Cloud's feet carry him to the ground floor, heading towards the automatic doors with haste in his stride.
His intentions are the opposite of pure as he prepares himself to catch up to the people he deems responsible for everything wrong with this town.
It's time for the Church of Babylon to know what true fear is, and who better to deliver that lesson than the proposed antichrist himself?
A Morningstar.
They must have known. Why else would they have gone through all of this trouble in the first place if they didn't believe him to be evil incarnate?
"Cloud where are you going? You're injured?" Sky utters, happening to catch sight of him on his way past reception. "Wait, stop, look at me."
They say everyone has their limits, each of us having the capacity to be the monster in someone else's fairytale, and unfortunately for everything in his nearby vicinity, Cloud has almost reached the end of his tether.
"Hey, look at me." she tries, using a softer tone but still having no idea what she's getting herself into.
Usually for Cloud there are other forces at play that can bring him back from the point of no return. His friends, his parents, Sky.
But now, not even her voice is enough to reach him in his stoic trance.
He looks through her, his eyes bloodshot and vacant with a storm brewing just beneath the surface.
She reaches for his hand but they both flinch away once her fingers brush against his, especially that one with the Flamestone ring.
"Cloud, you're burning up." she whispers, careful to not raise her voice loud enough for anyone to overhear.
He doesn't say anything but she notices the bubbling water inside the water cooler on this floor and how all the flowers are starting to brown.
She squeezes her lips together, meeting his eyes, understanding in that moment that nothing in this world, not even her, will be able to stop his plans, whatever they may be.
He whispers in a raspy voice, nodding his head after each word as he gets the words out. "Stop...me?"
She feels sick, her heart knocking against her chest; knowing that it isn't a question of if she will, but a threat.
Don't.
Sky presses her tongue against the back of her teeth as she lowers her gaze. Even when she reminds herself that this isn't about, it doesn't make it hurt any less.
That look...well that look could kill.
Cloud rolls his eyes towards the ceiling, fighting back tears as he stumbles his way through the crowds.
When the automatic doors open, he doesn't even flinch at the rain, starting his journey into the night with revenge on his mind.
As soon as his eyes lock onto the Red Cloaks, that's it, game set, he starts picking up speed until he becomes a blur chasing after seven fleeing vehicles.
His eyes shift repeatedly, bouncing back from green to amber every time he blinks until his barely contained rage corrupts him further.
When the rain hits his clothing it makes sizzling sounds, leaving behind a faint trail of mist whilst the ring on his finger burns a ghostly looking blue that mimics the colour his eyes eventually settle on.
He first tapped into Hellfire barely a month ago in the Olympia, and then again only two days ago, but those times he was merely skimming the surface, barely even recognising what he was doing.
This time, things feel different.
The ring slips off his finger, rapidly expanding until the band of light starts orbiting around his head like a halo.
Dinah props herself up after catching a flicker of light in her peripheral vision, turning around in her seat at the back of the car to get a better look.
"Uh, Cillian, you have company." she voices, rubbing her arms after a cold shiver runs through her entire body. "Looks like you pissed off another Jefferson."
Freya lifts her head from resting on the window ledge, holding her right arm with her left as she tries to get a read on the situation.
Cillian himself is sitting in the passenger seat and the look on his face...it almost makes her suffering worth it.
She looks back, her breath catching as she watches his flames spark to life, pieces of his clothing burning until the wind disperses them into kindling embers!
The halo eventually falls around his neck like a levitating collar, the gap between him and the cars surprisingly shrinking even after they pick up speed!
He runs over concrete with bare feet, leaving behind a trail of flaming footsteps after his toes burn through his sneakers.
Unlike his feet, which are now glowing up to his ankles, only the tips of his fingers light up as if they were just lightly dunked inside a pot of glow in the dark paint.
Cloud may only be on foot but he was raised in the Everwood forest where opportunities for shortcuts are plentiful if you know the land well and don't mind going off road.
Flames combust from his feet, rocketing him through the air like a missile as every leap he takes doubles the distance of the last!
"Did we lose him?" Cillian asks his driver after two drawn out minutes of silence, keeping his eyes trained on the road ahead with parallel walls of trees on either side speeding past his windows.
"Hold onto something." Dinah whispers, leaning towards Freya as she adjusts her own seat belt.
They feel the impact of the explosion before they truly realise what just happened as the car vaults forward, almost spinning out of control as the car that was following them flips over and is engulfed in its own flames.
After a series of smaller explosions, Freya catches sight of a growing figure in the distance, shivers ruffling through her wings as she senses a fraction of the immense power leaking out of Cloud.
Her heart sinks, realising now how truly wrong she was to label him as anything other than a threat!
His power, whilst not as old as hers, has unimaginable potential. However, as of right now, it is so wild in its nature that it has but one purpose.
Destroy.
Everything.
"Do you both understand now?" Cillian inquires, meeting their gaze in the rearview mirror. "That is what we are dealing with. What the Church is sworn to fight against."
Freya isn't sure which frightens her more, leaving Cloud in this animalistic state of carnage or the idea that if he ever learns to control this power then he would have the tools to destroy the world.
They flee, but not before catching the last glimpse of Cloud dragging a Red Cloak out of the wreckage he created. He tilts his head towards the sky and lets out a howl not of this world!
Cloud pins the Red Cloak to the ground with his foot on their chest, turning his attention onto the cars steering around the crash, reaching his hand out towards the Red Cloaks in the final vehicle before promptly setting their heads on fire!
He takes pride in knowing they didn't die immediately, watching them scream in agony as their car spins out of control, eventually colliding with a nearby tree that slowly starts to burn.
Only one makes it out but they quickly succumb to their injuries after only a few steps, dropping dead onto the tarmac with a heavy thud.
He leaves the flames to claim the body, growing tired of hearing the noise of the others begging for their lives, creating four fireballs twice the size of his own head with ease before blowing up their car.
He repeatedly pummels them with more until the rising smoke is thick enough to cut through, his hands tremblingly when the deed is done.
He lowers his gaze once he hears the low murmurs of the Red Cloak beneath him, increasing the heat until he smells that rancid fragrance of roasting flesh!
"The father, son and the holy spirit...ah!"
Cloud bends down and reaches for the white mask covering their face, hesitating after the band's snap, recognising the person underneath.
He'd seen him around town plenty of times but not enough to know his name.
His kids probably went to school with him, ate the same food, bought items from the same shops, they were neighbours.
None of that mattered anymore.
He grabs him by the throat and utters just one word. "Ignium."