Riddle 039: Same Time, Same Bat-Channel

[questionauthority]

[ACTION - AROUND MAYFIELD

Well, that past couple of weeks sure was hell. But now that the Riddler's got his memories back and his brain in proper working order, he's going to be swinging around town---around the school, around the hospital, even door-to-door---to check up on certain people.

For some, he might stay to talk. For others? There may be no sign that Edward was even here, apart from an envelope on their doorstep. What do they say? Who are they for? Now that's a riddle, isn't it?

Knock knock.

ACTION - 726 ANDERSON LANE | THE HALL OF DOOM

And now that all that's taken care of, it's time to settle into his underground headquarters for a bit of contingency planning. If this place has the power to take his memories away again, then time is of the essence. He can't get distracted by---

Huh. This definitely isn't how the atrium of his headquarters looked earlier this afternoon. He's momentarily concerned about how all this junk got down here, and whether or not the Mailman tampered with anything in his supposedly secret HQ, but the suspicion is fleeting. Apart from the new decor, nothing appears to have been broken, stolen, tampered with, or otherwise touched. He really should be more worried about his security system, but that can be taken care of later on this evening. Right now, he's just recovered a blast from his colorful past, the set to something he's not seen in ages.]

Now, how did that old intro go again...? [He clears his throat, trying to remember.] Ladies and gentlemen...

[He glances around the seemingly empty Hall before twirling his cane and adopting the voice of something resembling a game show announcer, his tone suave, showy, and saccharine. As he continues with this incredibly self-indulgent introduction, it's easy to tell that he's really getting into it.]

Ladies and gentlemen, we're now only moments away from midnight... the Hour of Uncertainty. The time when all stands revealed, naked in the face of complexity. Ladies and gentlemen, The Riddle Factory is proud to present...

"Riddle Me This!" With your host... the man of questions, intrigue, and style... the lean, mean, green machine... the Riddler!

[He chuckles to himself, nostalgic at glory days long gone, before poking his head around his evil lair-turned-television set.]

Comments

[fasterthan]

Yeah, well. Took me longer than I'd like to admit.

[He scratches his head a little awkwardly.]

So... all recovered?

[questionauthority]

For the most part.

[He scans the store's aisles; the drones seem to be perfectly content listening to their records and nothing else.]

Don't look so uncomfortable. I haven't said anything.

[fasterthan]

Yeah, well. It's kind of weird, that's all.

[questionauthority]

Imagine how I feel. A man of my background doesn't often find himself running with your crowd.

...forgive the expression.

[fasterthan]

[Wally shrugs.]

Well... I mean... if you don't want to, I won't get. You know. Mad or anything.

[questionauthority]

Mad? Of course not. Not like him. You don't operate on anger. No, I can see now that you work quite differently than he does. He acts as if he knows the answer to everything. That the questions I ask are beneath him. But you at least try to understand, don't you?

[fasterthan]

[Wally is finding it weird how Eddie talks about Bruce, but then again it makes sense. He shrugs again.]

Everybody's got their reasons. Well. Okay, not everybody, but most people do. It's really the people who don't have reasons that're the most dangerous anyway.

[questionauthority]

[A humorless chuckle. Ain't that the truth.]

Well. As I've already said, you've nothing to fear. I may know the answer to this riddle---[He pokes a finger into Wally's chest for emphasis.]---but if everyone knew the answer? There'd be no point to it.

[fasterthan]

[Poked. Wally blinks, then nods.]

Okay. I believe you.

[questionauthority]

Good. That's settled, then.

[Awkward silences...]

[fasterthan]

[Wally scratches his head.]

Uh... about what you said... at the bank...

[questionauthority]

What about it?

[fasterthan]

Well, I mean it wasn't so much what you said but more like... how you reacted. Uh. When you figured it out, I mean.

I mean I know you said you weren't... exactly yourself but...

[questionauthority]

Come now. Surely you must have caught onto the fact that I was in the middle of dying. The circumstances of an epiphany like that were certainly less than ideal. [Sigh.]

I won't pretend I'm not the slightest bit disappointed. After all, how many supercriminals in Gotham are there with friends like you?

[Probably not the right question to ask, given the DCAU.]

Still. He lost his opportunity to try and stop me months ago. And the Mayor never bothered to show, either. But you did.

...so, thank you.

[fasterthan]

...yeah, I gotcha.

You're welcome, I guess. I mean. It'd be nice if it didn't happen again, but circumstances being what they were... [He shrugs.] I mean I don't know everything that was going on but... it kind of made sense. What you were trying to do, I mean. And you weren't hurting anyone.

[questionauthority]

[...yeah, funny story about that. But not one Eddie needs to share right now. So he'll do what he does best and redirect.]

You could have done something, you know. If you wanted to stop him, you could have threatened to tear City Hall apart, brick-by-brick, in the blink of an eye.

[fasterthan]

[Wally sighs and rubs his forehead.]

Yeah, I could've, and I could've really easily done it, too. But... okay see here's the thing. That's... that's not how I work. There's... there's a really thin line between doing the right thing for the right reasons and doing the wrong thing for the right reasons. Sometimes it's really hard to tell what crosses the line and what doesn't, but... threatening to destroy stuff? That's crossing the line.

[questionauthority]

[Eddie ponders over the Flash's words. He really isn't a thing like the Dark Knight, is he?]

Perhaps. But as much as you'd rather not consider it, in a town like this? The line is even closer than you think.

[fasterthan]

Which is why it's even more important to know which side is which.

There's a person I want to be, and there's a person I don't want to be. Crossing the line is a surefire way to start becoming the person I don't want to be.

[questionauthority]

How noble of you. And yet so painfully naive. Typical. That's just like a cape, isn't it?

[He scoffs.]

Look. I don't know what happens in Central City, or Keystone, or wherever the hell it is that you do business. But soon enough, my friend, you'll find yourself challenged by some of the most harrowing conflicts imaginable. And there will be more at stake than what you might consider to be good or evil.

And it won't be so simple for you to find the answer. Life isn't that simple.

[An uncomfortable beat.]

Well. I should probably be going.

[fasterthan]

[He puts a hand on Eddie's shoulder to stop him.]

I'm not naive, Eddie. I know it's not simple. Nothing's simple. And believe it or not it's actually because I've been face to face with harrowing conflicts that make me so sure of how things should be done. They might not be the kind of conflicts that you're used to seeing, but where I come from, we've seen what happens when the good guys, with all their strength, cross the line.

And believe me, it isn't pretty.

[questionauthority]

Did I ever say it would be? The fact remains that this place is still a far cry from anything either of us are used to. The game has changed.

So do the rules.

[He squirms out of Wally's grip, clapping a hand against his shoulder and tipping his hat cordially before turning and heading to the exit.]

[fasterthan]

Not all the rules.

[But he lets him leave.

Man.

This is not the sort of conversation Wally ever expected he'd have.]