A Batman Fan-Fiction: #1- Meet Edward Nigma

Story written by: Kisser Ne

Characters and Settings by: DC Comics

K.A Characters created by: Kisser Ne

Rated: M for Mature.

Appropriate for readers 18 and over. May contain extreme violence, sexual themes, nudity, or profanity.

Location: Arkham Asylum-

Crime still floods the streets of Gotham, it seemingly never ends. Batman continues to fight, stopping evildoers at all costs. Bruce Wayne continues to push the highest technology that everyone knows could cause ultimate problems, if the wrong guys got a hold of them and tweaked them a bit. Arkham Asylum is, as usual, booked and packed and I, Edward Nigma, sit solemnly in my cell. I am the knight! Ha, balderdash! Though, I can't help but still dream of intellect versus intellect. The greatest riddle of them all, who is the Bat? I can't help thinking there is some sort of twist, but I suppose I will resume silently as I wait for my early release- I am exceptionally on my best behavior at all time. I can hear the others screaming in their cells, wasting themselves as they continue to allow their hatred for Batman to boil. Every criminal in the city, placed in one gigantic hell house and they haven't forgot the last incident yet or have they? They seem so calm and so nonchalant, not ever fretting that another evil lunatic (or the same one) will create another maniacal plan to over-come the city and destroy the one thing that keeps citizens safe... They never fret that my genius self will concoct a plan to escape or a plan to defeat them all. Of course, on that note, they are correct. I would not want to waste my time on anyone but the Bat.

Oh, but there is a delectable plan! The most horrific and insane villains are all putting their sweet little heads together, just like old times, so that they can rule Gotham and then the world and I am the one who knows. But I am not a part of this plan, it is too dull and naive for me at this time. If I wanted to seize power, I would. My intelligence surpasses all, for instance I can even get out of this clammy, ridiculous and filthy cell whenever I so choose. I just need to speak and they will listen. Ah, yes. I can smell freedom now as I wait, so patiently impatient. I just need to riddle away the time. This is why I leave little notes for all to see, they are spread through out the building like a vast and increasing plague. I even give the boys entertainment from time to time, riddling them here and there and watching as they try to uncover the truth or the answers. At times, I dumb them down for these little kids and they think themselves so smart but only for a few moments. I remind them by sending more and more, like an enamored school boy on Valentine's day. They learn, they remember and they respect it...

"Riddler," the guard projected from behind the gate, "get over here. We have a little present for you."

"Oh I do so love the element of surprise," Edward replied, stepping forth from his cot as he approached the bars. "I hope you found me puzzles." Nigma portrayed a quick and innocent smile as he extended an open palm to the large guard.

"It's not a puzzle, but an agreement. You fulfilled your sentence and now it's time to leave."

"Impossible, quite logically impossible," Ed chuckled, shaking his head as he slowly stepped back towards his cot. "George, I have not waited long enough to have served my full sentence. No, no- not I. Perhaps, you have confused me with the moronic boob. You know the ultimate Trickster, the Joker."

"Ed, you know I know who you are and I know you hate when people confuse your schemes with his. I don't think it's possible for me to forget since you rant about it quite often. It's your time to leave. Are you afraid of the great outdoors now or something?" George Brown said, but his partner, Frank Burns, continued to harass.

"Perhaps you're afraid a bat might get ya?" The idiot laughed loudly as Brown released the gate and cuffed the Riddler, he began to lead him through the corridor, pushing and tugging gently on the convict...

Afraid of the bat? Ha! I think not. I am not afraid of him, at all. What is there to be afraid of? It's like fearing darkness, instead I welcome it! Though I must admit, these walls do resemble much of a home to me and I feel it is too soon and I am quite comfortable in my hole of riddles. There is another curve in this road, there are more bumps that this dear fellow with a wife and kids is not telling me and I want to know! I can see the beads of sweat, forming on his brow. He knows I want the answers and he knows he wants to share them with me. Tell me, tell me, TELL ME!

"Riddle me this, Agent Brown. A man goes home to see his wife, there's an X on the floor..." Edward begins calmly, but he is quickly interrupted.

"Is that a threat, you awkward little freak?!" Frank responded violently, grabbing Edward by the collar of the jumpsuit.

"Oh, my dear, Frank. You are brilliant for putting that one together, too bad you INTERRUPTED me and I HATE when people interrupt me." He replied, grinding his teeth viciously as he hissed. His eyes analyzed the guard, thoroughly.

"Of course you would interrupt me about an X and a wife. Your lovely little woman sat at home, waiting and waiting and decided one day that you WERE too much of a idiotic bum to stay with. She should have listened to mother and married Mister Wayne, but no she went with her heart. She chose you and then she chose to leave. How angry did that make you? Riddle me this, Burns! How does the cop manage his anger? A man comes home to see his wife with an X upon the floor- what happened next? He shot the X, he shot the wife and did he scream never more? See you interrupt me and it was all about you! FUNNY, how I know these things, isn't it?!" Edward shrieked and kicked, causing a ruckus between Brown and Burns. George tried to calm him down, tightening his grasp and trying to hush him but Burns was not as patient. He had had enough and cracked his gun against Nigma's head quickly.

"That should shut him up."

Waking...Waking...The outside of the Asylum, floating on the ocean that surrounds the island that I am leaving. I am not frightened of Batman nor am I am quite pleased that I still have no answers. I feel sorry for George, having to work with that numskull of a man, Frank. I honestly haven't lost my temper like that in quite some time. I have exceptionally good behavior at all times. I didn't want to leave. I don't want to leave. I have not planned anything, I have not created any riddles for my admirable foe. He will think it strange if I am not parading the streets when we arrive in Gotham. Strange, released so soon and escorted by quite a few people that do not work at Arkham. I would know these men if they did, I know all. I am the most intelligent person on the planet, it would seem. I deserve to know what is going on since the spotlight is on me. Where will these men take me when we reach the shore? Are they just going to shoot me and dump my body in the water? Or will they immediately feed me to the bat? I am wondering what their mighty plan is... I know something big is coming, but I just can not put my finger on it and it is at the very tip of my tongue... On the bright side, I do know of one extraordinary and dangerous plan...

Location: The Batcave, Batman's hidden lair-

"Something isn't right, Alfred." Bruce stated as he searched the strands of information.

"How do mean, Sir?" the Butler replied, stepping towards the monitors as he peered at them quickly, but averting his attention to Mister Wayne.

"According to Arkham's files, they released the Riddler today. Edward Nigma had another four months even with his exceedingly (and surprisingly) good behavior. He is being escorted to the shore as we speak by a unit called: K.A." The caped crusader replied, he scanned the database some more as he mixed bits and pieces to the side.

"And K.A is what exactly, Master Wayne?" Alfred questioned, reading the information tidbits that Bruce was pulling aside.

"K.A is an abbreviation for the group known as the Knights in Armor. Supposedly, they are a team that was assembled in the early 1900s to fight crime and near the end of World War 2, they all disappeared after their unfortunate run-in with radioactive weaponry made by the Nazi party. Essentially, they are the good guys but after a few years passed, the European people began to realize an increase of unknown deaths and disappearances, this period of time was known as the "Monster Attacks," and it lasted for almost a decade. Every body that was discovered was practically demolished and the gossipers began to spread the news that this was the acts of angry soldiers that were mutated in the war." Bruce read the information and summarized as much as he could, taking a deep breath as he continued to research the unfamiliar K.A team.

"This, of course, was just a rumor. There was no existing evidence of any kind that proved the K.A task force was even alive or any proof that there were mutants roaming all of Europe. It also caused a conspiracy against the governments, along with the ideas of secret societies and biological warfare. After another decade, the K.A force was located. They were in fact mutated but they also told authorities that they were not the ones who were killing all of those innocent people and that at most times, they were helping and trying to save the victims from harm." He soon fell into silence as the information flooded the screens of every monitor, but the questions remained. Who are the K.A unit and who sent them? "Do you believe that they were still the heroes, sir?" Alfred inquired as he ventured towards the Batsuit.

"I am not sure, Alfred. I would love to say yes, but being the good guys and then retrieving the Riddler randomly makes it too questionable." Bruce turned and grasped the Batsuit from Alfred, thanking him as he prepared himself. It was time for Batman to further the investigation.

He launched himself over the city, jumping and gliding from rooftop to rooftop. His mind raced as he tried to put the puzzle together, if Riddler was behind this- he had truly upped his game since the last arrest. This was one hell of a riddle. What would a team of alleged mutant heroes want with a clinically insane riddling genius? The only thing he could think of was world domination. Edward Nigma had the intelligence to create a Genesis world, if you added one more villain such as the likes of Lex Luthor, the world would be yours, if you had the man-power. But the idea of Lex nabbing Riddler from Arkham to achieve ultimate power seemed like a huge gap to fill at this point in time and locating a team of experienced mutant fighters made it a little more far-fetched. Batman reached the shore-line as the boat slowly bobbed to the surface. He eyed the men that surrounded Nigma and watched their mouths, carefully. He could see that they were armed and that they resembled S.W.A.T, right away as each of them stepped from the boat. The Riddler remained cuffed as they pulled him out and onto the sand.

"C'mon, Nigma!' One of the men shouted as they pulled him towards a small shack. "It almost looks like he's a prisoner..." Bruce thought to himself as they entered the shed.

Location: Gotham Shore, Inside the Seaside Shack-

I can not believe I am thinking this, but for the first time in a long time- I am actually feeling a tad bit nervous. These disguised individuals seem to have some brain and brawn, resembling much of my dearest Batman. Everything is so quiet... and my head hurts, that stupid fat oaf! How dare he strike me with a gun, that has to be against some sort of law or negligence around those lines... Sigh...I, Edward Nigma, for the first time in a long time, almost wish the Bat was here. At this very moment, I would have to consider myself just an every day, average civilian being held up by masked avengers and to think, I was just in Arkham an hour ago! My life is so vividly exciting!

"Alright, gentlemen. Although I find this all very amusing and I appreciate the boost from jail and all that, but I think I may be going now!" The Riddler said. He stood to his feet for a quick moment but large palms quickly pushed him back down.

"We don't think so." One of the members said again, the man turned to face Nigma but remained hidden by the suit. Edward crossed his legs and sat up straight, leaning against the chair with perfect posture as he pretended to be calm.

"Well, I suppose I could stay for a little while longer," he stammered, smirking as he looked around the small structure. "What do you all want with me?"

"You're the Riddler, you solve that question." Another scoffed. Edward glared in the direction of the voice and stared emotionless.

"That's right, I am the Riddler," he said, calmly but his energy spiked. "Have you seen my get-up?! I wear question marks! I am the Riddler- I make the riddles! I ask the questions. I'm not Answer Man or the Solution! You great buffoons..." He growled.

"I don't like this guy," a woman stated as she stepped forward and placed a gun against his head.

"Oh great, another gun. How many of these will be placed to my head today? At least, I thank you for using the weapon correctly and please do remember that you pull the trigger and it blows my brains out all over the floor. My head is not a baseball." Nigma stated, ferociously.

"We can fix that for you, if you'd like," the first man said as he approached closer and closer towards the chair.

"Oh that is very kind of you, I do appreciate the offer, but I don't think I will be much service to you all or provide much purpose if I am, oh you know DEAD?!" He yelled, spitting at the man who now stood perfectly in front of him.

Batman leaped from his perch, silently drifting to the ground below as he closed in on the suspicious group. He pushed his back against the wall and listened very closely to the voices as they continued to talk among themselves. Although, the situation still had many doors open, it seemed that Batman was able to scratch off Riddler as being the mastermind.

"As much as this guy is bothering me...he's right, Sheila." The man said, tightening his fist in a ball as he squeezed it. "This has to be the first time, I could not stand to be in a room with someone."

"Says the man who isn't being forced to sit in a chair," Nigma mumbled as he rolled his eyes and glared into the distance. "Ugh, I made a pun." He thought to himself, feeling a distinctive sickness overcome his entirety. The similarities were really starting to add up between him and the Joker, anymore...

"Riddler. I don't know why our commander wanted you. I don't see the connection, what so ever. You aren't intelligent. You aren't extraordinary and you have no powers. You are useless." Sheila stated, as she lowered her gun and walked towards the window. She propped herself against the wall and looked at the man who sat in the chair. He dropped his head and Sheila felt more than pleased, unfortunately her happiness would not last long and in a spout of frustration, he began to allow the thunder roll.

"I'm not intelligent, you say? Not extraordinary, am I? Useless?" He said, his head stilled bowed but his eyes were blazing as he began to tilt his brow upward. "I am Edward Nigma." He stated, pointing at his head with his two pointer fingers as his legs uncrossed, he began to lean forward.

"We know, we know..." Sheila said, blowing off his words as she looked through the window.

"Don't...interrupt me." Nigma boomed as he broke free from the grasp of the large men. He stood to his feet and stared deeply at the shocked girl's face. "RIDDLE ME THIS! A creature that flies in the middle of the night, nocturnal by nature but lives in the light. A beast renowned, but now that he's found- what is he now and have you looked around?" The Riddler shouted.

"A bat," she grunted but this only caused Ed to laugh hysterically. Sheila and the other members of K.A, automatically became seduced by the room. They looked all over and began to feel fear, even Batman who lurked outside was surprised that the Riddler called him out.

"WRONG-O!" He shrieked through his bursts of chuckles and giggles as he hopped towards the door.

"Stop him!" The main man roared, but the room was in a calamity. They were all puzzled and frightened as Nigma sneaked through the door, but he wasn't safe yet.

A large hand grabbed him and pulled him aside, "what does K.A want from you?" Batman inquired angrily.

"Honestly, my favorite foe. I have no idea!" Edward shrugged, he glanced over his shoulder but before he could even see any of the unit come and find him, Batman grappled up to the heights of Gotham City- holding onto Nigma by only the back of his jumpsuit.

Now, this is an interesting conundrum! I was just saved by my arch enemy, of course my arch enemy doesn't kill... at least on purpose. Perhaps, the conundrum is that my arch enemy just saved me when he probably should have left me to die in the hands of those maniacs. Of course, I wouldn't have died. I would have won, they would have been outsmarted as they always are. Up, up, up... I suppose I am not quite safe until we land, now am I? Batman could drop me at any point, that would be tragic. I would die, never knowing the answer to the best riddle of them all! Who are you, my friendly nemesis? I need to know! I am ready to know, Batman...or maybe I already do?

A smile slithered across Nigma's lips as they reached the top of a building, "Batman...you saved me."

"I wouldn't get too use it. Once we figure out what is happening, you're going back to Arkham to finish serving your sentence and I will make sure that you serve full-time, good behavior or not." The Dark Knight stipulated, as he looked over his polluted city.

"I am pretty sure that's illegal, Batman." Edward replied, pursing his lips as he looked down as well. "I am glad you aren't afraid of heights," he continued, taking a hard swallow, "I, of course, am not a fan." He maneuvered slowly away from the ledge and sat upon a vent as he continued to watch the crusader.

"Edward Nigma, you are not a civilian. You are an escapee from Arkham Asylum and the world is not safe with you roaming the streets."

"Oh, Batman! Mind you, I do thank you for the compliment but I am hardly an escapee." Nigma spouted, cheerfully.

"I know. You were released from the asylum, but I don't feel like you're in the clear yet." Batman stated, as he turned around to eye the sitting figure that remained on one of the vents of the rooftop.

"Alright Batman, what's the big plan?" The Riddler asked as he gave a heavy sigh.

"I could ask you the same question, Riddler." Batman said as he heard Arkham Asylum's sirens begin to buzz. A prison-break?

"Well, I only know of one big plan at the moment. here's a riddle to guess if you can..." Nigma paused briefly as he gave a large grin, "In the Blackest Night, a figure broods. A Flash of light, this Cat moves. This Bird takes flight, and the city's doomed. It begins a fight, and the Joke's on you." Batman listened carefully and before his eyes, the Riddler disappeared and reappeared in seconds flat. The Arkham jumpsuit was gone and the Riddler's suit had taken its place.

BATMAN AND ALL CHARACTERS AND SETTINGS ARE THE PROPERTY OF DC COMICS AND THEIR RESPECTIVE AFFILIATES. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED, THE PLOT AND THE K.A TEAM ARE MY IDEAS, BUT THE REST IS DC.

Next Issue:

"Meet Edward Nigma (Part 2 of 2)"

(Quick note from the author, please read and give feedback, if you'd like- Sincerely, Kisser Ne.)