(This story begins right after the end of The Clock King's Miscue.)
Batman gunned the engines of the Batjet. No ordinary jet aircraft could take off from the short runway of the Pittsfield Airport, but thanks to the remarkable engineering the Caped Crusader put into his plane, the Terrific Trio became airborne with several feet of runway to spare.
There had been little time to consider the many questions confronting the Gotham City crime fighters as they went through the process of collecting Clock King and his gang. The Pike County Jail staff had never seen anything remotely like the sight of a super-villain, his granddaughter and his men being booked. It would take a while before Clock King and his accomplices were rendered by Illinois to Gotham under the Uniform Criminal Extradition Act.
This was the first time Batman, Robin and Batgirl had been alone since they arrived in Illinois. Now, as Batman nudged the Batjet into cruising altitude, Batgirl was anxious to discuss what had happened and the three riddles left for them by The Riddler.
"Why did The Riddler capture Clock King and his gang for us?" Batgirl wanted to know.
"Several reasons, Batgirl," Batman replied as he engaged the automatic pilot. "First of all, most of Gotham City's arch-criminals resent Clock King since he is already wealthy. Financial gain is one of The Riddler's strongest motives. I'm sure he considers Clock King a meddling dabbler."
"And even though all super-fiends are arrogant and pompous, Clock King must be more irritating to his peers than most," offered Robin.
"Quite right, Robin," observed Batman. "In addition, don't forget that The Riddler did make off with some of the most valuable items in Clock King's collection."
The trio flew eastward in silence for a few moments. All that could be heard was the whine of the Batjet's powerful engines. Then Batman restarted the conversation.
"I think it's time we turned our attention to the messages The Riddler left for us. As soon as he learns that we have apprehended Clock King, I'm sure he'll put his plans into motion.
"Robin, please read the riddle he left for you again."
"‘First name of my henchperson that your partner killed'?" questioned Batgirl. "What in the world is The Riddler talking about?"
"That would be Molly," Batman answered quietly, with regret in his voice. "She died while trying to evade capture . . ." Batman's voice trailed off.
"It wasn't your fault, Batman," Robin quickly pointed out. "That was almost three years ago. Strange, this is the first time Riddler has mentioned her since then."
Batgirl sensed she should change the subject. "Let's get back to the task at hand.
"Molly, that's five letters, right? Product means we multiply, so five times 2,202,269 is 11,011,345."
"You did that in your head?" Robin asked, impressed.
"Yes, Robin," replied the Purple Avenging Angel of Gotham City. "For some reason, I've become very good at multiplying in my head recently . . . I'm not sure why . . ." she concluded, uncertainly.
Now it was Robin's turn to change the subject. "So let's look at 11,011,345 like Arthur Brown would have hoped we wouldn't at first. Do you know who Arthur Brown is, Batgirl?"
"Of course, The Cluemaster," Batgirl recited, "but I don't get the rest of the reference."
"When The Cluemaster first appeared, he gave out clues that had us stumped," Batman explained, "until we looked at them upside down! Here, I'll punch that number into the computer . . ."
11,011,345 appeared on the Batjet's control panel. Robin and Batgirl both craned their necks trying to look at the number upside down while still strapped into their seats.
"Holy Dutch Petroleum Companies! Shell Oil!"
"Is The Riddler targeting the Shell Oil Company in Gotham City?" asked Batgirl. "Here, let me read my riddle again."
"Well," said Robin, "they would be constructing a third tower. The World Trade Center in New York would no longer be the Twin Towers, they'd be triplets."
"Shell Oil Triplets?" wondered Batman. "That doesn't seem right. Let's try another tack.
"The workers would be building triplets?"
Batgirl's face suddenly lit up. "No! Batman, Robin. They would be building three!"
"Holy Locations! Building Three at the Shell Oil Refinery near Gotham Harbor!"
"That's it, Robin! Very good, you two," Batman praised. "Now, my riddle should tell us what's going to happen at Building Three."
"That's a tough one," Robin declared. "A giant who left and came back, but then was no longer a giant."
"Perhaps a giant of industry?" Batgirl suggested. "Maybe the mention of the coasts ties in with the location of the Shell Oil Refinery complex near the water?"
"Played the middle?" Batman posed, "the middle of what?"
"The Riddler often ties his clues together," Robin explained. "Let's see: a number puzzle involving a former moll and The Cluemaster; a riddle about the World Trade Center in New York City -
"Holy Major League Baseball!
"The San Francisco Giants moved to the West Coast from New York! Their middle outfielder, their center fielder, during that time was Willie Mays . . . who later came back to New York to play for the Mets!"
"So then he was . . . Mays, a Met . . . the Met's Mays?" sounded out Batgirl.
"Mets is short for Metropolitans," remembered Robin, ". . . and they're sometimes called the Amazing Mets . . ."
"That's it, old chum!" broke in Batman. "The Riddler is telling us what we'll find at Shell Oil's Building Three - an amazing maze!"
Robin involuntarily shuddered as he recalled the hours he spent inside Catwoman's electrified-fence maze. "It's obviously a trap," the Boy Wonder said flatly.
"Right, Robin," answered Batman grimly. "Unfortunately, it may be a trap we'll have to spring if we want to catch The Riddler!"
The sky was starting to brighten ahead of them as they headed towards home. Soon they would be landing at the downtown Gotham City Airport, where the Batmobile and the Batgirlcycle were waiting to take them to the Shell Oil Refinery Building Three . . . and their destiny.
A short while later, a foggy dawn breaks over the Gotham City Harbor. Building Three at the Shell Oil Refinery is a very large three-story building. Inside a suite of rooms on the top floor, a hyperactive, intense man is putting the finishing touches on his costume. He wears a green union suit, with a large black question mark on his chest. A purple mask hangs around his neck. This is Edward Nigma, The Riddler!
The Riddler checks his appearance in a mirror, gives himself an approving smile and walks into what appears to be a control room for some large, complicated machinery. He is soon joined by two colorfully-clad young women.
"Good morning, girls!" The Riddler calls out cheerily. "Are you ready for what promises to be a red-letter day? . . . The day that will mark the beginning of the end for Batman . . ."
"Robin . . ." says the woman with long, flowing, reddish-brown hair.
"And Batgirl!" finishes the brunette with a closely-cropped razor cut.
The Riddler felt he was always handicapped by the poor quality of the henchmen he was able to recruit, like the Molehill Mob. Now, however, he was sure his luck had taken a turn for the better.
Working alone, he had broken into a liquor store to help raise the funds to buy this building from the Shell Oil Company and to construct the ingenious trap now contained within. As he left the liquor store with a bag of cash, he was surprised to find himself ambushed at gunpoint, not by police or security guards, but by two female thieves!
The one with the long hair was Query. That first night she was wearing, well . . . very little at all! She had on a leather bikini featuring a thong bottom with a zipper in the front. On her head she wore a motorcycle patrolman's hat and dark glasses, counterpointed by dangling heart-shaped earrings. Around her neck and waist she sported long chains, the top one reached almost to her naval, while the other hung seductively around her hips. On her right upper thigh was a spiked band, while a pair of handcuffs dangled from her left wrist. Her right hand was covered by a glove that reached halfway to her elbow. Thigh boots completed her ensemble. She toted a sawed-off shotgun which was pressed against The Riddler's right ear.
Holding a revolver to the left side of The Prince of Puzzler's face was Echo. She had only a slightly higher percentage of her skin covered than her partner! The punkish brunette wore a black brassiere that was tightly laced in the back. She, too, wore a thong bikini bottom, but hers was covered by fishnet stockings which reached to her waist. An ammunition belt also circled her middle. Her eyes were covered by the slit of narrow welder's goggles. Echo's earrings were anarchy symbols. A spiked choke collar adorned her throat, with a mace-like spiked bracelet on her right wrist. Her left arm was covered by a black leather glove that ended in a wide metal band at her biceps. A cowhide strap wrapped four times around her left forearm completed her look.
The Riddler was able to convince the two that he was their kindred spirit. When he explained his plan to capture and destroy Batman, Robin and Batgirl, as well as his caper that would net them millions of dollars, he found he had a new gang. Both were expert martial artists, as well as able to handle a wide variety of firearms. Query and Echo were eager accomplices . . . if a bit on the wild side. That wildness, however, was more than made up for by their . . . other assets.
Now, though perhaps a bit more modestly attired, the pair was no less striking. They wore identical outfits that complimented The Riddler's costume perfectly. They had green masks and question mark earrings. A purple, one-piece swimsuit-like affair was decorated with a large, black question mark on the front, matching their leader's. The dot of the question mark was the buckle of a green belt worn at bellybutton level. The swimsuit was cut thong-like at the bottom, so their skin was exposed to the belt on the side and in the back. From there, both now wore Echo's fishnet stockings, which extended down into purple high-heeled boots. Long sleeves ended halfway between their elbows and their hands, which were covered by green gloves.
"Ladies, I've heard on the news that the Terrific Trio found our gift-wrapped package for them late last night," The Riddler announced. "They should be returning from Illinois any minute now.
"Riddle me this! - What does someone do inside a church that a pack of hungry wolves might find of interest?"
Query and Echo answered in unison, "Pray!"
"Correct! my nubile Partners in Plunder!" The Riddler congratulated. "Now let us go outside into the mist and await our prey . . . who will find that they don't have a prayer!" With Query and Echo on each side of The Riddler, the three walk arm and arm out the door, The Riddler's maniacal giggling echoing through the vast structure.
Soon thereafter, Batman turned off the Batmobile's headlights as the vehicle came to a stop some one hundred yards from Building Three. Batgirl braked her motorcycle so that it halted next to Robin in the Batmobile.
This part of the refinery had been abandoned some years back by the company in a cost-cutting move. Empty crates and discarded oil barrels were scattered throughout the area. Stairs that resembled a fire escape ran along the outside of The Riddler's building. The metal steps terminated at the opposite end of a wall from a ground-level door. Landings at the second and third stories of the stairs gave access to doors at those levels. Hidden behind some of the debris were the Terrific Trio's opponents.
"Oh, Eddie, this is so exciting!" gushed Echo. "I'm ready to get started!"
"Patience, my dear, patience," counseled the Count of Conundrums in hushed tones. "Wait until they get just a little bit closer . . ."
"I wish I was going to get the chance to square off with the Boy Wonder," said Query wistfully. "I'm sure I could take him!"
"I'm sure you could, Query," said E. Nigma with a smile, "but what we have planned is so much more entertaining!"
Across the expanse of litter and asphalt, Robin leaped over the door of the Batmobile to stand next to Batgirl, who had dismounted her cycle. "I doubt The Riddler has followed the classic maze pattern, Batman," pointed out Robin. "I bet he's incorporated some devious and deadly derivations into the maze inside that building."
Batgirl turned to the Dynamic Duo. "What do we do now, go up and knock?"
"I think that's just be answered for us!" shouted Batman, as The Riddler sprung into view and began running away from the Trio, heading towards and then up the stairs. Batman, Robin and Batgirl took off in hot pursuit, with Batman having a good twenty yard head start on his partners.
As soon as Batman passed their hiding place, Echo and Query emerged. "Hey, Batgirl, you can't catch me!" yelled Echo, who then ran along the side of the building towards the door at the far end.
Query stood, just for a split second, with her hands on her hips, facing the approaching Dynamite Duo. "Yoo-hoo, Robin," she called in a sing-song voice. "Are you man enough to try me on?" She laughed and then followed Batman up the stairs.
The Riddler slipped into the third story door of the building. Batman paused momentarily outside and then cautiously entered. Robin chased after Query, who entered at the second story level. Meanwhile, Batgirl had pursued Echo through the first floor access.
All three crime fighters found they had entered a totally dark space. The last of the light disappeared as the door closed behind them. Simultaneously, they heard the sound of heavy machinery starting.
Suddenly lights came on! Batman, Robin and Batgirl found they were each enclosed in a mirrored room, about five feet square. The ceiling about ten feet above them was also a mirror, as was the floor. Fluorescent lights ran along the junction of the wall and ceiling mirrors. The only break in their perfect reflections was a slot about six inches wide at the base of the mirror that now covered the way they entered.
The Riddler had run into the darkened control room on the third floor. Only a dim red glow illuminated the area. He was seated in front of a control panel with a microphone before him. Query and then Echo came up to join him.
Before them they could see into all three levels of the glass maze. The heroes were encased in rooms made up of giant one-way mirrors. The Riddler and his cronies could see Batman, Robin and Batgirl, but the heroes could only see their individual reflections.
Echo and Query ran their fingers of one hand each over The Riddler's short haircut, as they stood at his side. They looked on gleefully as The Riddler activated the microphone.
"Welcome to my Amazing Mirrored Maze, Batman . . . Robin . . . Batgirl!" The Riddler broke into his trademark laugh. He could hardly contain himself! "Now, if you will please remove your capes and utility belts and drop them into the slots provided."
"What if we refuse, you devious devil?!?" challenged Batman. The Riddler, Query and Echo could hear him quite clearly, but Robin and Batgirl could only hear The Riddler's response.
"If you don't remove them, I'll begin pumping the air out of your cubicles. Once you pass out - and don't think I wouldn't wait until any emergency air supply you have is used up - we will take them off for you." Smiling at his compatriots, The Riddler went on, "Query and Echo would be extremely pleased to help you out of them, but I think it would be just a waste of time."
Reluctantly, the three heroes began undoing their utility belts and unclasping their capes. "Why do you want our capes?" Batgirl asked.
"Why do we want your capes?" The Riddler repeated. "As soon as you all have discarded them, I'll tell you."
Before long, Batman, Robin and Batgirl had deprived themselves of their utility belts and capes. As promised, The Riddler explained. "A couple of reasons. First, we didn't want you to be able to put them over your heads to give yourselves a respite. Your only choices will be to either look at your own reflections or to have your eyes closed.
"Second, it gives us . . . and you. . . a much better view, don't you think?" Again The Riddler dissolved into a deluge of frantic laughter.
"What's your game, Riddler?" demanded Robin.
"The game is this," said the green-clad super criminal. "In a moment, one of the panels will slide away. All you have to do is find your way out of the maze, before you completely lose your minds! At intervals small amounts of food and water will be provided as you work your way through."
The Riddler immensely enjoys taunting his costumed captives. "The combination of the frustration of not being able to find the exit and the attack on your senses by continually being confronted by your own image from all angles, could very well drive you absolutely insane, long before you ever find an escape!"
Query and Echo are besides themselves with perverted pleasure as they observe Batman's, Robin's and Batgirl's reactions to The Riddler's words. He continues, "Now, before I set you loose, here's one last riddle . . . to add to your stress!
"Question - In what does hope, the number of people not off a court and revenge come before the designation of the first obstetrics ward in a hospital, hmm?"
The Riddler let loose one more long insane laugh before he turned off the microphone.
"Eddie, baby, this is terrific!" Query complimented.
"Yeah!" said Echo, as she clapped her gloved hands together. "Think of the fun we'll have watching the three of them slowly going nuts!"
"And, of course, they don't know that we're . . . cheating. Every time they leave one section of the maze, the walls slide back and forth into a new configuration! We've put each of them into their own private hell, in what amounts to a giant mirrored box, with no possible way to escape!! There is no entrance or exit, not without us mechanically moving the heavy mirrored walls to create an opening! They'll never get out, at least not until they're gibbering idiots . . . playthings for our amusement!!!!" The Riddler concluded with yet another of his trademark laughs.