ascendence / ascendants [əˈsɛndəns]
ascendance (ascendence) – n. – leadership, domination
ascendants – n. pl of ascendant – 1. the quality, state or position of being supreme, dominant, or in power: the point of highest development or influence; 2. a lineal or collateral relative in the ascending line: one that precedes in genealogical succession – an ancestor