"I'm not even supposed to be here."

The silver haired man spat as he peered over the edge of a cliff. His blood boiled— His rage was the only thing keeping him warm. He knew eventually there would be a dead end. He'd hoped it would have been at a later date. 

"This is ridiculous. It never rains like this in The Cradle."

The wind violently pushed him towards the depths below. Almost as though to encourage him to embrace what awaited underfoot. Shaking he took a step back as his knees grew weaker from the thought of the ground crumbling into the abyss— Changing his current status from escaping to early demise.

"Whoa—"

The trees around him bowed to the might of the roaring winds. Wave upon wave crashed into the cliff. He could no longer hear the shouts of his pursuers. The fury of the storm had long since drowned out their cries. Yet he stood trembling against the onslaught of the elements— Even the rain was like daggers. Exhausted, he stood solemnly only to ponder his next move.

"Well I could jump. Not too sure how far down that is though. From the sound of it—"

Slowly he gyrated his head to the left hoping his right ear would hear what the other could not.

"I–i–it's really deep! Maybe 300... No 400 meters down!"

He couldn't help but let out a chuckle because his circumstances were dire.

"Leroy's Cradle 'Land of, clear skies,  hope, and justice.' I'm soooo happy to be here this is really swell!"

He kept his humor brief. He lacked the time for his usually whimsical attitude. He knew he needed to make a choice— and fast. Does he leap off the edge? Forcing his hand to roll the dice against Death herself. Or should he return to the angry mob that awaited him? Only to plead for a chance to prove his innocence in front of a deafened mob.

His pride was pushing him forward, and his will to survive kept holding him back. He sneered...

"Neither!"

He had one last option— A path only a truly foolish man would take. One that would only be concocted out of pure desperation. He just needed one final push to be that desperate.

"Not yet. I can't die here."

At that moment he thought of his cousin Hera. He promised to return back to her in good health. 

"Not here. I won't die here."

Closing his eyes he took a deep breath to help clear his mind. Only a moment was needed to sort his thoughts. However Mother Nature cared not for his thoughts. The wind roared, and the rain lashed at his body. The storm never ceased threatening to break his body, and his will. His senses were inadequate. Giving up would have been much easier, but right now he didn't have that luxury. He needed to find a way home safely, in order to keep at least one promise.

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"I'm low on food, my blade is dulled, my body has passed it's limit, pretty sure my magic is fading—"

His heart dropped. The more he thought about it the more he realized.

"I'm fucked. I have nothing left. I have nobody to— "

Epiphany struck. He never  once thought about being saved. He didn't even try to ask his party for aid. 

"They should be resting up in Newhaven. That's perfect!"

He just needed to trust his new friends. Their journey together hadn't been long—But at least he trusted their character.

"Right then. Hopefully I do this right!"

His ploy required 3 conditions to be met. First he would take advantage of the overwhelming amount of natural mana around him. If he could absorb it at a faster rate than he let it seep out. His pool of mana to take from could become near infinite. However the rate at which he'd take it in would be dangerous. Possibly killing him in the process.

‘No biggie!’ he thought. ‘Worst thing that can happen is that I die.’ Joking to himself was the only thing to help calm his nerves for what was about to come.

"Right then."

His hair began twirling around as the mana in the air became a vortex. It was time to pull it in.

"Oh maaaaan this is a lot—"

The force of the mana entering his body at it's current speed was enough to make the ground start to break around him. His feet were being buried. His back felt like it was going to be crushed under the force of the mana. Worst of all he couldn't breathe.

"Just deal with it! Only a little bit longer!"

Naturally that was a lie. He needed much more mana to succeed.

"AAAARRRRGGGGHHHHH!"

Finally he did it. Groaning in agony he was ready for the second condition. Unfortunately it required every ounce of skill, and knowledge he accumulated up until now. He needed to release a blast bright enough to be seen from Newhaven. This was the hard part. The easy part was creating enough force to dispel the rampaging storm in his vicinity. Luckily he was no stranger to doing things with brute force. ‘This better be worth it.’ Thinking to himself he could use dispelling the storm as proof of his innocence. If he could convince the Lord of Leroy's Cradle the storm wasn't his doing. Then he knew the masses could be swayed by their lord.

"Lord Ignis might be an idiot, but he isn't evil. Still can't believe all it took to condemn me was a pair of panties, and some douche bag with a silver tongue."

He couldn't wait to tell Leon this story later over a pint, and some Mabear steak. However he had more pressing matters to attend to. Like staying alive.

"It's time for a light show citizens of The Cradle—"

He proclaimed that like he was confident, but really he was terrified. As he took up his stance he knew he would only be granted one shot. If this didn't work it meant death. His resolve steeled and he started to channel his mana.

"Fuuuuuuuuuuccckkkkkk—"

Every muscle in his body was screaming for him to stop. He already had surpassed his limits multiple times. Yet still, he asked his body for more. The strain was too great. Blood dripped from his eyes. As he started to see black he shouted.

"I command thee— Lulu of Radiance, and Isabelle of Frost Rhapsody Burst!"

He sent his mana screaming into the atmosphere with everything he had. There was no doubt that it was visible from Newhaven. He even thought to himself— ‘Shit you could probably see that all the way over in Genesis.’

The light was blinding. The sheer force from the blast blew him backwards 15 meters into a nearby tree. As luck would have it that saved his life. The ground that once was beneath his feet was no more. Left to fall into the void he once considered escaping into.

"Whoa—"

He muttered in disbelief. Marveled by his own magic he watched as the clouds raced away from the epicenter. The rain subsided. The raging waves steadily fell to a soothing lull. All that was left was a towering glacial pillar. The glow it gave off was entirely from his mana magnifying the light from the now clear skies. This magic made structure was awe inspiring. It's beauty was only compounded by the pleasant hum it gave off.

"Heh I did it. I won't die here."

With short respite he now waited anxiously  for the third condition to hopefully be fulfilled. All he could do was wait for Leon to do his job. Hopefully before those who set out to take his life did theirs. His garnet eyes seemed to be gleaming as he ran his fingers through his hair. The tower born from his mana slowly began to give off a distinct red light.

"Funny... Who knew I'd be playing weatherman today?