paw.

"You should, perhaps, also sit down as well until you are more accustomed to manipulating two bodies."

Both Gambit's nodded and Hank helped Remy to sit down next to his cloned counterpart.

"Um... I know this is difficult, but did Sinister tell you *why* he altered your clone into a female?"

Both Gambit's paled again and then nodded. Some portion of Hank's mind noted that now that Gambit was fully awake, his mental shields seemed to be containing the empathy a lot better now, but he still felt the oddly strong desire to protect them. Both of them.

"*Oui, Hank. It has to do wit' somet'ing dat Apocalypse did t' Sinister when he changed him. Apocalypse removed Essex's ability to feel emotion. *Any* emotion, including desire. Dat being de case, Sinister can't produce his own children, so... he create someone who can *induce* dat desire into him.*"

Hank felt a wash of cold sweep over him at that.

"Let me get this correct. Sinister created a female version of you for your empathic ability to 'charm' people into desiring you so that he could spawn *children* on your clone?"

Both Gambit's nodded in unison.

"That's... that's..."

"*Sick? Twisted? Depraved?*"

Both Gambit's grimaced.

"*But wait, it gets better, heh? Sinister also planned to cross breed his own children wit' someone from de Summers line. Don' know which one. Might not even be someone who been born yet, for all dis Cajun knows. De only t'ing for sure is dat Sinister feels dat only someone of both his *own* line an' de Summers line will be strong enough t' stand up t' Apocalypse.*"

For the first time, Jean spoke up.

"Bearing Sinister's children? Oh my, that's a fate worse than death."

Both Gambit's nodded.

"*Truer words have never been spoke. Which is why if dis weird mind sharing t'ing is de price Gambit gotta pay t' keep my ot'er half outta M. Essex's clutches, den I will gladly pay it.*"

Hank shivered once again at the very idea of Mr. Sinister having sex with *anyone*, let alone the clone of one of his teammates. And a child of Sinister's? No child deserved to have that man as a father. Suddenly, the fact that Gambit had woken up in an utter panic didn't seem so strange to him, no matter how out of character that was for the normally calm and suave thief. In a surge of sympathy that he was unsure wasn't influenced by Gambit's empathy, Hank laid a gentle hand on the original Gambit's shoulder.

"Don't worry my Cajun friend, the X-Men will do everything possible to prevent Sinister from kidnapping you or your clone."

"*Glamour.*"

Confusion washed over Hank at that non sequitur.

"Excuse me, Gambit?"

"*De clone, she be called Glamour. Although, she not really alive, is she?*"

At that, Jean walked over and sat down on the edge of the medical bed next to the clone, Glamour, and gently grasped her hand. Both Gambit and the clone gasped lightly and turned to face her.

"Yes, she *is* alive. Her heart beats, her lungs breathe in the air and her brain is active and working, just the same as *yours*."

With that last word, Jean turned her head and stared pointedly at the original Gambit.

"The only catch is, even though both bodies are independently alive and healthy, there is only one mind. Gambit's. There is no separate consciousness. You are, in essence, one person in two bodies."

Both Gambit and Glamour grew still and quiet as their shared mind absorbed this information. Their movements and breathing were still perfectly synchronized. Then, as one, they turned their faces up, twin serious expressions in haunted red on black eyes.

"*What will happen if only *one* of us dies? Will dat kill us both?*"

Hank and Jean exchanged long looks before they each turned back to face the individual Remy LeBeau they were with. Finally, Hank answered for both of them.

"We honestly don't know. The shock of experiencing the death of one half of you could very easily kill the other half, but there is no real way to test it."

Still pale, both Remy's nodded their heads. With a sigh, Hank patted the male version's shoulder and tried to soothe what he knew to be raw nerves.

"Please, don't worry about it right now. Instead, you should lay back and try to rest. You've suffered a horrible ordeal and received a nasty shock on top of it. The X-Men will do everything to keep you as safe as possible until you have managed to completely adjust to this... situation and are able to adequately defend yourself, both of yourselves, once again. For now, just try to rest."

Simultaneous nodding from twin auburn heads and then Hank and Jean were helping both Remy's to lay down and get comfortable even though both of them reacted to the movements of the other and automatically mirrored their counterpart. It was a bit confusing and disorienting, but as soon as Remy became still, that disorientation faded away. Even still, it took a little while for Gambit to drift off into sleep. It was only with a mild touch of amusement that Hank noted that both the original and the clone dropped off into slumber at the exact same instant.

*fini*

Scorpio
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