Love in a Firefight

He learned she had an additional, kinky motive. With Tyson's head now level with the top of the desk she grabbed the back of his head and pulled her cunt into his face. In his pleasure-drunk state there was nothing he could do. When the command came down, as if from some higher authority, "Lamerme, Tyson", he had no choice but to comply. He knew what was in there but licked dutifully. He cleaned her out and didn't stop servicing her until her sultry whimpers became agonized cries and his face was glazed by her own creamy cum.

His task completed, he collapsed. Tyson felt himself being pulled through the floor into an all-consuming underworld, where he would sleep in an ecstatic coma for as long as Maria wanted. The last thing he heard was her voice, echoing as if from the top of a deep mineshaft as she reached down to hold his cheeks in her palms, "Death has its benefits, no?"

3 -The Strangler Tree

Tyson found himself on a cot, regaining awareness like a convalescent, in what looked like a field hospital. He was surrounded by injured men, government soldiers and cartel militia strangely side-by-side. Even stranger, nobody seemed to care that he was there.

To his right was a man with large, regretful eyes staring right back at him. He was in a yellowy wife-beater with a grey beard that reached down to the scoop. The man's cheekbones protruded and his nose was narrow through light malnutrition. When he engaged Tyson his short-sightedness gave his darting eyes an air of worry.

"Hombre, you're addicted already. You'll be a junkie like me."

"Huh?"

"The strangler has you already. She creeps-."

He coughed into his elbow pit.

"She got me a long time ago, and this is what I am now. Not much to look at, eh? But I used to be brass, hombre. A leader of men, you hear me?"

Tyson was trying to ignore him and get his thoughts together, but the man kept tugging his arm.

"I've watched her climb the ranks and consume this place. She works slow to the eye, like a creeping vine, but I didn't fear her until I was already choking."

He gestured the yank of a noose around a neck, before his eyes brightened and half-smile played on his lips.

"But man, now she's taken out Hidalgo she's got a big problem."

Tyson pulled him back and humored him for a moment.

"So she has me, Buddy?"

"Yeah man, she's got you. The sooner you know that the more chance you have of escaping."

"And why don't you escape?"

"I can't. The strangler has my legs, man. They don't move like I want them to - only how she wants. I don't stand a chance. None of these idiotas do, but at least I can think straight. In a few hours these men will be slaves."

He pushed his face into Tyson's and got shoved away immediately.

"But I see that look in your eyes. You fucked her. I know that look. If you're fucking her you have a chance. Remember this though - when she's done with you, you are done."

The man chuckled ruefully.

"Because I know I'm done."

He twirled a dirty finger in a quick tour of his cot, footlocker and a small bedside table, the drawers of which were stuffed to overflowing with some kind of material.

"This is me. "

Tyson dismissed him as crazy. But the man grabbed his hand to introduce himself.

"Ricardo Zarra."

The name rang a bell, but Tyson couldn't remember the source.

"James Tyson."

"A gringo! You think I'm nuts my friend. But I tell you - you're the one deluding yourself. You won't believe me now, but think about me and remember. That smell, man, it gets into you. It takes you over."

"I mean fuck man, two years ago she arrives out of the forest - from nowhere, like a goddamn Patasola. And now she has this place to herself - Hidalgo's connects are dealing with her now. - but like I tell you, the organisation sees it, even if you don't. They're coming from Pacoa. They'll be here in a day or two. If they win we'll cut the vine. I'll be free - you'll be free, man."

A sudden gloom descended upon him.

"They haven't won yet though. The strangler gets them. Matapalo gets them every time. She creeps."

Tyson refused to pay attention any longer and let the man ramble away by himself. Besides, he had his own problems to consider. Whoever Maria was, he needed to smooth things out with her, and make his way out of the country. It occurred to him that when the opportunity arose he could just gather his stuff and high-tail it out of there.

But he felt a sense of duty to part with her in the right way. De-briefing would be simpler that way; they could get their stories straight, he could explain his resurrection, and he still hoped he could cover up the fact that he had fucked her a couple of times...

His train of thought was broken by a fanfare over the camp's PA.

Zarra grabbed him. "Time to assemble, hombre. You don't want to be late for that. You might see what I'm talking about."

The cabin emptied, and within a minute some 100 men were standing on the compound's muddy parade ground, a few women dotted among them. A small crowd of technicians approached from the drug factory tents. The low cloud deposited warm, heavy rain on the assembly, which formed a ring around Maria, alone at the centre.

"Everyone here, it doesn't matter where you came from, now has the same job - to defend this camp. Throw down your lives if that's what it takes. Make no mistake they are coming for us - from the government, and from the misguided cartel pendejos who won't accept the inevitable."

She strutted in front of the crowd as she spoke.

"We will be ready for them. You who wanted to kill me yesterday now belong to us."

As she demanded complete loyalty of the same people who had attacked the camp the day before someone snapped. "Puta!" A young soldier charged at her, knife drawn, fending off members of the crowd that tried to keep him back. Maria merely stood still and watched him approach.

When he came within striking distance the man forgot what he wanted to do, instead dropping to the ground as if paralysed. He exclaimed "Fuck!" with a blood-curdling scream as his knife made a splash in a puddle. Tyson saw a face racked in terror and confusion.

"I can play you all like an instrument. If you play along it will be joyful and gratifying for all of you. If you fight me I will take you down. And if you continue to resist you will end up like him."

Everyone followed her finger, which was pointing at the pathetic figure of Ricardo Zarra, the man who had been bothering Tyson. She hadn't even looked down at the man beneath her on the ground yet.

"This time I shall be merciful. While she was talking the man at her feet started panting, and now he was beginning to arch his back. With perfect balance Maria slipped a foot from her boot and hooked her big toe into the waistband of his pants.

Still facing the crowd with a confident smile, she tugged the man's pants down, uncovering a cock that spurted a cascade of semen over his body without any apparent stimulus. She then pushed the sole of her foot on to his chest as he collapsed, supine into the greyish mud. There were murmurs in the crowd as the newcomers tried to process what they were witnessing.

"Dismissed! Except for you and you."

She had selected an attractive female soldier, and Tyson. He couldn't admit it to himself but he felt deep gratification when her finger pointed at him. He was falling for her, and for the time being, everything else was dropping by the wayside.

Passing by, Zarra gave him a knowing glance referring to what they had just witnessed.

"Remember what I told you."

4 - Love now, pay later

Maria's cabin looked nothing like the rest of the camp. Instead of a rusty cot she enjoyed a large four-poster bed with clean white sheets. Tyson felt faintly sorry for the poor people who had made this luxury possible for her. On the floor were soft fur rugs, but what hit Tyson most was that same scent of burnt honey, more agreeable than ever. It put him at ease and made his mind drift.

In the candlelight of the hut he paid the soldier a sideways glance. Her wavy black hair was in a ponytail, and compared to Maria's dark and mysterious features her face was a picture of innocence. She couldn't have been much older than 20, but given she was a captive she betrayed no hint of fear. She was already in love.

She was dressed in a camo jumpsuit, which Maria had started to peel from her body. Her face was oval, with large, circular eyes and a cute, slightly upturned nose. In their natural state her lips curled up to reveal her front teeth. She had a gawky innocence about her, but Maria saw something else.

When she was down to the white supportive t-shirt Tyson saw her ample chest, which Maria made a point of admiring.

"Your name."

"Cardozo...Emilia." She said calmly, practically transfixed.

Maria raised a palm to her soft cheeks, which she stroked with a single finger. "Do you want to be like me, Emilia?" Maria asked, tilting Emilia's chin with that finger to meet her gaze.

"Si, Señora."

"Yes, I could sense it the moment I saw you cariña. Then it shall be. But it will take time. When the day comes you and I will go to the heart virgin forest, and immense power will take seed inside you."

Emilia's tanned cheeks began to flush and she gasped. Oblivious to everything but arousal, Tyson looked on, his cock stiffening as he watched the exchange. He was in his own little world - a bystander waiting patiently to be called upon.

Maria pulled Emilia's chin lightly towards her and their lips met in a damp kiss. Maria's tongue began to plunge into her apprentice's mouth and in synchrony she brought a delicate hand to the young woman's breasts. Seeing her at this remove, Tyson was transfixed by the liquid motion of Maria's hands. They had their own intelligence, a heightened instinct for arousal and weakness.

They slipped over and around Emilia's heavy breasts as whimpers escaped her curled lips, and when Maria sensed Emilia's pleasure she homed in on its source. Her fingers worked their way under the material of her t-shirt to the sound of urgent and prolonged whimpers.

Tyson could only look on helplessly as Maria's hands then flowed into Emilia's panties, one to the front, one slipping down her lower back and bulging under the material of her underwear.

Tyson was unaware of any sound but Emilia's ever more aroused groans and the saturated noise of Maria's fingers filling her ass and vagina.

With Emilia coming to the first of a medley of orgasms, Maria addressed Tyson, squaring up to him and running her hands through his hair.

"Today I show you that there is no authority higher than me."

"Today you will feel more pleasure than you have ever known. It will reenergise, and each time you give yourself to us will be more sacred than the last. Give yourself, Tyson."

Tyson wasn't sure what she meant, but nodded sleepily, and followed Maria's cue as she removed Emilia's panties and helped the younger woman onto the bed. Maria guided Tyson between her legs where he could see her primed, pink vagina overflowing with juices that glazed her swelling lips. As Maria drew his pants down he made eye contact with Emilia who was possessed with desire.

With her thumb resting under his shaft, Maria ushered the shiny head of Tyson's cock into Emilia, who succumbed to another orgasm as her sensitized vagina accommodated him in shuddering stages. She writhed in place, and Tyson couldn't wait for her to become composed again before sliding all the way into her.

He was relieved that he could show off his stamina to the two women, and was proud of the way he made Emilia quiver and cum over and over. After a time, Maria's hands began to caress the bare skin of the lovers, and mouthed in his ear strange words that he couldn't follow.

It didn't make a difference now, as Emilia's muscles contracted again and a sharp, tortured scream broke the silence of her long intake of breath. Seeing her twisting in absolute abandon sent a symphony of tingles down his shaft. He couldn't hold out any longer - his cock was compelled to erupt inside her in a perfect simultaneous climax.

Tyson was spent, tumbling onto Emilia's soft bosom before rolling onto his back. In the indistinct gloom, through dewy eyes, he then saw Maria mount him. He wanted to apologise and tell her that he couldn't possibly go again - but when her fingertip dabbed on his frenulum he felt a raw, energizing lust that almost made him double up in ecstasy. Emilia's mouth dipped onto his cum-coated cock, as if to clean it for Maria and restore its firmness.

Tyson still entertained the far-off notion of making Maria cum first. This he forgot as soon as he was inside her, because her vagina knew what it took to draw thick semen from his cock. Intensifying his pleasure was the sight of Maria on top, looking down as she rode him while Emilia dipped her head to take Maria's beautiful nipples into her mouth. He could tell that Maria loved this position, and that she felt most comfortable while dominating her lover. It would be one of the few things he would remember clearly afterwards.

For the time being it slipped to the back of his mind as he came again, remaining implausibly erect for Maria to buck to her own orgasm. With each climax a wave of endorphins numbed every nerve in his body except for that insatiable cock. Maria pulled her slim frame onto Tyson's face, and as his tongue darted around her vulva and up to her clitoris he felt the pressure of another body on his hips. Unsighted, he sensed the tip of his cock slipping once more into Emilia, amid a cacophony of moans backed by the faint gurgles of moist genitals meeting in lust.

Tyson felt like he was in the plunge pool of a sexual waterfall, ensconced by numbing pleasure and never able to resurface to clarity. He couldn't remember when he finally lost consciousness, but in the flickering candlelight he turned to see Maria and Emilia entwined, kissing, writhing and giggling conspiratorially.

"Pronto tendrá nada." "Soon he will have nothing."

When they saw him awake Maria hurried him out of the hut into the darkness. It was a rare clear night, and looking up at the stars Tyson realised he had lost almost a whole day. As he prepared to return to his camp bed next to Zarra Maria's door opened and she threw something to him. "Oh, take these. A pair for you, and a pair for Señor Zarra too." Cheekily, she blew him a kiss before closing the door, and he stood there alone.

Maria had given him a small bundle of a grey spandex-like material, which he pulled apart to reveal two pairs of Maria's shorts. Maria had fucked him wearing those, and they were still damp. Even in the open air the scent of her juices made him weak; his cock didn't just become hard, it was a strain to keep himself from cumming in his pants. Tyson reeled, and the scent triggered a vivid flashback, bringing not only Maria's image back to his consciousness, but the tangible feel of her unearthly fingers exploring his body and that mellifluous voice purring in his ears, working its way to his core. Tyson shuddered and came hard into his pants.

When he delivered the second pair to Zarra, the scruffy man beheld them with an unnerving mixture of delight and disgust, before pressing them to his face and falling into a stupor.

And right then Tyson understood the road that he was on. Maria wasn't even making a secret of it, so confident was she of her power over him. As he lay back on his bed he resolved to escape, at any cost.

5 - Hatching the plan

"It's not her real name, amigo."

Zarra had noticed that Tyson was awake and whispered in the darkness.

"Huh?"

"Maria Matapalo, it's a nickname."

"Matapalo is a plant that grows on other trees. Slowly it takes over. It climbs the tree's branches to get more sun, it takes its food and moisture from the ground. It never stops. The creepers twist and squeeze, closing tighter until it strangles the tree."

Zarra cupped his hands brought his fingertips together as if to demonstrate.

"Wait, have you even eaten since you got here?"

Tyson tried to recall. He couldn't be sure.

"Eat man. If you're going to get out of here you got to be strong."

Tyson checked his pants and found a tube of something from a ration pack. He had no appetite but squeezed it into his mouth anyway. He sat for a moment as freight trucks rolled past, delivering more payloads of raw coca for production.

The paste hit the spot. He was thinking clearer now, and the urgency of his predicament made him panic.

"I've got to escape - tell me what I can do to get out of here!"

"Easy - call your guys and go home."

Tyson grumbled petulantly, "Maria's hidden my gear. I can't face her. She...does something to me."

"Well you can't run out into the forest without a transit. In every direction there's nothing but swamp and mountains. But don't forget the jaguars and caimanes also ...you'll be dead in a day or two. You could steal a vehicle, but we have checkpoints all along the road."

All at once, Zarra recalled something crucial and burst into life.

"Ay, I know - you gotta defeat her!"

"But when I see her I fucking lose it. I can't fight her."

"No man, you have to beat her - at sex. You have to dominate her. I mean, fuck her till she screams and finish on her fucking face, man."

This was the first time Tyson had seen any sign of life in the man, but he doubted the strategy.

"She always lasts longer than me", offered Tyson helplessly. He felt like a whiny teenager, and was ashamed at how weak he sounded. This creeping dependency for Maria was making it difficult to summon any kind of resolve. Zarra was his only hope.

"Listen to me - we aren't talking about a human here. You need to speak her primitive language and become the Alpha dog. She has one weakness: Fuck her in the ass, hombre. She may resist at first, but not for long."

"What if she's already done with me?"

"You still want to escape, fool. You still have spirit. She won't stop until she takes it all and you're left a slave. As long as you have some spirit she'll come back for you. Fuck her in the ass and you'll assert yourself once more."

It was worth a shot.

The men sat in silence in the darkness - the lone independent spirits in a garrison of drones. As crazy as Zarra was, his advice was all Tyson had. A couple more days and he could find himself in a shitstorm with the army and cartel closing in.

And if by some miracle he survived that he could turn into one of these worshipful zombies around him, or even another Zarra - a hopeless addict getting off on the smell of Maria's pussy, all the while hating her.

If this was indeed a spell, he wanted to break the shit out of it.

*****

The story continues with "Love in a Firefight - Victory", or "Love in a Firefight - Defeat". Thanks for reading.