in the age of apocalypse, gambit was a member of the x-men and one of magneto's closest friends. like his earth-616 counterpart, gambit too fell in love with rogue, which prompted him to leave the x-men when rogue chose magneto, whom she could touch due to the two possessing magnetism-based powers (she had permanently absorbed the powers and memories of polaris just as she had done to ms. marvel on earth-616). gambit, as a member of the thieves guild, maintained a certain connection with candra, who was also one of the horsemen of apocalypse, until she was killed. despite having left the x-men, gambit still fought for "the dream" in his own way. he assembled a group of thieves which he named "x-ternals", who stole from apocalypse's regime and the mutant aristocracy to provide food and medicines to the humans still living in new york. he also had an affair with lila cheney, despite the fact that he had not gotten over rogue.