The remnants of the Nexus system pulsed with energy, a faint pathway leading directly into the rift's core. Raith and Juno prepared themselves, knowing that what lay ahead was uncharted and unforgiving.
"We're going in," Raith said firmly. "If there's any chance of saving Nia and stopping this, it's now."
Juno nodded, her resolve strengthening despite the fear in her eyes. "I'll handle the tech. You just focus on keeping us alive."
As they stepped into the pathway, the world around them warped and shifted. Colors bled into one another, and time itself seemed to lose meaning. Memories—both their own and those of other versions of themselves—flashed before their eyes.
Raith saw a version of himself living peacefully in a world untouched by the rift. Another where he had succumbed to the Harbingers and become one of them. The visions were relentless, pulling at his sense of self, but he pushed forward.
Juno gasped beside him, tears streaming down her face as she experienced her own fractured timelines. "This place... it's trying to break us," she whispered.
"Don't let it," Raith said, his voice steady. "We're almost there."
At the center of the rift, they found Nia—or what remained of her. Her form was barely recognizable, a glowing entity of light and energy intertwined with the rift's core. Her voice echoed faintly, a mixture of sorrow and resolve.
"Raith... Juno... you shouldn't have come."
Raith stepped forward, his heart aching at the sight of her. "We're not leaving without you."
"You can't save me," Nia said, her voice breaking. "I'm part of the rift now. If you destroy it, you destroy me."
"We'll find another way," Juno insisted, her hands flying over her console as she searched for a solution.
"There is no other way," Nia said. "The rift must be destroyed. If it's allowed to persist, it will consume everything. You have to let me go."
Raith clenched his fists, his voice trembling with emotion. "There has to be another way. You're more than this, Nia. You're one of us."
Nia's light flickered, her form stabilizing for a brief moment. "Thank you, Raith. For believing in me. But this is my choice. My purpose."
Before Raith could protest further, Nia extended a hand toward him. "Take the core. Use it to end this."
Juno's console beeped urgently. "Raith, if we don't act now, the rift will collapse and take us with it!"
With a heavy heart, Raith reached out and grasped Nia's hand. Her energy surged into him, and the core of the rift began to destabilize.