Diane's world was shrouded in darkness, a vast expanse of nothingness that seemed to stretch on endlessly. She felt weightless, untethered, her physical form reduced to a mere essence, a consciousness adrift in the void.

"Where am I?" she called out, her voice echoing into the inky blackness.

"You are in the realm between worlds, child," a deep, resonant voice answered, seeming to come from all around her.

Diane's essence shuddered. "Who's there? Show yourself!"

From the darkness, a massive figure began to take shape, its form shifting and undulating like smoke on the wind. As it coalesced, Diane found herself staring into the eyes of a colossal dragon, its...