The Ascension

Aila watched from her void space, and saw the stars within her space start to compress. The brown star, the one that represented her earth element, compressed fully, and began to expand once again.

"Hm." She watched the window over her girls, and looked at her stars. "It's not elemental reinforcement. I don't need it. I'm leaking earth essence, and need to learn how to control it to a finer degree."

She focused on Elena and smiled gently. She blew a soft kiss towards the young woman, and looked at her ear. She really wanted to kiss the young woman's ear, or blow in her ear to make her blush.

"Work hard, my little bear. I want you to get strong, and protect the others until I wake up." She smiled gently, and closed her eyes.

For some reason, she felt an extreme tiredness, and though she was within her own space, she was not there physically. This was her true consciousness, and her space was unlike the sea of elemental essence that existed for all others upon Imera.

Her space was an actual place, and though she did not know where she was, it gave off some comforting vibrations that lulled her consciousness to sleep.

While she slept, she could sense everything upon the planet, with a large amount of that focus on her people.

More importantly, upon Elena.

* * *

'Work hard, my little bear.' Elena felt a warm breath at her ear, and heard the soft words that brought tears to her eyes.

'I want you to get strong, and protect the others until I wake up.' Elena smiled

"I will, Master. I will grow stronger." She said in a small voice, like a child listening to her mother.

Elena lowered her eyes, and noticed the place her Master had absorbed the elements from before. She firmed up her resolve, and sat down.

"It gave Master a lot of strength." She put her hand over the spot and started to absorb the earth elemental essence. She started slow, as she wanted to ensure she didn't take so much that the ground lowered beneath her.

"There is so much elemental pressure in this forest." She whispered. Her deep blue eyes paled and turned a steel gray color, similar to the stones that were scattered around the forest.

"So what did Master do?" As she absorbed the elements. "Did she saturate her bones, or compress the elements within her bones?" Elena didn't know, so she started with saturating the bones within her fingers.

This simple mistake in Elena's perception allowed her to begin her progression through from the initial stages of elemental evolution, from Elemental Absorption, to Elemental Bones.

As each finger bone became saturated, she realized that she had to force the elements to stay there, and began to compress them as a result. Each bone began to glow with an inner light that only she could see, as it became compressed.

Elena rolled her eyes and slumped over in exhaustion. Absorption didn't use any physical energy, but her mental focus wasn't as strong as it needed to be.

As the bones on her left hand glowed from within, they were on a different level of strength, and weight.  She would need to find balance through trial and error.  Elena laid on her back and looked up at the sky.

"Master, I've done it. I'm moving forward, and getting stronger." She felt another soft breath at her ear.

'Well done, little bear.' The touch was brief, but it made Elena feel warm. However, her Master had instructions for her.

'The wall is too small, and so is the area it surrounds.' She said at her ear. 'Get Nuri to plan a garden, and an orchard. Start building a wall to surround it all.'

"Master, what about the house? Won't that be too much space?" She asked.

'Little bear, each of you will be a queen of your element, and I am your Master. Should there not be a place where my Queens can sit and judge the land? Don't think house, my little bear. Think bigger.' Her words left Elena confused.

"Think bigger?" She whispered. "I think I need to talk to Nuri. I don't have the mind for bigger."

* * *

"Elena." Nuri said softly as the girl came up to her, and hugged her arm.  She looked at her and saw something in her eyes. "What's wrong?"

"Master spoke to me." Elena said. "Out there." She pointed to the outside, then tapped her temple. "And in here." Nuri thought for a moment.

"You have something to ask?" Nuri said, and pouted a bit. Her Master had been silent, and asleep since she brought the child forward in time. Now she talked to Elena, but not to herself.

"While I was absorbing the earth element in the courtyard, Master said to build the walls bigger, and extend the walls outward. She wants them able to handle an iron tusked boar, but she also said something else." Elena said, and lowered her eyes.

"Well, I can't help you with the walls, Elena. Only you have the strength to fix, or make them stronger." Nuri said, and pulled their Master up so she could lay on her thigh, though she really wanted her awake. She wanted to kiss, and swarm her with her body, just so she could feel that passion she felt at their last family session.

"She said that I have to think larger than a house." Elena said, which caught Nuri's attention. "Each of us are queens of our element, and a house doesn't fit that image." She said quietly, and with a blush on her cheeks. "I don't have know what to plan, or how to plan it. She said she wants enough for a garden outside, and fruit trees." Nuri started to smile.

"Food. She's always thinking of providing for us." Nuri grew warm, and leaned forward so she could kiss Aila's cheek. "But where do queens live, Elena?" Elena blinked, while her jaw fell slowly, as she looked completely taken by surprise.

"Master wants me to build a palace?" She asked. Nuri smiled.

"A palace suits those in those kingdoms, but what would show Master's superiority over those people?" Nuri asked quietly. Elena thought for a moment, and slowly, she began to think of an image.

"Didn't Master once say that there are twelve elements? Life and Death. Light and Dark. Earth and Metal. Fire and Lava. Wind and Lightning. Water and Ice." She said as something took shape within her mind.

"And Master is the center of it all. The One who can wield all the elements." Nuri said and smiled as Elena crawled onto the bed, leaned in and kissed Aila on the cheek.  She had laid on Nuri's right thigh, as she wanted it to be easy to get close to their Master.

"Master, I have an idea. A grand temple in the middle, but twelve towers all around. Each one will represent the power of my sisters, while we will still be here, and close." Elena said, and smiled.

"A place that will gather the elements at each tower, and one for each. The temple will be a gathering place, built in front of the central tower." Elena's eyes began to glow as she gathered her element, and whispered in Aila's ear.

"Master's tower will be larger than the rest. We may be the queens you appoint, but you are our Master."