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Crimson Skies®: High Road to Revenge™


Flying the Crimson Skies


Betty opened the letter. David Farrar, an old friend (to use the term loosely), had disappeared some time ago with her money and a leggy blonde to help him spend it. She hadn't expected to find a letter from him beside her morning coffee. It read:

Betty, take a gander at these. During a hit on a pleasure zep, I ended up in possession of a certain briefcase. I found files inside, one for each of the people listed below. You're on the list, so I figured I'd give you a heads-up. Hey, you never told me you were in the circus, dollface.

So, how's life treating you? You and Zachary taken any big hauls lately? I hear there're plenty of rich pickings down your way. You hear of anything really big, you'd better let me know. Don't forget, you owe me one for that raid on Brandy Bill's—and don't be a stranger.

Choke her easy, Beautiful.

D.F.

Betty snorted. She didn’t owe that bastard a thing. Well, at least she hadn't until she got the letter. For all she knew, the information it contained might be extremely valuable. She looked at the first packet and saw the name, "Nathan Zachary," neatly printed at the top.

35-NZ / Nathan Zachary


Leader: The Fortune Hunters, a band of air pirates.

Born Natan Zingari, in the southwestern U.S., Zachary flew in WWI with the French Escadrille Lafayette. During the war he was shot down and ended up in a POW camp, where the Germans incarcerated him with Dr. Wilhelm Fassenbiender (brief 34-WF).

Zachary managed to escape the camp and make his way to Russia, later to England. He studied finance at Oxford and returned to the U.S. after graduation, where he built himself a small fortune on the stock market. The Crash of '29 dropped the bottom out of his newfound wealth, however, and shortly thereafter he took to a life of crime and formed the Fortune Hunters.


34-WF / Dr. Wilhelm Fassenbiender


Fassenbiender was a child prodigy, recognized early for his extraordinary intelligence. He studied privately with renowned mathematician G.F.B. Riemann, but later in life he refused to design weapons for the Germans and they tossed him into a POW camp. He met Zachary (35-NZ) in the camp and escaped with him to Russia.

More than once over the years, Zachary has provided Fassenbiender and members of his family with sanctuary from those who sought to claim his genius for their own narrow causes. Though he's not a member of the Fortune Hunters per se, he has been known to show his gratitude by improving the design of their planes and technology.


38-LT / Louis "Wild Card" Thibodeaux


Leader: The Ragin' Cajuns

Thibodeaux is the leader of the Ragin' Cajuns, a renowned band of air pirates. He spent most of his life in Louisiana, swindling big spenders on the banks of the Mississippi and playing high stakes card games on the bayou. Thibodeaux's luck is legendary and is the source of his nickname.

Zachary (35-NZ) and Thibodeaux carry on an active rivalry. As a matter of fact, Thibodeaux is the thorn in Zachary's side.


36-BC / Betty "Brooklyn" Charles


Betty Charles was born in Brooklyn, but her parents sent her to Minnesota to save her from the tough city streets. She learned to fly in her uncle's crop duster and later left home to join the circus and perform with a wing-walking troupe.

Ultimately Betty landed a job as a commercial flyer shuttling businessmen between New York and D.C. One of her regular passengers was financial wizard Nathan Zachary (35-NZ). He somehow managed to coax Betty into the life of a pirate, and she remains a member of the Fortune Hunters.


Betty shook her head. Every detail was correct. She laughed quietly. It had never occurred to her that she might some day merit this kind of attention. She wondered to herself whether this meant she was famous? Maybe infamous! The thought pleased her.


39-MS / Maria "Bloody Mary" Sanchez


Not much information exists about Sanchez, who was orphaned and grew up in poverty. Her first professional experience was in a pit crew for a racing pilot. She learned to fly from him, and later went on to win the Republic of Texas Championship herself.

Sanchez is currently a member of the Ragin' Cajuns under the leadership of Louis Thibodeaux (38-LT). When she's not buzzing the heads of Zachary and the Fortune Hunters, she's fixing airplane engines in her shop in the Arixo desert.


37-JK / Jonathan "Genghis" Kahn


Leader: The Red Skull Legion

Kahn and Zachary (35-NZ) have a longstanding rivalry. The two met on Wall Street, but unlike Zachary, Kahn's record of criminal activity includes everything from small-time scams to murder. His family, the famous Chicago Kahns, kept him out of trouble during his early years. Later, Kahn earned enough money to cover his own tracks. He worked behind a desk until he became leader of the Red Skull Legion in search of hands-on mayhem.


Betty finished browsing the files. Everything they said about her was true, so she presumed the rest was correct as well. She had learned a few things about her colleagues. She tucked the packet away in her trunk, determined not to worry about it. After all, she told herself, when you're a pirate, you have to expect that you'll make more than one person's private hit list.

Article by Violet Leigh

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