def get_cloud_directive(key, task_directives, cloud_args_key='cloud_args'):
    """
    Helper function to get a directive one layer undernearth ``cloud_args``
    
    :param key: str Directive key
    :param task_directives: dict The dictionary of task directives
    :param cloud_args_key: str Key for the first level
    :return: object The requested ``cloud_args`` directive
    """
    return task_directives.get(cloud_args_key, dict()).get(key)