Chapter 1: The Magic Tinderbox

"Once upon a time a brave soldier returned from the wars."

In this chaotic world, in the spring of 2024, we start our story in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia.

Major Simon Woodsman just wanted to go home. He had spent the last few months battling rioters and trying to help rebuild civilization in what was left of the nation's capitol. Despite his valorous service, he had nothing to show for the time he that had spent protecting his country except for the uniform on his back and the 9mm pistol strapped to his hip. He hadn't seen a paycheck in three months and the unit he had commanded had been whittled away by casualties and desertions until the brass sent him an email and told him to go home.

Simon had been walking for four days, ever since his HMMWV had run out of gas. His feet were swollen and his stomach growled but he kept telling himself that the walk down the Old Valley Road was therapeutic. He hoped that the crisp air and beautiful scenery would combine to erode the cynicism that had built up inside him during the riots.

He entered Green Springs, a wide spot alongside the road, on the fifth day of his hike. He felt as if he'd left all the world's troubles back in the big city as he walked along Green Springs' tree lined streets. People sat outside their houses chatting and kids played in their yards.

Before the Troubles, people would have waved from their porches and tossed out comments about the weather. But now things were different. The street got quiet as he passed, as if he pushed a bow wave of silence in front of him. Conversations paused, the women watching him while the men went inside to get their weapons. Simon kept moving and the conversations resumed, with a new topic, as soon as he had passed.

He was almost out of town when he was shocked by a friendly voice. "Hey soldier. Been walking far?" The voice belonged to a cute blond who had been edging the sidewalk in front of her small bungalow.

"About five days." Simon admitted, trying hard not to stare at her shapely petite form. If she were outgoing enough to talk with him, he thought, maybe she'd let him bunk down someplace out of the weather. Even sleeping on the porch would be preferable to crawling under a tree for another night so he tried hard to mind his manners.

"Where you headed to?" She leaned against the edger, stretching her shoulders back.

Simon shuffled his feet, looking quickly at the cracked sidewalk before she caught him staring at the tan swell of her breasts that rose under the old workshirt she wore.

She shot him a crooked smile that wrinkled the corners of her bright blue eyes. "Come on up to the house. You look like you could use a cold drink."

Simon mumbled something that he hoped sounded like an agreement and hitched his pack up on to his shoulder as he unlatched the chain link gate and let himself in. He latched the gate and turned to see her tight round denim clad ass as she climbed the front steps and entered the house. He followed her in and stopped in the little foyer, stunned by the quaint hominess of the house.

"Is there anything wrong?" She had taken off her shoes and now silently moved through dining room with a large glass of water in her hands.

"Uhhhh. No... Everything is great. I mean, this is real nice of you." The words stumbled over his tongue.

Simon didn't want to dump his troubles on this lady. For the last six months, he had witnessed the worst aspects of humanity - kidnapping, rape, arson, vigilante killings, and mob violence. Everyone had shared the same scared look, wondering when it would be there turn to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

But here. Now. This was completely different. Almost like the home that he had lived in. The home that had disappeared forever.

"Still with me?" Her blue eyes locked on to his with a slight worried look. "You look like you could use a hot meal and a good night's sleep." Without waiting for a response, she took his arm and led him through to the kitchen.

Taking charge, she sat him at the little wooden table. "So what brings you to Green Springs, Major Woodsman?"

Simon's head snapped up at the sound of his name. But then he realized that she had just read his name tag above his right pocket.

She continued as if she hadn't noticed. "Would you mind if I put your pistol in the hallway? I don't mean to sound rude, but..." She left the rest unsaid as if searching for the right phrase.

"Oh it's no problem." Simon unbuckled his gun belt and handed it to her. He watched her hand the belt in the hallway closet. Right above the shotgun that leaned against the wall.

"I was just passing through. Heading back to see my folks in Staunton." Simon took another large swallow of water. The ice cubes numbed his lips. "I've been working up around DC."

She nodded her head sympathetically. He finished his water, embarrassed by the silence but unable to find anything else worth saying. "Thanks for the water." He set the glass carefully on the table and wiped his hands nervously on his pants. "I was wondering if I could ask one more favor. I can't pay you or anything, but if it wouldn't be any bother I was wondering if you'd mind me sleeping on your porch. Just to spend a night under a roof you understand."

He felt a flush of embarrassment creep up his neck. It sounded like he was a beggar instead of an Army officer. Before she could answer he stood to leave.

"Why not." She looked at him with that smile again, the pink tip of her tongue playing across her lips. "But I'll tell you what." She stood and faced him, close enough that her breasts brushed against his chest as she led him into the hallway. "I've got some things that need to be done around this old rat trap of a house. If you've got some time to spend on a few odd jobs I think I can find someplace better than the porch for you to sleep."

Simon quickly agreed and the lady, she said her name was Laura Buckley, led him into the back yard. Pointing at a huge pile of wood, she handed him a wood maul and showed him where to stack the split wood before she went back inside. He started splitting the wood, stacking it neatly against the fence so that it wouldn't fall over.

Every so often he would see her watching him through the kitchen door. It was dusk before she called him in from the kitchen stoop. Simon wiped the sweat from his brow and collected his jacket from the fence, anxious for dinner.

She moved his rucksack into the smaller bedroom and showed him where the shower was. Simon couldn't believe his luck as he stood under the hot shower. After scrubbing the grime off his skin, he stood dripping in the shower, his skin looking healthy and pink for a change. Pushing aside the curtain, he wiped water from his eyes as he stepped over the rim of the tub.

Lucky or not, he wasn't ready for the sight in front of him. There, perched on the laundry hamper, sat Laura with her legs crossed, with one hand teasing a pert nipple. She wore nothing but her crooked smile. Her medium sized breasts were only a shade lighter than the rest of her tan body. As she uncrossed her legs, he could see that the same could be said of her closely trimmed mound.

She tossed him a small towel. Leaning back against the wall, she let one hand lightly trace across her firm stomach to rest at the top of her slit. Her nostrils dilated as she took a deep breath of hot humid air.

"Go on." Her voice was husky. "Dry off. I want to watch you before we go into the bedroom."

There was no mistaking what she planned for him once they got into the bedroom. He dried off with the towel, never taking his eyes from hers. When he was done, she slid off her perch and pressed her body against his, raising her lips for a kiss.

"Give the lady what she wants." Simon muttered as he bent to kiss her. His cock swelled as their damp bodies pressed together. He ran his hand along her spine to the cleft of her ass cheeks, pulling her tightly against him. They stood kissing and groping each other for several minutes. Finally Laura came up for air.

Squeezing his ass with both hands, she ground her stomach against his turgid cock one last time before taking his hand and leading him into the master bedroom. Simon's cock bobbed in front of him, pointing at her ass like a divining rod.

She stood on the small oval throw rug in front of the bed and grasped his pole with one hand. Leaning from the waist she quickly licked the clear pre-cum from his cock head. Simon groaned with pleasure. He'd forgotten how good it could feel.

Looking back up from his cock, Laura teased him. "If I let you cum now, you've got to promise that you'll get it up again for my pussy."

Without waiting for an answer she knelt in front of him, still holding his cock in her fist. Starting at the head, she licked and nibbled her way from its tip to his balls. Holding his cock up against his stomach she licked his balls, sucking first one than the other testicle into her mouth.

Simon could feel the cum working its way through his cock. He felt her finger slide under his balls and tickle the spot between his sack and his asshole. Then she drew a line along the bottom of his pole with her hot tongue, making him groan as he thrust his hips toward her mouth in a silent plea for more. His balls tightened and it felt as if his cock was going to erupt like a volcano but Laura's tight grip on the base of his penis held him in check.

She knew what she was doing. Looking up at his face from underneath his cock, she smiled as she popped the swollen purple cockhead into her mouth. Bobbing her head in slow measured strokes she took all eight inches of his tumescent meat into her mouth until he felt himself nudge the back of her throat. She paused.

He held her hair back from her face so that he could watch her swallow him. There was something beautiful about a woman sucking cock and Laura was definitely an artist at work. Her eyes were closed, not tightly but almost as if she were dreaming. Then she pressed her head forward and let his cock into her throat until her nose buried itself in the dark curls at the base of his shaft.

She deep throated him for a few more strokes before releasing her grasp on his member. Simon felt his cock explode. An animal cry escaped from his lips as his seed, held back by her tight grip, now flooded her mouth in hot thick spurts. Laura swallowed as much as she could, her throat working as the torrent poured down her throat, some of it spilling on to her chin and breasts.

Simon felt his knees weaken and he placed his hands on her shoulders to steady himself. Laura, her lips still coated in his thick seed, held his hips as she let his still thick cock out of her mouth. Coming to her feet, she stood on her tiptoes and kissed him deeply. He could taste the strange salty flavor of his cum on her tongue and smell it on her skin.

Breaking the kiss, she steered him backwards on to the bed. He laid across the bed spread, his feet still on the floor and his still leaking cock flopped over on his thigh.

"I've got another job for you to do while you recuperate" she said as she climbed over his chest to straddle his chin.

He didn't need her to tell him what to do next. The musky smell of her swollen vulva enveloped him. Simon flattened his tongue and used it to plow a furrow between her smooth labia from her hole to her clit. Her sharp intake of breath told him that he was doing all right. She rose on her knees, pressing her cunt against his face, while he concentrated on licking and sucking her labia, carefully avoiding contact with her distended nubbin.

"Gahhhhdammm. That's it. Lick me. That's it baby, suck my cunnie. That's what I want." She pushed herself against his chin as he probed her love tunnel with his tongue. Her juices threatened to drown him but he gladly lapped up the sweet syrupy fluid.

Pulling her off his mouth, he let his tongue lead the way up her slit toward her clit. Flicking his tongue against her clit hood, Simon made her squirm before he placed his mouth over her clit and sucked in. Laura clamped his head between her firm thighs like a vise but he maintained the suction on her delicate nub. Her orgasm ripped through her making her plunge and buck like a rodeo bronco.

Simon didn't release her until she slumped forward on to the bed. Gently rolling her off his face, he climbed up to lay beside her as she struggled to catch her breath. He brushed hair out of her eyes and quietly held her. The lay silent for a moment and then Simon could feel her small warm hand stroking his cock back into rigidity.

He rolled on to his back and let her caress him. Pulling her closer, he nuzzled against her breast, sucking a nipple into his mouth and teasing it until it became hard. She pushed him back as she leaned over to the night stand and fumbled with the drawer.

Retrieving a small packet, she ripped open the foil and held the condom gingerly between her fingertips. "Would you mind?"

"Not at all." Hell, he didn't care if she wanted him to smear molasses on his ass and dance the fandango as long as he got to put his cock inside her.

Simon wanted to take it slow and gentle, trying to make it last but his body got away from him. He surprised himself with his energy. She threw her ankles over his shoulders, spreading herself for his penetration. There was no time for endearments, the only sounds in the room where the squeaking bed springs, the wet slap of their skin as he pounded his cock into her cunt, and her grunts has his cock bottomed out on her cervix at the end of each stroke. Even though they had both just cum and neither was a teenager, they fucked each other into a dripping sweat. Throwing his head back Simon cried out, his cum filling the rubber. Laura was only seconds behind him, her velvety soft cunt quivering in orgasmic spasms against his iron hard cock.

He collapsed on top of her and felt his chest burn as he gasped for air. She placed her hand against his chest and felt his heart hammering inside his ribs. Simon rolled off her to let her breathe and lay on the bed as if dead.

Letting his eyes run across the room and its furnishings, he idly looked for clues about this woman who had taken him in off the street like a lost puppy. Like the rest of the house, everything was neat. Serviceable but not expensive. His gaze found a silver picture frame. There she was, younger and tanner in her lacy white gown, but definitely the same woman. In her arms was a skinny young man in Air Force blue.

She must have seen what he was looking at because she cuddled against him, covering his mouth with hers, before whispering in his ear. "That worked up my appetite. Care for dinner?"

They ate a hot filling meal before sitting on the couch and watching the TV news. The government was claiming victory in the cities but the countryside still had problems with people disappearing from their homes and gangs looting small towns. Pushing the big bad world out they fell into each other's arms, ending the evening with her riding his cock on the couch before retiring to separate beds.

The next morning she asked about his plans once he got to Staunton. He told her his story over breakfast. Looking at him over the rim of her coffee mug she asked, "Would you like to earn some money? Then you could buy everything you need."

Simon stopped chewing and looked up. "What do I have to do?" He tried to keep his voice from sounding too suspicious.

Laura didn't seem to notice as she continued. "It's nothing too difficult. I need you to bring something back for me." She paused to see if he was interested. Seeing that he was, she continued. "All you need to do is follow this dirt road to the end. You'll find a small concrete building. Open the outside door, go down the stairs, and you'll find a big iron door."

Simon was still suspicious, but he pulled a notepad out of his cargo pocket and started taking notes. Seeing this, she slowed down to let him write.

"Beside the door is a button with a little indicator. Push the button until it goes green. The Air lock will release and the door will open. Go through this door, and the next, and then down the stairs and through the third door." Simon scribbled quickly. "You must make sure that each door is closed behind you before the next will open."

"What about guards?" He asked.

"No. There isn't anyone up there. Not anymore." Her voice got softer at the end.

"What do you want me to do once I get inside?"

Holding up a shiny brass key, she said "Find the door that this unlocks and bring me the briefcase that's inside."

"Anything else?"

"No, you can keep anything else you find. I'm sure that there will be lots of money, plenty of supplies too."

"And all you want is a briefcase?"

"Yes. It belonged to my husband. He kept his things in there. Just sentimental things, but worth a fortune to me you understand." Simon just nodded his head as if agreeing with her.

He finished his meal, shouldered his pack, and set out on the dirt road. Looking back over his shoulder he noticed a strange expression on her face as she watched him walk away. But since he had no where else to go, he continued up the red clay road until he came to its end.

The tall chain link gate stood open. Inside he saw a little concrete building, no larger than a storage shed, with a gray metal door. Parked between that and a large, smooth, metal oval in the ground, was a black Suburban. Simon looked around, but there was no one to be seen. The grass was starting to get a little high but everything still looked normal. The SUV looked like it had been sitting out on the clay for a little while; spiders had started to build webs on the side mirrors and the shiny sides had been spattered with rain and mud.

Satisfied that he wasn't walking into an ambush, he walked up and tried the door handle. Silently swinging on well oiled hinges, the door opened on to a concrete stairway. Passing through three doors just the way Laura told him, Simon entered the old missile control facility.

Calling out from the stairs, he announced himself. The place looked lived in but he couldn't find anyone. The first room had a sign on the door that read "Ready Room." An old TV set in a corner. The other side of the room had a small snack area with a coffee pot and refrigerator. Everything was old and shabby but neat. Even the boxes of microwave popcorn stood in a line on the end of the counter like soldiers on parade.

Rooting through the storage cabinets he found food. The weapons rack held a pair of brand new 9mm pistols, and plenty of ammo. He stuffed his loot into his rucksack and felt like he'd hit the jackpot. Then he remembered Laura's key. He tried the doors in the Ready Room but the key didn't fit any of them. Exiting the Ready Room, he went down the metal grill stairs and opened the door into the Control Room.

There had been a gunfight. Three people lay dead. They had been dead for several days but the air conditioner had kept them from smelling too bad. Unfortunately they smelled bad enough to make the room reek and Simon's head swim. Two of the bodies wore suits; the third had an Air Force blue set of coveralls. One of the suits lay dead in front of a door at the far end of the room. From the way he lay, it looked like the suit had shot into the door, trying to blow open the lock, when the Air Force guy shot him in the back. Suit #2 had obviously shot the crewman but had been shot in the process.

It had taken the Zoomie some time to die. A smear of blood showed where he had dragged himself across the room toward the telephone. He hadn't made it. Simon rolled the body over. His name tag said Bland and he looked young. Well at least Lieutenant Bland had died at his post, Simon thought as he mechanically patted down the body, stuffing Bland's wallet into his cargo pocket. Making his way across the room, he quickly rifled through the Suits' pockets. He didn't know what he was looking for but he collected their wallets, watches and jewelry all the same.

Simon didn't know what to make of this scene. All the equipment was still on, humming electrically under the sporadic churn of the air conditioner. Looking at the screens he didn't see anything that looked like an alarm and then he turned his attention to the door. Although Suit #1 had shot at the door, the lock still held. Fishing Laura's key out of his pocket, he slowly opened the door. Another Air Force officer, this one older than the first, lay slumped across the desk, his blood making a pool under his head. Suit #1 might not have gotten the lock, but he scored this guy, Simon thought.

Without touching the corpse, Simon looked around the office. Behind the desk sat a large black briefcase. He checked the catches. It was locked. Simon placed it near the door and turned back to the desk. The front of the coverall was dark with dried blood but Simon didn't need to read the name tag to know that it would read Buckley. His stomach rolling, Simon searched through the officer's pockets but found nothing other than a wallet and a wrist watch. Feeling like a scavenger, Simon pocketed them both and quickly looked into the desk drawers. They were even emptier than the man's pockets.

By this time the smell of the bodies was making him nauseous. His pockets stuffed with the dead men's personal belongings, Simon picked up the brief case and swiftly left the room. He picked up speed as he climbed the stairs, impatiently yanking on the doors as the indicators turned green. Finally reaching the surface, he took a deep breath of clean air, grateful to be out of that concrete tomb.

Looking down at the briefcase, he told himself that he didn't care what was in it. He would take it back to Laura and continue on his way. He bent over to pick it up but, before he could straighten, he heard the metallic click of a gun's safety catch. Keeping his hands out in front of him, Simon slowly straightened.

A voice calmly addressed him from behind the Suburban. "Don't bother." Laura stepped out from the truck's shadow, the barrel of her shotgun pointed steadily at his midsection. "I can manage everything from here on out."

"They're all dead in there, you know." Simon tried to appear calm but he held his hands up in front of his chest all the same.

"I thought as much." The shotgun's barrel jerked toward the left, motioning him to move that way. "But I've cried all that I'm going to. The world fell apart but he still went to work. Left me all by myself like he always did." She choked back a sob and the barrel wavered. Regaining control of her emotions, she clenched her hands around the stock until her knuckles turned white. Simon worried she'd pull the trigger without meaning to. "I followed him for 15 years and now I've got some payback coming."

Simon slowly sidestepped to the left, watching her and the way she held the shotgun. He waited for her to reach for the case, counting on her not knowing how heavy it was. When she stooped to pick up the briefcase, the barrel dropped slightly and Simon saw his opening. Without a second thought, he drew his pistol and fired. Laura's beautiful face looked surprised as the bullets' impact threw her to the ground, two bright red holes blossoming on her chest.

He didn't look at her again, stepping across her corpse to retrieve the case. Opening the Suburban's door, he carefully set the case and the rucksack full of food in the passenger's footwell. Wiping the sweat off his face with his sleeve, he emptied his pockets on the seat. Quickly sorting the cash from the other things, he stuffed the roll into his pockets and shut the door.

Suit #1 had been the driver, and the Government motor pool key tag told Simon that the Suits were from the White House. He spent a second or two wondering what the White House had wanted so bad that they sent two guys to an out of the way place like this, but the truck turned over easily and, leaving the body of the woman he'd enjoyed only a few hours before laying on the sunbaked clay road, Simon turned the vehicle around and headed down the road toward town.

It took almost an hour to reach the highway and another thirty minutes to see the city limits signs. By the time he entered Staunton the fuel warning light was on. The gas lasted him long enough to get into town but the Suburban died in the hotel parking lot.

Dropping his rucksack and the briefcase in front of the reception desk, he asked to register. Sweaty and dressed in a work worn set of battle fatigues, Simon knew that he looked like hell but at least he'd bathed recently. He told the young man that he only wanted the room long enough to find his family but the suspicious look that came back across the desk told Simon that he wasn't believed. The clerk wasn't going to give him a room and it took an extra twenty to get him the keys to a quiet room overlooking the downtown area.

The cash from the control facility kept Simon in style for several days. He let himself go, indulging in the best the town had to offer. The cash and the credit cards kept the food and booze coming. He made friends without trying and the women seemed to jump into his bed. He bought new clothes, looking more like a prosperous office worker than a desperate vagrant. Now he was well dressed, well fed, and well laid.

Waking one morning after a particularly good party, he untangled himself from the two girls that had come up to his room and lurched into the bathroom. The hot water pellets stung his face as he tried to wash the cobwebs out of his bourbon soaked brain. Soaping up, he remembered the girls' vigorous performance the night before.

They had met in a loud, dark, smoky bar. The kind where everyone sat in U-shaped booths and no one could hear a conversation from more than 3 feet away. Simon, looking stylish in the suit he'd just gotten from the tailor's, was gauging his prospects as he watched the women circulate around the edges of the dance floor. He watched her as she brushed her long curly blonde hair from her face, looking around the crowded room as if searching for someone. Their eyes met.

His eyes seemed to burn away her satin dress and expose her buxom tan curves. She returned his gaze with equal frankness, noting his healthy tan and expensive clothes. Simon indicated the empty seat at his booth with a flourish of his hand. Her lips turned up at the corners, a competitive grin not unlike one worn by pool sharks as they approach the table.

A few drinks later she leaned against him, pressing her large firm tits against his chest. "You don't need to increase your overhead," she said nodding at the empty bottle of champagne. "We can take this party to someplace quieter if you'd like."

Throwing a hundred dollar bill on the table, they walked out arm in arm. If she was impressed with his casually tossing a week's wages on to the table she didn't show it. They climbed into the big white sedan and settled into the seats as the chauffer drove them back towards town.

The blonde wasted no time getting down to business and had Simon's shirt unbuttoned before they'd cleared the parking lot. Her tight skirt rode up and exposed the tops of her white stockings. Simon ran his finger tips lightly along her firm thighs. Reaching her garters, he looked into her light blue eyes and smiled.

"What's your name, again?"

Simon really hadn't heard her tell him her name, most of their conversation has been lost is the club's thumping bass. He unsnapped her garter and caressed the top of her thigh. She rolled onto her knees and pressed her crotch toward his seeking hand.

"Call me Cheryl."

She had his shirt off and was working on his belt. Fishing his cock out of his boxers, Cheryl squeezed its base firmly, wetting her lips as its head swelled and turned a darker plum color. She extended her tongue and licked Simon's cock head like an ice cream cone, teasing his urethra with light tongue flicks.

Simon held her hair back so that he could watch as Cheryl slowly took his thick and now throbbing cock into her mouth. His breath whistled through his clenched teeth as he felt his cock reach the back of her mouth. Swallowing, Cheryl buried her nose in his pubes as she took his cock into her throat.

Glancing up, Simon saw the driver, a petite female Amer-Asian, watching them in the rearview mirror. The sign behind the front seat said that her name was Dawn. As they waited for a stoplight, he watched as Dawn slid her hand into her blouse and played with one of her nipples.

The combination of champagne and being watched made him feel crazy and Simon gently pulled Cheryl's mouth from his hard cock and scooted his hips around to give the driver a better look. He pushed Cheryl back against the seat and unsnapped her dress. Reaching behind her back, Cheryl unfastened her bra and unveiled a perfect set of tan breasts, nipples taut, erect, and ready for his attention.

Cupping her breast, Simon lifted her swollen nipple to his lips and sucked her nipples. Using one hand, Simon lightly squeezed her breast and stroked her nipple with his thumb. With his other hand, Simon slid her panties aside to give him access to her snatch. Cheryl's vulva shone slightly, the soft glow of the dome light highlighting her deep tan lines.