[Location: House of the Hearth]
It was a dark night as Clervie sat alone in her room. After several days of interrogation, Crucabena had finally sent her to her old quarters. Looking around, the space seemed smaller somehow: the dusty bed without bedsheets, the narrow bookshelves, the lack of a closet the other children possessed.
She had grown, both in height and strength. In a way, she had outgrown this little room where her former self had once been trapped. She had also come closer to her dream what had once felt like reaching for a fantasy now seemed almost possible because she had accepted that in her vision of a happy family, Mother could no longer be a part of it.
The adventurers who had taken her in had trained her, tempered her. Sitting in the room and reflecting on who she was a year ago, the contrast in her mindset was jarring. There was a slight disconnect, as though she had forgotten something vital.
A soft knock at the window broke her thoughts. Turning, Clervie saw something resting on the outside sill.
It was a small metal ornament with a light-green orb set in its center. As she stared, something stirred in the back of her sleep-deprived mind.
With a sharp intake of breath, Clervie dropped to one knee as memories flooded her head memories that contradicted everything she had believed. The false memories Carman had planted unraveled, revealing the truth sealed deep in her mind.
Ryuzu had noticed the change of light in her room and delivered her Vision as promised.
She examined the window, its opening restricted by bolts to prevent escape, and shimmied it up as far as she could.
As soon as she felt a small draft, Clervie reached out mentally. Before, when Ryuzu had been farther away and she hadn't remembered their link, Clervie hadn't understood the mental connection to her Vision. Now that it was close, she gripped the connection, drawing on its power as she blended into the wind and slipped through the narrow gap. Rematerializing on the outer ledge, she steadied herself with one hand on the ornate frame, then bent down to retrieve her Vision. It felt warm in her hand, its weight a steady reassurance. Melding with the wind again, Clervie slipped back into her room.
Now that she remembered her true past, she knew what was coming. Though it would break her heart for Peri to think she was dead, she knew she still wasn't on her level much less Mother's.
Before sleeping, Clervie used a knife to cut into one of her books, creating a small compartment to hide the Vision. She tucked the cut paper and knife into the Vision's space, pulled out a few other books to disguise her work as late-night reading, and slid the altered book back onto the shelf.
Content with her handiwork, Clervie turned, flopped face down onto the bed, and fell asleep.
[Location: Carman's Workshop]
"It has been delivered. After days of observation, I identified tonight as the ideal time to restore Clervie's memories," said Ryuzu as she watched Carman pace.
"Good. Now keep an eye on Crucabena and her underlings. As soon as they start preparing a place for a duel, immediately bring the double for Clervie to mark. Time isn't on our side, and I've changed enough that Crucabena could choose another venue for the death match."
"Understood," Ryuzu replied.
With a sigh, Carman sat as she left. Now that everything was coming to a head, he felt a rare flicker of nerves. This was his first major deviation from the plot. Even his battles against Vasher were, arguably, on a lesser scale; Vasher was just another faction like Spina di Rosula competing in Fontaine's underground.
He had done everything he could he'd even procured an inactive Vision that had cost him an arm and a leg in the underground market to which he'd sent one of Ravenwatch's members.
Still, unease lingered. He wasn't sure how great an impact Clervie's survival would have in the long run, how it might alter the fate of the world as he knew it. If not for the quest urging him forward, he wasn't sure he would have dared to intervene, no matter how much he might later regret it. The safety of his new family weighed heavily on his shoulders.
With another sigh, he turned back to his projects. With Clervie's double complete, he could finally focus on the other tasks he'd sidelined. There were artifacts he had recovered from an old research center that he longed to reverse engineer. Perhaps immersing himself in that work would quiet his anxiety.
[Timeskip: Dawn of the Duel]
Ryuzu set out early, long before the first rays of the sun touched the horizon. She had been observing the Hearth for days, and a small group had moved toward a site Carman had identified as the most likely place for the duel.
Sneaking around the building's exterior to eavesdrop on the Hearth's unhinged matron was troublesome with so many guards, but not impossible. With patience and care, she created a brief window for Clervie to mark the double.
That was her mission now. With the Hearth unaware of her Anemo Vision, Clervie slipped in and out of her room with little trouble. After delivering a note with the time and place to meet, Ryuzu found her waiting at a small clearing in the forest near the Hearth's headquarters. At this hour, few patrols passed through, and those who did were finishing their shifts. As a precaution, Carman had instructed Ryuzu to release a few Fontainian constructs over the past weeks, most clustered around a nearby Pneuma node.
The rustling and mechanical noises were now familiar enough that patrolling members of the Hearth focused on tracing the source of the "malfunctioning" meka rather than noticing Ryuzu.
Standing before Clervie, Ryuzu opened the sack she carried, revealing the double inside. Silently, Clervie extended a thread of elemental energy and placed a mark on the copy. Both nodded before parting Clervie returning to her room, Ryuzu slipping away to a vantage point where she could observe the coming conflict.
[POV: Clervie - Three Hours Later]
Clervie had expected this day. Carman had warned her repeatedly about what might happen if she returned to the Hearth. He had even explained what was supposed to unfold. Though she had been hesitant to believe him at first, the things he knew about her, about Peri gave weight to his words.
What she hadn't expected was the subtle shift in her mother's attitude. Before, Mother had clearly seen Clervie as a hindrance, a problem to be solved. Now, after Clervie's forced battles with her siblings and her careful displays of skill, Mother's gaze held something somehow colder: appraisal. She looked at Clervie as one might look at tool, but not the kind you used more than once.
When a subordinate arrived to summon her, Clervie performed a final check of her gear. Her true weapon and equipment were hidden within her Vision's space. Ready, she followed the messenger through the hall.
Another subordinate joined them, along with a sharp eyed Peruere. They stopped in the entrance hall until Mother emerged, veiled in black.
"Girls, we are heading out. With our wayward family member's sudden improvement, I feel the need to test where she stands among the family," Crucabena said.
Leading them outside, Crucabena allowed a faint smile to curve her lips, clearly savoring the outcome she had planned.
A carriage waited on the cobblestone road. Clervie and Peruere boarded with Mother while the servants followed in another transport. Neither girl noticed the third servant step out carrying a small child.
They disembarked in a field beside a medium sized building. Crucabena guided them to a broad stretch of open ground and began to speak.
"Now, my dear daughters, today you will fight with everything you have. I wish to see which of you stands superior. Push yourselves to the limit and beyond. Though I love you both, only one of you will walk away the victor."
As she spoke, the second carriage arrived. A masked servant stepped down, cradling a small boy.
Crucabena's smile turned sickly sweet. "Oh my, it seems little Luis fell asleep on the journey. He was so eager to watch you fight when he overheard my plans." She gestured lightly toward the servant. "Mr. Doveir will keep him safe, but accidents happen when people fight for long periods of time, you grow tired, you may accidentally slip and hit a bystander. So do make sure this duel ends decisively."
As she spoke, a spike of Hydro energy rose from the earth beneath the boy's chest. If the servant loosened his grip, the child could be impaled in an instant.
A grim look settled over Clervie's face. Mother clearly intended to ensure this battle ended in death. Turning her head, Clervie met Peruere's steady, crimson crosses and caught the faintest flicker of conflict there.
Both girls fell into fighting stances. Clervie reached inward, confirming the link to the mark she had set earlier.
As the sun finally left the horizon, determined green eyes met a conflicted pair of red for what Peruere feared would be the last time.
-To be continued.