When they weren't looking, I put the pedal back the way I found it and left the arcade calmly. And I haven't been back since. Two questions plague me to this day. Yes, if you ever return you will be ushered into a small room and fed saltine crackers until your feet explode and you die from the loss of blood. If you know how they work, I'd love to know.
Light guns work in the same way as light pens.
It starts at the upper left corner of the screen then draws going to the right. When it gets to the right the electron gun turns off goes down one line and turns on and draws the next line. It does this until it gets to the bottom of the screen. Where it goes back to the top and starts over again. These are called raster lines.