Chapter 1

It wasn't long after the impact that Arnold came to consciousness. He looked around himself and was disgruntled with the result: whatever environment he found himself within was plunged into total darkness. Already skewed by the brightness of the flash, his eyesight wouldn't enable itself beyond half a foot beyond his face. I knew I should have stayed home today, he thought nervously.

Gingerly he brought himself to his feet, groping at whatever he could find in the process. To his immediate fright, the only solid thing he came into contact with was the floor itself; even then, he didn't know if it was stable, though it felt smooth. The only thing he could do without putting his person into inevitable danger was to cry out from where he was.

"Hello?" Arnold called softly at first, his voice wavering with fright. He tried again, a little louder. "Hello? Is there anybody else here...?"

The answer didn't come as soon as would satisfy, but it came nevertheless. The voice that carried it was gratifyingly familiar.

"Hello? Arnold, is that you? ...Are you in here too?"

Arnold jumped. His heart began to hammer in his chest as he replied: "Keesha? Keesha, it's me! It's Arnold- where are you?"

"I don't know- where are you? I'll try walking over to you!"

"Wait- don't move! I'll try-"

With that, Arnold began to run forward towards the source of the second party's voice; partly out of joy for company, and more so from terror of the omnipresent shade. After running what felt like a mile, he bashed into a large object roughly the size of himself, stumbling him and sending him sprawling on the floor. A loud "Oof!" came from the object, and a second thump was heard. Keesha's voice followed with a moan.

"Oww! Arnold, are you okay?"

"Owww- yeah, I'm fine." He was gripped with a feeling of hesitation. "That is you, Keesha, isn't it?"

"Arnold, of course it's me!" She gripped his hand and helped him up. By this time, the proven presence of a second person in this unknown place made Arnold feel somewhat safer. It would be easier to face any sort of danger with someone else with him rather than himself all alone. He looked up, and discovered that he could see the faint outline of Keesha's face and eyes. Keesha found this, too. Since some time had passed without any exposure to any other sort of light, they found their night vision was beginning to kick in.

"So, you're here too... do you think anybody else is here with us?"

Keesha paused to think. "I don't know. I don't remember seeing anybody else... hang on. What exactly happened back there?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean... how did we get here? Wasn't there-"

"A flash." Arnold completed her sentence. "There was a bright light... kind of like a flash. I could feel myself falling... Keesha, do you think we are dead?"

"Arnold, let's get the facts. I am talking to you, and you crashed into me back there. Right? So that must mean we are not dead. We can still feel and hear each other."

"I guess so..." Arnold's tell-tale worry was heavy in his voice. "So we are still here, then..."

"Of course," she responded. "But I don't know about the others. Maybe they're... or maybe the Friz... Arnold, what are we going to do?"

"I wish I knew."

There was a short pause as Keesha tried to think. Arnold knelt cautiously on the floor and rested his head on his knee. Every so often, Keesha would mutter things to herself as she struggled to work things out in their impossible situation. The only thing that would set an absolution was a final decision.

At length, Keesha tapped Arnold's shoulder. "The best thing I can come up with is to explore this weird place. We won't get anything done if we're just sitting here."

Arnold let out a long sigh. "I guess you're right... I'd thought of that earlier, too. But I didn't think it was a good idea. What if we find something dangerous?"

"Well, there's one way to find out." Keesha turned away from him and hollered into the murk as loud as she could:

"Hello! Is there anything out there? 'Cause if there is, you'd better come out and show yourself... or selves!"

Arnold leapt to his feet, grasped her shoulder, and spoke in a loud whisper. "Don't do that! You'll attract whatever is out there to us!"

"Shh- wait! Listen-"

A long silence set into the room as the children remained absolutely still, waiting for something to respond. The only sound came from the quickened breathing of the terrified Arnold, still clutching Keesha's shoulder. There was no audible noise coming from afar.

"I don't hear anything, Arn-"

"Wait! Just a little more-"

There was another long silence, which heralded the same result. Keesha glanced at Arnold with a smirk as his breathing gradually slowed its pace.

"Well, shall we go?" She asked him.

The orange-haired boy sighed. "Ladies first," he groaned.

The pseudo-exploration began by picking a direction; which was pretty much the same way they were facing. Arnold swallowed hard and glanced at Keesha, but she frowned and pushed on forward. There was no turning back now, and he knew it just as well as she.

It was difficult to tell where exactly they were going, or what they would encounter. Fortunately, there was a determined motive to keep them going: find the other kids, Ms. Frizzle, Liz, or the Bus; or, if they were really lucky, all of the above. There were elements of this strange, obscure place that could be used to determine the nature of its identity. For instance, every so often, a cold breeze would rush through the area and permeate Arnold and Keesha's bodies, causing them to shiver. They knew from experience that some caves had holes in their walls, stirring up evidence that they were in some sort of vast, dark cavern. However, the same clue could suggest that they were in some kind of immense and ancient forest, abundant with enormous trees with massive canopies to trap the darkness. A significant argument to this claim could be made that there were no material forms about them such as trunks, shrubs, ferns, or columns, stalactites, or giant stones. For all the two knew, they could be in a football stadium at nightfall. And yet, there was also a certain smell to the atmosphere; one of an odd familiarity that they couldn't exactly place.

Presently, Arnold, desperate for a sound beyond his beating heart and footsteps, broke the silence.

"Keesha," he said softly. "How long have we been walking?"

"I have no honest idea," she answered him doubtfully. "It feels like we've been walking for an hour at least. Actually, I really can't say. We've got to find somebody soon!"

"Maybe we should stop for a while... you know, to get our bearings in this huge place."

"Maybe you're right," she admitted. "But we're not giving up. Right, Arn?" Keesha hated giving up. Such a move was only a last resort. She knew of Arnold's propensity to give up, however.

"No, we're not giving up." This surprised Keesha until he concluded his sentence. "But what else is there to do?"

The girl sighed. "Well, we can't just leave them. I can't imagine doing such a thing."

"What if we are moving away from them, though? What if while we are exploring, we're just getting farther away?" Arnold swallowed hard.

"Arnold, don't say things like that!" Keesha was indignant. "We will find them. I know we will!"

"I hope you're right." As Arnold's statement floated into the gloom, nothing more was spoken.