Do Not Pull

      “How could you break the Lever of Doom!” shouted a young boy.

      “Actually it was very easy,” commented Natu as a large crowd started to form.

      They were turning into an angry mob. There was only one thing to do. Natu screamed and flew away from the mob. Then he flew into the shuttle leaving for Mystery Island just as the doors closed, leaving the angry mob waiting for the next shuttle. In a few minutes the shuttle stopped near the Mystery Island dock. As soon as the doors opened, Natu flew toward his home on Training Square.

      “Where is Ash?” asked Natu as he flew inside the house. Vicki the shadow Zafara and Shelly the fire Kacheek looked worried and concerned about their brother, but Kira the faerie Kougra looked bored and clearly believed that he was trying to prank them.

     “She had to run a few errands,” answered Vicki. “Is something wrong?”

     “An angry mob is chasing me,” replied Natu.

     “I was wondering when something like this would finally happen,” commented Kira. “What did you do?” Though she seemed calm, Natu could tell that she was very worried.

     “I broke the Lever of Doom.”

     “Who would get mad at you for breaking that thing?” asked Vicki incredulously. “All it does is steal neopoints.”

     “Avatar collectors care about it,” replied Shelly quietly. “I have been to the avatar board with Ash. The lever has something to do with avatars, and avatar collectors are obsessed with the hobby. At any moment hundreds of them will be at this door to complain.”

     Soon the four pets heard angry shouts. “Time to go,” said Kira, “but first let me get something.” She ran upstairs and came back with a giant moach costume. “Natu, wear this so no one will recognize you.”

     “Don’t you think wearing a large costume will be suspicious,” commented Natu as he zipped himself into the costume.

     “This costume is very common, and I have seen a lot of pets wearing it,” replied Kira. Then the fours pets ran out the back door and toward the dock.

     “What should we do?’ asked Vicki. “We can’t run forever.”

     “We have to find a way to fix it,” declared Kira.

     “Donny’s Toy Repair Shop on Terror Mountain,” suggested Shelly. “He can fix anything.”

     The four pets soon boarded a ferry to Terror Mountain. After what seemed like forever they finally arrived at Happy Valley and ran toward Donny’s shop at the top of Terror Mountain.

     “Donny, you have to fix the Lever of Doom,” said Natu.

     “Please,” added Kira.

     "Very well, just give me the item," responded Donny.

     “It is on the Space Station,” said Shelly.

     “I am not healthy enough to travel!” shouted Donny as he started to cough.

     “Don’t worry, we will come up with another solution,” said Vicki as she patted him on the back until he stopped coughing.

     “I am doomed,” said Natu.

     “I bet Fyora or another faerie could use magic to fix it,” suggested Kira. “We should go to Faerieland.”

     The four pets then took a ferry to Faerieland. “Technically, a ship can’t reach a city in the clouds,” remarked Kira.

     “Tell that to the Cyodrake’s Gaze,” replied Shelly, “and technically a city shouldn’t be in the clouds either.”

     After Kira and Shelly finished their discussion of magic and the laws of physics, the ferry landed near the city. The four pets quickly reached Fyora’s castle.

     “May we please have an audience with the Queen,” Vicki asked a nearby faerie guard.

     “She is in a very important meeting and cannot be disturbed,” informed the guard.

     “Maybe you can help us,” suggested Natu. “Can you please fix the Lever of Doom?”

     “I am afraid that is impossible,” said the guard. “Sloth made the entire station magic proof because he didn’t want us to interfere.”

     The four pets walked away feeling dejected. Suddenly a dark faerie appeared in front of them. “The Pteri who broke the Lever of Doom is wearing a moach costume!” shouted the faerie with a malicious smile.

     “Get him!” shouted a Poogle as another angry mob soon started to chase the four pets.

     With a bright flash a light faerie appeared in front of the four pets. “Come with me,” she said as she touched them and transported them to the Space Station.

     “Thank you,” panted Kira.

     “Why did you bring us here?” questioned Natu.

     “To solve a problem, you must start at the source,” said the light faerie wisely as she teleported away.

     “What is that supposed to mean?” asked Natu.

     “The lever is part of the Space Station, which was built by Sloth,” said Kira, “but I don’t see how that is supposed to help us.”

     “I have an idea.” Vicki smiled. “I think we should take a walk around the station.”

     The four pets walked around the station and through a maze of corridors. “Where are we going?” asked Natu.

     “I don’t know,” replied Vicki. “We are waiting until someone notices us.”

     Suddenly several mutant Grundos grabbed them. Kira quickly attacked one of the Grundos with her creeping shadow hammer and prepared to attack another one.

     “Stop, Kira,” ordered Vicki. “I have been waiting for this to happen.”

     Kira gave a low growl but allowed the Grundos to take them away. The Grundos marched through several corridors and through a secret door to a large and impressive office. At the desk in the center sat Sloth.

     “What do we have here?” said Sloth. “The meddlesome little Zafara who stopped my mining operation on Kreludor.”

     "What?” shouted Kira, Shelly, and Natu in surprise.

     “Long story,” commented Vicki.

     “I am going to enjoy my revenge,” Sloth gloated.

     Suddenly the doors swung open and a person who looked just like Sloth wearing a mask and cardboard wings came into the office. “Frankie, I thought you might want to have some afternoon tea,” she said in a cheery voice. “Brother, it has been so long since you have visited me.”

     “The Happiness Faerie,” whispered Kira incredulously. “I thought Sloth was the Happiness Faerie.”

     “Daisy, this is not the time,” said Sloth, “and my name is Dr. Sloth.”

     “Frankie, I am the Happiness Faerie. I see you have guests. This is clearly a special occasion and they should have some tea. I insist,” declared Sloth’s sister in a suddenly stern voice.

     Fifteen minutes later the four pets were having tea with Sloth and the Happiness Faerie. “Frankie, don’t slouch and don’t forget to hold out your pinkie,” she scolded. “Let me get the cookies,” she said as she rushed to the kitchen in the next room.

     “Dr. Sloth, what would happen to your evil reputation if Neopia learned your sister thinks that she is a faerie?” asked Natu.

     “You wouldn’t,” said Sloth.

     “Perhaps we can make a deal,” suggested Natu.

     “What do you want?”

     “Fix the Lever of Doom at once,” he replied.

     “And let us go,” added Kira.

     “Deal,” agreed Sloth. “Sister, I have business to do.”

     “We have to go as well,” said Shelly.

     “Okay,” replied the Happiness Faerie. “Take some cookies to go and give me your neomail address so we can have another tea party. You are much more fun than my brother.”

     While Sloth fixed the lever, the four pets returned home. Once inside they found Ash who looked a little upset.

     “Is something wrong?” asked Kira.

     “My mailbox is full of nasty neomails saying that I should put my Pteri in prison,” Ash replied with a smile. “So what did you do?”

     “I broke the Lever of Doom,” confessed Natu.

     “Natu, you are grounded,” said Ash. “And can someone explain why we just got a neomail supposedly sent by the Happiness Faerie which is inviting us to a tea party next week.” Her four pets laughed hysterically and started to tell her the story.

The End