White clouds filled the endless space, covering the ground beneath her feet until it seemed as though she walked toward no destination.
Nothing.
Nothing but clouds stretching endlessly before her as her legs carried her farther ahead.
No destiny.
The words echoed once again in her mind, making her wonder.
Where am I going?
Am I expecting something at the end of this path?
Why this path?
What is this place?
What am I—
No.
Who am I?
Am I even a person?
What is my name?
Do I have a name?
Questions flooded her thoughts one after another until she could no longer distinguish what was right and what was wrong—
whether this was reality at all.
Reality.
Real.
What is real?
What is fake?
Once again, the thoughts consumed her.
She stopped in her tracks and slowly crouched down onto what seemed to be a floor hidden beneath the clouds. Her gaze fell upon her clothes—a long white gown flowing around her feet. The questions faded slightly as she absentmindedly fiddled with the sleeves.
There was no sense of time in this strange place. Minutes and hours felt meaningless as her last question slipped from her lips in a whisper.
"Will I ever find an answer?"
The moment the words left her mouth, she sensed something moving before her.
Something… large.
Slowly, she lifted her head.
Her eyes widened.
A dragon.
Not a colorful creature from stories, but one as black as death itself.
It was enormous—so massive she wondered if its body stretched beyond the clouds above. Coal-black scales covered its form, dark enough to swallow the pale surroundings whole.
The dragon stepped closer before halting a few feet away from her.
Fear urged her to run.
Its claws were massive and deadly, impossible to ignore. The creature was terrifying, intimidating beyond words, yet she neither screamed nor moved away.
Instead, she wondered.
Who was it?
Why was it here?
Did it feel alone in this endless place just as she did?
Am I lonely?
The thought startled her.
Yes.
She was lonely.
She did not know how much time had passed here, but she felt certain it had been a very long time. There had been no one to speak to, no one to answer the endless questions clawing at her mind.
She remained still, observing every detail of the creature before her.
Its scales shimmered despite their darkness, silver glinting faintly along the edges like moonlight reflecting against metal. Its tail was long and powerful, swaying slightly behind it.
Almost nervously.
The thought seemed ridiculous.
How could something so enormous and frightening feel nervous?
Yet the movement continued.
Her gaze slowly traveled upward until it reached the dragon's eyes.
Crimson red.
Deep, burning red like the fires of hell itself.
She flinched.
As though satisfied by finally getting a reaction from her, the dragon released a puff of smoke that drifted past her face.
"What is a little kid like you doing here?"
The deep, rough voice rumbled through the clouds.
If she had not been alone with the creature, she would have thought the voice came from somewhere else entirely.
Talking dragons did not exist.
At least… she thought they didn't.
How did she know that?
How did she know dragons were mythical?
And what even were mythical creatures?
"Easy there with the wild thoughts," the dragon said again, startling her from the endless spiral in her mind.
Slowly, she stood up.
For some reason, she felt certain the dragon would not hurt her.
"Go back now," it said. "This is not a place where you should remain."
She stared at it in confusion. Its mouth had not moved, yet she heard its voice clearly.
"Where am I?" she asked.
Out of all the questions consuming her, this one felt the most urgent.
"You are in a place where you do not belong right now."
"Then where should I be?" she asked quietly, desperate to satisfy the aching emptiness inside her heart.
The dragon stared at her for a moment before answering.
"No need to worry. You will return there soon enough."
As the words faded, the dragon began retreating into the endless clouds, its massive claws disappearing step by step.
Panic suddenly gripped her chest.
She ran after it, reaching desperately toward its tail.
"Wait!" she cried, panting. "Wait for me!"
Just an inch more and she could have touched it.
But the clouds thickened.
The distance between them grew larger and larger no matter how fast she ran.
An unbearable emptiness threatened to swallow her whole.
Not the fear she had felt upon seeing the dragon—
Something worse.
Loneliness.
"Wait… please…" she begged breathlessly as she continued chasing after it. "Don't leave me here…"
The dragon's figure slowly faded into the white mist.
"Be safe… until we meet again…"
Its voice became distant.
Fading.
Vanishing.
The clouds wrapped around her, pulling her away from the disappearing end of the dragon's tail.
"Don't… leave me alone…"
Her voice cracked apart.
Her heart pounded violently against her chest as though trying to escape.
Suddenly, the white clouds surrounding her began turning gray.
Then black.
A tear slipped down her cheek.
She opened her mouth to scream, but no sound came out.
By the second, her vision blurred further until darkness swallowed everything around her.
And then—
Nothing.
*
*
*
Murmuring voices.
Faint.
Unclear
But there.
Blurry figures moved around her, though she could barely make them out. One figure leaned closer than the others, its presence strangely distracting.
"Fa… ther…"
Was someone shouting?
Calling?
For who?
Another figure appeared beside the first, taller than the one before it.
Suddenly, the clouds, the dragon, the endless emptiness—everything crashed back into her mind like a violent storm.
Panic exploded within her chest.
The figures turned as though about to leave.
"No!"
Her eyes snapped open wide, fear filling them instantly. Her trembling hands reached forward desperately, trying to grasp onto something.
"No… please… don't…"
Then the blurry figures become clear .
.
.
.