Walking together Gordon realized that even though Renier wasn't as tall as before she was still taller than he was. Only about a head taller, but it meant that he had to look up to converse with her. And since they were walking so close together was a little uncomfortable. Subtly he tried to put some distance between them. However the elemental didn't allow it and eventually put her arm in his before leaning into him.
They were silent for several minutes until they were well into the wood on the other side of the clearing from her hut.
"I don't suppose you have another one of those vouchers?"
When she finally spoke Renier unexpectedly asked about a system related detail.
"Potentially I could earn more, but I don't currently have any more. Well at least any others that I think would be useful. There is one more called [Awakening Voucher]. It is pretty self explanatory, all it does is awaken an animal. That's all."
Explaining about his vouchers Gordon supposed that he understood why she was interested.
"Hmmmm."
Was all Renier said. Changing direction a little they continued to walk through the wood. Gordon was able to see a lot more animals and plants they seemed to come out to run and play around Renier. He was surprised at just how much life was locked away in this pocket dimension. The more he traveled through it the more it felt right to call it Renier's private and personal garden.
"I regret to inform you that I won't be able to keep my side of our bargain. I won't be able to protect you."
Sometime later she spoke again.
Sighing Gordon shrugged.
"It is okay. I suppose that your cultivation was interrupted when you had to come out of the evolutionary state early?"
Making a guess Gordon said something that he thought would be the reason she couldn't protect him.
"Actually, no. There is a reason I was never able to break through to the verdant mercury rank, let alone my present rank of pink palladium. But now that I am on the magenta level I can directly experience the reason."
She paused in her narration to run a hand down the bark of a tree that they were passing. Strangely enough the tree giggled and when Gordon was about to ask for more information Renier just shook her head at him and moved on.
Carefully giving the giggling tree a wide berth Gordon hurried to catch up with the elemental.
"This world can't support a verdant mercury being, let alone anything above that rank. There seems to be a hole in the world somewhere siphoning off excess energy. I can feel it. My strength is being tapped, aggressively pulled away. If I had finished the last bit of my evolution I probably could have held on for a few months, but at this rate I will be gone within a few hours. Maybe even sooner."
"What??"
Confused Gordon felt like the situation was getting wildly out of hand really fast once again.
"I know, I know, I want to know what is happening too. But I am being resisted, kept in the dark. There is something out there playing with the fundamental properties of this world."
Renier said.
"Can't we do anything about this?"
Wanting to help Gordon asked a question. He really wanted to ask about the levels of ranking after the purple diamond rank, but his own curiosity paled in comparison to the fact that Renier was once again dying.
"You? Little adorable apprentice beast master? What are you going to do?"
Amused Renier stopped, turned, and looked at him.
"I don't know, I can raise awareness? ..."
He trailed off knowing that he sounded stupid even as he said it.
"The last thing I want is awareness. I really don't want whatever is out there to know I am here and come after me."
Instead of making fun of him, though, instead she took him seriously, if at the same time opposing his idea completely.
They had walked some distance and had now come up upon a temple built in the the cliff. It had simple architecture, nothing fancy, just one open alter recessed back into the cliff face with columns seemingly holding the carved out over hanging roof up. Behind the praying wall there was only an empty space with no stone statue or wooden idol.
But as he looked he saw that there really was something to pray to. The stone that he had originally thought was an alter was actually the object of worship. The easiest way to tell was that it glowed. Very faintly, he hadn't been able to tell until he came up close enough and his eyes adjusted to the darkness of the temple, but it was clear. The stone was the object of venerance.
Fascinated by the temple he noticed that there were earth elemental beings attending the temple as well as coming out of the forest behind him as well as directly sublimating from the ground at their feet into even more earth elementals. The temple attendants, perhaps elemental priests, would guide their fellows into praying at the alter.
The way the priests facilitated these individual elementals was astonishing. One of them directly turned into earthen praying stand so that the earth elemental aspirant could kneel and be supported while praying. The prayers were quick, just a clap of the hands and then a head bobbing murmur, before the aspirant would step back and another priest would guide them away.
Gordon shook his head amazed at the austerity of their worship and suddenly wondered if the rest of the temple were also earth elementals who had conveniently taken the shapes necessary to support their worship. He tried to take a closer look at the column that they were standing next to when Renier suddenly asked a question that completely captured his attention.
"Instead of protecting you, I need you to protect me."
Suddenly Renier said something that completely astonished Gordon.
"Me, protect you?"
"Yes, please take me seriously. I can tell that you have something that others don't. It will be a great blessing for you. And perhaps your strength will grow and grow. I do not know what the future holds, but I do know that no being above the diamond rank being ever truly dies. Perhaps I can be reborn, maybe I will be resurrected, or maybe just a bit of my power will be passed on through a blood line."
Now the supreme elemental was being completely upfront.
"Listen, I do have something, I call it a system. But whether I can make good on its promises is another matter. I am a risk, are you really willing to risk everything?"
He could tell that this was a cross roads for his life in this world. Gordon wasn't so foolish to reject such a great opportunity as this, but he also knew that there would be some kind of responsibility associated.
Sensing that he was half seduced by the power that she possessed and was becoming more and more ready to commit Renier smiled deciding to poor some cold water on his head to keep him humble.
"I am sure, there is little I have to fear. Regardless of your success or failure I will rise again, maybe not for a thousand years, maybe not for a thousand thousand years, but sooner of later I will rise again. I have this opportunity because of you. You should know that you really aren't all that special. Just accept my legacy. If you bring me back I will be more than happy to protect you at that time."
His bubble burst Gordon laugh for a moment and then just shrugged.
"Sure, I will do it, no problem."
"I can sense that my time draws near. Here take this seal. I used all my accumulation to defend against the behemoths and their allies, so this isn't much. All I have left is this pocket dimension. Please protect it, I am entrusting you with my greatest joy and deepest love!"
Renier could really express her bond with this pocket or the value that it had in her eyes. All she could do was say a few words. Gordon would have to seek and discover why this land was so precious for himself.
"Then one last thing. Pray to the god of the earth Gaia and receive her blessing."
She gestured to the waiting temple priests who immediately guided him to the earthen praying stand transformed from an earth elemental.
Evidently this was a temple to the goddess Gaia and this praying stand was really just a little hill of dirt and stone, nothing could be more unrefined and back to nature than this, right?
Looking over at the temple, Gordon shrugged again and then taking a few steps bowed his head and mumbled a few words to Gaia about the beauty of the earth.
The stone which had been softly effervescent before lit up illuminating all the corners of the little temple. That light condensed into bright points of light which then with a great wind swooshed into Gordon. Now he was very thankful to the earth praying stand as it was all he could do to hold onto it while experiencing the divine light wind. In his effort he could feel his various attributes increasing and that his reindeer lichen also seemed to received the blessing as well actually taking the lion share of the gift somehow.
Gordon called forth his bonded partner very pleased that the reindeer lichen had been able to benefit so much from this unexpected bonus. Appearing between his hand on the earthen stand the book covered in lichen didn't seem to need any help stone staying still in the wind. It was then that he realized that no one else except him was experiencing the wind. The elementals including Renier just stood around looking at him frantically enduring this tribulation.
Then lightning became mixed in with wind and Gordon's mind went blank from the pain.
"It seems that Gaia has seen fit to bless you with your own heavenly tribulation."
Renier explained what was happening.
Accept that in the next moment while Gordon was paralyzed by the lightning the earthen stend like a curious baby earth elemental grew soil arms that reached out to touch the reindeer lichen. Within the divine clutches of the tribulation Gordon's last voucher mysteriously exited the system space and flew into the earthen elemental stand holding the book which had rooted into it the lichen.
And then there was another light. The light of evolution quickly engulfed both the reindeer lichen, the book, and the earth elemental.
If Gordon hadn't been currently being irrigated by lightning he would have shown a face full of surprise and then joy at the thought that his reindeer lichen was evolving again so unexpectedly.
"What have you done?!"
However, Renier, mother and matriarch of these earth elements instantly went into alert mode. Half joking and half serious. She smiled while reaching out to examine the currently evolving lichen.
Concern for her progeny no matter how distant down the family tree was primary for Renier. Putting her hands on her hips she was about to give a lecture to Gordon when a dark force suddenly swirled down from the sky in the form of a tornado. Directly enveloping the pink palladium earth elemental it was as if Renier was no more than a toy.
Many of the present earth elementals tore their eyes away from the lichen and crying out in pain and fury attacked the tornado. But instead of damaging the attack they only bolstered it farther someone feeding it with their own energy.
All the power that Renier had previously displayed dominating the diamond ranked behemoths was gone. Amid the shadows within the tornado Renier was no more than a rag being stung and sand papered away.
In moments the dark cloud of swirling essence dissipated leaving nothing behind but dust which slowly sank down onto the ground at their feet.
It was all so sudden that Gordon who had only been able to sling one rock into the terror could only let his sling shot fall having been worth less than dust in the face of that thing whatever it had been.