Our illustration for April in our 2023 Calendar, we’re a bit delayed sharing with you all these works but we’re sure you may be still curious about each Universe we chose this time and why. This time, Ashen Wings is one of the less-known Universes of Guzbourine since it has just one illustration which also appeared in our 2022 Calendar for October portraying Halloween. So let us introduce you a bit again to our WWI boys! Here, Randy’s an American volunteer pilot while Lu Han’s part of the Chinese Labour Corps, here featuring the Anniversary of Lafayette Escadrille’s official despatch to France for front-line service, on 20th April 1916.

What was this escadrille, you may be wondering? A force formed by volunteer American aviators who didn’t agree with the party being held without them, and jumped into Europe by France’s side before the USA officially entered the war. First named Escadrille Américaine, they renamed it to not imply USA while they were still neutral. The uniforms, mechanics and planes were French, as well as the Commanding Officer and another five aviators among them. While a handful of the Americans joining the unit had previously served in the French Air Service, most were novice aviators just having mastered the most basic elements of flight, but after their first victory a month after being despatched, these amateur airmen rapidly matured into aces. They fought in some of the war’s largest campaigns, including the Battle of Verdun. As curiosity, they used a Sioux chief’s head as its emblem, both in badges and painted on their planes, and had two lion cubs as mascots, named Whiskey and Soda, purchased from a local circus and later donated to Paris Zoo. 🦁

This Universe of Guzbourine brings together our member of the squadron Randy, an American Cajun from Louisiana, and Lu Han, an also volunteer from Hunan who joined the little-known Chinese Labour Corps, a force of workers recruited by Britain and France to help the troops by performing support work and manual labour. They gradually meet each other in France, and even if this story –as you may imagine– will turn into a terrifying horror tale, Randy can’t help by lean on his NIEUPORT 11 to flirt with this handsome and skilled Chinese mechanic –who still can’t understand most of his words– to try to convince him to get a ride on his plane.