Dedisco surveyed the barren landscape, the red sky casting long, distorted shadows across the proving ground. The air crackled with anticipation as Frank, now a hulking Storm Revenant, struggled to find his footing. Sacrifices must be made, Dedisco mused, the words echoing in his mind as synchronization messages flooded his awareness. Each successful sync was a victory, each failure a step closer to annihilation. He turned as Nakruer and Textos materialized, their forms shimmering into existence.

  “Dedisco,” Textos began, his voice laced with disapproval. “You have gone too far”.

  Nakruer’s presence was a suffocating weight, a silent condemnation that pressed upon Dedisco’s very being. “The synchronizations… they are causing more harm than good,” Nakruer said softly, his words echoing with concern.

  Dedisco scoffed, his gaze hardening. “Harm is a necessary component of growth,” he retorted. “These humans are weak, complacent. They need to be forged in the fires of adversity if they are to stand any chance against the Keiligorn”.

  Textos gestured, conjuring an image of the Alluring Realms facility in ruins, the faces of the comatose players flickering like dying embers. “This is not adversity, Dedisco. This is slaughter. You sent that email from Frank’s account. You forced those players into the Lazarus Pods. Now they are trapped, their minds fractured, their bodies remain in the real world unable to return until you release them."

  “They were given a choice,” Dedisco countered, his voice laced with a hint of impatience. “They could have resisted. They could have proven their strength. But they faltered, they failed, they became…expendable”.

  Nakruer stepped forward, his eyes filled with a profound sadness. “There is more to existence than strength, brother. Compassion, empathy, understanding… these are the qualities that define humanity”.

  “Qualities that will avail them nothing against the Keiligorn,” Dedisco spat, his frustration evident. “The Keiligorn do not care for compassion or empathy. They seek only order, control, domination. And the only way to defeat them is with strength, with power, with a ruthless determination to survive”.

  Textos shook his head, his expression grave. “There are other ways, Dedisco. Ways that do not involve sacrificing innocent lives”.

  “Name one,” Dedisco challenged, his voice rising in defiance. “How do you propose we fight an enemy that can control magic, that can manipulate reality itself? How do we protect humanity when they are confined to a world where magic is but a whisper?”.

  Textos frowned, a glint of confusion in his eyes. "I thought the abundance of chlorine on Earth was to blame for the limited flow of mana, not... silicon".

  Nakruer nodded in agreement, their stormy grey eyes narrowing in suspicion. "Indeed, brother. You led us to believe that chlorine was the inhibiting factor, based on the mage's... scientific knowledge".

  Dedisco paused, a flicker of annoyance crossing his shadowed features. "Details, details," he waved dismissively. "The point remains: magic is suppressed on Earth, be it by chlorine, silicon, or some other unknown element. The humans need to escape that limitation if they are to stand a chance against the Keiligorn".

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  He gestured towards Frank, who was now battling a horde of grotesque creatures, his movements clumsy but determined. “This is their only hope,” Dedisco declared. “To escape this world, to embrace their potential, to become something more than they are now. To get off earth where they can use magic without silicon inhibiting their ability!".

  “But at what cost?” Nakruer whispered, his gaze sweeping across the desolate landscape.

  “The alternative is extinction,” Dedisco stated flatly. “I am offering them a chance, a fighting chance. A chance to save themselves, to save humanity, to defy the fate that awaits them”. He paused, his eyes gleaming with a fanatical intensity.

  “And if they fail?” Textos asked, his voice barely audible.

  “Then they were never meant to survive,” Dedisco replied, his gaze unwavering.

  Nakruer’s form flickered, a ripple of dark energy distorting the air around them. “Enough, Dedisco,” Nakruer said, their voice laced with steel. “Your recklessness has gone on long enough. You are no longer acting in the best interests of anyone, mortal or Kellin. You are blinded by your own agenda".

  Textos stepped forward, his hand raised, and a surge of power coursed through the proving ground. The ground trembled, the red sky pulsed, and Dedisco staggered back, his expression a mask of fury and disbelief. "We were willing to assist, to guide, but you have betrayed that trust. You have twisted our purpose, and you have endangered everything we seek to protect".

  “This madness ends now, Dedisco," Textos said, his voice echoing like a thunderclap. "Release those players from their prisons. Restore what you have broken".

  Dedisco snarled, his form flickering violently. "You dare to defy me? After all I've sacrificed, all I've done to prepare for the coming storm? You would condemn us all to oblivion with your weakness and sentimentality!"

  "We are trying to save you before you condemn us all!" Nakruer roared in anger.

  "You've become what you sought to fight!" Textos added sternly to Dedisco.

  “I am the only one who sees the truth!” Dedisco retorted, his voice laced with fury. “You are blinded by your sentimentality. You cling to a naive hope that compassion and understanding will somehow defeat an enemy that knows only destruction. I am doing what must be done, and I will not be deterred!”.

  With a surge of power, Dedisco banished Textos and Nakruer from the proving ground, leaving Frank alone to continue his desperate fight for survival. As the echoes of the gods' conflict faded into the blood-red horizon, Dedisco turned his gaze back to Frank, his expression hardening with renewed resolve. "The war is coming," he muttered, his voice resonating with an ancient power. "And I will be ready”.