Gambit didn’t return to the mansion but to his thieving ways, leaving Guild leadership to Bella Donna, who, as his viceroy, had already been taking care of most duties. Remy traveled to Spain, intending to find the Madripoor set, several gemstones of power. One of the jewels was in the home of Vargas, the nigh-invincible mysterious new foe of the X-Treme X-Men and who had recently killed Psylocke. Since it was impossible to win a fight against Vargas, Gambit managed to charm the man – or so he thought – and managed to swipe the diamond under his nose, unaware that Vargas let him get away with it. He had done so because he had glimpsed in one of Destiny’s Diaries that something important and horrible was in store for Gambit in the near future. [X-Treme X-Men #4]

Gambit’s path would cross that of Storm’s X-Men team soon after, as he found himself framed for the murder of the Australian crimelord, Miles Warbeck, whom he had tried to rob. The X-Treme X-Men went in search of him and to find out what truly happened. Rogue went off looking on her own, meeting Gambit in Sidney’s Chinatown only to find Father Gow, one of the Triad’s leaders, also dead with one of Gambit’s trademark cards in his back, another sign of Gambit being framed. The two of them were taken prisoner by the Triad and tortured until they managed to free themselves. They left with Gow’s grandson, Red Lotus, only to find themselves attacked by Sebastian Shaw and Lady Mastermind, the true culprits. Red Lotus fled with Gambit while Lady Mastermind used her illusions to turn Rogue against her teammates. Gambit asked Lotus to save Sage from Shaw while he’d stop Rogue, which he eventually did, managing to break through the illusion she was caught in. Red Lotus cleared Gambit’s name. [X-Treme X-Men #5-9]

Gambit later asked Storm for her ruby gem inherited from her mother (another stone of the Madripoor set as Sage noted). Somebody else – an otherdimensional warrior named Shaitan – had the same idea. Shaitan kidnapped Gambit and stole the gems, using them in synch with Gambit’s power in a Madripoor temple to create an energy needle – a portal that would allow the troops of his master, Khan, to come through to this dimension. Remy was left helpless and bound behind a forcefield on an altar energizing the needle. In the meantime, his friends had to stave off the invasion and either free or kill Gambit to eliminate the portal before it became a permanent fixture.

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