The desert was a bright shade of yellow in the midday sun. Wind whipped through the dry air kicking up clouds of sand as the sun beat down on the arid landscape. A glint suddenly appeared in the distance slowly growing brighter. The glint soon became a stark black outline cutting across the desert. The train roared across its tracks, thick black spewing from the steam engine's smoke stack as it roared, its whistle cutting through the noise of the engine. The shipping train rumbled across the desert, cutting a line straight through.

The massive steam engine pulled five tankers behind it along with two armored security cars. Armed guards patrolled across the top of the cars, bandanas across their face to protect them from the sand that cut through the air as the train roared. The two security cars had three anti-air turrets on each, their .50 caliber machine guns slowly moving back and forth scanning the bright sky. Flying off to either side of the train, four Blake Aviation Security owed William and Colt Peacemaker 370 fighter planes flew close to the ground, providing air cover for the speeding train as it raced towards its destination carrying its precious cargo of petroleum.

Flying parallel a good two miles to the east, three red planes cut through the sky, staying below a ridgeline so they wouldn't be spotted. On the bodies of each of the planes were painted four playing cards, the insignia of The Fortune Hunters. Nathan Zachary flew at the front of the pack, his Hughes Devastator cutting through the air.

"Hey, Nathan?"

"What's up, Eddie?"

Nathan looked over to his right, looking at the Curtiss-Wright J2 Fury flying off his wing. Eddie 'Sparks' Conroy looked across back at him.

"Are you sure you want to be messing with a Texas Republic train? I mean, apart form it being heavily armored and stuff, the oil barons aren't usually people you want to be pissed off at you. You remember what they did to Harker's Sky Hawks, right?"

"How could I forget, Sparks? You've been reminding me since last week."

Nathan shook his head and looked to his left, just as a crack in the ridgeline revealed that the train was still speeding through the dessert, cutting through the Western Territories as it headed for its destination of the Nation of Hollywood where its tankers of fuel would be swapped for two loads of gold and the newest set of motion pictures. Sparks came back over the radio.

"And we're still doing this?"

A female voice cut over the radio.

"Well what do you want us to fly with, Sparks? Hopes and dreams?"

Nathan let off a chuckle as Sparks remained silent from Ellen Sue 'Tex' Ryder's comment.

"Okay, you two, River Rock Canyon is coming up. Sue, you're with me. Sparks, try not to miss when you hit the bridge."

Sue let off a laugh as Sparks plane banked off to the right, flying ahead. Sue and Nathan's Devastators cut up and over the ridge, pushing their throttles down as they raced towards the train. Almost immediately the four escort planes cut away from the train, turning to face the two pirates flying straight at them.

"Here we go, Sue!"

Nathan cut hard to the right as he pressed the trigger on his stick, barrel rolling and opening up with his plane's four .40 cal machine guns. One of the black planes immediately dove down hard, crashing into a fireball as it impacted on the desert floor. The three other planes cut power, pulling up and away as the two pirate planes cut through them. Sue immediately banked away, chasing after one of the planes as Nathan righted his plane, then accelerated as his pulled up. Two of the Peacemakers spun around in the sky, crisscrossing each other and diving back down, their machine guns opening up. Nathan pulled hard to the right as a strafe of gunfire impacted into his left wing. The two Peacemakers roared by arcing to the side to try to get behind Nathan. Nathan quickly spun his plane over, almost stalling it out as he pulled it around. The two planes were midway through their turn as Nathan lined up a good shot, pressing his trigger down again.

One of the planes immediately began pouring black smoke from its engine before the pilot ejected, his parachute opening as the plane swerved downwards towards its fiery demise. The remaining plane ducked down and dove behind a rock formation as Nathan's bullets flew through the air after it. Nathan pulled away, racing towards the train. Looking off to his right he saw Sue hot on the tail of the other Peacemaker, her guns blasting away. One of the wings of the plane suddenly tore away after one of Sue's rounds hit a fuel line and caused it to explode. The now single winged plane began rolling violently before it smashed into the earth below.

"Nice shot, Sue!"

Sparks streaked his fighter downward, lining up with the rail bridge that crossed the giant gash in the ground that was River Rock Canyon. Watching as his altitude quickly dropped, Sparks suddenly jerked his stick back, pulling a level beside his seat. The bomb detached itself from below his plane, screaming downward through the air towards the bridge. Looking back over his shoulder, Sparks watched as the explosion ripped apart the bridge, its support struts giving away underneath it and collapsing the structure. Sparks let off a cheer as Sue's voice came over his radio.

"So I guess you didn't miss, huh, Sparks?"

"No, little Miss Tex, I did not."

The train slammed on its emergency brakes as the massive cloud of smoke and debris erupted from the bridge it was due to cross. The train slid on the tracks, sparks flying out from underneath its massive wheels. Guards all fell forward, sliding around as the train rocked forward, its momentum coming to an abrupt stop.

"Take the engine out, Sparks…Sue and I will hit the armor."

Sparks arc downwards from the sky, lining up a shot at the steam engine as Nathan and Sue strafed past the train cars, their guns firing. Guards fell from the train cars as the machine gun turrets spun after the planes, their guns firing. Sparks began firing as he flew up towards the engine, his rounds impacting across its body before it erupted into a plume of flame, its boiler exploding. The train was now stuck as the turrets continued to fire up at the planes. Nathan swerved his plane around, lining up for another shot at the train, but a strafe of gunfire suddenly cut across his plane.

"Son of a--"

The last Peacemaker that had gotten away from his streaked down in front of the sun, its guns pouring out lead. Nathan cut hard down to the ground, banking away. The Peacemaker quickly jumped on his tail, chasing after him.

"I'm on my way, Nathan!"

"No, Sue! Stay on the train…I'll take care of this guy."

Nathan banked hard around, diving down into River Rock Canyon, the Peacemaker right behind him. A voice cut through Nathan's radio.

"You're going down, Zachary."

Nathan immediately recognized the voice.

"Carlos? Is that you?"

A laugh came across the radio.

"You've got that right!"

Carlos 'The Bull' Mako aimed up for another shot at Nathan's plane, pulling the trigger. Nathan dove his plane down, cutting around a corner and almost brushing the canyon wall as bullets impacted behind him.

"So you're working for Blake now, huh?"

The Peacemaker cut around the corner, its machine guns firing after Nathan.

"What can I say? He pays better than Khan."

Nathan rolled his plane downward, quickly spinning it around. Nathan quickly let off with a burst of fire as Carlos roared over him.

"I don't want to kill you, Carlos, you owe me too much money from me beating your ass at poker."

"Then it looks like I won't have to pay up then!"

Carlos spun his plane around, zooming after Nathan. Carlos roared his plane almost on top of Nathan, his guns firing. Bullets impacted all around Nathan's canopy as he gripped onto his throttle tightly.

"Yeah, right!"

Nathan suddenly slammed his stick downward and pulled his throttle back. The plane engine immediately cut power as Carlos's plane roared over him. Nathan quickly powered back up and pulled his plane up behind the Peacemaker, lining up.

"See you later, Carlos!"

Nathan pulled his trigger and his machine guns tore into Carlos's plane. Black smoke poured out from the plane as the canopy suddenly broke away and Carlos ejected. Nathan pulled up as Carlos's flaming plane plowed straight into a rock face, erupting into a ball of fire. Nathan pulled his plane around, slowly circling Carlos as he floated under his parachute.

"And you still owe me my money!"

Nathan pulled away as Carlos shook his fist up at him. Roaring back towards the train, Nathan watched as the last armor car exploded from an aerial torpedo as it slammed into it. The other car was already in flames and what men were still alive had walked away fro the train, their hands in the air. Nathan slowed; dropping down to the desert floor as his landing gear slowly emerged from under his plane. Rolling to a stop next to the flaming train, Nathan pulled his canopy glass back from over his cockpit and climbed out from his plane. Sue also landed as Sparks continued to circle overhead providing cover. Sue climbed out of her plane, a Thompson sub-machine gun in her arms. She quickly walked over to the remaining guards who all dropped to the sand as she held the barrel of the gun on them. She looked over her shoulder at Nathan as he walked up beside her.

"You ok, Nathan?"

"Just peachy. Although Luis is going to be pissed when he sees the shape my plane's in."

"Wouldn't be the first time."

"Or the last."

The radio slowly crackled and Nathan went back to his plane, lifting his radio up and talking into it as he stood on the wing.

"Nathan, you there or what?"

"I'm here, Big Jon."

"Have you guys finished it up yet?"

"Yeah, Jon, go ahead and bring her over."

"You got it, Nathan."

Pulling a pair of binoculars out from his cockpit, Nathan looked out far to the north. Through the haze of the heat rising up off the hot desert floor, Nathan saw a red bulge slowly emerge seemingly out from the sand, rising slowly upward.

The Pandora, a massive zeppelin modified by Nathan to be a mobile base of operations, slowly rose out from the ravine it was hiding in. The zeppelin rose into the sky, its four rotary motor engines spinning to life and pushing the aircraft forward through the air. Moving out over the desert, the zeppelin's weapons turrets slowly scanned the sky, prepared for any attack that might suddenly arrive. Zachary jumped down from his plane as the shadow of the large ship moved over the top of the train site. Lower back towards the ground, the landing bay doors slowly slid open and two of Nathan's men pushed two large hoses out from the bay to the ground below.

Sue kept the prisoners under guard as Nathan ran forward, grabbing one of the hose and pulling it over to the first tanker, attacking the rubber tube to the nozzle at the bottom of the steel tank. Spinning the release valve, he opened up the tanker, then stepped back and waved his hands up at his men. They signaled back and one disappeared back into the bay. The hose suddenly vibrated as the fuel in the tanker was vacuumed up the hose and up into the zeppelin. Nathan quickly moved the other hose to the next tanker and did the same thing, moving from one tanker to the next and draining them dry.

Disconnecting the final hose, Nathan stepped back and signaled up to his men who quickly reeled in the hoses. Almost immediately the airship slowly began to rise back into the air, lifting away from the site and continuing forward. Nathan jogged back to his plane, climbing in and starting it, its engine sputtering to a roaring start. Sue quickly jogged back to her own plane, turning the engine over. Both plane quickly turned, pulling away from the site and gaining speed, pulling up from the sand. Sparks pulled away from his orbit overhead and pulled alongside the airship joining Sue. Nathan took one last turning orbit around the site below, giving a salute to the men who stood from the sand and looked up at him.

"So, Nathan, where we heading to now?"

Nathan pulled his plane around, leveling out and pulling next to his zeppelin.

"Our next destination would be the town of Free Liberty."

Big Jon let off a chuckle as the airship shifted direction slowly, heading north.

"You got it."