Lush and Burnt

With a yawn, Darcy opened her eyes. Trying to shake off her heinous nightmare, she took a stroll to the park. The morning was like a deathly dungeon. The thunder slashed through the sky; the leaves blew wildly with the wind; Darcy shivered in her jacket. She bent down to pick up a burnt leaf that seemed to have strange writing on it. Darcy felt a weird sensation. Tension was pricking her goosebumps like a devil with a pitchfork. Paralysed, she was oblivious to what lay ahead - the hole! A little further, and Whoosh! Darcy was gone!

Aaaarrrrgghhhhhh....
Down she plummeted. Down past damp, desolate walls she dropped. Down down she flopped past flickering shadows of silence. Down down down to the depths of the earth she fell. Thud!
Cautiously, she opened her eyes... and there it was - The land of Lush and Burnt

The land was like a raging battlefield. It was a burnt red-eyed demon. Its tongue spat out twigs of malice across the innocent verdant grass. In and out. Out and in - ferociously. Sweat trickled down Darcy's palms. She was rooted to the spot.

At that moment, a trembling and ear-piercing scream rose from the mist. A pair of jet black, hellish black, midnight black eyes glowed in the darkness. Its sharp, serrated teeth snapped and clawed with its frightening talons. Its body was skeletal, stripped of flesh, with bony fingers reaching up to empty sockets - dead like its soul. Its furious forked tails slashed malevolently - it was the legendary Burning Devil! Their eyes met: good and evil.

In a blink of an eye, Darcy turned on her heel. The burning devil raced behind like a jaguar, revving and powerful, a racer, a hunter, a force to be reckoned with. A gold light shimmered in the distance. A way out? Darcy sprinted towards it. The devil sprinted.

Trembling with fear, Darcy tripped over a long, gnarled tree root. Her contents spilled out. Oh no! Gathering stuff. The burnt leaf. "Listen for the chariot wheels," it read. Go! Leap! The devil swerved. Catching up. Kick. Howl of pain. A few seconds advantage. Nearly there. Yes! Chariot pulled by lions. Jump on it! Got it! Yes yes! Hang on! Cuts smearing blood. She clambered onto the chariot and flew off towards a hole opening up the dark sky. The devil roared in pure fury as it swiped the empty air.

Darcy raced back home. Her breathing slowed, her legs slowed.
"Did you have a nice walk?" asked her mum as she opened the door.
"Mm, quite relaxing," grinned Darcy, clutching her burnt leaf. "Totally relaxing, indeed."