Tang Ri Shan

Red Wings

(This is a sequel to Beware the Batman: Conundrum. I suggest reading that story if you have not done so already)

Chapter 16

Barbara's jaw hit the floor. "You...you know?" She gasped.

Kathy Kane nodded.

"B-but how did you find out?" Barbara stammered. She glared angrily at Richard, who backed away with his hands out.

"Hey, don't look at me!" He said.

"He had nothing to do with it, darling" Kathy placed a hand on Barbara's shoulder. "I found out the old fashioned way, through hard investigative work. Your boss isn't the only person in Gotham with deep pockets and a high IQ, you know" Kathy winked as she spoke.

Barbara's eyes widened even further under her mask. "You know about Br...!" Barbara broke off Kathy shook her head warningly, glancing at Richard, who had turned away from them. "You know about him too?" Barbara whispered.

Kathy smiled and nodded. Leaning down, she whispered. "Just between you and me, He's not as good at hiding his identity as he thinks he is. With or without the mask, his attitude is pretty much the same, wouldn't you agree?"

Barbara giggled. "Very true"

"So" Kathy straightened up, her hands on her hips. "What can I do for you, darling? Unless it isn't crime-fighting related business that brings you here?" She asked, with a playful hint in her voice.

Barbara stared up at her, then realizing what she meant, flushed scarlet. "No! Nothing like that!" She gasped.

Kathy gave a dramatic sigh. "Pity"

"Oracle has something for you" Richard said. Seeing Barbara's confused look, he groaned. "The sphere. Show it to her"

"Oh, right" Barbara reached into her purse and pulled out the silver sphere. "We found some of Zucco's thugs hassling a bakery, and when we tried to stop them one of them threw this at us"

"Zucco" Kathy's face grew hard. "Heaven curse the day that man came into being"

"You don't like him either?" Barbara asked.

Kathy sighed. "Richard's told you about what Zucco did to his parents?" Barbara nodded. "Well, Zucco and I have history as well. Not as violent as what happened to Richard, but bad enough for me to hate that man's guts"

Barbara took a moment to digest this before continuing. "Anyway, this sphere burst open and some strange green gas came out. Robin, I mean, Richard managed to save me from the effects with a re-breather, but he got hit with the gas and suddenly he seemed to be hallucinating."

"Hallucinating?" Kathy glanced at Richard, who looked grim.

"I thought I was back at the circus" He said quietly. "I was up on the beams, where the trapeezes were. I saw..." He paused, and when he looked up his eyes were wet. "I saw my mom"

Kathy's face softened and she threw her arms around him. "Oh darling!"

"It...It all seemed so real" Richard sobbed into Kathy's shoulder. "My mother's face was there, just as I remembered her, and then...it suddenly changed. It was all skeletal, like a zombie. And her voice, she asked me to go with her. The next thing I knew I was falling, and I kept falling down and down until I woke up inside the Bakery"

"Oh Richard!" Kathy cried out, hugging him tighter. Richard didn't try to resist.

Barbara felt a little awkward by the emotion she was seeing. My dad never does that to me! She thought as she watched the two cry together. Eventually, Barbara cleared her throat and the two broke apart. "Somehow that gas forced Richard to experience this. It's pretty powerful stuff. We need to be ready for it when we go up against Zucco again"

Kathy's eyes traveled from Richard to Barbara. She looked worried. "I don't suppose a stern talk about the ethics of vengeance is going to sway either of you?" She asked.

Barbara shook her head, as did Richard. Kathy sighed. "I didn't think so"

"Kathy, I have to do this" Richard said. "This could be my one chance to take Zucco down"

"And Zucco's thugs have kidnapped one of my friends." Barbara added. "I have to get her back."

Kathy nodded. "Yes, I heard about Dinah" She huffed sadly. "Such a senseless tragedy" Kathy placed a hand on Richard's shoulder. "I understand you have to do this Richard, just promise me that 'taking him down' does not become a literal task, okay? I nearly lost my mind after my husband's death, I do not want you losing yours"

Richard gave a small smile. "That's why I have Oracle with me" He gestured to Barbara. "To keep me sane"

Barbara snorted. "Oh, so I'm your therapist now?"

"Among other things" Richard smiled at her, which made Barbara blush slightly.

"Anyway, if Zucco's thugs have access to this 'fear gas', we'll probably encounter it again. We need a way to counter it." Barbara turned to Kathy. "Richard said you may be able to help us with that"

Kathy frowned as she studied the sphere in her hand. "Well, unlike your boss, I don't have easy access to a laboratory, especially at this hour. But I do know some people who are...academically-inclined who owe me favors" Kathy winked at Barbara, who giggled again. "I'll make some calls in the morning. In the meantime, I'll see what I can do on my own"

"Good, then we'll re-tool and head back out" Richard started to leave the room.

"Oh no you won't" Kathy's voice stopped him. "Not without filling up first. You did miss dinner"

Barbara was suddenly aware of how hungry she was and eagerly nodded.

Richard sighed "Fine, but make it quick"

"Sir, the Bat-signal has appeared" Alfred's face appeared on the screen in the Batmobile.

"I see it" Batman replied, quickly shifting lanes. "Have Katana on standby."

"Yes sir. I'm sending her your way" Alfred's face faded out on the screen.

"A bat-shaped signal" Dragon chuckled as he gazed at the spotlight shining on the clouds above. "It seems you do have an ego after all."

"I keep telling the commissioner to use email, but he seems to prefer this method." Batman said.

"Of course he does" Dragon responded as Batman parked his car a block or so from the police station.

Using grapnels, the two flew up to the roof of the building, where they found Commissioner Gordon standing by the lit signal, with a file in his hands.

"Wait here" Batman ordered, then hopped over the roof wall and approached the commissioner.

Dragon darted over the wall and hugged the shadows at its base.

"What is it, commissioner?" Batman asked, causing the man to look up.

"I got the info you wanted on that license plate" Gordon replied, opening a file he was holding.

"What license plate?" Batman raised an eyebrow.

"The one that Oracle had me look up for you" Gordon replied, flipping through some papers in the file.

"Oracle asked you to do that? When?" Batman asked.

Gordon looked up from the file. "About 40 minutes ago. She said you wanted her to trace a license plate number but that she couldn't do it herself, so you told her to call me. She said that I was to give it to you directly when I had the number traced."

"I gave her no such task" Batman said.

Now Gordon raised an eyebrow. "You didn't?"

"Not even if I had wanted to. I haven't seen, or been in contact with Oracle, for most of the night" Batman said, his eyes narrowing.

"So she was lying" Gordon said.

"Not exactly" Dragon said as he stepped into view, making Gordon start. "I believe Oracle is trying to solve something without involving the rest of us in it"

"I told you to wait" Batman snapped, raising a hand as he saw Gordon go for his holster.

"You were going to have to introduce me to your friend at some point, Batman" Dragon replied calmly. "May as well be now"

"Who's this?" Gordon asked, looking over the ninja garb. "He looks like a League of Assassin's hood"

"I assure you, I am nothing of the sort. Call me Dragon" Dragon bowed formally. "I am an associate of Batman's. With all that is happening, Batman summoned me to offer what assistance I can."

Gordon scowled. "So I was right. Something's about to go down, is it?" He looked at Batman, who nodded.

"Yes, but we can talk about that later. What did you find out about this plate?" Batman asked.

Gordon met his gaze for a second, than looked back at the file. "It belongs to a white panel van. The vehicle was rented by Waldo E. Stopbbloc a month or so ago. Interestingly, the rental company reported that the van had been wrecked last week. Waldo paid off the damage fee and that closed the issue." Gordon continued, holding out a traffic camera photograph of the vehicle. "Doesn't look wrecked to me"

"No, It doesn't" Batman agreed, glancing at Dragon.

The martial artist nodded. "I think this confirms your belief on Oswald Cobblepot"

"The businessman?" Gordon raised an eyebrow. "What's he got to do with this?"

"Waldo E. Stopbbloc is an anagram of Oswald Cobblepot" Batman explained.

"I thought that name sounded funny" Gordon commented, then his face suddenly became hard.

"What is it?" Dragon asked.

"When Oracle contacted me, she said she thought the van had been used in the kidnapping of Dinah Lance" Gordon said. "The eyewitness statements pointed to Zucco's men, but if the van belongs to Cobblepot..."

"Then he's the person we're really after. Listen carefully Commissioner, here's what I need you to do" Batman said.

"Hold on! Do I look like one of your lackeys?" Gordon countered.

"No. I don't have lackeys, only partners and friends, friends that I trust with my life. After what happened with the Ion Cortex, I consider both you, and your daughter, on that list of friends, James Gordon"

For a moment, there was silence, then Gordon nodded. "Alright, what do you need?"

"I need your officers to keep a discreet eye on activity in the Iceberg Lounge"

"That nightclub that's just about to open up? Why?"

"Because Cobblepot owns the Iceberg Lounge, and when it comes to him, I think stealing vehicles is just the tip of the iceberg, pun intended"

Gordon frowned. "Oracle said she believed this van was used in the abduction of Dinah Lance"

"I see. I'll have my units stake the place out."

"And make sure they're not seen. I need a list of everyone that enters and leaves. Pictures would also be useful." Batman instructed.

"Got it. Of course you realize that..." Gordon turned back around, but found himself alone. Batman and Dragon were gone. "Figures"

"Commissioner, sir?" Gordon's personal radio squawked.

Gordon yanked the device from his belt. "Go ahead Ethan"

"The vocal search program found a match on the Oracle" Ethan spoke from down in his lab.

"And? Who is it?"

"I think you'd better come see for yourself sir" Gordon raised his eyebrow at how uneasy the techie sounded.

"Alright, I'm on my way" Gordon strode towards the roof door. He didn't know what was waiting for him down in the basement, but if Ethan was that nervous, chances are he wasn't going to like it.

"Oracle?" Barbara looked up from her laptop to see Richard standing in the doorway. "How's it coming?"

Barbara allowed herself to smile. "First off, you can call me Barbara, Richard. I'm not wearing my mask"

"Right, sorry" Richard said as he entered the room.

"And second, I've managed to lock down the tracer you planet on the Strongman." Barbara glanced at a red dot ghosting across her computer screen. "He's on the move now"

Richard looked at the screen over Barbara's shoulder. He frowned as the dot suddenly stopped moving. "He's stopped.

"I can see that" Barbara teased as she began typing on her keyboard. "The question is, where?" As Oracle typed, she asked "How's Kathy coming with the fear gas?"

"She says she's trying to figure out the compound the gas is made of. Once she knows that, she should be able to synthesize a counter-agent, but it will take a while"

A few seconds later, her laptop beeped and a name appeared on the screen.

"Crane Chemicals" Barbara read aloud. She frowned "Why does that sound so familiar?"

"You know the company?" Richard asked.

Barbara shook her head. "No, but I can find out" She cracked her knuckles and began typing. "Let's see." After a few minutes, she began reading aloud "Crane Chemicals was founded two years ago and is a storage and transportation company for dangerous and unstable chemicals. Chemicals that are often used by other companies are mixed and diluted by Crane Chemicals."

"You think there's any connection between Crane Chemicals and Zucco?" Richard asked.

"Checking, checking" Barbara mused, then she gasped. "Aha!"

"What?"

"I knew the name Crane sounded familiar" Barbara said, pulling up a picture of a tall thin man with red hair. "Crane Chemicals founder and CEO, Johnathan Crane. My dad once told me about this guy, he's been arrested before"

"For what?"

"Searching" Barbara typed away, and a few seconds later, another screen came up, this one of the police records.

"You can hack into the police database?" Richard's eyes widened.

"Commish's kid remember?" Barbara grinned smugly. "Thanks to my dad's predictable passwords, I can hack in any time I want. Let's see" Barbara scanned the list on the screen, then smiled. "Bingo"

She pulled up a window. "Johnathan Crane was a former professor of psychology at Gotham State University. His specialty was...fear and phobias" Barbara's eyes widened.

"Woah" said Richard.

"According to police reports, he was kicked out of the university when it was discovered that he was conducting fear-based experiments on his students" Barbara read on.

"And people say school is supposed to be good for you" Richard teased.

Barbara chuckled, but read on. "He was charged, but the D.A couldn't make the case stick, because many of the students he experimented on were too afraid to testify."

"Guess we now know where the the Strongman got that fear gas" Richard reasoned.

"Yeah, from an embittered scientist with excessive knowledge of how the mind works" Barbara shivered. "If Crane is working with Zucco, there's no telling what kind of chaos they could cause"

"We've gotta stop them" Richard said.

"But what about Dinah?" Barbara asked. "We haven't found her yet?"

"Well, who's to say we won't find her at Crane chemicals?" Richard asked.

"But why would Crane want someone like Dinah?" Barbara asked as she pulled her Oracle mask out of her purse.

"A guinea pig, maybe?" Richard proposed. "You said he had no problem experimenting on students"

Barbara's features darkened into a frown. She switched her glasses for her Oracle mask. "Let's go" She growled.

"But what about the gas?" Richard asked. "Kathy's not done yet."

"No time" Oracle said. "We'll just have to bring plenty of re-breathers with us"

Richard nodded. "Let's fly"

"Batman, I have a lock on the vehicle who matches the information you received from Commissioner James Gordon" The Batcomputer spoke up.

"Put the location onscreen" Batman ordered, and the computer did so.

"Crane Chemicals" Alfred read aloud. "A small chemical company with a warehouse near the Cauldron. That's where they're going"

"Did you say 'Crane'?" Man-Bat suddenly asked.

"Yes," Batman turned to the winged mutant. "You recognize the name"

"I'm not sure if it's the same person" said Man-Bat "But I did used to know a Johnathan Crane. He was a psychologist."

"I'm not liking this story already" Katana crossed her arms.

Man-Bat continued. "Crane's specialty was fear. He was obsessed with it. He wrote several papers in which he proclaimed fear to be the ultimate form of power. He theorized that if you could control someone's fear, you could control them."

"How charming" Question said sarcastically. Katana nodded in agreement.

"Crane, Zucco, and Cobblepot" Alfred mused. "I do not like that combination"

"Nor do I" Batman types in a few keys and turned to face the Outsiders. "We need to take that cotillion down, now"

Behind Batman, a floor plan of Crane Chemicals appeared on the screen.

A few hours later:

Oracle grunted a little as she dropped out of the vents and landed on a catwalk that ran the length of the large storage room.

Robin landed silently beside her. Despite her training, Oracle was nowhere near as physically adept as Robin was, and it made her feel a little jealous, but she buried that feeling deep down and scoped out the room below.

The room was dark except for a pool of light that shown on a table in the middle of the room. Two people were standing on opposite sides of it. On one side was a tall, gangly man with a shock of red hair. On the other side of the table was...

"Zucco" Robin growled, his hands clenching into fists as he glared at the gangster.

"Easy Robin" Oracle grabbed the boy's shoulder. "Don't do anything rash" Her eyes darted to the Circus Trio, Strongman, Juggler, and Tamer, who were lined up behind their boss.

Robin took a deep breath and smiled at Oracle. "Thanks"

"No problem" Oracle grinned back, then turned her attention down to the floor below. "If that guy's Zucco, than the other guy must be Crane" Oracle squinted at the gangley man. He seemed to be dressed in ragged and patched clothes.

"Nice outift" Robin joked.

Oracle giggled, then shushed Robin as the two men's voices floated up to them.

"All I'm sayin is, ya look like a hobo" Zucco said, while his men sniggered. "How do ya expect us to take ya seriously when ya dress like that, Crane?"

"How I dress is no concern of yours, you mismatched moron" Crane growled back. "And the name is Scarecrow"

"Don't you mean, 'scarecrow-chette?" The strongman laughed. "Get it? Crochette? 'cause of all them patches on his clothes" Zucco's men howled with laughter.

Oracle let out a soft giggle. "That's actually a good one" She admitted.

Robin tutted and kept silent.

"Why you ignorant ignoramus!" Crane yelled, grabbing a bundle from the table, which turned out to be a scarecrow mask. He jammed it onto his head, replacing his face with cloth with rips for eyes and a mouth. "I'll teach you to laugh at fear!" He cried as he leapt onto the table, one hand raised.

The laughter died instantly. "Ain't nothing funny about threatening my family, straw man." Zucco growled, raising his hands, each of which suddenly held a pair of throwing knives. "Why don't ya back off before we all see what yer really filled with?"

"Huh, maybe they'll just take each other out" Robin smiled.

Both men suddenly froze as a metal door near them began to slide up, revealing a group of figures outlined behind it.

"Or maybe not" Robin's smile faded.

"Good evening, Gentlemen" A harsh voice echoed through the space as a squat figure waddled his way into the light. "I trust we are getting along"

"Oh yeah, just swimmingly" Zucco growled sarcastically.

"Who's that?" Oracle whispered.

"Can't tell" Robin whispered back. "All I can clearly see is his big fat hat"

Oracle giggled and Robin smirked.

"I should hope so" The newcomer snapped as he waddled up to the table. He reached out and removed his hat. "After all, I did not go to all the trouble of gathering the both of you simply to watch you beat each other up"

Robin gasped out loud. "I know him!" He whispered.

"Shhh!" Oracle shushed him.

The Strongman suddenly glanced up towards them. Oracle and Robin froze. But the newcomer started speaking and the Strongman looked away.

"You wanna get us caught?" Oracle hissed.

"Sorry" Robin whispered back. "But I recognize that man. He's Oswald Cobblepot, the owner of that nightclub that's about to open up tomorrow."

"Scarecrow, is everything ready for the grand opening tomorrow?" Cobblepot turned to the ragged-looking villain.

"All is prepared, Penguin." Scarecrow replied. "The gas canisters are set and armed"

"I don't like the sound of that" Oracle whispered.

"Excellent" Penguin turned to Zucco. "Now Zucco, when everyone is inside, make sure that no one gets in or out."

Zucco snorted. "Don't you worry about me, Penguin. My boys and I know how to do out jobs"

"Oh I doubt that" Scarecrow jabbed. "Especially after what happened earlier tonight"

Zucco growled warningly, but the Penguin raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"Oh didn't you hear?" Scarecrow said smugly. "Zucco's 'boys', had a perfect opportunity to rub out two of Batman's allies earlier this evening adn they failed dismally"

Oracle and Red Robin looked at each other.

"Hey, that ain't true!" The Strongman yelled.

"Yeah, we zapped birdie boy with the gas and stomped that brainy chick good!" The Juggler added.

"But did you finish the job?" The penguin asked, his voice dangerous.

Zucco's men looked at each other. "Well, no. But we was in a hurry to..."

"Idiots!" Penguin snapped.

"Your ignorance risked putting the Batman hot on our trail" Scarecrow grinned triumphantly.

"Chill out Scarecrow, it's cool" Zucco soothed. "Batman don't know about you guys, remember? That's why you hired us, to keep the Bat occupied" Zucco smirked. "Besides, how's Batman gonna stop us? By this time tomorrow, Gotham City will be ours, to shake up, or shake down"

Oracle shuddered at the wicked grin that appeared on the Penguin's face. Scarecrow shook his head.

"Relax Scarecrow" Penguin chuckled. "Even if by some miracle Batman does learn about us, I am prepared for just such a scenario."

"I do not like the sound of that" Katana whispered as she and Batman peered out from behind some nearby pillars. She, Batman, Dragon, and Question had just sneaked into the building while Man-Bat and Metamorpho were watching the outside.

Batman said nothing he just motioned for her to be quiet.

"What do you mean by that?" Zucco asked.

Penguin shot the gangster a flat look. "Do you think I have merely been dallying while your boys have been busy? No, I have not" Penguin snapped his fingers and there was sudden movement behind him.

The figures, who had up till this point remained motionless in the shadowy garage door, now strode forward as a group.

Batman's eyes widened as the teens stepped into the light.

"I don't believe it" Katana gasped.

"Gentlemen, meet the Birds of Prey" Penguin crowed. "Zatanna, Vixen, Hawk, Dove, Condor, and their leader, Black Canary"

"DINAH!" A voice suddenly rang out.

Oracle clapped her hands over her mouth, but it was too late to block her outburst.

"Are you nuts?" Robin hissed, his eyes wide.

Everyone in the room looked up.

"Somebody's up there" Zucco growled.

"Indeed, but not for long" Penguin turned to the Birds. "Condor!" he pointed to the ceiling.

The pale boy nodded and raised his hands. A pair of metal wings extended from under his black jacket.

Oracle suddenly felt the platform they were hiding on groan and begin to shake. The boy drew his hands down and with a SNAP, the entire platform yanked away from the ceiling and fell towards the ground, Robin and Oracle included.

"Oracle and Robin!" Katana tensed while Batman's hand went towards his belt.

But before he could move, Penguin called out "Zatanna, catch them!"

The dark-haired woman stepped forward, pointed at the falling teens and said "Pots meht gnillaf won!"

Robin and Oracle were suddenly haloed in an aura of blue light and come to a halt in mid-air. They hung suspended like laundry on a clothes line.

"It's those kids from the bakery!" The Strongman exclaimed.

"You fools!" Scarecrow pointed at Zucco's men. "You lead Batman's allies right to us! It's only a matter of time before Batman himself shows up!"

"My birds of prey are more than capable of dealing with Batman" The Penguin said. "As for these two..." He lifted the umbrella he was carrying and pointed the tip at them.

Batman signaled to Katana and Dragon, who nodded and separated to flank them.

"Laugh all you want to, Cobblepot. Batman will be here any second!" Oracle shouted

Penguin laughed, which sounded more like a gobble than a chuckle. "Good! Let him come! I await the challenge" He pressed a hidden button on his umbrella and the tip suddenly extended into a sharp blade. "But first, I'm going to skewer the two of you...Wahhh!"

Penguin cried out as a whirring metallic projectile whizzed past his ear and sank into his umbrella, let out a series of beeps and then blew up.

"Awk!" Penguin threw away his now smoking umbrella and turned to see where the device had come from.

"Why pick on the small fry, Cobblepot..." Batman said as he emerged from hiding, "When you can deal with the big fish now"

"Batman" Penguin grinned and snapped his fingers. His Birds of Prey moved in between the two men. Assuming fighting positions, they glared at Batman with strangely blank eyes.

Scarecrow took a step back, before clenching his fists.

Zucco growled and started forwards, throwing knives at the ready. His circus brothers tensed behind him.

"Batman!" Oracle cried out, relief in her voice clear.

"You disappoint me Oracle." Batman scolded. "Not only did you disobey my orders, you allowed yourself to get captured right off the bat. I thought we trained you better than that." Batman watched out of the corner of his eye as Dragon, Question, and Katana moved into position behind Zucco's thugs.

Oracle's smile faded. "Hey, you told me to 'keep an eye' on Robin, and that's exactly what I did" She protested. "You never said anything about stopping him"

"We'll talk about this later" Batman growled up at her.

"There is no later for you, Batman" Penguin growled.

"I disagree" Batman pressed a button on his belt to summon Man-Bat and Metamorpho, at the same time he nodded at his other partners, who sprang into action.

Question threw a chunk of pseudo-metal at the Strongman. "Hey! What the...?" He shouted as bands of metal suddenly wrapped around his arms, pinning them to his sides. Before he could finish speaking, Question lunged forward and jabbed at him with a taser. "AAARRRRGGHHH!" he screamed and collapsed to the ground.

Dragon lunged at the Juggler, who had just turned around. The little man's eyes widened as the Dragon unleashed a series of jabs at distinct pressure points on the Juggler's body. The man didn't even cry out, he just slumped to the floor, stumped and paralyzed.

Katana unsheathed her sword and lunged at the Tamer just as the man raised his whip. Her blade cut through the tough leather like butter. "Try another weapon" Katana smiled at the man as he stared in disbelief at his ruined whip before delivering a savage kick to the man's jaw to knock him out.

All this happened in the time it took the others to turn around. "Why you little...!" Zucco growled and whipped his arms forward. Four metal blades shot from his fingers towards them, but the three Outsiders dodged them all with ease.

Penguin grinned. "Ah, the good old sneak attack" He chuckled. "Oh, yes. I like the way you think, Batman"

"Thanks, but I don't need your approval" Batman nodded.

"Don't think your little stunt has gained you anything, Batman" Penguin gloated. "I've spent months preparing for this moment. Before this night is through, Gotham City will belong...to the Penguin!"

"Don't bet on it, Birdman" Katana raised her sword.

As if the prove her point, Man-Bat and Metamorpho suddenly crashed through two different windows, growling fiercely.

"Oh my!" Batman saw Scarecrow's eyes widen under his mask.

Penguin snorted and raised his hand. Condor pulled another umbrella from his jacket and tossed it to him. "Zatanna, keep those two occupied" Penguin ordered, nodding to Oracle and Robin. "The rest of you, teach our guests a lesson in manners! ATTACK!"

And Cut!

This chapter took a little longer than I thought, but I'd say it was worth it.

We're not quite at the climax yet, think of this as a prelude to the final battle. There are still a few more plot twists I plan to spring on you before this story ends, so hang on!

Until next time!