Chapter 11–A little craving for Riddles
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The ghost raised his hand and asked his contestants the riddles he had devised for them. He asked them as a game show host would:
"First riddle:
I have 88 keys and yet I cannot open a door. What am I?"
"Uhhh—" Takeo wanted to answer, yet the riddle to him was very unclear, this was more of an innate response.
"Shut up, shut up, shut up, shut UP." Funka covered his mouth, grabbed him by his cheeks and putting him close to her face. "No offense Takeo, but when it comes to puzzles: You suck at them."
He argued with her, "whaddya mean I suck at riddles?" His tails perked up, getting on the defensive side.
"Really? No offense, but you didn't even know what a Mecha is, my dude." Sanda came into her defense, standing along side with Funka, who smiled at him. "Thanks, Shock Value." She complimented him.
He looked at him and said, "Anytime and anywhere, Lady Dynamight." He started to raise his hand before forming into a fist imbued with calm electricity, smiling in the end.
She dug that name. Lady Dynamight. A nickname what was worthy to be in the ranks of her identity.
A Hero's' codename. One she could possibly wear when she gets older.
She smirked a bit before returning the favor to him, fist-bumping him as her oldest friend, Takeo, looking down. He refused to acknowledge the fact he was not as intelligent as the others, defiant to the every end. I suck at riddles? Me? No, you suck at riddles. Watch: you all are gonna need me sooner or later. He murmured quietly to himself.
Reza answered quickly with him raising his hand, "A piano!! The answer is a piano!!" The old spirit simply smiled and said "you're correct", the group felt they were starting on a great track as they continued on with the somewhat easy riddles. Takeo realized something, his blue eyes grew large. Wait...Pianos have 88 keys? Are you serious? I thought they only had 50 keys....I guess I learn something new everyday.
Sera was up next, her head stood tall, readying herself when Kaimana asked her riddle.
"Second Riddle:
Every night I'm told what to do, and each morning I do what i'm told. But I still don't escape your scold."
"It's a Alarm Clock!!" Sera beamed, she looked at him all happily. "This is easy!!" She added in. Kaimana cleared his throat bizarrely, a lump in the throat if he was still living among them. As if he was still a human instead if a spirit.
"Third riddle, it won't be so easy now, you kids. Now:
"I am something people love or hate. I change peoples appearances and thoughts. If a person takes care of them self I will go up even higher. To some people I will fool them. To others I am a mystery. Some people might want to try and hide me but I will show. No matter how hard people try I will Never go down. What am I?"
"Is it Make-up——" Sanda almost answered if not for Akina's' intervention for the answer, steeping up into the limelight. She heard this riddle before, as her dad told her this one. I know this one. I'm sure of it.
"Age-ge." She cleared her throat, it was an attempt to make her voice clearly, forcing to become normal. "It's......Age. I'm sorry-ry if my stuttering-ring is making it harder for you t-to understand me." She breathed in, it felt to her that someone was choking the life out of her when she strained herself.
He smiled, it was a genuine smile, thinking to himself as time was still progressing.
Well, I see you picked students with much potential, Lino, unlike the other class. This students are part of the Class of the Salamanders and not a single one from the Class of the Griffins, risking their lives in the process while they are resting in their class.
"You are absolutely correct, Akina Willoby. And I completely understand everything that you are saying." He reassured Akina, she was feeling warm from his sudden kindness towards her. Her biggest insecurity was that she either was too weak to help, her stuttering or stealing the spot of someone in order to get into Surwick. She had many flaws—out she was trying to overcome them.
"100 percent," He added, making her smile.
"Fourth riddle;
It dances and skips, it's read in the eyes but it cheats with the hips. If it meets its match it's easily caught, but it's worth nothing if it is bought. What is it?" He riddled, a sudden realization came over Ryoji, he knew the answer.
"I know this one, the answer is the heart." Answered the Heart-Bond as Kaimana stood there silently, all thought that he got the answer wrong. Suddenly, he clapped with pure excitement. "Ah, so he does have some initiative in him." He went on by insulting Ryoji further.
"I thought you just followed orders like the good Labrador you are." He got closer to the Heart-Bond, an attempt to see what Ryoji was going to respond. Crap. Does he know or suspect something of me? Ryoji fretted quickly before becoming tranquil once again. No, this spirit couldn't, I'm been making sure I am not out in the open.
He said nothing, smiling at the Spirit rather pleasantly, trying to be better for the sake of others even though he wanted to shove that cane of his up in his derrière. Kaimana returned the favor by smiling back and went back to his riddles that determined the fate of the school.
"Fifth riddle:
A murderer is condemned to death. He has to choose three rooms: The first full of raging fires; the second, assassins with loaded guns; and, the third, lion who haven't eaten in years. Which room is the safest?"
"The one with the lions in 'em." Takeo quickly said, Kaimana asked him about his opinion on why the room to begin with. His friend was fuming as she told him he was not good at things that required logical thinking.
She wanted to strangle him how Homer Simpson would do to his own child; every consecutive episode and no marks on his yellow neck. Takeo....If you get this wrong: I'm gonna turn you inside out—ass out. She threatened him mentally, ready to hold her promise on the spot.
"Well, I mean, if they haven't eaten in years so they're all just bones and skin. Right?"
".....Well, you are correct. Sometimes kids say the second room because some of them can dodge them—but what if you can't dodge them?"
"Nah, it doesn't."
"Great Job." Kaimana congratulated Takeo shockingly, all of the group was amazed that Takeo was get it in less than fifteen seconds. They were all shocked about Takeo, who felt triumphant by answering that correctly. Told y'all need me sooner or later.
"Well—I'll be damned." Funka marveled. Never in her life has she witnessed Takeo Fukuazan, a good friend of six years, excel at anything other than combat.
Apparently everyone had to answer a riddle. That was his true motive. Funka, Sanda and I are the only ones left that haven't gotten a riddle yet even though he said we need to do twelve riddles. Half of us have to do a second riddle. Cade analyzed the situation. This whole exercise is about teamwork and not relying on just one person. Funka, on one hand, is extremely smart and aced both tests. On the other hand, Machipaku is probably the second one who's not the brightest in our group, and Takeo was lucky that he got a riddle like that.
"Sixth riddle:
1
11
21
1211
11221
312211
What's the next sequence?" Kaimana asked Cade, stroking his beard in the dark.
"13112221." Cade answered in a confident tone, sitting in his Mecha waiting for the answer to be told.
"Well, even a blind honeycreeper shits some Kiawe every now and then!" Kaimana was again surprised by these children. "How'd you know the answer just like," He snapped his fingers perfectly, "that?"
Cade cleared his throat and began explaining. "It's not rocket science. It's a sequence and thus it follows a pattern. Each number describes the previous number, starting with 1. The second one describes it 11, the third one describes it as 21, this time two 1's. And so forth." It felt like he wanted to drop the mic for that little lecture he had, yet he felt it was inappropriate since they still needed to finish the job.
Kaimana pointed at Sanda with a simple neutrality , getting ready as the ghost started to ask him his brain-twister.
"Seventh riddle:
A woman proves in court that her husband was murdered by sister, but the judge decides that the sister cannot be punished. Why, Mr. Machipaku?"
Sanda was thinking long and hard about the riddle, caressing his face was a way that he was thinking long and hard.
Suddenly, he lit up and began to talk nonsense. "Well, that reminded of somebodies that I used to know whom I will not disclosed their names at this certain time, they had a misdemeanor gone wrong, I mean—I thought it was nothing but boy was it something. These guys were funny but a whole other level. Like Dave Chappelle level. He stopped his yakking by letting out a chuckle, infuriating his group even more. He resumed. "Turns out, the twin brother was using his shared body with the other brother to pop this girls' cherry and when the brother woke up.....Blam! They were conjoined twins with different sleeping patterns and a raging love for a girl twelve years younger."
Ryoji whispered in Seras' ear on what Sanda meant by "girls' cherry", a term he has never heard of before while growing up as an assassin. She told of all the rather expletive and graphic things that came with those things, whispering back at him while seemingly not minding those dirty details. Igneus enjoyed these little things like how any perverted, talking lizard would: Enjoying all of it in the sunlight of degeneracy.
Meanwhile, Kaimana struck him with his cane, the little flames off the candle flickered with amusement as Sanda rubbed his head violently. "Man, what was that for?!"
"You answered the riddle with your pointless conversation."
"I did?"
"The answer for yours—they were conjoined twins."
Sanda let out a "huh", he was beginning to gain a migraine much to his chagrin. Finally, the ghost turned towards Funka, having extreme high expectations of her passing this riddle.
"Eighth riddle:
Many have heard me
but no one has seen me,
and I will not speak back until spoken to.
What am I?"
"An echo." Answered Funka in a shrill tone. knowing what the riddle was about: The riddle was a reflection of her life. All what she felt that she was an echo to her father—a doppelgänger. There was no time to dwell on the playful brain-teaser.
Kaimana said nothing.
He did not move an inch.
They felt pressure coming through the last bits of windows. Teeth chattered and nails were bitten off.
"And that's it, you little tykes! No more riddles!" He announced, their heads sudden perked up from excitement like they were little children again. "I'm only doing this because you all made this whole game of riddles quite boring."
"Sorry about that!" Apologized Sera sincerely, she had dust on her school uniform. She patted it until there was no more dust hanging like parasites.
Funka simply looked at Kaimana with her eyes becoming sharper by the minute. She gained a certain grudge towards him, this ghost had so hatred towards anyone who he deemed unworthy of attention or praise. "So, since we did
She asked, her usual tone between high and low returned. she was getting tired of staying in the corner where she could not do anything.
Kaimana turned around to confront Funka. "You think humans built this hunk of rock back in the 1100's?" He asked Funka, towering over her as he began explained. "Well, this 'hunk of rock', you flesh-sack call it, is a fortress made by the mighty Formorians themselves. You should be more grateful to them—considering of how much worth they are compared to humans nowadays."
If they're so mighty, then why are they dead and we're still living? Funka challenged him mentally, unaware that ghosts can also read minds.
"Funka Berunji, daughter of Hiroki Berunji, the Formorians were one of the strongest people that have heard. Great magic practitioners, made so many inventions that contributed to the good of all Realms. All but some were stricken when Corheim executed them. Formorians and other species that were attacked became extinct because of a certain Demi-Daemon did. Do you know what is it like to be looked down by others because of what you are and not by the contents of your heart?"
Yes, I do. I get my fair share of inequality every day or so.
"You call us flesh-sacks? Why?" Reza asked him politely, followed by Akina joining in. "Isn't that-at a little bit-it rude?"
"Because I tend to be a misanthrope at times, I got ki——" He stopped for a second and continued on.
"As part of clearing my trial, you can enter this chamber without doing another riddle or two. But, as The Guardian Spirit of Surwick, I must warn you something: reactivating the runes will be your toughest challenge yet. The Reapers have assimilated each other into one organism. It is extreme powerful, even taking some of my Aether away from me while I battled it.
Ryoji had a perplexed look on his face. "I thought only the living have Aether—not the dead."
"Spirits that cannot pass on due to overwhelming emotions still carry Aether in some capacity—And I'm afraid I still have many things to do before I can finally go to Heaven properly." He briefly stated
"Here, take this summon marble."
"Why do we-" Funka began to ask but was interrupted by Kaimanas' cane, becoming solid and hits her on her orange haired head swiftly. She groaned, uttering the words, "shit, that hurts."
It was Kaimana who answered her question. "Why? Because even when you're at peril, abandon your pride and , look upon the marble I've given you and the. Well, I'm leaving."
"Wait, you're not helping us out?" Asked Sanda, Kaimana chuckled and looked behind his back. "No, I don't think I will.. Besides, this is your fight: Not mine." He said his goodbyes, disappearing in the abyss as the flames on the candles burned out. A Heart-Bond and a Mecha working together? I must be actually dead if I'm seeing those things already.
Suddenly, they were teleported all the way to the foundation of the school.
Funka, being the "self appointed leader", told everyone to relax for five minutes.
For Ryoji, this was the perfect opportunity to speak with Funka. He reverted back to human form and came up towards her. Her eye grew colder when she saw him. Her stomach was twisting itself in repulsion.
"What is it?" She said rudely as Ryoji chuckled sheepishly, and thus began a unpleasant conversation.
"Well, I wanted to ask you something. Is there any bad blood between us? Because I feel like..." Clarified Ryoji himself, Funka folded her arms and forced a smile. "Oh, Ryoji, we have no bad blood between each other. Everything's dandelions and horses shitting rainbows: We have no problem, whatsoever!"
"Really?"
"No! I was being sarcastic, maybe your school Raven River didn't teach you sarcasm or anything that can help you be an actual person. Are you a robot?
I mean: Who the hell are you even? I don't care you're a Swiss or a Heart-Bond; but stay away from my friends or else you're gonna get hurt."
She threaten him harshly before Akina came in the middle. The fire in Funka's eyes doused away when she saw Akina stepping right in front of him.
Funka saw that Ryoji was causing rifts between their friendship, she wanted to beat Ryoji up but chose to walk away, leaving Takeo to comment, "There goes our fierceless leader."
"I thought Ryoji was the leader." Sera questioned Takeo.
"There is no leader but rather a triumvirate: Me, Ryoji and Funka." Reza said.
"But how come you put Funka at the end?"
Reza scratched his chin, trying to watch out for his wording. "I didn't mean to be sexist but she is not a good leader. She's trying to emulate her own father, who in his own rights, is an accomplished hero who is extremely popular throughout the entire N.U.S.N."
The entrance was quite large, carved with runes of Gaelic origin, grooved from weathering. The stone room made a thrumming noise as it invited its guests with ease.
———Track 12 Ended———
CHARACTER PROFILE
SURWICK FACULTY MEMBER: KAIMANA (???) RIDDLING GUARDIAN OF SURWICK
BIRTHDAY:???
HEIGHT:6'7" (When he died)
LIKES: Lino, Nature, Riddles
DISLIKES: Humans
THE INSIDE STORY:
The challenges Ryoji and Akina will face in their lifetimes start with the riddling guardian of Surwick, an close confidant of Lino Saon, serving as his advisor for years.
Had Ryoji and company lost against the riddles; Kaimana would show no mercy—even to trustworthy students.