Alison Jones and King Sundew Search

Alison sat there by the porthole window, bored, fiddling with the strap of her Leica camera, when is this contraption going to finally take off? she wondered, stuck in Paris aboard a decaying old Imperial Airlines bi-plane from Croydon that morning. They were headed for Marseilles on the next leg of her trip to Juba in the Anglo Egyptian Sudan. At Marseilles they would change to a Short flying boat to cross the Mediterranean Sea and continue on their 10 day journey calling at Rome, Athens, Alexandria, Cairo and Khartoum among other cities before finally landing at Juba. Although Alison was looking forward to spending time in this fabulous places she was keen to get to Cairo where she would pick up all her gear that the Professor had sent on ahead by freight.

The Professor was based at the Sorbonne University in Paris and Alison had met him for lunch earlier in the day to finalise plans for her expedition to the Belgian Congo. The Sorbonne was world famous for its school of Palaeobotany and although Alison was somewhat surprised at receiving a telegram 5 days earlier saying that she has been chosen to take the lead in an upcoming expedition, she should not have been. Alison's father had long been a benefactor and contributor to the funding of the school from his earnings in the fledgling diamond market in Tanzania before he died along with Alison's mother in a car accident coming back from Monaco.

With a bit of time on her hands Alison read through her notes once more, although a dedicated botanist; extinct plants were of little interest to her as Alison was more interested in the here and now and not the past. But this particular study drew Alison's interest because the specimen study was of an evolutionary pre-runner to Droera regia, or the King Sundew to give it its common name. Droera regia is the world's largest flesh eating plant, a distant relative to the Venus Flytrap and only found in central Africa's tropical rain forests. She had plenty of time on her hands to get to know the subject so Alison settled into a restful sleep.

The stopovers were short and uneventful, Cairo was the only excitement as that is when she was able to go through all her gear needed for the expedition. She was tiring of the glitzy lifestyle she was leading, although the flapper and close fitting maxi dresses highlighted her shapely figure she longed to be back in her expedition clothing and roaming through plain and jungle alike armed only with her trusty Leica.

Eventually she arrived in Juba and then made it as far into the Congo rain forest as the poor train connection would let her. The final stage of her expedition would be on foot with a small team of native guides hand-picked by the Professor. They were three days into their expedition and there was still no trace of any live King Sundew let alone any fossilised remains, normally upbeat Alison was becoming a little brought down by the lack of adventure. Sure the rainforest was all that she expected it to be, it was lush, full of broad evergreen trees, she could hear the sound of monkeys up in the canopy and was fearful she may come across a band of gorillas. What would she do if they became aggressive towards the expedition team she thought to herself as she was cutting through the understory vines and ferns. She would soon find out.

The expedition team were all resting after a particularly difficult fourth morning, the rainforest seemed denser than before and the humidity was becoming unbearable to such an extent that her khaki shorts and skirt were soaked through with sweat. She took off her hat and shook her head in a vain attempt to stimulate some air movement through her hair. She had taken the precaution of cutting her long blonde hair short for this trip to avoid any issues with bugs and spiders trying to nest. Alison closed her eyes as she poured some canteen water over her head and the cool water fell down her face onto her now unbuttoned chest. She momentarily began to feel refreshed then she heard a loud rustle behind her, she turned around and came face to face with a Silverback.

Time stood still.

There were at least ten gorillas in the clearing with the Silverback at the front, tall and incredibly muscular in stature. No amount of research could have prepared Alison for what she was seeing. The other males were waiting his instruction. The native members of her expedition had fled, leaving all supplies in the open. The gorillas foraged through what there while the Silverback stared at Alison for what seemed an eternity. Then the Silverback stepped back and went to his troop, Alison seized the opportunity and went in the opposite direction careful not to make any noise that would attract the Silverback. When she was out of earshot she ran and ran and ran.

Alison had no idea where she was running to but she knew what she was running from. She paused for breath, all she had upon herself was the clothes she was half wearing, a canteen and her camera thankfully still attached to her belt. Great she thought, no chance of getting hold of those supplies and at least three full days travel with only half a canteen of water to drink. Should she wait to see if the expedition party returns or go on ahead alone? She favoured the former but the later got the better of her tomboy side. So Alison set off.

It would be night fall in a few hours, with the dense canopy making the jungle dark even in daytime she needed to find safe refuge soon. She had learned a few jungle tricks in the short time she has been in the rain forest, she could collect fresh water easily and there were some low hanging fruits to be had so food was no issue. Alison climbed a vine and made for a hollowed tree trunk for shelter that night. She was used to the night time cacophony and that night it seemed like strangely like harmony to her. She was alone and up a tree in the middle of the rainforest, but to Alison this seemed somehow much more appealing than been squeezed into maxi dress at one of the Professor awful dinner parties.

Alison woke refreshed and ready for day one of her three day trek back to civilisation, albeit an empty railway halt. She set off and stopped a few times in the first hour to photograph some amazing plants, she had the jungle to herself, no silly fossilised Sundews to find and log. Then while she was bent over looking down on the rainforest floor, Alison spotted some large pink flowers, easy to pick out against the green understory of the rainforest. These flowers were large even in comparison to the rest of the rainforest fauna and very pink and strangely lip shaped. They intrigued Alison. The green leaves were long and thin, similar to the machetes that the expedition natives were using. Alison was fascinated by this plant, she cast her mind back to her notes and the characteristics of this plant was similar to that of the King Sundew only much larger in size.

Alison moved closer so she was almost in touching distance, took out her camera and went to take some photos. While she was focusing the lens, she felt a strange sensation against her bare leg, Alison looked down and noticed that one of the lower leaves had somehow become tangled around her lower calf, she went to pull it away but found that it was quite sticky to the touch and was had almost glued itself to her leg. Another leaf moved, Alison could scarcely believe what she was seeing but the leave started to coil around her other leg, again sticking fast to her skin. Suddenly she could see movement all around her, more leaves were coiling around her legs, now her bare thighs were caught up in this plant's leaves.

Alison started to panic, the threat that was posed by the Silverback paled into insignificance when compared to what was happening to Alison right now. She could not move, she saw that each leaf was tenticular in nature, and covered in spines that were secreting a thick, sticky mucus resin to help capture its prey. "My God!" Alison suddenly thought, she had been trapped by the very thing she had been sent to study, photograph and log.

"Help, someone please help me! shouted Alison in vain, she had been trapped by this flesh eating plant. Her upper body was now seemingly shackled, the plant's leaves had wrapped themselves around her breasts and her back from beneath her now ripped shirt, her arms were caught and two of the plant's leaves had also made their way up beneath her ripped shorts. The last thing that Alison remembered about the plant was a leaf winding itself around her neck, tightening all the while, she had passed out by the time a hunter/gather party of the Batwa came across her.

Alison's eyes opened, she was laid out on a feathered vine bed in a village mud hut. She was still feeling groggy and trying to understand what had happened when she noticed some movement around her then nothing, silence. She fell unconscious again. This time when Alison awoke her eyes were more in focus and she felt much better, she then noticed the ropes that were tied to her wrists and ankles that were restraining her. She then felt the stinging pain across her still naked breasts and between her legs, where she was also without any clothing, all she had on were her boots. Alison was trying to make sense of what was going on when in walked three native women.

The three native women all carried two wooden pots, each containing some form of lotion. The medicine man had been in to see Alison's wounds while she was asleep and had made up two herbal remedies. None of the natives had seen pale skin before, this tribe were almost black in skin pigment, Alison was quite the opposite. The women were no more than young girls Alison surmised, as they made there way towards her, giggling as they walked towards her. The medicine man struck what must have been his medicine staff against the soil floor in an effort to silence the girls. Alison had learned of the pygmy tribes in the Congo rainforest but these natives seemed taller.

Immediately the native girls stopped giggling then started to pay attention to where Alison's skin was at its most red; her breasts and between her upper thighs. One of the girls made her way to the base of the vine bed and the other two went higher so that one stood either side of Alison so that each were within reach of Alison's breasts. The girls were naked apart from woven grass skirts that offered protection and to cover their modesty. The girls where slim and yet to come to the age of body decoration when they would be given to one of the male members of the tribe to be their wife.

Alison's pale skin made it easy for the girls to find where the leaves had taken hold, the plants leaves had chosen the parts of her body that would yield the highest nutrient content, lactose and proteins from her breasts and the proteins from her vaginal juices. Luckily for Alison she was still a virgin so her body was yet to provide the nutrients the plant desired.

One of the girls started to apply some of the lotion to her side, it smarted and stung badly, the lotion was made with the juice from the plentiful jungle lemon and other acidic fruits that are found in the rainforest. The girl worked the lotion into the skin, the acid would kill the spores that were left in Alison's skin when the men removed the stuck leaves. The second girl joined in on her other side, closer to one of Alison's bare breasts. Alison winced at the thought of the stinging sensation she was about to endure around a very sensitive area. Alison liked the sensitivity on the top of her breasts, at home she often found herself stroking her breasts absentmindedly when reading through journals during her studies, but no one else has touched her breasts before this moment.

The native girl knew that this lotion would be painful for Alison, and Alison could see the look of concern on her apologetic face. So the girl gently applied the acid lotion with a fur tipped bone and traced the red line of the spores left by the leaf from the soft underside of Alison's righthand side breast, across the top of her nipple and then along the top of her breast and up to her shoulder. Alison cried out in pain, she now understood why she was tied down to the bed. The acid had to dwell on her skin for only a short time, soon all of the areas on the front of her upper body had been treated. While she waited in agony for the pain to die way she saw the two native girls immerse their hands in the second pots.

The second pots contained an aloe vera lotion intended to sooth the treated areas, the two girls worked together to apply the welcome sedative. They both worked using their fingers and palms of their hands with one of the girls paying special attention to Alison's sore breast and in particular her nipple. As their hands worked in the soothing lotion the stinging sensations began to ease and Alison felt a different kind of sensation, a strange one of pleasure as the two native girls continued on. Occasionally the lotion would spill on to the native girls own bodies and they would either rub it to their own skin or sometimes one girl would rub in the lotion if the other was busy tending to Alison. Two native men then came in and released the rope ties to turn Alison over so that the two girls could attend to her back. All the while the third older looking girl would just watch on.

Alison did not put up a struggle when tied down again revealing her back, the men left and the two younger looking girls repeated the same process, this time Alison knew what to expect as was waiting for the painful sting knowing that soon it would be soothed. There was only one spore trail across Alison's bottom and this ran low, horizontally from one side to the other. The medicine man once more came in and tapped his staff, the two younger girls left, only the older girl remained. The older girl said nothing, just pausing for a moment to look, then dipped her bone in the acid lotion. The girl then blew gently across Alison's cheeks to stimulate the spores to make them easier to remove. Alison was not expecting this and felt quite vulnerable as the older native girl blew across her left cheek, she seemed to pause for a moment, still blowing, just where Alison's cheeks would touch. The native girl gently parted Alison's cheeks, then continued on. Alison felt the first dab of the acid stick and winced knowing what was to come, the girl then moved her attention to the back of Alison's thighs and then again at each calf. Alison was getting used to the sensations that her body was experiencing was, she thought, prepared for when the two native men would re-enter and turn her over, revealing once more her naked self to the older native girl.

This time the native girl started above Alison's ankles, her trusty boots having protected her feet and toes. Alison was more than relieved that the leaves never got higher that her inner thighs, for one reason in particular, hair. Alison never felt the need to shave, she is a natural woman. The thought of having the native men pull the leaves away from an area where no man has seen let alone touched was to much to think about. The older girl continued upwards to Alison's thighs with the acid bone, Alison had to part her legs slightly so that there would be no transfer from one leg to the other. The stinging was more intense here, maybe the spores were deeper and the older girl had stronger acid or maybe Alison's senses were heightened because of the events that were unfolding. Once again, the aloe vera lotion was applied, but this time the girl only used her fingers, she seemed more skilful than the two younger girls before her. Alison was more aware of this girls fingers now as they moved up the back of her thighs towards her bottom, how high would she go wondered Alison.

The two native men entered the hut once more and the ritual process was repeated only this time they propped her upper body and head up so that Alison could see what was going on. Alison was more prepared now that she could see the older girl's movements the two younger girls this time came in and stood either side of Alison also looking down at the older girl. Alison's senses were at an all-time high as the older girl applied the acid, with each dab Alison flinched even more than the previous one. Alison began to shake as the acid bone reached ever closer to 'that place' as her mother used to refer. The leaves never got there so why was she heading closer with the acid bone thought Alice as she began to squirm, the two girls either side began to restrain her. Then she pulled back the acid bone much to Alison's relief.

Alison was aware of the stinging sensations all over her legs and was again grateful as the older girl applied the aloe vera lotion with her skilful fingers again from the ankles upwards. As she reached Alison's thighs she nodded to the two younger girls who then promptly placed their hands in the aloe vera pots. Alison wondered what was going to happen next, her breasts, particularly her right one was still a bit sore. The two younger girls waited. The older girl continued up towards 'that place' with her fingers. Alison was now quite nervous although the experience was pleasurable. The older girls fingers now reached Alison's hair line, as she was blonde the outline of her pink labia was obvious to the native girls whose hair was much more dense and darker.

Alison could do nothing about what was happening as the older girl's fingers moved along her labia but she did notice for the first time that the native girls' breasts were slightly higher then hers and that the older girl's breasts were firm and full while the two younger girls had yet to fully develop. Alison was intact as she was still a virgin, the older girl felt this and stopped immediately. Confused, Alison sat there, she felt strange at the thought of the older girl's actions and coupled with the two younger girls, whose lotioned hands were all over her breasts, for the first time Alison felt aroused.

Had the older girl gone to get a male to come in and take her thought Alison, after all she was a virgin as all the other girls must be so that they can be promised to a male. She felt ill at the thought of a native male taking her in this way, she often thought of how she would lose her virginity on her wedding night and it was certainly not on makeshift bed in a mud hut in deepest darkest Africa.

The men came back into the hut and removed the rope ties and then took her outside, this was the first Alison saw of the village and its tribe. Now she was genuinely scared. They took her and bound her arms and legs to two upright posts in the centre of the village. Another man appeared, grander than all others. This must be the chief she thought. Night would soon fall so fires were lit in the clearing and the tribal drums were being played with all the men of the village in line, no women to be seen. Then the older girl from the mud hut appeared with what looked like war paint on her face which accentuated her high cheekbones and her dark eyes, she had what looked like another bone, larger than before, tied around her neck, resting on her high firm breasts, all that she as wearing was a small leopard skin skirt.

The men played on the drums and chanted in rhythm to their beat, all the while two men where rubbing some form of grease or animal fat all over the near naked body of the older girl. The chief looked on and nodded to the medicine man who in turn came over to Alison and applied the same all over Alison's trembling body. He came round to face her after doing her back and smiled broadly at Alison as his greased hand slid between her legs back and forth a couple of times. The medicine man is the only man allowed to touch a female there prior to marriage. Unbeknown to Alison, he had carried out the ceremonial fertility right.

Nsamba was being consumed in large quantities by both the men on the drums and the women in the mud huts. It was only good fortune that there was some palm wine being fermented otherwise the ceremony could not go ahead. The medicine man approached Alison and was carrying a rhino horn filled with Nsamba, he forced her to drink this cloudy white sap extracted from the many palm trees. It tasted sour and not dissimilar to the stiff gin cocktail that the Professor would make, and too, force her to drink but in slightly different circumstances and then tell stories of his time in Africa.