“No, don’t do that!” Farli cried out.

“Too late,” Kittrich moaned as the lights went out.

There was a sigh and Farli’s voice could be heard, “that was the button you pressed last time!”

“So … that means what, exactly?”

“Umm … I don’t know. Anybody remember where the light switch is?”

There was a decisive no from all parties as they began fumbling around in the dark.

“Ow, Kittrich, that was my foot!” Farli hissed out.

There was a muffled moan and Grog could be heard, “sorry Lucy, and no, I don’t want to know what body part I touched.”

“Grog, if you touch me there one more time I’ll pummel you!” Kittrich growled out as his armor creaked and Tizzy giggled.

“Ow, Lucy! That’s my eye, not a light switch. There’s a slight height difference. If you’d open your eyes, I bet you could find the light switch.”

And a few seconds later, light filtered down on them and they could all see Lucy grinning beside the light switch from amongst her bandages.

“Ah, that’s better,” Farli smiled as she straightened her gown while absently rubbing her eye. “Now, don’t anyone push that button again!” And she walked over to stand before the puzzling device that called itself Pewter. It was this that had gotten them into this mess in the first place.

“Pewter, where are we exactly?”

Inconclusive.

Farli looked around at everyone, “does anyone know what that means?”

“I say we smash it!” Grog stepped forward.

“The point being?” Kittrich’s eyebrow rose.

“Immense satisfaction. Can you spell that one, Kit-rich?”

“Enough, boys. Grog, could you see to Lucy, she seems to have lost an arm again.”

They’d been at it for hours, trying to get home that is. But each time they’d pressed a button on the pad, someone new had appeared until all five of them were there. The puzzling thing was that nothing had happened the last time.

Farli, with her blond curls and princess dress had been the first. She’d been about to kiss her frog prince when, with a poof, she’d appeared here.

Tizzy the fairy, in her gossamer pink contraption and neon yellow wings was the second to appear. She had been the one to point out the uses of the light switch; said she’d visited a boy who’d had one once.

Next had been Grog the gnome, with his pointed blue cap and grey beard. He had been brandishing a garden hoe, which had caused Tizzy to go into fits of laughter. Whenever she teased him about it he maintained that his wife had fallen ill and made him do it for her.

Grog was the unfortunate one that pressed the button that spewed Lucy out, and spewed is the correct term. Grog had nearly had a heart attack when the zombie had come tumbling into the room, bandages flying everywhere. Who knew gnomes were jumpers?

And last but not least, Tizzy had the distinct misfortune of picking the button that dropped Kittrich’s suit of armor on her out of thin air, without him in it. Grogg had the pleasure of being his landing cushion. They hadn’t really got along well since.

“Does anyone know what the last button did?”

“Um … Farli, look behind you,” Kittrich wavered out. “On the floor!” He bit out in exasperation when she looked back at him.

Looking down, she found a rather large, rather hairy spider. Delicately lifting her gown up, she brought her slippered foot down on the unfortunate arachnids head with a resounding crunch.

Kittrich shuddered as he slowly turned an alarming shade of green. Grogg, on the other hand, looked as if they had killed his long lost cousin and was about to cry about it.

Hey, look what I found,” Tizzy called out, pointing to a square panel in the wall. “Lucy, could I borrow your hand for a sec?” Popping it off, she flew back over, the white bandages around the arm trailing through the air.