"This is the domain of my destined mate?" she asked, her voice carrying a tone of mixed curiosity with something approaching disappointment. "I expected something... larger. More extensive."
Rose's emerald eyes flashed with irritation.
She was judging territorial expansion that had only recently begun, evaluating achievement that represented advancement beyond anything most beings could imagine.
"We just started expansion," she said with defensive pride of protective instincts elevated beyond conventional loyalty. "Who are you to judge scope that's still developing?"
Rather than escalate the tension, Rose simply waved her hand with movements that carried their own stellar authority. Space folded around their group with precision as they materialized outside an enclosed cerulean-gold domed structure that floated within the protective embrace of Thalassarian waters.
