Going back to the spot where the portal spat them out was easier than expected due to Tyson's excellent ability to retrace his steps. What wasn't easy was weaving through all the people milling over the streets.

Some were in a hurry, while others enjoyed the refreshing coolness of an early morning that would soon be replaced by a scorching heat.

Everything looked normal on the surface.

People were going about their business.

The flow of life was uninterrupted, even though Tyson knew that by this point, Bosnia was under Austro-Hungarian rule.

The regular people didn't seem to contemplate that too much. They had their own work and family to think about. What was happening at a grander scale didn't concern them until it broke their routine, which it soon would.

"What's up?" Marcus suddenly asked.

"Why do you ask?" Tyson asked, wondering if he had missed something Marcus was saying.

"You zoned out. Where did you go?" Marcus asked.

"Oh, I was just thinking about the portal, if we would find it there or not," Tyson said, trying to avoid telling him how much trouble they might be in if the portal didn't appear soon.

"Me, too," Marcus said, squinting his eyes. "I love the food here, but I want to go home or at least towards home."

"What are you thinking about so seriously?" Tyson asked, noting his friend's facial expression.

"What are you talking about?" Marcus asked, unsure if he should share his thoughts with Tyson.

In the past, some of Marcus's cleverest ideas and thoughts were laughed at by his friends. Although Tyson was never the one to make fun of him, Marcus still worried that Tyson might think him stupid if he told him what he wondered about.

"I know you too well for you to hide anything from me. You squint your eyes when you are trying to concentrate on something while you're thinking it through," Tyson said.

"I'm not trying to hide anything from you. It might be nothing..." Marcus said hesitantly.

"Spit it out," Tyson said resolutely.

He knew that even though Marcus preferred not to use his brain too much, he could come up with some solid ideas when he did decide to focus his attention on solving a problem.

"I was thinking about portals and about where they appear," Marcus slowly said, choosing his words carefully.

"And?" Tyson asked, prompting his friend to go on.

"Well, if our time travel is as random as we thought, why do we always end up in important places at important times?" Marcus asked.

"What do you mean?" Tyson asked, having some problems following what his friend was saying.

"If we are in the time maze, as that chick told you, wouldn't it be logical that the non-physical part of the maze she mentioned had a bit more random dates and places?" Marcus asked with more strength in his voice.

"I guess so," Tyson said.

"Yet, we've ended up in a castle of that important chick, at Hitler's bunker, Henry's tavern, and now Sarajevo," Marcus said, counting off all the different places they've visited.

"But we're here early. Nothing will happen for a few more days," Tyson said, thinking through his friend's theory.

"Maybe, but why didn't we end up in Bosnian countryside or in any other city but here?" Marcus asked.

Tyson could tell that those were some valid questions. What annoyed him was that he couldn't answer any of them.

"You might be on to something," Tyson said, stroking his chin.

Marcus's face beamed at him as a bright smile engulfed his features. It was so rare for him to be heard, be seen as anything more than the funny guy who rarely thought through his actions, so it felt good to finally be listened to.

"Let me think on it," Tyson said as they continued their trek toward the fountain where they first arrived in Sarajevo.

The silence that settled over them as they walked was more companionable than anything else. Marcus was happy that, for once, his idea was considered a good one. As for Tyson, he was busy thinking through all the possible implications of Marcus's theory.

"We're here," Marcus snapped Tyson out of his contemplations.

Looking around, Tyson realized that he had led them to their point of entry on autopilot.

"Do you see anything?" Tyson asked.

"Nothing unusual. Just a whole lot of people," Marcus said, looking all around them.

Tyson was aware that the portal wasn't there as soon as they arrived since they would have sensed it immediately. Yet, he wanted to check thoroughly before giving up.

"It's not here," he finally admitted.

Only when he acknowledged the truth out loud did he realize that he was convinced they would find it and already be on their merry way.

"What do we do now?" Marcus asked wearily.

He didn't have anything against Sarajevo, but he could feel how anxious Tyson was to leave the place. Thus, that made him eager to abandon it as well.

"I don't know," Tyson said sincerely.

Although he wanted to say that he had just the perfect plan that would get them clear of all the possible trouble, he knew that would be lying.

For the most part, Tyson was just winging it, working with what they had.

However, his mind was overflowing with both information overload and worry. So, he failed to make a solid plan of action.

"Why don't we just sit down over there for a moment?" Marcus said, pointing at a newly vacated bench to their right.

The fact that Tyson didn't have a plan, terrified Marcus more than anything they had been through before. After all, Tyson was the plan guy. Even his plans had plans.

Seeing him clueless about their next step made Marcus want to step up, but he had no idea how to do that. Thus, he thought that the best course of action would be to make his friend feel as comfortable as possible and hope it helps him think clearly.

Though Tyson didn't say anything in response to Marcus's question, he did follow him obediently to the bench. Once there, he put his head in his hands and did his best to figure out their next move.

"Sarajevo is not a bad place to be stuck in, you know. They have amazing food and beautiful scenery," Marcus rattled on, feeling uncomfortable to just sit there and watch his friend fall apart.

Since Tyson didn't react in any way, Marcus decided to let all his nervousness go in one giant rant that Tyson apparently couldn't hear.

"On the other hand, being stuck in Hitler's bunker would've been a terrible place to be stranded in," Marcus said, wincing at the mere idea.

"It's lucky that chick came by with that nifty little portal. I wonder where it came from?" Marcus went on uninterrupted.

After all, even if someone overheard him, they would have no idea what he was talking about. They would probably assume it was all about a story he read or something like that.

"Also, even that broad's portal took us to a famous person. I wonder if it's all about famous people and places. Oh, and times, important times," Marcus said, his unfocused eyes roaming their surroundings." It's like it has all been arranged in advance."

"Say that again!" Tyson suddenly exclaimed, raising his head.

"What? About famous people? Hitler? The hot chick?" Marcus listed out things he could remember he mentioned.

"No, no. The last part," Tyson said, annoyed.

"That the portal seemed to have a date with the past?" Marcus asked, having no idea what exactly he was talking about.

"That's not how you said it!" Tyson shouted, even more irritated.

He knew that something Marcus said lit a spark in his mind, but he couldn't remember what it was. It was one of those times you got a brilliant idea and then lost it seconds later.

"Something about it being arranged?" Tyson asked, trying to recall what was said.

"Oh, yes! I said that it seems as if it's all arranged in advance," Marcus said.

"Exactly! Prearranged times and places! But why? It would need a lot of thought and preparation. Why bother?" Tyson said, tapping his forehead as if that would manage to restart his brain.

"What about that game thing that bird told you about?" Marcus asked.

"If this was a survival game, I don't think they would've made it so easy. We wouldn't be walking around with enough money to spend time here without bigger issues," Tyson said, trying to think logically.

"Maybe that was an accident. It might have been a clothing mix-up or something," Marcus said.

"It's possible, but it doesn't seem probable. I mean, we appear in every time well equipped for our surroundings in one way or another. It's as if they want us to blend in," Tyson said.

"Why? And who are they?" Marcus asked, getting more and more confused.

It was as if the better Tyson started to understand what was going on, the less Marcus could follow.

"I'm not sure why but as for who, I would say it's probably the people who made the maze," Tyson said.

"You think it's manmade?" Marcus asked.

"Of course, even the other Mazers seem to think so. I'm just not sure if it's some weird magic or highly advanced technology. It's too consistent for it to be anything else," Tyson said with newly found certainty.

"Aren't you a smart cookie," a smooth female voice asked.

Its faked sweetness and singsong quality made Tyson cringe away from it even before they could see the person it belonged to.