This was a quick in-and-out mission. Get in, destroy what they could of the factory, and get out. Renegade had eyes on NIne who was finishing off some bots nearby each falling as he shorted out their circuits. As soon as the last one fell, he waved him over. "We're almost done here. Keep up the good work!" He called to the 9-tailed fox.

"Gotcha Retrograde." Nine would say, giving a teasing smile before moving to take down more bots, receiving an eye roll from Renegade. "That's not my name, Nine!" The comment just seemed to get ignored by him as more bots fell one by one using his upgraded tails to take the bots down.

That just seemed to be how the two interacted anyway, Nine refused to call him Renegade, it was anything but renegade. As much as it annoyed him, Renegade Knucks had grown used to it. Having started to enjoy the company of the younger had been two months since he had joined up with them and things had been working out so well and the boy took to being a freedom fighter so well. Proving himself time and time again to be an asset to the team. In his personal opinion, Nine had grown a lot since the events of the paradox prism, even going as far as to help a stranger who had somehow gotten stranded in their world.

More forces were starting to close in. "Oh that can't be good.. NINE WE NEED TO CLEAR OUT YESTERDAY!" He called to him. The fox had just finished collecting some data from a computer console he had found, his ear twitching at the call. Were they busted already? Who was he kidding? Of course, they were. None of this could be easy, could it? It never was. Probably what made it so much fun for Nine as well. He got to let loose and this time he knew that others had his back. Something that he never got to have growing up, and something that he had to get used to. Learning to trust others to keep him safe and for him to keep them safe when they were out on these missions.

"Coming Rerun!" He used his 7 mechanical tails to move quickly and catch up with the echidna so that the two of them could get out of there as fast as possible. "The forces are coming from the other end of the building as well, we need another exit.." The two stood and glanced around before a smile flashed across Renegade's face.

"There's always another exit." He smashed a hole in the wall, grabbed Nine, and tossed him out before following himself. The two went flying until they hit the ground, making tracks the moment their feet were touching the ground. Renegade landed perfectly and Nine used his mechanical tails to land himself more stablely. "A little warning before just throwing me would be nice, Retinal scan." The comment went ignored as the red echidna checked to ensure that they would be safe to move forward.

Soon as Renegade gave the all clear, the two booked it out of there as fast as they could, fading into the shadows and below ground before any of the council's forces could follow them to the hideout. That was the last thing that Renegade wanted. They couldn't compromise everything they've worked for by being followed.

Finally, they were at the hideout, where Rebel Rouge was waiting for the two of them. Her expression was less than pleased as they approached. Seeing her face, Nine took his leave and seemingly left the room to go check on some other things. Renegade whoever approached her.

"I know that face Rebel. What's eating at you? We got out safe and sound, everything is fine. We weren't followed and the mission was successful." To his knowledge, there was nothing for her to be upset about. Though the heavy sigh told him otherwise.

"We've been working with him for two months.. And we're no closer to their defeat. How do we know that we can even trust him? Why even bring him in?" She questioned. "I mean of course I agreed to it, but I thought that things would move faster than this."

"Hey hey I get it. But I still vouch that this was the best option considering the circumstances. He's still researching that other world and trying to get that other fox back home. He's doing good. Besides having him here also means we can keep an eye on the progress he's making and keep the chaos council out of his hair as well so they don't get access to that research." Renegade knew that it wasn't easy for Rebel to accept such a massive change after the paradox prism situation. But, what else could they do? "Once he's done with getting the kid home, we can discuss what will happen next.."

There were still words being spoken, but Nine, who had been listening from the hall had heard enough. His ears down as he heard the rest. Was he really just a burden to them? Of course, he was. Why would they ever trust him after everything he did in the past? Maybe joining up with them was a bad idea. Tears threatened to fall, but he pushed them back. "Soon as he gets back home.. I'm out of here.." He muttered under his breath, heading back to his lab where a portal to the grimm was open. He didn't care to hear the rest of the conversation.

"Besides.. I do want to ensure he joins us fully, kids had a hard life even before the council as well. I think he's just lonely which is why he seems to just keep to himself. I can't help but feel bad for him. No allies, no friends growing up. Its no wonder he turned out the way he did. We shouldn't just immediately suspect him of anything. He probably barely trusts us as well.." Renegade had continued, not knowing that he was heard.

Rebel shifted, moving towards a computer as she typed in some information. "I guess I can't argue with that. He's just.. Unpredictable. But you're right. Trust works both ways and he'll never trust us if we don't trust him also." She didn't want to risk pushing him to leave. A fear that he'd put them at risk if they gave him reason to. She still didn't trust that he wouldn't turn on them.

"It'll take time. But we need to give him that time.. It's only been a couple of months. Is that's all that got you worried?" He knew better than to assume that that was it. The answer was clear as he looked at the screen.

It was reading massive energy spikes on the screen. None like they've ever seen before. Rebel saw that he understood the situation now. "I get the feeling we've got a new threat coming.."