Part 3, let's go baby. Like the title says, this one is focused on Clive and his relationship with every other Dominant. I'll only skip Jill since I've already spoken of their relationship in the first post. But let's start by listing everyone as per usual:

• Clive Rosfield: Ifrit - fire

• Joshua Rosfield: Phoenix - fire

• Jill Warrick: Shiva - ice

• Cid Telamon: Ramuh - thunder

• Benedikta Harman: Garuda - wind/air

• Hugo Kupka: Titan - earth

• Dion Lesage: Bahamut - holy/light

• Barnabas Tharmr: Odin - dark(ness)

• And then there's Leviathan the Lost, the water element, but they have no Dominant

Once again, I'll be skipping Jill as I've gone through her before, so without further ado, let's see Clive's relationship with every other Dominant.

1. Clive and Joshua - fire draws more fire

So this one is pretty simple. Both brothers and fire elemental. However, Clive inclines to the destructive side while Joshua moves to the creative side, as I've went over in my other posts. This opposition in their powers draws them ever closer to one another, as fire does.

It's interesting to notice that since Phoenix was born from the ashes of Ifrit's flames, only when both combine is their true power unleashed. I mean, it's called Ifrit Risen for a reason, and managed to survive in space and stop a Zeraflare for a reason too.

It's this bond of theirs that pushes them on, this eternal fire burning inside both of them, and that's pretty sweet.

2. Clive and Cid - two dead man walking

Both Cid and Clive are just, like I said, two dead man walking, namely while Cid is still around. I've already gone over Cid and how this comes from his not super fond bond with Ramuh. As for Clive, it comes from 1. The fact everyone thought he died at Phoenix's Gate and 2. How he wishes to die after discovering he is the Dominant that apparently killed his brother. Heck, it's during this scene of him asking to be killed that we see, or at least I felt like so, that Cid has been in a similar position (and Cid's bisexuality, but that isn't called here), and by that I mean that he too once wished to die for past actions. But he fought against it and instead went in search of creating a better world; if he can still move and with Ramuh by his side, that ought to work in his favor in the upcoming trials. It's basically this that he says to Clive as well, and thus Clive joins him.

It's interesting to notice that between the two, Cid dies while Clive is at a low point in his life, but he's never truly gone. From then on, Clive would come to be living a new life, for the both of them.

3. Clive and Benedikta - the fall of power

Benedikta's character resolves around her wish for power. Well, it's during her fights that Clive 1. Gains more power, since he absorbs Garuda from her, and 2. Discover the power inside of him that strikes him down.

Ever since he's been searching for the one responsible for his brother alleged death, Clive has been craving power to a certain extent. Wouldn't do to find the guy and then not being able to kill him, right? And for this reason, Benedikta is the first antagonistic Dominant he has to fight: to understand his lust for power won't solve anything, only make things worse. It also serves as a way of showing him an Eikon/Dominant losing complete control, just like he did in the past.

4. Clive and Hugo - revenge is a dish served cold

The thing about these two is that both are in search for revenge, albeit at different times. Clive hopes to avenge his brother alleged death at the beginning, while Hugo hopes to avenge Benedikta's.

Each one shows a different side. Granted, Clive did come to find out Joshua was alive, so there's no more need to avenge him, but he still fought against those impulses, on Cid's account no less, and managed to reach higher places thanks to that. Hugo on the other hand, fell completely into hallucinations and couldn't get over it, diving into madness and dying from it.

5. Clive and Dion - the Kinslayers

Alright, so these two find themselves wearing that title, though in the end it comes to only be suitable for Dion and even then it was an accident, a manipulation of events.

Still, because both believe they killed someone dear to them (Clive his brother, and perhaps to some extent Cid, who has become a sort of father figure, and Dion actually killed his father), they search for revenge and atonement. Likewise, their design colors are opposites, drawing them closer, so it's no wonder that Dion comes to be a huge aid to Clive at the end. And, in the end, it's their duty to the dead that keeps them going after tragedy befalls and allows them to beat Ultima.

6. Clive and Barnabas - the man in the mirror

The most interesting pair on this list in my opinion. For all that matters, they're opposites. One is what Ultima wants, the other is what Ultima has. One is constantly defying Ultima, the other is unconditionally devoted to them. One has friends and family, the other is completely alone. This opposition can be seen in their clothes, as Clive wears red and Barnabas blueish purples, colors often used to represent the villain and hero of the story. Interestingly, Clive is the one in red, the villain color, and Barnabas in blue, the hero one. Of course, said colors are also connected to their elements, but in this case could serve to show exactly how Clive is being a villain to Ultima by defying them, while Barnabas is a hero for welcoming them (all this in Ultima's perspective, of course).

Furthermore, like I've said in my second post of this series, during the bedroom scene, I literally mistook Barnabas for Clive for a second, but I doubt that was unintentional. Their likeliness can't be a coincidence. I'd say that, since Ultima can't have Clive yet, they went to Barnabas for how similar they look, or even made him look a bit similar on purpose.

In the end, Barnabas comes to be a sort of reflection of Clive had he give in to his previous impulses of revenge and power and chose Ultima. That's why I like to say Barnabas is like Clive's shadow, which comes to play with the fact he's darkness, and Ifrit's fires create just the right environment to produce shadows now, don't they?

Plus, Barnabas was once accompanied by Benedikta and Cid, but they left him. Those two are also the first Eikons/Dominants that Clive obtains. An interesting detail to point.

And this one ends here. There's no reason to talk about Leviathan since this one is a direct look into the Dominants and how they reflect a portion of Clive, for better or worse. Having no Dominant, that won't really work for Leviathan. At least, not now.

But anyway, I hope you enjoyed. Only one more to go, and probably a bonus part, if not two. Also, mayhaps you can add information where I could not.

I watched 20 hours of cutscenes, yet it seems that I should have watched the 60 hours of a 100% gameplay.... I'll do it after finishing the posts.