Days passed after the competition and Red was still a bit upset. Raioten continued to keep his distance from the girls for the most part, only getting close when he was trying to blindside Red. Their fights shocked those still on the floor to witness. Everyone who survived the competition trained harder than ever before.

  They wanted to win the next year's competition, but the also were nervous about the new competitors. With Jugo gone, the rest of the teams all felt that their chances to make it to the third floor skyrocketed. Activity on the second floor was at an all time high. During the opening hours of the new year, Marina was ready to give birth.

  After a hard fought battle, she gave birth to a healthy baby boy: Tor. The Warden descended from his quarters once he received word. Red was asleep just outside the room, impatiently waiting. As he left, the Warden woke Red up gently and motioned for her to go inside.

  Warden: You're going to want to go in, but brace yourself.

  As soon as she opened the door, her ears were under attack. Tor had not stopped screaming for a moment since his birth. He screamed and screamed with no end in sight.

  Red: Uhhh, are all babies this loud?

  Marina: No, he's definitely got a healthy set of vocal chords, that's for sure. I can't get him to calm down.

  Doc: His vitals are all steady, he's perfectly healthy.

  Feeling the strangest of sensations, Raioten entered the infirmary. Like magic, Tor stopped screaming when he was able to catch sight of Raioten.

  Doc: What the? I was starting to wonder if he would ever stop.

  Tor's eyes were fixated on Raioten's hair.

  Red: Ha! He likes your dumb hair!

  Raioten walked around Marina, his eyes completely fixed on Tor. He resembled a confused predator in the wild, unsure of the potential threat Tor could pose to him. When he got close to the baby, Raioten let out a low growl of intimidation. Red shut him up with a smack to the back of the head.

  Red: Quit it you jerk! He's a baby!

  Raioten growled at her and ran off into the main portion of the second floor. As soon as Raioten was gone, Tor began to scream again. His crying only stopped when it was time to eat, and when he finally passed out. As Marina finally caught a break, she looked at Red with bloodshot eyes.

  Marina: Find me something, ANYTHING that's the same color as Blue's hair!

  Red took off in search of a sky blue item. As expected, there weren't many things in the Tower that had much color at all. Aside from her own hair, Blue's might have been the only source of really bright color. Not wanting to return empty handed, Red decided to track down Raioten.

  She found him angrily pacing outside of the large, sealed metal door. He looked like he was preparing for a fight, so Red tried to find out why. She told Raioten that Tor wouldn't stop crying without him there so she was going to bring him back. Raioten naturally resisted.

  Red: How about this little guy: If i beat you, you have to go to Tor whenever he cries all day!

  Raioten's face scrunched up just before he charged at Red. She was caught off guard by his moves, and nearly got hit with a powerful punch. Red noticed that he had been learning from their many fights in the past.

  The gap she had between them however, was not so easily closed. Without his completely savage mindset, Raioten's attacks were much easier to anticipate and avoid. After a nearly competitive match, Red took the victory.

  Red: Ha! Now you have to help out!

  Raioten growled and immediately ran away.

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  Red: You little- get back here!

  Red chased him down for as long as she could, but she couldn't keep up with his speed at all. Feeling tired and betrayed, Red walked back to the infirmary. She peeked her head in, assuming that Tor was asleep due to the quiet. When she looked in, Raioten was grumbling in the corner of the room. Just being close enough for Tor to see him was all it took to keep him quiet. Raioten remained nearby whenever Tor got upset and Marina couldn't keep him happy.

  Marina: How did you get him to come here?

  Red: I kicked his butt.

  Marina: You're a scary kid.

  Red had to fight Raioten multiple times a day in order to keep him on baby duty. He fought back as hard as he could, but was unable to defeat Red. Surprising her, while on Tor duty, Raioten took his job seriously. He would sprint out of training just to go find Tor if he heard his crying. Raioten kept his eyes on his goal while he was entertaining Tor.

  Even in his docile moments, Raioten never stopped thinking about how to take Red down finally so he could be free. Unfortunately for him, his days were filled with more and more losses. As his thoughts became more about his victory, Raioten lost track of the days. Before he knew it, Marina was back on her feet and exercising again.

  Finally up and about, Marina used nearly every waking moment she had honing her skills. Red noticed after a few weeks that Marina still hadn't slowed down a bit. Her face had grown twisted from the constant strain.

  Red: Hey, you should take a rest. You've been going nonstop for awhile.

  Marina: I can't fall behind! I won't lose!

  Red: Please try to take it easy okay? I'll see you later.

  Marina didn't listen to Red, continuing to push herself to the absolute limit each day. She worked herself ragged, challenging everyone she could in order to test her strength. The Warden dropped in on one of her late night training sessions.

  Warden: You've come a really long way in such a short amount of time, I'm actually quite impressed.

  Marina: I'm almost there, I can feel it. I won't lose.

  Warden: Good luck. This all rests on your shoulders. Make sure you get some rest because if you fail, it's all over. Think of your son and the world he will grow up in.

  As the Warden left Marina with those parting words, she worked even harder. She remained isolated in the gym for a month straight, the Warden bringing her food whenever he could. Red had to spend more of her time watching Tor with Raioten due to Marina's increased absence. One day, Marina finally returned to their room. Red was alone in the corner, crying. Marina's face showed genuine emotion for the first time in awhile.

  Marina: Sweetheart, are you alright? What's the matter?

  Red: Marina! I'm sorry, I didn't think anyone would be back for awhile.

  Red desperately wiped her face and put on a smile.

  Red: How has your training been going?

  Marina: Don't you dare young lady! What's wrong?

  Red: Its nothing ok! I just need a second, I'll be fine in a minute.

  Marina: How long have you been crying?

  Red: EVERYDAY!! I can't take her place, I'm not strong enough.

  Marina: You mean Yona?

  Red: She was always so happy and carefree. I try so hard but I just can't all the time.

  Marina: Let yourself rest child. It isn't your responsibility to make anyone but yourself happy. Yona was a treasure to us all but remember that you don't need to fill her shoes.

  Red: Yes ma'am. . .Are you finally back with us?

  Marina: Yes. I'm sorry for being gone so long. Give me a little while to recover and I'll get rid of the pain, soon. Very soon.

  After months of restless exercise, Marina was finally able to allow herself to rest. Raioten had begun to enjoy his time with Tor. He held the baby up in his hair as he ran around the floor. He was able to start learning self control dealing with Tor.

  For a few days, Red continued her training while keeping watch on Marina. To her surprise, Marina remained in bed for days. Every morning, Red brought Marina breakfast before she left for training. The food stayed untouched until Red returned in the evening.

  When she asked Marina about her plans, she only got 'next Saturday, I promise'. Red went on with her day until the evening. Each evening she cleaned the leftovers and dropped off a plate of dinner. On the next Saturday, Red was excited to see Marina up again.

  Red: You have to get up today Marina! Today's the day!

  Marina remained motionless under the covers.

  Red: C'mon it's Saturday! I want to see what all the planning was for. I bet you're super tough now! . . Marina?

  Red gave Marina a gentle push and felt something was off. When she removed the blankets, Marina was nowhere in sight. Red looked around the room in a panic, trying to figure out how long Marina had been gone. She then went to the infirmary to check their beds.

  Unfortunately for her, the doctor hadn't seen her since she left weeks prior. She looked around for hours with no luck. When Red sat back to think, she thought to ask everyone around if they had seen her team. She knew that Raioten would be able to find Marina with his speed. Asking for her teammates only alerted the other teams that she was alone at the moment.

  Suddenly, Red noticed that she was being followed by multiple groups of people trying to take her down. They realized that her team was one of the most dangerous, so taking out their strongest member was an opportunity they couldn't pass up. As her aggressors closed in, Red only hoped that her teammates were doing well and that Tor was safe.

  In a dark room, Marina was following a trail of blood that was left behind by a fleeing body.

  Marina: You die tonight, no matter what!