Time Maze

Thrown into Confusion

As Marcus and Tyson scrambled around looking for the fissure in the ground, they noticed that Sybil was searching far higher than it could possibly be. It was an odd thing for someone as experienced as her to do. So, Marcus chose to confront her about it while still feeling the wall looking for the gap.

"What are you even doing?" Marcus asked far louder than necessary. "Didn't you learn by now the hole is at the bottom of the wall, leading to the slide-like thing that goes into the cave-like thing?"

"Shh, don't speak so loudly, or that robot we'll be upon us before I can make sure that we are safe from the other Mazers," Sybil said quietly. "Also, you really need to improve your vocabulary. You used the word 'thing' way too many times."

Marcus wanted to pout at her but realizing that she couldn't really see him, he chose to let out one quiet 'humph' and proceed with his search. When he finally felt the edge of the opening, he was so happy that he just wanted to slide in and forget all about his troubles and the problems he had caused. Although he wasn't a big fan of books, he felt guilty about starting the fire, and he wanted to chase away his guilt in any way possible.

"Sybil, I don't mean to sound like Marcus, but what are you doing? Shouldn't we get moving because Minotaur probably felt...sensed... whatever, our presence by now," Tyson said, his hand on Marcus's shoulder stopping him from sliding in.

There was something about her behavior that felt purposeful. So, Tyson wanted to make sure it was safe to go down the hole.

"Alright, we are good. You can go in, and I'll explain everything once we are out of the line of fire," Sybil said as the loud footsteps reverberated through the dark tunnels.

"Fine by me," Marcus said, plunging in without even checking if Sybil could see where the opening was.

"Ladies first," Tyson said, not because he was a gentleman but because he worried that the creature might end up hurting her and leaving them with no answers.

Sybil didn't comment on his chivalry but slowly lowered herself down the incline without even a scratch, something Marcus and Tyson were yet to accomplish.

"Alright, lady. You better start talking," Marcus said with his scariest voice while turning his mobile flashlight on Sybil. "What was all that about? What's going on?"

Tyson was halfway down, and he could already hear that Marcus was making a fool of himself. Consequently, Tyson scrambled faster, scratching his palms and tearing his clothing which was already torn and dirty. When he saw Marcus acting like a bad cop from an even worse TV show, Tyson stepped up to bring him to his senses.

"Marcus, turn off that flashlight. Your battery will run out, and then we won't be able to see those videos we made in case of emergency," Tyson said firmly but patiently. "Besides, this isn't one of your favorite TV shows, and Sybil isn't a suspect. She is our friend."

As he said that, Tyson wondered if calling her a friend would offend her somehow or if it would sound weird. Still, he had no idea how else to call a person who had already saved their lives twice and probably even more than that.

"Fine, fine, killjoy," Marcus mumbled under his breath, turning off the light and settling down on the improvised bed.

As silence settled down, Tyson hoped that Sybil would fill it in with some explanations, which she unwillingly did.

"Okay, I guess I'll start from the end and work my way back," Sybil said, seeing the impatient looks Marcus was throwing her. "I was looking for the numbers that are engraved above every one of these 'safe houses'. Each one has a different one, and it stands for years," Sybil explained.

"Why would you care about that?" Marcus asked, interrupting impatiently.

"Because it could save our lives," Sybil snapped at him irritably. "Now, would you just listen to what I have to say! You might even end up learning something."

Marcus was about to make an angry retort when Tyson shook his head vigorously, making it clear that it was one of those times when Marcus should do his best to keep his mouth shut. Feeling like he owed Tyson that much for destroying his favorite place in the world, a library, Marcus decided to do his best to obey Tyson's silent command.

"As I told you earlier, the Time Maze has two parts, the physical part and temporal one. Someone discovered that every time we come back here, we move along the physical part of it," Sybil said, her forehead creasing in thought. "I know which part of the maze the others are in because of the years engraved in these 'safe houses'. They are much further along than you, but since we used this portal maker I took from them, I wasn't sure where exactly it would spit us out."

"Alright, let me get this straight. There are numbers marking years on each of these safe places, and it shows how far we've come in the maze. Doesn't that mean that going to Egypt put us way back in the physical part or something?" Tyson asked, his head feeling enormous as he tried to fit in all the new pieces of information and their implications.

"That's the funny thing, it doesn't. For some reason, we are in the 1800s now. It seems like whatever logic or system connected the two parts broke. So, the years here don't really correspond to those you've visited," Sybil said, trying to be as concise as possible.

From the guys' confused looks, Sybil could see that she wasn't doing a great job of explaining things.

"Huh?" Marcus asked, utterly bewildered.

It felt to him as if the words were running around him engaged in a crazy dance that had no rhythm or rhyme, evading his every attempt at understanding.

"I am afraid that I must second that," Tyson said, feeling like he should have understood better but failing to exhibit the needed brainpower to comprehend Sybil's explanation.

Sybil spent so much time not being heard that now that her voice actually mattered and could make a difference, the right words eluded her.

"Alright...Maybe I should start differently," Sybil muttered to herself. "We came up with a theory that when this place was first made, whatever its purpose might have been, the two parts of the maze were connected. That is to say, if you came back from the year 48 BC, you would end up in the corresponding physical part. We don't know how or why, but that has been our conclusion based on the information we gathered."

"Then what happened?" Tyson asked, curiosity substituting the veil of confusion that hid everything from his sight mere moments ago.

"We don't really know. Our best guess is that whatever its purpose, it was abandoned. However, it continued working because it was automatized. Over the years, a glitch seemed to have occurred that caused it to go wonky," Sybil said.

"Is that the scientific term for it?" Marcus asked bitingly.

"Yes, it is," Sybil replied angrily. "We are just regular people who managed to figure out a few things over the years. What do you want from me?"

Sybil's defensive tone alerted Tyson that he should try to rein Marcus in, but even better people have tried and failed to do so.

"Fine, then where does that leave us, Miss SmartyPants?" Marcus asked challengingly. "Is there even a way out?"

"Well, Mr. HasNoClue, we think so. We just have to find the right way out. After all, it still works as a real maze, more or less. Either way, the answer to some questions might lie in 1914," Sybil said.

"That's odd," Marcus said, biting his nails, the old habit coming back to him.

"Why is that?" Sybil asked.

"Because we have been in and around that year a few times already. That year was the only one for which that happened," Tyson said, hoping to prevent Marcus and Sybil from going back and forth with their subtle insults.

"It has to mean something," Sybil said, pacing back and forth. "But what?"