—Richard "Race" Way, AAW Field Correspondent

The 14th Squadron of the People's Collective Air Militia, "The Avatars," engaged the pirate gang of "Marshal" Bill Redmann in a spectacular battle over Saunders Kansas, just a stone's throw from the Free Colorado border. In a daring early-morning attack, the Redmann Gang raced across the border, coming in low over the golden fields. Their target was a cargo zeppelin taking on grain.

True to form, the Redmann Gang began their attack with a strafing run against the defenseless cargo crews on the ground. Fortunately that despicable act was redressed quickly, as the pirates pulled up from their attack to face the People's Collective Air Militia's Avatars. Comrade Captain Aaron Whitaker and his squadron of Marquette PR-1 Defenders did an admirable job of tearing through the Redmann planes on their first pass. "Those pirates scattered like ants!" said farmer Shelby Nellis, a veteran pilot from the Great War. "I saw Redmann's Vampire hit clear as day. Serves the rat right."

For those not in the know, Comrade Captain Whitaker flew with Redmann early in his career, but quit when he saw what Redmann's brand of justice entailed. Whitaker is reputed to be the only man to ever quit Redmann's Gang and walk away alive.

Comrade Captain Aaron Whitaker (File Photo)

After the initial run, The Avatars had a harder time of it. Readers are probably familiar with the poor reputation of the Defender, and the armament the Vampire carries—two .60-caliber cannons and two .70-calibur cannons—is enough to swat the Avatars' fighters down with ease.

Witnesses report that Redmann personally shot down two of Whitaker's pilots. The day might have gone to Redmann, if not for a complication unexpected by both sides.

Just when it looked like the Avatars were taking a terrible beating, a new force joined the fight. Five planes bearing Free Colorado Air Militia markings entered the furball from the west, and turned the tide of the fray. The Redmann Gang fled back into Colorado, pursued all the way by the FCAM squadron. Apparently the flight of planes is stationed in Bartlett, Colorado, just 6 miles west of Saunders. I traveled to Bartlett to find out why the FCAM came to the aid of the Avatars.

Lt. Marian Calloway was reluctant to talk to me but finally said: "I've lived here all my life; my folks have been here over fifty years. Saunders is right over there, not six miles away, and there's no dotted line on the dirt out there says I got to let a damn pirate like Bill Redmann kill those folks. We didn't go to help the Avatars; we went to help our neighbors. Who knows? Maybe when they get tired of giving all their grain to the Collective, we'll be part of the same country again."

Whitaker expressed his appreciation for the assistance, saying, "It's good to know that not everyone in Colorado is under the thumb of the pirates—that some people still have the bravery to join with their fellows in a display of heroism. Joining together in common effort is what the Collective is all about. If the people of Bartlett are ready to stand against their pirate-controlled government, we welcome them."

Neither national government has yet commented on the incident.