CHAPTER 13
 

 He stood before them, a crimson glow eminating from his eyes. Alex hadn't heard Remy enter, nor had any of the X-men. He was wearing his faded jeans and black longsleeved shirt that Alex had previouly been impersonating. Alex stared slack-jawed at the Cajun. The thought that Gambit could sneak up on him like that infuriated him. It also made him clumsy. He acted impulsively, rashly. A faultering lunge was the result.

 Fighting with this vampire more than once had given Remy a sense of what to look for and how to react to one of Alex's attacks. Alex fought at his worst when he was angry, so maybe getting on his nerves as much as possible would cause him to make a mistake. But then turning Alex's anger on Remy might be a mistake in its own. Gambit would have to time his movements just right to compensate for the vampire's superior strength. Keeping that in mind, Remy set his pace, and easily side stepped the leap Alex directed at his throat.

 Alex hadn't anticipated Remy's sudden dodge. With his target no longer in his path, he crashed head long into the wall in a manner that would have made the X-men erupt in laughter had the circumstances been different. He sat on the floor, using the wall as a back post, in a moment of dazed confusion. He had tried to maintain a grip an Gambit's feet as he had done with the rest of the X-men. But, in the same way as Remy had elluded the memory wipe Robin had tried, he elluded his grip. He only just managed to keep hold of the X-men when he hit the wall.

 He reminded himself that he was supposed to have the upper hand here, the one in charge, so he forced himself to keep a cool head. Otherwise the Cajun would get the better of him. The last chance at trying to save Remy from the Covenant's death wish would be for nothing. He wasn't about to let that happen. He would need to think first and not make any more clumsy blunders.

 He stood again, pulling at the bottom linning of his jacket in an attempt to straighten it.

 "Careful, LeBeau," he cautioned. "You mess up and all these people die." He said it calmly, as best as he could, making a faint wave towards the immobile X-men. Remy had taken several steps back and was at that moment standing beside Ororo.

 "Remy," Storm said in an undertone, "he claims to have placed a bomb in the vicinity. He is threatening to set it off if you do not agree to go with him. He has somehow managed to distort our powers and our movement."

 "I am within the rules to hurt these people to get to you. If you come to the Covenant, they'll be fine. If you don't, this building blows up, killing them and you. Those are you only choices." Alex crossed his arms and waited, staring expectantly at Gambit for his answer.

 Remy stood by Storm, his mind spinning furiously for an alternative. He had no doubt that Alex would set off that bomb, or that he was capable of detonating it. The man wasn't bluffing; Remy could sense that as well as he could sense the location of the bomb. It was in the Control Box to the Danger Room. The bulk of it was easily noticed in the normal spacing of the room. What he needed was an ace up his sleeve and he found himself in the unusual postion of not being able to find one. Alex could almost see the wheels in Gambit's mind searching for a loophole. He had been glancing down at the floor, but Gambit finally brought his eyes up to meet Alex's gaze. He looked somewhat disoriented.

 "Not if I challenge you," it had come out slightly above a whisper, the meaning of the words creeping into place. He had found the loophole he could use.

 "What?" Alex wasn't sure if he heard it right.

 "You can't hurt them if I challenge you!" his voice rose and he was glaring at the vampire in defiance.

 "Damn, you do know the rules," Alex sighed.

 "Gambit? Remy, what's goin' on?" Rogue turned to Remy as best she could since she couldn't move her feet. He didn't have a chance to answer her as both he and Alex were engulfed in a stream of pure light. They turned to shield their eyes. When the glare had died down, the two had vanished.

 "I don't like this," Scott mumbled.
 

END PART 13

 Spade