Marvel: The Journey

In a casino in New Orleans, Louisiana,

Chandeliers glimmered above on the ceiling while the sounds of slot machines and people murmuring filled the air. Every person, male or female, was dressed in what appeared to be expensive dresses and suits. Women leaned against their men while they placed their bets and every single one of them in the building inhaled a mixture of the sweet aroma of cocktails and cigarette smoke.

At one of the tables, a young man with a purple hat and a cane to his side leaned back on his chair. He was swirling the wine in his hand and had his eyes closed while the dealer shuffled the cards. He was completely relaxed unlike his opponents, who had sweaty foreheads and stared at the dealer intensely. Their hands were shaking under the table and the women behind them were glancing at the young man with lust in their eyes repeatedly. The stack of chips in front of them was a cheap change compared to the young man whose stack of chips was as high as a skyscraper.

The dealer glanced at the young man and the other people around the table, and announced, "Place your bets, gentlemen."

All eyes instantly turned to the young man who lazily opened an eye. He picked up his cards, glanced at them, and placed them back. He closed his eyes back again not before saying, "I'll be the last to bet."

A few seconds later, the young man opened his eyes and glanced at the cards of the rest of the players. He smiled after seeing their pathetic cards, flipped his own, and said, "Gentlemen, I believe luck's on my side tonight."

The people around gasped in awe and surprise while his opponents held their heads in distraught and shame. The dealer took all of their chips and slid them toward the young man who smiled and declared, "I'm feelin' lucky today. Is anybody willin' to be my opponent?"

The people around the man glanced at each other and took a step back. They had seen him winning all of the bets he placed tonight and they would never be his opponent. They were here to make more money. Not lose them.

Nobody answered him for a few seconds and it seemed that he would take all of the chips home tonight. But, suddenly, a man's voice pierced through the silence.

"I'm willing."

Everybody turned to see who the daring man was including the young man who frowned and turned his head toward the direction of the sound. However, when they saw and realized who the man was, they couldn't help but be surprised.

"Starlance?!"

"What? Starlance's here?!"

"What's Starlance doing here?"

Val clad in a luxurious black tuxedo walked toward the table while glancing around. He saw most of the people had clenched their fists while having worried expressions on their faces. This included the young man who gripped his cane tightly and stared at Val while his breathing became faster. Val smiled and tried to break the tension by saying, "There's no need to be tense. I'm here to gamble. Not enact justice. It's tiring to be a superhero... doing the same thing over and over again every single day."

He sat down beside the young man and ordered the dealer, "I'll play."

The dealer nodded quickly and began shuffling the cards. Val kept the smile on his face as the game began. Both of them placed their bets and it was time to reveal the cards. The young man glanced at his cards and placed them on the table. He smirked at Val and said, "The gentleman assumes the pot is his to win... but I have a literal ace up my sleeve.", and revealed them to the crowd. The crowd gasped in surprise when they saw all three of them to be aces.

Val raised an eyebrow at the man and smiled as he asked, "Are you sure about that?" The young man's smirk vanished and he frowned as he tried to understand Val's cryptic question. Val snapped his fingers and his cards which he hadn't touched a single time flipped themselves over and were revealed to be all aces. The crowd gasped in shock and they glanced back at the man's cards which had turned into normal cards.

The man gritted his teeth and stared at Val angrily when he realized that Val switched their cards with a snap of his finger. He heard Val ask with a grin, "Want to go again... Gambit?"

. . .

In Xavier's School,

Kayla pulled the cover off of herself and got out of bed. She walked to the window and peeked out into the garden. She saw children playing, giggling, and laughing happily. Seeing the children brought a sad smile to her face but she shook her head and walked away. She picked up the telephone in the room and took out a small device from her clothes. Inserting the device into the telephone, she dialed a number and listened as the phone rang while taking a deep breath.

A few seconds later, the call connected and from the other side, a voice ordered, "Any report, Agent Silverfox?"

Kayla changed her demeanor and replied, "Yes, Major Stryker. Logan is looking for Victor."

"Victor? Victor Creed?! Logan's Brother?"

"Yes."

"Why?... Because of what he did to you?"

"Yes."

"Hmm... We could use this to our advantage."

"Yes. Logan's hunting for Creed for about three weeks. We can use him to persuade Logan into accepting the Weapon X Program."

"Yes! Very good! You do your thing, Agent Silverfox and inform me when he's at his lowest. At that moment, I would come and make him an offer he couldn't refuse."

"... Yes."