Time Maze

Dirt Maps and Crazy Plans

If someone had told Tyson weeks ago, even days ago, that he would not only approve but facilitate one of Marcus's pranks, he would have thought them insane. Tyson thought that at their age, they should have grown out of such things. Furthermore, he was never really a big fan of jokes that made fun of others. Yet, there they were, relying on the pranks to save their lives.

"Are you okay?" Marcus asked, seeing the lost look in Tyson's eyes.

It was a look one didn't want to see in their leader, and whether they were lost in the past or just having fun in the present, Marcus always saw Tyson as a leader, as someone he should follow. Yet, often he ended up doing quite the opposite of what Tyson advised him to do, for reasons unknown to him.

This time, however, he was determined to do everything right. He wanted to prove to himself and to Tyson that he wasn't as incompetent as everyone believed. That there was at least one thing that he could do right, even if it was just another prank in the long line of similar ones he had done in the past.

"Yes, all good. Anastasia's information about their search routine is crucial. I am just trying to sort through everything and see what our best course of action is," Tyson said.

"Do you really think that we should only do those three pranks?" Marcus asked, more than ready to come up with far more if necessary.

"It should be enough. Besides, I am not sure how much time we'll have. If we'll be able to pull off anything but a bare minimum," Tyson said as he had considered the same thing long before it even occurred to Marcus. "What worries me more is the time limitation."

"What do you mean?" Marcus asked while Anastasia was busy drawing the plan of the house and the tunnels in the dirt so that they could better orient themselves once they set off.

"No matter how good your pranks are, they require our presence one way or another. Even if it's just for the short amount of time that it takes to pull the string, it's still less time to reach Anastasia's family and get them through the tunnels," Tyson said. "I am afraid we'll have to split up."

"That's easy. You and I can take care of the pranks, and Anastasia can go and get her family," Marcus said as if it was the simplest thing possible.

"Marcus, the Bolsheviks aren't stupid. They aren't about to leave the whole family unprotected to chase one girl. There are bound to be some guards left with the family," Tyson said.

"So?" Marcus asked.

"We can't just send an innocent girl without any weapons to go against fully armed guards," Tyson said, annoyed that Marcus couldn't see the big picture.

"What can we do about the armed guards? We are unarmed as well," Marcus said, clearly preferring to hide in the tunnels than risk being shot by the guards.

"We need to think of something to get rid of those guards as well," Tyson said, contemplating all the weird ideas that were bouncing around his head.

"Didn't you say that we don't have the time?" Marcus asked less and less eager on the whole splitting up idea.

"Yes, but if we don't think things through, we might end up accomplishing nothing," Tyson said, determined to stop that from happening.

"Maybe I can go to that peephole that I have at the basement entrance and yell something through it to get them. To make the guards leave the basement thinking that I was somewhere close by. Then, you can get my family through the secret passage that leads to the basement," Anastasia said, pointing out the different locations on her freshly finished map.

"If there is a secret passage leading to the basement, why hasn't your family used it by now?" Marcus asked, looking intensely at Anastasia as if he was accusing her of something.

Tyson understood that Marcus was afraid of what might come next. Still, he did wish that his friend would show more compassion for Anastasia's predicament. However, that was never Marcus's strong point. Most of the problems he faced in his life came from the fact that he was often unable to put himself in another person's shoes.

"Because they are surrounded by guards, dummy," Anastasia said, rolling her eyes at Marcus. "Also, father and the others aren't as familiar with the tunnels. I am not sure that they even know that there is this branch leading into the basement. They never thought we would have to use them."

That stopped Marcus from saying anything else, but it didn't prevent him from fidgeting, a fact that was starting to get on Tyson's nerves. That was the case because even Tyson could see too many flaws in the only plan that they had.

"Anastasia, do you think you can add even more details here, explain how exactly the prank works?" Tyson asked. "Maybe that way, Marcus and I can pull off the pranks by ourselves, and once we head back to the tunnels, you can distract the basement guards. Then we'll all hurry back to the secret passage and try to get your family into the tunnels as quickly as possible."

"You do realize that this plan has so many holes in it that it looks like Swiss cheese," Marcus said a bit more cheerfully because the new plan didn't involve Tyson and him splitting up.

However, it did still involve a fair amount of danger and that didn't sit well with Marcus. He had far too much sense of preservation for that.

"Maybe, but we have to try something," Tyson said, looking at Marcus pleadingly.

It was as if his eyes were saying, 'please don't make me go through this, not again'. If he had said anything or done anything, Marcus might have been able to refuse. However, seeing that look in his friend's eyes, the hope of changing something in a young girl's life, Marcus couldn't say no.

"Alright, but if it gets hairy, we are getting out of there as soon as possible, family or no family," Marcus said sternly.

"That sounds reasonable enough. We can't help anyone if we end up dead ourselves," Tyson said, looking at Anastasia for some sign of confirmation.

However, all Anastasia could do was gently nod her head. She knew that if she were to say anything at that moment, it would be a lie. It didn't feel right to lie to people who were risking their lives to help her family. Thus, staying silent felt like the best possible option.

"Alright then. Anastasia, you draw all the details for your pranks. Marcus will be in charge of pulling them off, and I'll keep an eye out for any signs of trouble and help him out with the preparations," Tyson said.

Anastasia started vigorously drawing all the small details, ready to do anything to save those she loved. Soon enough, both she and Marcus were too lost in the beauty of their respective pranks and the satisfaction of pulling new ones. So lost that they didn't think about the possible ramifications if things didn't go according to plan. Anastasia couldn't afford to do so, and Marcus was too hyped about pulling so many pranks to think of anything else.

"Put the estimated time for preparing and pulling off everything as well," Tyson said.

"Why do we need that?" Marcus asked as Anastasia obliged.

"So that Anastasia can have a sense of when approximately to draw the guards' attention," Tyson said.

The truth was that he had no idea what he was talking about. He was just hoping that the more they worked out their plan, the higher their chances of success would be.

"Alright, I think that is everything. Do you think I need to put down anything else?" Anastasia asked, writing down the last time estimate with her dirt-covered fingers.

"No, I think this should be it," Tyson said, looking at the elaborate drawings and estimations. "We just need to remember everything and stick to the plan no matter what."

Although Tyson did say that, his plans were slightly different from what they agreed on doing. He would get Marcus back to the tunnels. Then Tyson would run back to the basement entrance as quickly as possible so that Anastasia and he could go through the secret passage and to her family together.

Unlike Marcus, he was aware of what it meant to lose a sibling and what one would do to stop that from happening. Anastasia had more than one sibling trapped, and Tyson was sure that she wouldn't leave them behind even if it meant saving her own life. Thus, Tyson planned to do his best to drag her to safety even if he had to use force.

"Alright, let's go," Tyson said after they studied the map for a while.