ANIELLE
ANIELLE
Real Name: Anielle
Identity/Class: Extradimensional (Heaven) Angel
Occupation: Ephemera
Group Membership: Angels of Heaven
Affiliations: Father Miguel Bonavita, Gambit (Remy LeBeau), Grigori, Sister Katrina, Brother Marcelo
Enemies: Olivier Stoker, Sybil
Known Relatives: None
Aliases: The Fallen, the Fallen One, the Heaven-Sent,
the Just-Fallen (though technically the Fallen originally referred to Gambit and
Sister Katrina);
mistakenly believed to be the angel Hanael
Base of Operations: Currently unrevealed; possibly
Hell
formerly Heaven
First Appearance: Gambit II#1 (September, 1997)
Powers/Abilities: Anielle possessed unspecified mystic abilities, primarily enabling her to destroy demonic creatures. She was presumably beyond normal human limitations.
Height: Approximately 5'9"
Weight: Approximately 130 lbs.
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Blonde
History:
(Gambit II#4) - Anielle is an Ephemera, an angel created with a short lifespan
for one specific purpose, in this case to save the souls of Gambit (Remy LeBeau)
and the novice Sister Katrina from the demon Olivier Stoker.
(Gambit II#1) - Anielle fell to Earth on a beach in Miami,
Florida, and a large crowd gathered to observe the beautiful naked woman. Gambit
-- in town after having stolen the Cross of Redemption from mobsters -- was
drawn to her as well, intoxicated by her beauty, smell, and touch. He heard a
music from her in his head, then noticed she was shivering in the 95 F heat, so
he gave her his coat. The mobsters, apparently agents of the demon Olivier
Stoker, then approached and began firing on them, and Gambit picked up Anielle
and fled.
Knowing that he could not relocate Anielle on his own, Stoker
manipulated Gambit to do it for him, sending his daughter, the monstrous Sybil,
after them. The mobsters closed down on Gambit and fired on him, and he took
several bullets as he leapt off a dock. Apparently bleeding to death, Gambit
started moving toward the light, which was the glowing Anielle.
(Gambit II#2) - Gambit was recovered and treated by Brother
Marcelo and Katrina who took him to Our Lady of Sorrows church. Upon his
recovery, they questioned him on Anielle's location, but Gambit had no idea what
had happened to her. Katrina snuggled up against Gambit to comfort him as he
dealt with the pain, and they apparently had an affair.
Marcello and Stoker both seemed to believe that Anielle was
Hanael, a disputed archangel who was the prince of the choir of virtues.
Sybil arrived and attacked Katrina, demanding that Gambit &
Marcello turn Anielle over to her. Marcelo tackled Katrina out of Sybil's arms,
only to be shot dead by one of the zombie-like mobster servants of Sybil. Seeing
Anielle was not present, Sybil left, and Marcelo warned Katrina that Stoker was
the devil himself.
Gambit subsequently found Anielle standing atop the church,
but then Sybil, having been following Gambit, appeared and prepared to claim
her. Gambit took Anielle and fled back into the church, and Sybil was apparently
unable to follow them into the church's sanctuary where Katrina was preparing
candles. But then Stoker himself, along with his servant Wormwood and his hound,
Cerberus, appeared.
(Gambit II#3) - Gambit fled with Anielle out of the sanctuary,
then prepared to go back for Katrina, only to find his pathway blocked by
Cerberus. Sybil then attacked anew, but Gambit blasted off her wings and fled
with Anielle anew. Katrina told Gambit to take Anielle to the Vatican where
Father Bonavita (of the Grigori) could get her back to where she came from.
Gambit grabbed Katrina and tried to escape with Anielle and her, but Stoker tore
teleported Katrina back into the church. Feeling Anielle was the priority,
Gambit continued his escape, vainly hoping Katrina would get away on her own.
Gambit sensed as Anielle continued to give off her own body heat, becoming
colder as her glow faded, and he took her on a flight to Paris. Stoker meanwhile
told Katrina of the value of "the one you call Anielle," the influence of whom
might turn the tides in the wars to come. Stoker's power and very nature soon
began to corrupt Katrina.
Arriving in Rome, Gambit sneaked Anielle off the plane to
avoid Customs, then stole a car to escape, though agents of Stoker tracked and
reported his every move. He continued on to Switzerland, then took a train as
part of his indirect route to Rome to avoid being followed, and Anielle spoke
into his head, telling Gambit "You make me special...you and one other." They
were again confronted and assaulted by Sybil. Cerberus got between Gambit and
Anielle, while Sybil unleashed a plague of locusts against Gambit.
(Gambit II#4) - Gambit fought futilely against Sybil and
Cerberus, but was on the verge of being overpowered when Anielle spoke again, "I
AM THE LIGHT," and the energy she released apparently shattered Sybil.
After resting and arriving in Vatican city, Gambit then
prepared to sneak Anielle into the Vatican, but was then confronted by Stoker
himself and Cerberus, and Stoker unleashed an army of demons against them. As
Gambit fought against the demons, Sister Katrina then appeared, having fallen
under the influence of Stoker and having been mutated by him. Bonavita opened
the door to the Vatican and tried to reach Katrina, but she grabbed him by the
neck and threatened to kill him. Stoker ordered Gambit to hand over Anielle in
exchange for Katrina and Bonavita, and Anielle smiled and walked directly to
Stoker herself. Stoker announced his plans to mate with her to father a force
that would lead the next millennium, but a powerful lightning bolt struck the
pair, and they both vanished.
Bonavita noted with pleasure that Anielle had served her
purpose, saving the souls of Gambit and Katrina and then sacrificing herself to
take out Stoker.
Freed of Stoker's influence, Katrina regained her mind and
human appearance. Her face scarred, she turned away from becoming a nun, but
remained a religious woman, of even greater conviction than before.
Comments: Created by Howard Mackie & Klaus Janson.
Definitely a story that was hard to follow.
It's anyone's guess how/where Anielle fits in with the rest of the angels we've seen.
It seemed to me that Anielle perished, and that she took Stoker with her. As she embraces Stoker, a lightning bolt strikes them both and he is cut off in mid-sentence, Bonavita noted that she had taken him with her. But it's not 100% clear.
Profile by Snood.
CLARIFICATIONS:
No KNOWN connections to:
images: (without ads)
Gambit II#1, p12
Appearances:
Gambit II#1 (September, 1997) - Howard Mackie (writer), Klaus Janson (art),
Kelly Corvese (editor)
Gambit II#2-4 (October-December, 1997) - Howard Mackie & Terry Kavanaugh
(writer), Klaus Janson (art), Kelly Corvese (editor)
Last updated: 02/23/08
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
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