Sera was straightening her dress in the mirror of her room when she heard the scream.

She had taken her Tallashite hostess’s offer of new clothes while her traveling garments were being washed and then took a long bath, where she had refreshed the hot water several times. Afterward, she had attacked her hair with a comb and brush, something it sorely needed after hours of being whipped about in the mountain wind. She worried for a moment that she might have to shave her head as she fought through the tangles, but she took a few deep breaths to calm herself and focused on the problem. She could feel the knots in her hair loosen under her shallow meditation and wondered what the limits of her body Elemental were.

Though she was apparently descended from the warrior people of the southern islands, her body more closely matched that of the Tallashites who dominated the population of this temple, and the dress the young woman had left for her fit perfectly. The pleated skirt was a dark blue, almost black, and fell just past her knees, flaring with every turn of her hips. The dark color transitioned to a sky blue in a jagged, irregular line, almost like a mountainous horizon silhouetted by the rising sun at dawn. Silver threads sewn into the bodice gave the light blue top a sparkling sheen.

The dress was open in the back, save for a single strap tight under her chest and over her ribs that clasped in the small of her back. The band was meant to give her support, not that she needed much. Most Tallashite women weren’t curvy either, and she filled out the dress well enough, showing a little cleavage through the deep V neckline held up by two slim straps over her shoulder.

Talla was a warm country most of the time, and their style was to wear very little primary clothing and then cover themselves with long-sleeved cloaks or jackets when they went outside to protect their sensitive skin from the sun. Most of the land was filled with shade trees, but it had become culturally distasteful to show too much skin in public. Eventually, the style of covering the skin also came indoors, and only at special celebrations did one bare their arms or legs.

Sera found the jacket that went with this dress folded on the chair. It was long with tails that flowed almost to the floor but were open in the front, showing off her legs. The dress had a belt, and with a little effort, she attached the axe sheath to it and found the outer garment hid it well.

The jacket was colored just like the dress, only in reverse. The top was the same dark color as the bottom of the dress, with billowing sleeves and wooden toggles to close the front, while the long skirt was light blue with even more silver thread sewn into the fabric. Standing still, Sera’s legs were visible in the front, and after only securing the bottom two clasps on the top of the jacket, the open neck of the dress also showed, bearing a little more skin than the outfit’s designer had intended. Sera liked the look but frowned at her figure in the mirror, wishing – not for the first time – that she had a bit more skin to show.

Perhaps the Elemental could help.

Sera closed her eyes, feeling the power flow through her and trying to imagine the body and curves she wished she had. After several minutes, she looked again into the mirror. Adjusting the top of her dress, she didn’t think she saw any difference and definitely didn’t feel any different.

That was when she heard the scream.

Sera forgot about her reflection for a moment and tried to turn in the direction of the sound. The temple’s stone walls offered impressive insulation, and she couldn’t tell if the cry came from next door or further away in the temple. Moving to the room’s entrance, she paused, listening for more, but didn’t hear anything. Sera turned the knob and looked out into the hallway slowly. If there was a guard, she didn’t see them, and there were no more screams or noise that she could discern. She looked up and down the hall and saw the door next to hers. That was Ethan’s room. They had been told to stay in their quarters, but what harm could come if she visited the young man. It wasn’t like she was exploring the temple unsupervised.

Sera’s hand hovered over the knob to Ethan’s door and paused. What was she doing? Were they just going to talk? Or were their Elementals going to dominate their passion and bodies? As a priestess, she knew what would happen, and while she longed for it, she also knew it was the wrong choice. She hadn’t spent much time studying the supposed effects of the Elementals in humans, as she believed they were destined for the Divine Savior, but she had glanced at the competing texts that the Supplanter religion held sacred.

Sex was liberally spread throughout their sacred writings. Not just because the Supplanter would repopulate the world with his offspring through the help of a loyal harem of supplicants, but because they claimed Elemental powers could be transferred through intimate relations. While she didn’t give much credence to the false religion, she couldn’t deny that they were in the Supplanter’s temple, and two of the four Elementals currently resided in humans. While their idea of where the savior would come from might be wrong, that didn’t mean they were wrong about everything.

Sera’s hand lifted from the knob. Patience, she told herself. Your patience will be rewarded. As she turned to leave, her keen senses picked up something else: smoke. It wasn’t thick in the air, and she couldn’t see it, but the Elemental inside her insisted it was there. Turning back to the door, Sera sniffed at the crack around the opening and suddenly pulled back.

With no hesitation, Sera burst through the door, and soon she was the one screaming.

In a heartbeat, Yori was standing in his doorway, already on high alert from the first cry. They had found clothes for him, and he wore a dressy tunic over a long-sleeve blue shirt and black trousers. He raced over to Sera, who stood stock-still in the doorway, still screaming her head off. It didn’t take long to realize why.

A ball of fire over six feet across burned in the center of the room. It was away from any furniture, but the timbers supporting the ceiling would quickly ignite from the intense heat. Not daring to run past the fireball, Yori retreated to his room, returned a moment later with a large basin of water, and threw it at the flames. They parted only briefly, most of the water evaporating to steam instantly, but a small patch of skin was briefly visible.

“Ethan! Ethan, are you in there?”

Sera’s Elemental-aided voice pierced the ears of the passionate pair within the inferno, and the heat between them lulled briefly. It was enough for Ethan to gather his senses somewhat. As Sera continued to scream at him, the conflict in his heart managed to pull him from Natasha and roll him toward the bed. He was instantly cold from the drastic temperature change and pulled a bed sheet down to cover himself.

Natasha had been feeding off Ethan’s presence and power, and when he withdrew, she ran out of energy, and the flames died to nothing, leaving behind only a chard patch on the rug. Sera looked at the most exquisitely beautiful naked woman she had ever seen and quickly stepped into the room, closing the door behind her, keeping Yori, who had gone to fetch more water, from reentering. “What is going on here?” she asked, but she wasn’t an idiot and didn’t really need an explanation.

However, she also knew this was not simply Ethan messing around with a beautiful woman behind her back, though it was undoubtedly that too. This had to be the work of the Elemental. Sera knew from her studies of the Supplanter religion that the supplicant women each specialized in one of the four elements and spent years cultivating that power so they could adequately guide the Supplanter to his full potential in gaining all four Elementals. This woman was drawn to Ethan because of the energy within him, and Sir Gerhold had already told Sera that Ethan would often be powerless to resist the call of that power.

But he had resisted. Something had made Ethan separate from this woman. Had it been the water? No, she doubted the couple had even noticed that water had been tossed on them. It had been her voice. She had screamed his name, and he had been able to detach himself from the woman. Sera looked at the Tallashite supplicant, moaning on the ground, weak from exertion. Had she been the source of those flames, or were they just the result of bringing two magically passionate people together with the Elemental to engulf them? Did this have something to do with the natural elements she had heard of?

Too many questions, and Sera did not have the answers. Instead, she reached down to the woman to help her up. Natasha was slow to respond. The fire had come from her, and her own spiritual passion had fueled it. But she did not have the Elemental – the source of that power – inside her, and her finite limitations showed. Had the conflagration gone on much longer, she would probably have lost consciousness, or maybe her heart would have exploded.

Sera saw a grey cloak tossed some distance from the burnt patch on the carpet, and she reached for it to help cover the naked woman, though not before noticing that her pale skin was immaculate. There wasn’t a burn mark on her. Natasha struggled to her feet as Sera draped the cloak over her. The younger woman didn’t bother forcing the supplicant’s arms through the sleeves but did a few of the clasps in front to keep the garment in place.

Natasha was in a daze, and Sera helped her to the chair in the room. She glanced over at Ethan and saw the young man with a sheet bundled in his lap and his head in his hands. What had happened here? Sera shook her head, knowing there would be time for that; instead, she made her way to the washroom and found a cup to fill with water. She returned and handed the drink to the tired woman. Natasha drained the water in one take and then handed the cup back to Sera. “More please,” she croaked, her voice sounding as weak as she looked.

The young woman complied, and after draining the second drink, a bit of vibrance returned to the supplicant’s pallid face. It wasn’t exactly color on her white skin, but Sera saw a glow return to the woman that hadn’t been there before. Natasha was experienced in meditation and calming rituals and went through a few routines now, trying to coax strength into her core.

Sera let her be and went to check on Ethan. He looked as fit as ever, not tired but embarrassed. “I’m so sorry, Sera, I didn’t know . . . I mean, I don’t know what happened. I just . . .”

Sera put a hand on his bare shoulder, trying to keep her eyes above his chest. She had to crouch, so her head was at his level and then moved her hand to gently tug his chin to return her look. “You don’t need to apologize. That wasn’t you; that was the Elemental. And you haven’t promised anything to me.”

She had turned his face to hers, but only after this last line did he raise his eyes to meet her. “Promised to you?” he repeated. “I would give my heart to you. I . . . I just . . .”

“I don’t think your heart is yours to give right now,” she replied. “But if it were, I would gladly receive it.” Now she felt the Elemental rising within her. A yearning of her body to be with this man and his clothless state wasn’t helping. Sera was attuned to her physical nature enough to fight against it. Both her mind and heart wanted their relationship to remain pure, not given over to wild desire, but she still had to stand up and turn from the young man to keep her body from getting what it wanted.

Moving back to the seated Tallashite woman, Sera now crouched before her. “What is your name?” she asked.

“Natasha,” she replied, staring into her lap. Supplicants were required to give up their last names, as they now belonged to something greater than family. “I am one of the chosen, the impassioned assigned to the Supplanter.”

Sera nodded, thankful for the religious training that allowed her to follow along. “And the fire; has that happened before?”

Natasha shook her head. “I train with the master. He has this gem that he says is the source of the natural elements – a fire ruby. I can summon small flames, but they have always burned me before. Something was blocking me. But now . . .” she paused, out of breath from the prolonged speech.

Sera put a hand on her exposed knee to calm her. “You needed the power of the Elemental to unlock the fire potential.”

Natasha lifted her head to regard this woman. “I don’t know. I think I was forcing the fire before, drawing it from a source that was not pure. The Supplanter . . . I don’t believe he is the right one. I have seen another in my dreams.”

Sera nodded, imagining the dreams of someone attuned to the powers of the heart would be meaningful. “You believe the Supplanter is not destined to save humanity?” she asked. Natasha nodded. “You have seen someone else in your dreams? An angelic form?” Sera meant the promised Savior and hoped that in this heathen temple, she might find some reassurance that her faith was not in vain.

Now Natasha shook her head. “No. Him.” She didn’t have the strength to raise her arm and only nodded toward the slumped form next to the bed.

“Ethan?” Sera balked. “You think Ethan will be the Savior?”

Natasha shrugged. She hadn’t even known his name. “He is the one in my dreams. He is the one I am destined to give my life to. But now . . .”

Sera frowned. “But now what?”

Natasha shook her head and stayed silent. She could tell this woman – Ethan had called her Sera – didn’t know or didn’t want to admit her connection with Ethan. As the chosen impassioned, Natasha couldn’t help but see it: Love. There was love between Ethan and Sera, love so powerful no amount of desire or yearning could ever overcome it. Love was the perfect combination of all four elements. There was nothing more substantial than when you gave someone your heart, life, mind, and body. No single element, even one cultivated by a trained supplicant – backed by the strength of an Elemental – could overcome all four. How was she supposed to give her life to Ethan when he loved someone else?

“But now what?” Sera repeated, standing up over this woman. She could tell she wouldn’t get an answer, so she took a different track. “Do you think you are strong enough to walk? Would you like me to help you back to your room?”

“I . . . I think I can stand.” She could, with help. By the time Sera had helped her to the door and they found a very puzzled Yori outside, Natasha could walk alone. The islander couldn’t help but notice the Tallashite was naked under the robe but tried to be a gentleman and look away. Instead, he peered into the room. The only mark of the fire was a livid scorch mark on the rug in the center of the floor.

“Do you need help?” he asked.

“I think we got it, thanks,” Sera replied. He shrugged his shoulders and went back to his room. Sera helped Natasha down the hall but hesitated as she remembered that she wasn’t supposed to wander around. Natasha noticed and waved her off.

“I think I can take it from here. Thanks.” Without another word, the woman staggered around a corner and out of sight.

Sera jogged back to Ethan’s room and was just in time to see him stand up and drop the sheet to get dressed. “Oh,” Sera blushed. “I’m sorry.” She quickly turned around but saw that the mirror in his room still gave her a fascinating view.

Trying not to stare, Sera thought about what she should say. She could scold him for being stupid, but they had already been over that, and it wasn’t a fair assessment. No one, especially a young man so full of life as Ethan, had the mental fortitude to fight off the passion of an Elemental. And it wasn’t like he had acted on his own. Natasha had pushed him. No, Sera would not scold him for this. Instead, she needed to listen and offer help.

After an agonizing minute or two, Ethan had put his pants and shirt back on, and Sera walked over to him to sit on the bed. “Do you want to talk about it?”

Ethan took a seat as well, but several feet from his friend. He didn’t trust himself. Having given in to his desire so entirely just a few minutes ago, he wasn’t likely to do it again, but he didn’t want to test it. “I don’t know what to say. I saw her in the entry hall, and she instantly captured my every emotion. I couldn’t think, I couldn’t hear, I had no idea what the Supplanter was saying.”

Sera nodded, remembering his disorientation.

“Then she showed up in my room. Once she saw me, she literally caught fire. I tried to put it out, but once I got too close to her . . . I can’t explain it. I was just consumed.”

By passion or fire? Sera thought to herself but realized it was both. The link between the human and natural elements was too obvious to miss. She remembered talking about how the mages thought they could unravel the powers of the natural elements through study. Now she understood why they had failed. It was far more primal than that. The Divine Creator had tied everything together.

“But when I heard you call my name,” Ethan continued. “My heart snapped. Somehow, I was able to resist the urge for . . . I don’t even know her name.”

Sera saw the hurt and embarrassment in his eyes. “Natasha,” Sera said.

“Natasha,” he repeated, rolling the name around in his mind. He shook his head. “Who is she?”

“She is a supplicant who has dedicated her life to cultivating the powers of the heart.”

“Cultivating?”

“Not just studying but strengthening. It is the difference between reading about physiology and actually doing exercise. One teaches you how the body works, and the other makes the body stronger. She has learned how to meditate on her emotions to strengthen her will and desire. I don’t know how to do it, but many other supplicants do it too.”

Ethan nodded. “The other girl who came into my room and took my clothes to get washed. She was like Natasha too, only not as strong, not as aware.”

“All of the women here choose one of the four paths. There are probably 25 other women who will be able to sense the Elemental inside you. They may not all know what it is, but they all have the potential.”

Ethan swallowed hard and looked nervous. Sera scooted closer to him on the bed and risked putting a hand on his cheek. His skin was warm. A shiver went through her body, ending between her legs, but she pushed past it. “Natasha is one of the four chosen by the Supplanter. He picks the strongest woman in each of the four areas of expertise: Heart, mind, body, and life. They are his inner circle. When he has absorbed enough of each of the elements from his other supplicants, they will help him. I don’t know how, but I’m told even the supplicants don’t know how it will work.”

Ethan nodded, relieved that he wouldn’t have this reaction with each of the women he met that had this power. He took her hand off his cheek and held it firmly in both his hands. “I am sorry, Sera. I know we haven’t . . . I mean, I didn’t want this to happen.”

A tear rolled down Sera’s face, and she desperately wanted to lean in and kiss him, but she successfully fought the urge. “I know. Neither of us wanted this to happen.”

Ethan sucked in his emotions for a moment and put on a stoic face. “I just can’t help but feel jealous when I think of what I have . . .”

“You don’t need to . . .” she interrupted, but he held up his hand to stop her.

“I mean, I have an Elemental that drives me crazy, while yours lets you jump off cliffs and ride giant birds.” A sly grin sneaked into the corner of his mouth.

“Oh,” Sera smirked, pulling her hand away, “that kind of jealous.” She slugged him in the shoulder.

He laughed but rubbed his arm in pain. “Ouch. See, it even makes you stronger.”

“Oh, so you want to switch?” she asked, rising from the bed, far more prepared for this familiar banter than the tough conversation they had just had. “Would you rather have walked in on Natasha and me, rolling around naked in a ball of fire?”

Color rushed into Ethan’s face at the thought. “No, I mean . . .”

But Sera threw a pillow at him. “I know what you mean, silly boy. But the Savior saw to it differently. Now get dressed the rest of the way,” she added, throwing his socks at him too. “Dinner will be in an hour, and we don’t want to keep our host waiting.” After that, she left the room before she lost her composure and burst out laughing.