The World Rings, Night 9: Fairy King Eddie

GKND H.Q.

Sector SA was frozen in shock at hearing the news. "The Riddler?! Are you kidding?" Nagisa asked. "I know he's been hiding some of the Lost Pages, but he actually picked up a ring?"

"I knew I should've bagged him when I had the chance." Carol said grumpily. "I didn't think he would recover that quickly."

"I've heard of The Riddler." Deku replied. "We found a few of his Riddle Cubes and trophies around Musutafu."

"My sector found some, too." Lotte said.

"Yeah, he leaves them around ALL our planets." Killua followed. "I don't know how he manages it. So, now you're telling me he has the Ring of Wisdom?"

"This is bad." Index said. "As you might expect, the Wisdom Ring gives the holder all the knowledge in the universe. However, he can only access this knowledge whenever someone asks him a question pertaining to it. For instance, if we asked him the identities of the Newborn Guardians…"

"No way!" Goombella exclaimed. "Sounds like Riddler could actually be useful to us!"

"Yes, he could be useful: not just for us, but for our enemies. But the ring does have some weaknesses: first, he can only answer one question for each person. Second, he can only answer three questions in one day, but if he goes several days without answering that number, then he can answer more questions on a single day. Numbers build up, you know. Third, if a person already knows the answer to a question, then it won't count. Fourth, if Riddler himself already knew an answer without the ring's power, then it also wouldn't count. And lastly, The Riddler can't lie about his answer, but he can answer in any other manner he pleases."

"Such as Riddles." Goombella figured.

"Wait, remind me again why he was in Azoth to begin with?" Lotte asked.

"Well, he… ermmmmm…" Raleigh mumbled.

"What?"

"He made it better. He had a bunch of fairies with him; they took all the available materials and created a giant Treehouse, attracting a ton of tourists—and a bunch of our scientists went to work inside it, and now they're discovering new places to mine for materials," his head was swelling, "and determining good countries to trade with, and developing cures for diseases, and—ERRRRRRGH! He's UP to something, and I CAN'T figure out WHAT!"

"I'm sorry, but you lost me at 'He had a bunch of fairies.'" Lotte mentioned.

"These little colorful fairies were flying around his Treehouse." Pacifica clarified. "It looked like they worked for him. Don't ask us why or how."

"I think we can see for ourselves." Index replied. "Let's head for Planet Poké now. Riddler works for the Brotherhood, so it's only a matter of time before they use his power for their own gain."

"But why isn't he with them right now?" Killua asked. "Why is he hanging around Azoth?"

"Let's go down and find out!" Nagisa decided. "If we can get Riddler to join us, then we can do just what you said, Index: we can ask him who the Newborn Guardians are!"

"A wise idea indeed! Oh, and that reminds me, where's my little Ciel?" Index asked. "Hoopa could use a new toy."

"Actually, he offered to stay behind and spy on Riddler." Weiss replied. "I hope he's doing okay."

Treehouse; Riddler's Office

"I am about to receive a call from Dr. Eggman. Computer, contact him." The Riddler ordered, leaned back in his chair.

The computer brought up the mustached doctor's image. "I'm going to give that Nigma a piece of my-… HMM?! Dammit, I told you not to hack my network!"

"What is it, Ivo? Not that I don't already know."

"Why are you still wasting time on Azoth?! You should be helping u-"

"Helping you look for the World Rings, look I'd love to, Doctor, but the simpletons of this little nation need me. What teacher would I be to turn them away?"

"Riddler, just because I allowed you to take some of my robots in exchange for new security, it didn't mean you were free to do whatever you want! You're part of the Brotherhood and by extension a member of Team Gnaa, so you're required to use your newfound knowledge to help us!"

"Yes, yes, rest assured, Doctor. Once I have Azoth eating under my lobes, their resources will be yours for the taking." He wrapped a hand behind his chair and crossed his fingers.

"I sure hope so. All you've been good for lately is-"

"Setting up Riddles that have taken your breath away, why thank you, Doctor!"

"That's not what I was going to say!"

"You're about to stutter, grumble, and tell me to hurry up."

"Geh-… grrrrr, JUST HURRY UP!" Transmission ended.

"I must admit, Edward, I am rather jealous." said a little Ciel Phantomhive inside a birdcage, sitting on a makeshift swing. "What I wouldn't give to have an all-knowing ring."

"I would comfort you, Ciel, but I am still rather chagrinned at your butler for helping Sandman cheat my Riddles. So instead, I shall relish in the irony of your small mind next to mine, muah ha ha! But really, you should've known better than to spy on me, with my keen Observation Haki."

"That Haki didn't serve you back in Cleveland."

"That candy girl caught me off guard! I underestimated her, but that won't happen again!"

"You still haven't answered my question. Do you know everything or not?"

"Only one question per person! And I already answered you with a very succinct riddle. But if you still haven't figured out… well, I'll ask her myself when she arrives." Eddie smirked.

"Hm, that should be interesting."

Planet Poké; Azoth Kingdom

We didn't have much time to rest before we were on our way to Planet Poké. I was more concerned for Eri-chan than I was for myself. It was her first time actually going on a mission, and I knew she was only coming to help me. I really admire her courage, but I wonder if she's really ready for the challenge ahead.

"Did you say something, Deku?" Nagisa asked.

"Oh, n-nothing."

"Oh my God, YOU NARRATE, TOO!!" His face was beaming. "FINALLY, I have a friend that understands me!"

"Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm. . . ." Morgiana was furiously scratching the floor with her toes, chipping away the wood. Eri could feel a terrible rage emitting from her, so she hid behind Deku in fear.

"Goombella, I'm driving, would you bite Nagisa for me?" Index asked.

"Gladly. H'OMP!" The Goomba bit him in the leg.

"Yowch! Geez, what did I say?"

"Figure it out."

Sector SA followed Sector $'s ship and came to a landing on the outside of Azoth's walls. The town seemed ancient at first glance, but was composed of giant cogs, treadmill roads, and escalators. It seemed that kids were playing with either Electric or machine-type Pokémon. "Hooooh, I wish I could've brought my Pokémon!" Lotte spoke happily. "My marvelous Mismagius, and my silly Skitty…"

"You have Pokémon, too?" Raleigh asked.

"Yeah! I mean, in my games…" Lotte blushed.

"Oh, you mean those games that completely disgrace the art of Pokémon Training."

"Really?! I-I didn't know they were so offensive, I'm sorry!"

"Only joking." Raleigh remarked in a Ciel-like tone.

"Look, that must be a KND treehouse!" Deku smiled, pointing at the colossal mechanical tree that loomed behind the castle. "Iida was right, they really are hard to miss."

"Actually, that Treehouse is our kingdom's research center." Raleigh corrected. "Though it was likely inspired from the KND's. My sister works there, and… so does The Riddler."

"Well, let's go show ourselves in!" Killua said, fist-palming. "It can't have better security than my house."

"I dunno. Even Vanellope couldn't hack Riddler's terminals." Carol replied.

In front of the Treehouse

"Huuuurrrrrrrgggh!" Killua was pouring all his strength, but failing to push open the large sturdy doors. "Unbelievable! They're stronger than the Testing Gates!"

"Uhh… You know they open sideways, right?" Raleigh asked, Carol and Goombella giggling. "Not inwards?"

Killua flushed. "Baka, I knew that." He refuted, sticking hands in his pockets. "I just wanted to see if I could."

"Well, it seems that we have more uninvited guests." A large TV above the door switched on, displaying Riddler's image. He was no longer wearing a jacket or hat, but had switched to a Hawaiian shirt with ?'s. "Ah, Prince Raleigh, you've returned already. Come back to collect your pet?" He pointed the staff to his left, the camera panning to show Ciel in his birdcage.

"Index, since we are aiding you on YOUR mission, I'm considering this as part of my one-month service." Ciel stated in a calm, but high tone.

"The young prince and his wealthy friends are welcome in the front entrance, but I'm afraid the rest of you will have to take the Visitors' Entrance." A glass pipe rose out of the ground on their right.

"It looks like a Mushroom Kingdom pipe." Maria noted. "Oh! Wait a second, I'm a princess! Don't I get special access?"

"Not in my eyes, darling! Sector $ already proved their selves the first time they visited, but now it's YOUR turn to take the Riddle Way. I won't open the front door until your group has gone down."

"Well, we couldn't have come without expecting a detour." Nagisa figured. "We'll see you guys at the top."

"Sorry about this, guys." Carol said sheepishly.

"GERONIMOOOO!" Maria dove in the pipe first.

"Oh, before we go," Lotte took out a pink potion and faced Eri, "we might be fighting some enemies, so let's put our plan into action. You ready, Eri?"

"OK…" Eri answered lowly. The nervous child opened her mouth and let Lotte pour some potion in. Eri shrunk to a doll size and was gently picked up by Deku. Lotte lightly moved the tip of her wand around the girl, forming an invisible bubble around her. "Perfect! Now she'll be immune to damage for a short time. Hehe, Sucy used to do it to Akko, so I know it works."

"Let me know if it gets too hot, Eri-chan." Deku said, placing her in a pocket inside his neck collar.

Being inside a confined space this close to his neck was already sweltering. But she was determined to help her hero no matter what. "I'm fine, Deku-san." Her horn stretched as she put her little hands on Deku's neck, channeling her Rewind power.

Goombella saw his Power Level take a dramatic rise. "Okay! Let's go!" Deku bravely dove in—

"OOOOOOOWWWWW!" and ended up stomping and pushing Maria all the way back down the chute. Deku blushed awkwardly as the princess lay with a shoeprint on her face. "You were taking too long… to say 'Geronimo'…"

"It's so hot in here, Deku-san…" Eri panted when the temperature increased. (Play "Broadleaf" from Ni no Kuni II!)

Stage 7: Riddle Way

Mission: Get to the top of the Treehouse!

The Riddle Way took the form of a vast underground city, and it wasn't long before they encountered the first wave of Riddlerbots. The back robots fired laser bullets from platforms, while the front ones moved swiftly and attacked with "?" staffs. Maria possessed a hatless robot and attacked its friends, while Lotte summoned Electric Spirits to zap them. Killua Shaved up to the marksman robots and killed two of them with Finger Pistols. The remaining two robots used their own form of Shave, but a quick flick from Deku's strengthened fingers took them out.

There was no path beyond them, only a floating planetarium with spinning targets with letters. Judging by the unlit letters on the other side, it was obvious they had to shoot the letters that spelled 'Riddler,' a task left to Index. The planetarium floated up and a path replaced it. Shortly after crossing it, a large steel wall popped up to block them, but it was easily blown down by Deku. There were further such walls that were guarded by Riddlerbots, first the normal variety, followed by two Riddle Hammers.

With Deku saving his strength for the wall, Morgiana leapt onto the right Riddle Hammer and kicked its helmet off. Maria then possessed the robot and bashed the other one into submission. She released her victim, so Morgiana stomped its head 'til it was flat. Deku took the final wall down, but chose to power down for Eri's sake. Everyone gathered onto a Sky Train, which was piloted by a Holo-Riddler. "Riddle Works is happy to provide its customers with quality transportation, and nothing is more quality than fun puzzles!"

The Sky Train soared over moving roads with robots and between holographic screens with codes and question marks. The train stopped as Riddler asked, "I am thinking of a dead Numbuh." Cannons launched missiles that threatened to destroy them, so Nagisa quickly shouted, "One!"

"Correct." The train kept flying, evading the missiles. Next, they were flying toward a tunnel sealed by laser bars. "I'm thinking of a shady move that strikes foes from afar." Killua thought of the shadowbending move, Shade Fist. "Correct." The lasers deactivated, allowing them entry. The tunnel displayed a swirling aquarium of rainbow fish, and a glass dome appeared over the train as it spun around and dizzied the passengers. "This crusty food has a very treasured origin!"

"K-K-Krabbyyy Paaaattiiiies." Index moaned. The train stopped spinning, and it would soon let everyone off to relieve their sore stomachs.

"Eeeeeewww. Alluka threw up in my hat." Maria moaned.

"It wasn't an aaaaccideeeeent~" sang the girl, earning a snicker from Hoopa.

The group journeyed through a narrow hall as robotic bees called Buzzes zoomed down, colored green as the Riddler likes. Since they had buzz-saw bodies, Nagisa used Iron Body as Morgiana batted them away. There was a left passage that led to a Gearmo (a janitor robot) holding a Gold Page. "Master Riddler says, trade this page for a Buzz." With that, Maria headed back and possessed one of the Buzzes, making it fly toward the Gearmo. The robot twirled and gave them the page. "Thank you, humans! I'm gonna have a fun night with this baby."

Once past the passage, they were in a wide, round room with green circuits lining the walls in complex fashion. Index stepped on a Riddle Pad, causing sparks to travel along the circuits quickly. However, one of them reached a gap, and this caused them all to stop. Ten Riddlerbots with guns popped out of the floor, but were quickly dealt away with. Lotte stepped on other switches that closed gaps in the circuits, but created new ones. When Index restarted the circuits, Lotte could tell the Electric Spirits to stop the sparks in place, giving her friends time to flip levers and allow the sparks access. All the circuits met up at a door and opened it.

They walked out to a tall stairway between some walls, and three steps up—a huge Rhomp with Riddler's face rolled down, Morgiana sticking a leg up to hold it back, with help from Killua. "How is THIS a Riddle?" Morg asked in annoyance. Eri restored Deku's strength so the Superbian could punch it back up the stairs. The Rhomp would fill a hole above the stairs, leading to a great field of giant Riddlerbots. There were four robots, each holding a ball half its size. One ball had a picture of young Eva Roberts, one of Angie Granite, one of Mikaela Corella, and one of Fanny Fulbright.

"Oh, I recognize these operatives." Deku said. "They all became Logias, didn't they?"

"Yeah… though, two of them died." Nagisa replied.

They had to work a control panel and direct the robots to roll the balls into the correct holes: Eva would go in the water hole, Angie in a rocky hole, Mika in a heart-shaped hole, and Fanny into the fire hole. ("We missed a chance for a joke there." Maria said.) Once the basic puzzle was complete, the robots said, "You jerks! Those were our favorite balls!" and drew out giant hammers.

Deku ran for the first robot and dodged its hammer, taking a mighty leap and dealing a fatal punch to the chest, shattering the robot. Upon landing, Deku shook his throbbing, reddened hand, but with Eri's power, the injury slowly faded away. Killua and Nagisa combined their Tempest Kicks and severed the second Riddle Hammer's arms and legs. Afterwards, Killua got onto its fallen sideways body and dug his nails into the base of its head, using all his strength to tear it off.

Morgiana went into Red-Foot Fury and kicked the third robot in her favorite place to kick people. It was down on its back, but still not dead, so Lotte called an Ice Spirit to freeze its head, allowing Morg to squash and destroy it. Maria and Index climbed up to the head of the final robot and combined their Light Fists and Ground Pounds to smash it like a metal pancake.

With the giants defeated, a glass pipe lowered from the ceiling. Nagisa led the way this time, for spiked mines came down the pipe, requiring the soft assassin to use his Iron Body to clear a path for his friends. The pipe brought them up to a tall room with a computer, where Sector $ waited. (End song.)

"Sweet, you guys made it up!" Carol cheered.

"Yeah, barely." Killua sighed, rubbing his legs. "Why do you have all the fancy stuff down there?"

"That place wasn't a part of this Treehouse." Raleigh informed. "The Riddler installed it and forced us to go through the first time."

"And we weren't done FIXING it, yet!" They looked up as a short fairy with a crown floated down. Landing on the floor, she was a bit shorter than Maria, with dark-pink hammer-shaped hair and a blue dress with a hammer pattern. "If we knew we would have more guests so soon, I would've installed MORE riddles! My Eddie will be so infuriated…"

"I'm sorry, YOUR Eddie?" Pacifica asked.

"Oh, where are my manners? My name is Hima. I am the Queen of the Carpenter Fairies."

"The Carpenter Fairies?!" Lotte gaped. "No way! I've only heard of you in fairytales! You build houses for people who've lost their homes!"

"Well, that's what we used to do. We were renowned the universe over for our deeds. We were so famous that people started burning down their own houses, hoping we would build better ones. But we Carpenter Fairies hate it when people burn down structures; accidents are one thing, but on purpose?! So, we refused to rebuild them. As you can expect, this pissed them all off. Which wouldn't have been so bad… if they hadn't found our home."

Hima quickly built a small TV, which displayed hundreds of furious humans and aliens, throwing bombs and shooting guns at the homes of the innocent fairies. The KND were horrified when a short, blue imp with long ears was brutally whipping the queen. "Come this time tomorrow, I BETTER have a brand new castle! And don't even think about hiding, 'cause we'll find you! I have connections like you wouldn't believe, so there's nowhere in the universe you could POSSIBLY hide!"

"By the time they all left, my people were hurt and afraid. Unfortunately, we refused to listen. And they came back the 2nd day and attacked us. Then they returned on the third day. We fairies are immortal, so they could never truly kill us, but still… And that was when he appeared."

Suddenly, lasers rained down upon the invaders, destroying them all. These lasers came from a fleet of robots, controlled by a green-clothed man in a floating pod. "Neanderthals… every last one of them. Too incompetent to do what man has been doing since he evolved!"

Hima flew up to him with anger in her eyes. "And what about you?! Are YOU one of these monsters?!"

"No ho ho. My dear, I am Edward Nigma. But you may call me The Riddler. When I heard that the Carpenter Fairy Realm had been found, I was determined to see it with my own eyes. But I had not expected the… cold reception from your guests."

"And what is it you want?"

"I would like to make a deal: you see, I construct mechanical contraptions for a living; those of the 'puzzling' variety, and invite eager young children to solve them. But as much as it pains me to say it, my own skills as a human are far too limited… as opposed to what I have heard from you. That is why, I would like to invite ALL of you to work in my factory! I vow that no harm will come to you, and you will be granted sanctuary, so long as my ideas are realized!"

"Well, I'm sorry to disappoint you… but we're through building things for mortals. All they care about is destruction. They never appreciate what they have, never respect the beauty of architecture."

"You know what, Your Highness… you're absolutely right." Riddler turned, holding his staff at his back in a horizontal fashion. "I work so hard at constructing my Riddles… and all I ask is for people to solve them. But hundreds walk by—THOUSANDS, and I go ignored!" His right hand became a fist as he swung it around. "Don't they understand that I do it for them, to boost their knowledge, strengthen their I.Q.?! Do they think building these contraptions is easy?! It takes backbreaking work that I have gone unappreciated for! But with your help, I can create Riddles anew, ones that will truly test their mental limits!" He raised his staff skyward. "So, if you join me, not only will you have the honor of creating such Riddles, but revenge on those primitive mortals who abused your craftsmanship!"

"And that's how the Riddle Works became the new home for my clan!"

"So, that explains it!" Nagisa realized. "Those magical Riddle Cubes me and Mr. York found, those odd contraptions… it was all the work of you fairies!"

"So, you were just okay with designing death traps for a supervillain?" Izuku asked.

"Well, according to Eddie, no one is more destructive than you Kids Next Door." The queen smiled. "Perhaps if your minds were more sharp, you would be more careful."

"Okay, but how do you explain what you're doing here in Azoth?" inquired Carol.

"I came with Eddie to scout more spots for Riddles. But suddenly, a Green Ring fell from the sky and nearly grazed his head off. Eddie picked up the ring, and his shirt began to shine as the ring went inside him…"

"Eddie, are you alright? What happened?" Hima asked as townspeople stared at him.

"I…I just picked up the World Ring of Wisdom!" Riddler replied, staring at the hand that had held the ring. "I can answer any question in the universe! QUICK! Somebody, ask me something! ANYTHING! Provided it is worthy of my intelligence!"

The townspeople exchanged glances, wondering if this was actually true. "Alright then. Since I work in the mines, can you show me the perfect digging spot for rare minerals?" asked a man in a humorous manner.

"Of course I can! Heck, I'll even have my crew build you a digger! (Now's our chance to look for good Riddle spots, Hima! Get them to it!)"

"And within two days, my Eddie became the hero of Azoth!" the queen proclaimed with sparkling eyes. "And in the process, we've been finding these odd golden pages all over the place…"

"Mr. Nigma, what are these pages?" asked a young male fairy.

"Why, those are the pages of the Universe Book! I'm sure Scheherazade will be looking everywhere for those. Tell all the fairies to search for these pages and set up Riddles for them! I'm sure you can find a few good spots."

"That will be enough, Hima." The queen turned as The Riddler came down on a floating platform. "After all, our guests probably want to hear from the man himself." He stepped off and approached the kids, his horizontal staff at his back.

"You know why we're here, don't you, Nigma?" Index asked in an unhappy tone.

"You want me to come with you on your quest to unite the World Rings. Yes, I figured. But once they're all together, the Ring of Wisdom will leave my body." He about-faced. "I can't allow that to happen."

"Why not?"

"Sorry, you already asked your question!" he said with a cocky grin, wagging a finger.

"Grrrr, YOU KNOW THE ANSWER! Neither of those questions should count!"

"Oh, fine." He faced them again. "This may come as a shock to you kids, but I love videogames."

"Wow, I wanna cry so bad." Goombella retorted.

"Yes, but while my classmates loved mindless combat and weaponry like Call of Duty or Mortal Combat (the actual title of which is spelled WRONG), I preferred more intelligent titles, such as Legend of Zelda, or Sonic. Games that truly tested my intelligence and/or mastery of the buttons. And all I wanted was for other people to enjoy what I love. But do you know what I realized? I was on a different level from them."

"Look, Daddy, I got 102%!" Eddie proclaimed joyfully.

"YOU EXPECT ME TO BELIEVE THAT?!" His father bashed him on the head and tore the paper in two. "You must have cheated! You don't do anything but play those damn games!"

"Hey Eddie, did you get Halo 2?" a classmate asked.

"No, I've been playing The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker. Heh, and I found all the treasure chests." He grinned proudly.

The boy and his friends snickered. "Man, that game is so lame!"

"Everyone thought they were better than me, all because they didn't share the intelligence that I had. But because I was so kind, I made it my goal to help them. I sharpened my mind and studied hacking and engineering, all so I could one day construct the beautiful Riddles you see today. The only problem was securing enough money to purchase the tools to do so. So, I was left with no option but to join the Brotherhood. By combining my skills with theirs, robbing bank after bank, and eventually hacking the stock market, I had enough money for my Riddle Factory! I set up Riddles wherever possible, but no matter how hard I worked, people continued to ignore my work! DENYING their selves wonderful intelli-"

"We kind of already know this part." Nagisa intervened.

"Well, that's exactly my point! Until I met the Carpenter Fairies, it was impossible to find anyone who cared about me OR my work! But now that I've found the Wisdom Ring, EVERYONE will want a piece of my knowledge! Just like these Azothians, people will admire me, reward me, seek my help! So, once I'm done milking this town for its admiration, I'll head to somewhere else."

"PICHUUUU!" The villain was zapped by Raleigh's Pichu, falling to his knees.

"Eddie!" Hima gasped.

"I won't let you use my people for your own selfish gains!" Raleigh shouted. "This stops now! Index, how do we get the ring out of him?"

"W-Well, we can't. Once the ring has found a Bearer, it stays with them until the seven are united, or if… the Bearer dies…"

"Just say the word and I'll make it quick." Killua readied his fingers.

"No!" Index shouted. "As much as we don't like it, we need to take The Riddler with us."

"Well, you'll have a heck of a time with it!" Hima proclaimed as Carpenter Fairies suddenly surrounded them, each baring a shining construction tool. "You won't take my Eddie away from me!"

"Come on, you guys hate it when things get destroyed! And without Eddie, the whole universe could be destroyed!"

"Well, you would know a thing or two about that." Riddler pushed himself up with his staff. "After all, it was your tiny friend that said your true name could destroy the universe. But I think we know better… Scheherazade."

". . ." A sweatdrop trickled down Index's cheek.

"Or did you not reveal your TRUE name?"

"Uh… but we know her true name." Nagisa replied confusedly.

"Come on, kids, did you think it was only a coincidence that Hoopa and Scheherazade formed a connection? The truth is, their bond is thicker than you realize. Isn't that right?"

Hoopa came out of Maria's hat. "Scheherazade, what's he talking about?"

"…That part of me was abandoned a long time ago." Index stated. "I was born into this universe as Scheherazade, and I remained Scheherazade for millions of years. Anything I used to be no longer matters, and that goes for Hoopa, too."

"Oh, really? And does the universe agree with you?"

"Hey, Scheherazade, if you know something, then I wanna know!" Hoopa fist-pumped. "What did we use to be?!"

"Grrr, I haven't told anyone because I don't want anyone to freak out, okay?! Cheren and all our friends just want everyone to live in peace."

"Young Phantomhive was the one who asked me about you. 'Do you know where Scheherazade originally came from?' That is how I know all this. He also told me that you seek a cure to the darkness inside Hoopa. I can only surmise the source of that very darkness is the same answer to his question. But just in case, feel free to ask me."

"Hmmm… Excuse me a second." Index walked over to the stairwell that led up to the higher platform where Riddler came from.

"Mr. Nigma." The group turned as an older girl, who looked and dressed like Raleigh, stepped in.

"Oh! Hey, Sector SA, this is my sister, Kimia." Raleigh introduced.

"Then you must be the princess!" Maria grinned and waved. "What's up! I'm a princess, too!"

"You're just trying to be popular at this point." Killua remarked.

"These are more of your friends from Earth? Hm-hm, nice to meet all of you! Anyway, Mr. Nigma, I've finished reprogramming the town's defenses, just like you asked. We'll be ready in case Eggman plans an attack."

"Wait, who's attacking?" Raleigh asked.

"I spoke with him earlier. Hmph, he thinks I'm a fool." Eddie smirked, tapping his glasses. "But I could sense it in his mind. He's planning to invade tomorrow."

"Yeah, and you're going to help him, aren't you?!"

"My answer is 'no.' If you don't believe me, ask your sister to show you my new program. It took no time at all to figure it out, just a simple question. Your little computer friend might get a crack at it, too." He glanced at Carol, who huffed in anger.

"And we're supposed to take your word for it?" Deku asked.

"Why shouldn't you? I can't lie about my answer, and the princess asked me herself: how can we strengthen our defenses?"

"I really think it would work." Kimia smiled. "Come on, Raleigh, you can see for yourself."

"Sigh… okay."

"Hey, sorry to interrupt, but Eri-chan's getting tired." Deku said, holding the little girl in his palms. "Do you think we could find some place to rest?"

"No place more spacious than the castle." Raleigh smiled. "We'll show you guys to the guest rooms."

"Good idea." Nagisa nodded. "If Eggman is actually coming tomorrow, we'll need to be ready. But how do we know we can trust you, Riddler? It wasn't too long ago you were attacking us. Will you tell us what your true intentions are?"

"My true intentions are to protect this kingdom."

"But why? I know this place gave you a job, but why is it so important to you?"

"Sorry, boy, but that's one too many questions."

"Grrrr…"

"Don't worry about it, Nagisa." Index said, coming down the stairs with Ciel's birdcage. "It might sound strange, but… I feel no ill will from this man." Indeed, the Rukh were flapping softly around Edward. "I think a good night's sleep will do us a favor. We haven't rested since Superbia."

"Alright, then." Sparing one last glance to Riddler, the large group began to exit the office.

Edward held the staff at his back again and walked slowly toward the stairs, the fairies staring at him curiously. "Indeed… why worry over such a small town? I have no personal attachments to it… and yet… I can't help but dream to the sound of their cheers."