Sluts of the Savage Lands 4

“You seem to find the whole thing reasonable!” Emma emitted.

“It is not reasonable. But it is human… even natural, to an extent. If the first tribe allowed anyone to wrong them without retaliation, they would soon be picked clean. If they wiped out anyone who wronged them, down to the last man, they’d be at constant war. But if one wrong is balanced by another, then everyone can stop fuming… for a while at least.”

“Men!” Emma spat, shaking her head. “They would be content with such laws!”

A patent look came over Ororo’s face. “It’s a stable way of life. Stabler, in ways, than our constant striving to reinvent the wheel. They kill from time to time, but it rarely becomes a wholesale slaughter.”

“How can you countenance legalized rape?” Emma demanded shrilly.

“It’s not legalized or governed. It springs from the people. The tribal chieftains are only mouthpieces. They rule by embodying the will of the people. In that respect, they’re quite sophisticated. Consider this: I doubt the average citizen of America, even if a little bigoted, would like his tax dollars spent on a program like Weapon X or the Sentinels. But his betters decide such programs need to exist. Now, here in the jungle, if a woman had misbehaved, the husband correct her. But he knows the woman’s brothers live nearby—they see to it that the punishment is equal to how she’s erred. If he’s gone too far, they retaliate on her behalf. Barbaric to you, perhaps—and yet I think there are less beatings here than back home, where everyone constantly talks about how wrong beatings are without ever doing anything to stop them.”

Emma huffed. “I can’t believe it works that well. If these people have no real government, there’s nothing to stop a feud from getting out of hand, no neutral party to resolve conflicts or enforce rules.”

“And do you believe our government is neutral?”

Emma threw a pebble into the water with some force, creating a few ripples. “So we’re no better than them?”

“I wouldn’t say that.” Ororo smirked. “Only that however bad they are, they are not hypocrites.”

Emma rolled her eyes and folded her arms under her breasts, a gesture that lifted up their already plump prominence and made her nipples inescapable. It was doubtlessly on purpose, but Ororo was for the first time disconcerted. She didn’t know if it was Emma emphasizing her sensuality as per usual or if she was genuinely attempting a seduction.

“Well, if they want to go play soldier, that’s fine. We’ll chalk up my largesse to practice and find some boys who haven’t enjoyed my charms. Once they’ve heard how good I can be, they’ll doubtless help us on our way.”

“Assuming you receive the glowing reviews you expect.”

Emma colored slightly and sat on the log again. “Ororo, I’m surprised at you. There’s being uncharitable and then there’s just spewing lies.”

Close to the fire again, she was suddenly acutely aware of the uniquely Ororo smell undercutting the scent of woodsmoke.

Ororo herself noticed the darker color suffusing Emma’s face. The flickering fire gave her a mystique that she should not be able to summon after displaying herself so openly. But Emma’s body was such that it only took a little time, some style, and you were once more beguiled by the thought of seeing even more than she showcased.

Ororo thought a little of it was the vulnerability Emma tried so hard not to show. Anyone unused to a place like this was bound to be intimidated, no matter how much of a survivor they were outside this cruel little world.

She made an elaborate ritual out of building a cigarettes from the rolling leaves and herbs that were among the things they’d traded with the tribals for. Emma had plenty of time to regain her composure. She started to get dressed.

The crackling fire filled the silence and made it comfortable instead of awkward. Ororo puffed on the lit cigarette, musing that it was best to avoid any entanglements with Emma—this wasn’t the place to navigate such a relationship and what it would mean for Emma’s connection with Scott, as well as her own friendship with the man.

She supposed it wouldn’t be hard. Emma didn’t really care for her; they had little in common when you came right down to it.

Of course, opposites attracted. Many times, Ororo had been courted by outright villains who saw her as a supreme prize to be won, their respect coated in covetousness. Dracula, Doctor Doom, Sauron. It would certainly be a change for her to pursue Emma, even if Emma weren’t a villain anymore. Or at least, if she was a villain, it was in the same story that cast all the X-Men as monsters and terrorists. Part of rejecting that story was seeing the heroism in Emma, buried however deep it might be.

At any rate, they must get on with their trek before the jungle set in enough for such distracting thoughts to be entertained. Emma had already taken two of the Indios. So how aghast could she really be at the prospect of a lesbian liaison?

“It would be best if we don’t get bogged down,” Emma said in a reduced tone, echoing Ororo’s train of thought—at least, the one she was trying to hold to. “Not this early.”

Ororo looked up from her own white exhale and favored Emma with a tight smile. “No. Not this early,” she said, almost maliciously.

Emma was uncomfortable once more. She flushed slightly, one hand pulling at the top buttons of her blouse, the action serving to pull the material tighter over her mammaries. They moved luscious under the fabric and Ororo let her eyes follow the motion.

“Ororo, I do believe you’re purposefully being antagonistic.”

“Perhaps I am.”

“Hmph. Not so regal when the only person around is someone whose opinion you don’t care for.”

Ororo’s face grew cagey. “We’re X-Men. We’ve put up with far worse than each other. But you should put more worry into the tribals than what I think of you. Their raids and counterraids may seem like small beans to you, but they don’t all end with a dance and a bonfire. We could find ourselves in the middle of a real mess.”

Emma scratched at the ground with a stick. “I’m not taking it lightly. I’m taking it with confidence. And with awareness that it’s an obstacle we need to bypass to acquire some guides.”

“We’ll find some,” Ororo assured her, feeling somewhat wry. “We’ve done too many good turns for the Savage Lands; leaving us bereft would be… bad karma.”

Emma shrugged and it was once more unclear if she meant for her tits to bob as much as they did. “Then I suppose it’s not worth worrying about.”

“No,” Ororo said, trying not to let her irritation show. “There are tribesman I’ve met before, know, like. But there are others who are opaque. We don’t know what’s going on to remove our powers. Whatever it is, someone might be tempted to curry favor by double-crossing us.”

Emma sniffed derisively. “The noble savage.”

“No more savage than any. They’ll respect us, so long as they’re not totally isolated from the larger world, but if killing us is for the good of the tribe…”

Emma shrugged dejectedly. “So I should’ve been a tease. Then we might have trustworthy guides instead of Stone Age Uber drivers.”

“It’s hard to say,” Ororo hedged.

“Irony of ironies: if I want to never see this place again, apparently I need to learn everything about it.”

Ororo smiled stiffly. “A little knowledge might be a dangerous thing, but for our enemies, not for us.”

Emma sighed. “I don’t suppose… perhaps, if we were to offer an added incentive…”

“From the sounds of it, you were hardly holding…” Ororo took her meaning. “Oh. Oh no. I couldn’t possibly—”

“Well, why not?” Emma interrupted. “You’re certainly no prude. And you had no problem with me gratifying myself. That’s assuming you go through with it—all we’re talking about is an offer…”

“It’s getting late,” Ororo interrupted. “We should discuss this when we’re better rested.” She directed Emma’s attention to a small tent a short distance from the fire. “Feel free to take the tent. I’ll have the sleeping bag.”

“What’s wrong?” Emma asked, raising her stick in a salute. “Afraid I’ll be in a cuddling mood? That would be one way to persuade you…”

“I’ll need to sleep under the stars to hear our surroundings. Tents muffle noise and scent. And I don’t imagine you’ll like what I need to do to keep mosquitos off me. Not even hearing about it.”

“Well, if you’re turning me down, I do need my beauty sleep. And if I can’t get some decent plumbing…”

Ororo gestured regally to the river. “The mighty waters wait to serve your needs.”