"So, you want me to deliver this bomb that is armed to a factory here?" Kuro asks Sally.
Sally shrugs as he holds up the bomb device, which was a shaped charge with wires sticking out of it. "Shouldn't be too hard for you."
"Yeah, getting it into the factory shouldn't be too hard, but I need schematics if you want it done quickly," Kuro informs.
Sally smirks. "Good news. There is an outpost on the way. You can grab it there and continue. And, if you are having that much trouble with your new toys, then I can send Tailsko with you. She should be mostly done by now," Sally offers smiling. "You two seem a lot in sync."
"She has enough to work on. I don't need to bother her with this," Kuro politely declines.
Sally giggles. "I want her to get out. Lately, she always has been stuck in her workshop, and it's time to get some air and stretch her legs. And she trusts you. It would make sense for you to take her. Plus…you might need it considering this is the first real-world test of your gear."
"I work better alone," Kuro assures.
"Kuro…it would help if you have someone besides you. Plus, you will eventually need to work together to get Sonica out of where she is held. And that includes her and us," Sally lectures.
"Look, I am working with you guys, but I don't do group assignments mostly. I just find it easier watching out for only myself," Kuro says.
"Kuro," Sally states, giving a motherly and no room of argument tone. "Time to see how well you work with others. If you go down, then there is no hope for you, powers or not. At least with someone else, you can depend on them, and they can count on you."
"At least send Espio. He can do stealth well. Tailsko, she is great at machines, but untested in stealth," Kuro says.
Sally gets off the table and stalks toward him before stopping a few inches between them. "She can surprise you. She surprised us, holding out this long for Sonica."
"Fine, I will say it. I would rather not let her put herself in harm's way if something happens to me," Kuro says.
Sally raises an eyebrow at him as he tries to hold a glare at her. "What do you think we do all day? You think we are sitting in some comfy office and house that it can be like that every second?" she scolds and makes Kuro jerk back and slowly start to step back. "Every day I fear for her if Eggman's forces are going to find us, what happens to her and all the rest. So…you think you are the only one with unique problems?" she lectures, frowning, annoyed at his attitude.
"Sally, this may not be the best way," Nicole says from her handheld.
Kuro looks confused at the source while Sally brings out the handheld. "You are not helping."
"I am ready to go," Tailsko calls.
Kuro looks surprised behind him before looking to see Sally walking away and talking to her handheld. "Hey, Kuro. You ready to hit the road?" Tailsko asks, walking up beside him.
Kuro looked like he wanted to say something before, in the end, he nods, letting her lead him out.
Tailsko smiles as she leads him to an exit and starts heading down a path with a backpack on her back. "Finally, I get to step outside. Been a while since I went on a mission, in fact," she starts excitedly. "Amy and Knuckles are even away for a long mission, but they haven't been back yet. Maybe should have left a note for them," she thinks out loud to herself.
"Sally is probably on it," Kuro says, letting her lead the way.
Tailsko giggles. "Hey, why not try out your gear? Maybe we can see the limits out here," she suggests and looks back at him to notice Kuro looking worried at her. "Hey…what's wrong?" she asks gently this time, coming to a dead stop beside him.
"I don't work well with others. Mostly my blink eats up double the energy," Kuro states.
Tailsko raises an eyebrow at him before sighing. "You want to head back? I don't mind."
"We are already on the way, and Sally will have a cow if we do. She likes to be in charge a lot," Kuro says.
Tailsko was about to speak something before stopping. "Come on. We better get going," she reminds before continuing to walk down the path.
"Hope you like to run," Kuro says before taking off at a sprint.
Tailsko was immediately beside him, and he looks at her in surprise to see her tails spinning like crazy behind her in the form of an airplane motor. "What? Thought I was that weak?" she asks sarcastically, and he watches as she glides above the ground.
"No, just…I have never seen someone use their tails like that," Kuro says, looking at them as he ran.
Tailsko rolls her eyes at the prospect. "You just haven't met anyone like me."
"Well, it's usually hard to find so many as smart as you," Kuro informs.
"You are getting better," Tailsko shrugs while flying ahead of him.
"So, do you have any experience in sneaking?" Kuro asks.
Tailsko smiles as Kuro keeps trying to keep up. "Yeah. I did it a few times when trying to get into a few computers."
"Do you know how to react if you get detected as we are carrying hot cargo," Kuro inquires.
"Yes…Kuro, do you think that less of me?" Tailsko questions, looking back at him.
"No, I know nothing of your field skills, and I fully expect you to quiz me on mine," Kuro informs.
Tailsko smiles. "Except I don't doubt you, Kuro. I know you will do what you need to do when it comes to it."
"Ok, so who is in charge of this region?" Kuro asks.
"I believe it is Mordred Hood," Tailsko informs.
"Then we don't have to worry about any spontaneous inspections. Not like Storm," Kuro says, sounding a bit spiteful.
Tailsko glides back beside him as she lets her tails carry her the whole time. "You must hate her now after what happened."
"No, but picture this. You successfully neutralize an entire base by planting sleeping gas bombs over all the ventilation and then neutralize all the robots guarding as well, and once you got what you came for, you walk right into her when she makes an unscheduled visit," Kuro informs.
"Yeah. You hate her…did you sleep with her?" Tailsko asks, looking closely at him.
"No, I did something worse. I poked her ego and challenged her when I stole the hat right off her head without her noticing when we first met. That was right after I escaped her people when I allowed myself to be captured to get back and finish raiding her safe in her temporary HQ," Kuro informs.
'No wonder she wants you for one reason or another,' Tailsko thinks. Tailsko then wonders about something. "So…what about me…us?"
Kuro was silent when he grabs her, stopping her. "Speaking of that. We need to get you some clothes. It's sad to say, but your fur, It kinda stands out," Kuro says, changing the subject.
Tailsko looks over herself as he mentions that. "I guess you are right. I don't think I packed extra clothes, though," she says before digging through her bag.
"I will be back soon…size, so I know what to get from the nearby town?" Kuro asks, looking her over and guesses the numbers based on what he knows.
Tailsko blushes and smiles. "Um…" she then leans over to his ear and whispers, which makes him surprised when he hears the numbers.
"Really?" Kuro asks, retaking another look.
Tailsko blushes even harder and looks away cutely. "Yeah. I have some poofy fur…you felt it…didn't you?" she asks, moving one of her tails around to brush against his leg.
"I am not so crass as to say it aloud," Kuro assures before using his tail to rub against hers.
Tailsko's tail jerks away when he does so, and she nervously pokes her fingers together. "Maybe I should come, make things quicker," she suggests.
"I am not going to be seen," Kuro says before blinking away.
Tailsko looks around for any sign of him before sighing. "Great," she groans before walking to a nearby tree and sits down among the shade against the base. "He better not try to do everything," she mutters to herself.
After about twenty minutes, Kuro blinks back into existence with what seemed to be a black hoodie and a pair of sweatpants. "Sorry, having to do it stealthily because on the wanted list," Kuro says, giving her the clothes.
Tailsko looks over the clothes before starting to slip them on. Kuro pants and sits down for a while as Tailsko keeps dressing up and then looks over herself. "What do you think?" she asks, turning around as the only apparent things are her two tails sticking out between her clothes, which somehow made her sexier than she should be allowed to as Kuro keeps staring.
"Looks like you are ready for a night on the town and to go sneaking," Kuro says, smirking at her.
Tailsko smiles before realizing what she is showing the most to him and quickly turns around. "Right…we better get going," she says, pointing ahead of them as her tails curl up behind her and try to hide the rest of her fur.
Kuro smiles as he gets up and walks toward her. Tailsko notices which way he is going and slowly backs up before he grabs hold of her arms. "Too tense," he says, smiling before giving a small kiss to her lips. Tailsko falls into it rather quickly before he lets go just as fast but still holds onto her. "Better sexy fox?" he asks, moving one of his hands down her arm.
Tailsko slowly nods before yipping when he grabs at her ass to pull her closer. "Um…we…should get going," she points out quickly before yipping again when he slaps her ass and lets go of her.
"You're right. I'll carry the bags. Need the exercise anyway," Kuro says, taking both his and Tailsko's bag over his shoulders. He then gives a wink to her before nodding his head down the path. "Want to lead me sexy fox?"
"Right…" Tailsko shivers before spinning her tails and taking off again, flying past him as Kuro follows right behind her.
"Alright, what do you have?" Kuro asks as Tailsko is hacking the console.
Tailsko frowns while she looks over the console. "Well, give me at least two more minutes, and I'll have it."
"Please take your time," Kuro whispers while moving over to the door and listens intently for anything.
Tailsko leans closer to her work. "Not hurrying. Just that there are some added measures since we are more rooted in. They changed this outpost because of what you did so quickly. Your chip wouldn't work, in fact," she explains.
"How could they know? Sally assured me no one would notice, and no one saw me, and there were no cameras or anything. Someone messed up, and it wasn't me," Kuro says.
Tailsko looks over to him. "It's just them changing their encryption. Nothing too bad, usually. It tends to take a week for me and Nicole to make a decryption key to break their systems. And it's always on schedule."
"So, I don't have to look for a traitor then?" Kuro asks.
"No. Of course not," Tailsko assures before sighing and turning back to her work. "You are so paranoid," she mumbles. Kuro says nothing as he waits, keeping himself focused on listening. "Got it," Tailsko says.
"How long until the download is complete?" Kuro asks.
Tailsko sighs and looks at the progress. "How does five minutes count for you?"
"Three hundred seconds got it," Kuro says, moving to a bust of a snake and starts checking it.
Tailsko smiles. "Gaudy, isn't it?"
"Uh-huh…thought so," Kuro says, turning the head to the right, and Tailsko heard a click, and a shelf moved to the side, revealing a medium-sized vault. "And a combination lock, huh?" Kuro asks, going over to it and starts turning the knob as he listens to the tumblers.
Tailsko smiles and keeps watching her work in the meantime. "So how many safes did you unlock like this?" she asks, genuinely curious.
"Lost count," Kuro admits, opening it up and looks around for what's inside. "Curious how I knew?" Kuro asks.
Tailsko hums. "How obvious this guy was in a room like this?"
"No, he covered his tracks well. That safe next to you is a trap. Open that up, and a silent alarm will trigger," Kuro informs.
"How do you know?" Tailsko asks, taking a look at it real quick.
"I am embarrassed to say, but I fell for a trap like that once and nearly did so twice," Kuro admits, taking the jewelry in the safe.
"And how much do you think you will get?" Tailsko asks curiously.
"Will give them to Sally and see what she can bring in for it. This, though," Kuro says, pulling out a reward with a golden Eggman face on it. "Can you melt it down to anything useful?" Kuro inquires.
Tailsko hums. "Yeah, maybe for new tech."
"Good. It's a bit too distinct to sell to a fence," Kuro says, putting it in with the rest of the loot before closing the safe and spinning the knob randomly, locking the safe back.
"Are you sure you don't want to put the tumbler back where it was?" Tailsko asks.
"No one ever remembers that," Kuro assured before turning the bust back, causing the shelf to take its previous position hiding the safe once more. "How is the download?" Kuro asks.
Tailsko smiles and looks back at her progress. "Almost done, and then we can get out of here and go on to the factory," she explains while keeping a close eye.
"Yep," Kuro says, going back to listening at the door.
Tailsko sighs as the last bits approach the end. "Always get stuck at ninety-five," she mutters, annoyed. "It will take a while to get there, you know? Hope you packed some food," she mentions smiling.
Kuro holds a finger to his lips, thinking he hears footsteps.
Tailsko stays quiet now as they do hear some heavy boots walk by. After a while, the footsteps walk by, clanging resonating throughout the hall. "That was close," she whispered, realizing she was talking normally the whole time.
"Can you make the computer seem like it was on a screen saver all this time and erase and download evidence?" Kuro whispers.
Tailsko nods, watching as she got the last bits of data and started to hide their tracks.
"Are we good?" Kuro whispers.
Tailsko nods and sighs in relief before turning and then yips when he kisses her. But the expression he is given tells her it wasn't because he wanted to, it is because he had to. Tailsko's ears then pick up the tail tale signs of a set of footsteps walking towards their hallway again. Kuro gently hugs her as he keeps the kiss going while Tailsko tries to remain calm. The steps got so close to the door, Tailsko's heart rate picked up immensely, and she struggles to calm down before another gentle touch from Kuro makes her melt into his arms. The footsteps slowly step away, and soon Kuro breaks the kiss, leaving Tailsko in a heated daze as she struggles to steady herself.
"Sorry," Kuro apologizes, keeping her on her feet.
"I think it is time to go," Tailsko whispers, still in the afterglow.
Kuro peeks out from around a tree and sighs in relief as he doesn't see any signs of panic from the outpost. "Okay. It looks like we are clear. They haven't made any movement anywhere yet, but let's not stick around," he says, turning to Tailsko and sees her still blushing heavily. "Hey…I said I was sorry. I just did the first thing that popped into my head."
"Am I that irresistible, or you have no self-control?" Tailsko asks the first thing that came to her mind.
Kuro gives a soft smile. "Little bit of both."
"I will take that as a compliment," Tailsko says before turning around, and one of her tails bushes his chin before moving out.
Kuro is a little surprised at her action but doesn't complain as they grab their things and head out through the forest under the moonlight. "I see what you meant by a few days walk," Kuro speaks up after a while, looking up to the moon partially covered by clouds.
"Yes, if it weren't for patrols, the next eighty miles would be nothing," Tailsko comments as she wrapped her tails again to conceal them once more.
Kuro steps up beside her and wonders if she likes a tail brush under her chin too. "Too bad. You look great under the moon," he offers while brushing his tail against her side as gently as possible. 'If it does go south, I might as well let her enjoy herself. Sally did say it has been a while since she was out on a mission,' Kuro thinks to himself and doesn't see Tailsko shiver at his tail touch, stopping her for a few moments as he continues to walk ahead.
"Let's speed up and get as much distance from that outpost as we can," Tailsko says.
Kuro nods without thinking before feeling Tailsko step up beside him and wrap her tails around his. He blinks and looks down to see her leaning against his side with a happy content smile on her face. Kuro sighs and wraps an arm around her waist and keeps her close while they continue. "You…did pack food, right?" he asks, remembering her earlier comment.
"Some," Tailsko says.
'…wait…is she?' Kuro thinks, wondering if she was getting too attached.
Tailsko smiles up to him now while keeping a gentle grip on his side. "We can ration and find some more if we have to though I will object to some places where you will get it from. Outposts, not as much as long as they don't notice," she states and wraps her tails tighter around his.
"Right…" Kuro starts and looks straight ahead to their path. 'She is too close. If this keeps up, it could be worse down the line. What the heck was Sally thinking, sending her out with me?' he thinks in a panic. 'But…' Kuro now looks back down to Tailsko as she does look pretty happy to be by his side and stay close to him. 'This is troubling. I am going to have to make sure once we get back to base. I guess I will let her enjoy herself in the meantime.'
"How is the schematics upload progress?" Kuro asks.
Tailsko smiles as they sit around a fire. Some of their rations are slowly cooking in a small cup while the trees surround and protect them from view. Tailsko, in the meantime, is working on moving the blueprints to Kuro's visor and see if all her hard work comes to fruition. "Almost done. If this works out, I doubt I would have to join in on the raid. But I should go along just in case you face another dreaded computer," she jokes, smiling at him.
"The bomb planting I need to do alone. We don't know what could happen, and if I fail, you will need to make it back and tell the others," Kuro states, looking into the fire thoughtfully.
Tailsko doesn't speak for a few moments until he hears his gear being placed on the log they are sitting on. "You are too worried. Did you know that?" she asks, slowly moving towards him as he keeps staring into the fire.
"We are in a war. It is only natural for me to worry," Kuro says.
"And you are worrying so much; it's getting in the way of your thinking," Tailsko points out before she comes into view and sits on his lap. She stares at him and watches while wrapping her arms around his neck to keep herself up. "Do you ever think something could happen even if I were away?"
Kuro says nothing and looks away, recalling a few things.
"You want to talk?" Tailsko asks, knowing something is wrong now.
Kuro was silent for the longest time. "I…I don't want to see people I have come to know to die like that again," Kuro finally says.
Tailsko sighs before leaning her head against his own. "If you keep worrying, you will miss us, Kuro. Please, for me. Just calm down and let things happen and talk to me."
Kuro was silent again for a good while before he gave in and spoke again. "A good while ago, I was a part of another group. I watched them all get killed off one by one," Kuro admits.
Tailsko slowly wraps her arms tighter around him, and her tails move around his waist. "It's okay." 'Note to self, install a fail-safe on the Tornado when I get back,'
Kuro says nothing as he lets her hold him before they smell something starting to burn.
"Oh, shoot," Tailsko curses and spins around on his lap and gets their meal off the fire. "Dang it. I hope you like burnt food."
"I have had far worse than burnt food," Kuro assures.
Tailsko snarks and places the small pot to the side before looking back at him. "And here I thought you would get sappy and say I am all the food you will need," she plays off with a wave.
"I'm not a cannibal," Kuro says.
Tailsko rolls her eyes and sits back against his chest. "You are not alone, Kuro. Just promise me you won't leave without telling." Kuro says nothing and just looks away. 'Oh, boy. Going to have to watch him,' Tailsko thinks. "Let's eat up and rest. We're going to need to get moving tomorrow," she says, grabbing some of the food and holds it out to him.
"Yeah, you're right," Kuro says, taking it as Tailsko wonders how she was going to tell Sally about this.
Tailsko pokes her food before sighing. "Do you…need me tonight?"
Kuro eats a bit before wrapping his arms around her and holds her like she would disappear if he let go.
Tailsko slowly nods before petting him behind his ears. "Okay. We can relax tonight," she promises and feels him bury his face into her tails. "You can get in the sleeping bag. I'll be there soon," she says, starting to put out the fires. As she does so, she notices that Kuro lets himself linger for a little while longer before letting go of her and going to the nearby bag. She shakes her head, worried now, and goes to clean everything they have and prepare for the next day before returning to Kuro. Already, Kuro is half asleep as she crawls in and suddenly feels his arms wrap around, holding her tight against him. Tailsko holds the same worried look on her face before rolling over and burying her face into his chest to give him some sort of comfort. Kuro, however, looks down to the fox and grips her tighter when his ears flinch at the sound of wood breaking deep in the forest.