"Okay, listen up, you overgrown lizards! School is in session!"
[The gods perk up with the dragons, waiting for what you would teach.]
[TheMotheroftheWorld giggles, very pleased with your action.]
Roxy rolled her eyes. She didn't have the time to entertain them. She had a mission to clear and rewards to claim. And besides, this dragon baby inside her was thumping too hard, for whatever excitement it sure had.
She stood on a large rock in the center of the tribes training ground, a vast place that she had named, wielding a stick like a professor's pointer, in front of her sat fifty of the deadliest predators on the continent.
They were so docile and obedient as if Roxy were some kind of fearful being. Or maybe she was.
The male warriors of the Dragon Clan were massive, scarred, and radiated enough testosterone to fuel a gym for a century. If Roxy didn't have a man, she would be drooling.
They looked confused and bored out of their minds. And mostly, they looked hungry.
They wanted to hunt and have more of the food that Roxy had cooked for them the other day.
"We have fixed the food issue," Roxy announced, pacing back and forth, her pregnant belly leading the way. "The females are feeding well, and they have finally gained weight. Their scales are shiny, and biologically, they are ready."
The Dragons didn't understand some words she said, but still, a murmur of approval went through the ranks. The males were eager; they wished to see females carrying their babies.
"However," Roxy shouted, cutting off their grumbling. "We still have a problem. You."
She pointed the stick at a particularly large dragon with dark skin named Vorian. "Vorian, right? Stand up."
For a dragon this large, I hope he doesn't bring any of the females.
Volarian stood, towering at seven feet, his muscles bulging. "My Queen?" He sounded confused, but with his rich and dark voice, Roxy's hair stood on end.
She cleared her throat. "If you wanted to mate with a female tonight," Roxy asked, "What would you do?"
Vorian puffed out of his chest in pride. "I would hunt a bear. I would throw the carcass at her feet. I would roar to show my dominance. Then I would take her to my cave!"
Roxy's lips twitched.
[TheSassyGoddess facepalmed in disbelief.]
[TheMotheroftheWorld looks at TheSassyGoddess with contempt and snaps at her that she shouldn't laugh at her creations.]
The other males nodded. This was a procedure that had turned into a tradition for them; it was a solid plan.
She huffed and puffed. "And that right there," she groaned, "Is why you are all single and childless."
[TheMotheroftheWorld reminds you that you drugged the Dragon King to get his child.]
What the fuck is wrong with you?!
Roxy almost choked.
That is fucking different, mother of the world! Stop trying to pick a fight with me.
[TheMotheroftheWorld snorts.]
Roxy turned to the blackboard, a flat slab of slate she had painted with charcoal. She pointed to a crude drawing of a brain.
"Biology lesson number two," Roxy declared. "Stress hormones versus Love hormones. Cortisol versus Oxytocin."
The dragons stared blankly, not understanding a damn thing. Zarek, who lay on a rock at a certain distance watching his mate, also stared at her with a skeptical look.
You should all be lucky; I still remember my biology class.
[I helped you.]
The system scream flashed persistently, but Roxy waved it off, ignoring it.
"When you roar at a woman and throw a dead bear at her feet," Roxy explained slowly, "she gets scared. Her body produces Cortisol. Cortisol tells the womb, 'We are in danger! Shut down everything and don't get pregnant!'"
She erased the angry face on the board and drew a smiley face.
"But," she continued, "if you are nice. If you talk to her. If you bring her flowers or at least wash the blood off the bear before you give it to her, she feels safe. She produces Oxytocin. and Oxytocin says, 'Hey, let's make a baby!"
She slammed the stick against the rock.
"Tonight, we are having a mixer." She announced.
Everyone perked up. Including Zarek, who looked at her, more confused than ever. "A... Mixer?"
"A social gathering," Roxy corrected. "A bonfire. Music. Food. And talking. You are definitely welcome to flirt too."
But don't fuck in public, I don't think I can stomach seeing two large species making a mess in front of me.
[TheEnglishGod snides at you for your raw thoughts]
It's my thoughts for a reason, can't I be who I am anymore?!
[TheWorldSaint, TheSassyGoddess, TheMotheroftheWorld, and TheWorldbuildingGod look at TheEnglishGod with contempt, planning to report him to the higher-ups.]
Roxy looked at the sea of bewildered faces.
"You are going to court them," Roxy commanded. "And if I hear one person say the word 'breed', they are on latrine duty for a month!"
Everyone was enthusiastic and curious about the gathering Roxy was on about, so the preparations were pretty chaotic.
Roxy had Lyra haul wood for a massive bonfire in the center of the valley. She had the females prepare a feast of roasted meats and, of course, the famous mashed potatoes.
She felt like she had really contributed a lot to the dragon tribe, except for making houses.
But the hardest part right now was grooming.
"Scrub!" Roxy yelled, walking through the line of male warriors at the nearby hot springs. "You smell like wet dog and sulfur! Use the soap roots!"
She had commanded like a female general. Zarek trailed behind her. He didn't want her to come in the first place, but she insisted on supervising them.
"It stings the eyes!" One warrior wailed in complaint, scrubbing his face with a foaming root Roxy had identified as soap in the system Shop.
"Beauty is pain, princess," Roxy shot back. "You want an heir? You have to smell nice and have clean armpits."
By sunset, the valley looked transformed. The fire roared in the center, casting a warm, flickering glow over the stone walls. The scent of food wafted through the air.
And the males... well, they tried.
They stood on one side of the fire, clean, slicked back hair, and looking utterly terrified. On the other side, the females.
They were healthier now, their curves returning, their eyes bright. They also had large boobs!
They looked at the males with curiosity rather than their usual submissive fear. They were aching to explore this opportunity that the Queen had given them.
They also wanted to experience having babies.
"Go on!" Roxy hissed, hiding behind a boulder near the dias. She nudged Vorian. "Go talk to her. Her name is Elara. She likes digging a lot!"
Vorian took a deep breath, feeling pumped.
He looked like he was marching to his death. He walked stiffly across the gap and stopped in front of Elara. He loomed over and then opened his mouth.
Roxy held her breath. Don't roar. Don't roar.
[The gods all laugh at your humor.]
Yeah, yeah, laugh all you want. I will soon give you all, jobs to do soon enough. I have had enough of you guys spectating.
"The... dirt," Vorian grunted, his eyes darting everywhere, and his voice sounded strangled. "It is... good dirt."
What the fuck is that?
Elara blinked. She looked at the ground. Then she looked up at the massive warrior who usually ignored her very existence and blushed.
oh....
"Yes," Elara said softly. "The Queen says the soil is rich."
Roxy looked between the two of them.
"I can dig," Vorian offered, flexing a bicep the size of a tree trunk. "If you need... holes."
Elara giggled, her cheeks turning a brighter shade of pink. Roxy was dying from cringe. She didn't get what was worth blushing about.
It was a small sound, but everyone heard it and was surprised.
"I need holes for the radishes," Elara replied, smiling. "Big holes."
"I make the biggest holes," Vorian declared, puffing out his chest, but not in a threatening way. in a proud way.
Roxy pumped her fist in the air. "Yes! We finally have contact!"
The dam broke, and other males, seeing Vorian not getting rejected, shuffled forward. They were awkward, some were even clumsy, but they all tried.
They sat by the fire. They share bowls of mash. They talked.
[TheMotheroftheWorld sheds tears.]