Shadows of Existence

The lab goggles floated serenely, like a forgotten artifact in the midst of the silent, white expanse. An ordinary object, but to Rizal, it was a beacon of hope in a storm of uncertainty.

"Professor Indri!" Rizal called out, his voice echoing hollowly in the fourth-dimensional space.

There was no response. Only the deepening silence.

Rizal approached the goggles cautiously. The closer he got, the more he felt something was off. The goggles... they were trembling subtly, as if distorted by unseen forces.

"Tesseract, what's happening? Where is Professor Indri?" Rizal asked, anxiety gnawing at his hope.

The tesseract, which had been guiding him all this time, didn't answer immediately. Its light flickered erratically, its shadows dancing restlessly.

"She is... here, but not here," the tesseract finally responded, its voice weak and uncertain.

"What do you mean?" Rizal frowned, confusion gripping him.

The tesseract moved closer, its light touching the floating goggles. The clear lenses now appeared to ripple, displaying a faint image like the surface of water.

A shadow appeared within the lens. Professor Indri, but not the Professor Indri Rizal knew. The figure looked translucent, its movements disjointed as if existing in multiple dimensions simultaneously.

"She is... trapped," the tesseract said, its voice filled with regret. "This dimension... it's unstable. Your presence... accelerates its fluctuations."

Rizal watched, frozen, as the shadow of Professor Indri struggled within the dimensional cage. He could see the panic in his mentor's eyes, feel the despair that ensnared her.

"I have to help her!" Rizal exclaimed, determination burning in his chest. "How? Tell me how!"

The tesseract hesitated, as if weighing its options.

"There is... a way," it whispered at last. "But it's dangerous. This dimension... it seeks balance. It requires... an exchange."

"An exchange?" Rizal repeated, a sense of foreboding creeping into his mind. "What kind of exchange?"

The tesseract emitted a dim light, its shadows fading as if exhausted.

"To save her... you must take her place."