Amber was guarded by Nick and Barry. Gennita's nails scratched them, but it didn't break the skin. Nick roared for her to calm down. Amber spoke up, "We wanted to try a peace treaty and not kill the entire Merfolk tribe. If you are willing to listen and not try to attack me, we can talk. Otherwise, my mates will kill you all!"
Amber was angered at the sight of Gennita. She became enraged when Gennita attacked her mates. She was very protective of her family. Especially now with her motherly instincts. Gennita yelled, "Why do you care about saving the Mermen? Is it so you can be their new Queen? I will never allow another Mermaid Queen to exist as long as I am alive! Only my female child will be the next Mermaid Queen!"
Amber realized that Gennita thought she was pregnant with a Mermaid female child. She corrected her, "I am pregnant with eggs, not a Mermaid. My Merman mate stayed behind so we could have peace. He agreed not to have a Mermaid child in this world. You will remain the only Mermaid Queen in this world. You can stay in the sea, and we will stay on land. We don't need to fight."
Gennita looked at Amber's mates and noticed Blue Tang was not with her. Maybe she was wrong. She asked to clarify the misunderstanding, "Can you swear on your life that you will not give birth to a Mermaid child?"
Amber replied, "I swear on my life I will not give birth to a Mermaid child in this world." Gennita thought it was strange that Amber added the clause 'in this world', but she was satisfied with the promise. She looked at Nick and stated haughtily, "We will not fight you today, but if your mate breaks her promise, we will return to take her life." Nick growled, but he was calmed down by Amber's soft hand. Amber reassured both of them "It won't come to that."
Gennita snorted and motioned with her hand for her Mermen army to retreat. "Let's go home. There will be no battle, today." She let the last word hold a deeper meaning as she sauntered away. She sat on her throne and let her Mermen carry her away, back to the sea.
Oliver let out a breath of relief and hugged his mate. "You did it! You saved the entire Mermen tribe and the beastmen who would fight today!" Amber was the hero of the Beast World. Tom and Tyler cawed overhead and circled in joy. They were happy to see their mate happy.
Some of the beastmen in the City of Beasts were disappointed they didn't get to fight and went to hunt and vent their frustration. Ray looked back towards Amber with a longing gaze. If only things were different, but there was no medicine for regret. He turned around reluctantly and followed his mate back to the sea. His revenge disappeared in his heart and was replaced with regret. Amber noticed his mournful gaze and was sad for him. She wished things turned out differently but was happy he was still alive. She didn't want him to die because of his mistakes. She wished he would find some form of happiness in his life.
Nick took Amber in his arms to break her line of sight from Ray. He didn't want his mate to be sad over anything, especially another beastman! He would gladly kill Ray if it didn't upset Amber. Ray had his chance to be her guardian, but he chose to leave and become mates with the Mermaid Queen who wanted to kill Amber. Anyone who wanted to harm his mate deserved to die.
He distracted her with food, "Let's have a banquet to celebrate your peace treaty!" Amber's mood improved at the mention of food! Pregnancy cravings were more intense in the Beast World. She craved eggs and meat the most! She agreed instantly, "OK! We should have boiled eggs and lots of meat!" Nick laughed dotingly at his foodie mate. He agreed and issued orders for the other beastmen to gather meat and eggs for the banquet. Everyone had pent-up frustration and needed to vent, so they immediately left to hunt.
The females were excited to hear about the banquet, so their mates were also excited. They gathered fruits and berries for the females.
Later that night, Amber relaxed on Nick's lap in front of a bonfire as Barry fed her fruits and honey. Oliver roasted the meat while Tom and Tyler boiled the eggs they had gathered for their mate. Tyler was extra proud to cater to his mate's cravings. He knew his eggs would come out soon and he couldn't wait to be a father!
Eagles on Earth usually lay 1-3 eggs per year. On average, each clutch size is 2 eggs. Amber was hoping the eggs were easier to lay than giving birth. Eli was the hardest birth, the cubs were a little easier. She hoped the eggs would be the easiest. For now, she was focused on her cravings.
Tyler cracked a boiled egg and blew on it to cool it off before feeding Amber. She added a little salt and ate the boiled egg happily. Amber did a little happy dance while she was eating. Nick chuckled at his little foodie. She wasn't worried about anything as long as she had good food and was safe. Luckily, she had strong mates to keep her safe and provide food for her.
The banquet was a success. The females were well provided for. Amber had a few beastmen get the drums she taught them to make. She taught them some songs with the drums. She even got up and danced to the drum beats. Her mates were mesmerized by her dance with her small baby bump. She looked like the goddess of fertility and nature with the flower wreath on her head as she swayed to the drums.
Her dance and drums encouraged other beastmen and females to dance. Soon, the banquet turned into a dance party. After she tired herself from dancing, Nick carried her back to the castle. She took a relaxing bath and changed into a nightgown. She had packed a few cotton nightgowns and underwear the last time she visited Earth.
She only wore the nightgowns at night or in the castle. She didn't want the other beastmen to get suspicious of her strange clothing. Sleeping in leather or fur clothing was hot in the middle of the summer. They didn't have air conditioning in the Beast World, and she didn't want to sleep naked. Not that her mates would mind. They just wanted her to be comfortable.
Nudity was more common in the Beast World with males, but Amber was still shy. She had mated with them a few times, but she maintained her modest shyness. The cotton nightgown was more comfortable for her sleep.
The next morning Amber woke up with intense cravings for eggs. Tom and Tyler had a few eggs left over from the night before. She ate her fill and asked, "Why am I craving eggs all of a sudden? I also want to eat roasted bird and bird soup." Oliver answered, "You are pregnant with baby birds, they usually have a specific diet. The young ones will need nutrition to develop. The cravings will get more intense the longer you are pregnant."
Amber noticed Oliver said baby birds plural and asked, "Can you tell how many eggs I will lay?" Oliver took her pulse and listened to her baby bump. "You will have at least 2 eggs. Maybe 3, it is still too early to tell, but there is more than 1."
Amber was in a daze as she thought about having more than 1 egg. She placed a hand on her stomach and asked Tyler, "What do you think we should name them?" Tyler was shy but came closer to Amber and placed a hand on her stomach. He looked at her eyes and spoke quietly, "Eggs are usually hatched by the father. I was raised on Bird Mountain and never met my mother. As soon as I could fly, my father left to return to his mate. I named myself as soon as I could think about it."
Amber was sad to think about never meeting her baby birds, but she could disappear back to Earth at any time, and didn't want to make promises she couldn't keep. She looked Tyler in the eyes, "If I am not in this world after the eggs are born, promise me to take care of them until they can take care of themselves."
She almost started to cry thinking of never seeing her baby birds. Tyler panicked at the unshed tears in her eyes and promised. "I will be the best father to our eggs. They will grow up to be strong flying beastmen." Tom joined in the promise, "I will also protect them and raise them as my own. Don't worry, we can have all the flying beastmen protect them."
Amber cheered up at their promises. She knew her mates were powerful and could command the other beastmen to protect her and her children. She felt relieved at their words and kissed them on the cheeks. "Thank you!" The other beastmen saw the kisses and quickly added their promises to protect her and her offspring. Amber laughed and kissed each of them on the cheek.