home

search

Bond

  Ragnar: C'mon brother, there has to be something here. I know you left something!

  Ragnar sat in Toshiro's room and thought about his next move. He tried to quell his rage and began to meditate. Ragnar was trying to get rid of his inner thoughts that Toshiro had been killed. He thought back to the first day they met. Toshiro entered the Tower as a young man.

  He was barely in his twenties and was terrified being a prisoner for the Futurists. Toshiro avoided fighting as much as he could and kept to himself. Ragnar kept an eye on Toshiro, hesitant to get to close to him. One late night, Ragnar noticed a group of men surrounding Toshiro. Toshiro tried his best to diffuse the situation, but his aggressors would not be reasoned with.

  Just before things got violent, the men began to shake. Toshiro noticed that they were all sweating profusely and weren't looking at him anymore. Each one of them was looking over his head at the towering giant standing behind him.

  Ragnar: Hey there guys, how are you all doing today?

  The group of men didn't even stick around to answer and immediately fled. That was the start of the unlikely bond between Ragnar and Toshiro. Toshiro was a lean man and much less equipped for combat than Ragnar. His smaller stature and disdain for violence made it difficult for him to adjust to life inside the tower.

  Ragnar would occasionally find Toshiro unconscious outside of his cell, having passed out trying to get stronger. It was because of his dedication to be great at something he hated that made Ragnar team up with him. He promised Toshiro that he would never have to fight again. Toshiro was shielded from much of the pain and bloodshed that accompanied them in their way to the top floor, but he wasn't unaware.

  Vowing to help Ragnar in some way, Toshiro began focusing on ways to help his comrade outside of violence. It wasn't long after the reached the third floor that Toshiro began to float the idea of escape around. Initially, Ragnar was against even joking about it as he didn't want to get anyone hurt. As the days progressed however, he slowly became infatuated with the idea.

  Ragnar: Do you really believe we can make it out of here?

  Toshiro: I really do. With you leading, we can definitely find a way out of this hell hole.

  Ragnar: I really hope you're right man.

  The pair worked together to rise up the floors. With Toshiro's brain backing the brawn of Ragnar, they were able to become the strongest team Tower 13 had to offer. A few years after they demolished the end of year competition and went to the third floor, Toshiro came to Ragnar with news.

  Toshiro: There's another prisoner we should keep an eye on. They recently moved to the second floor.

  Ragnar: Do you think they would be a worth ally to have?

  Toshiro: Yes, the man's name is Jugo. He is an all around powerhouse.

  Ragnar: What every happened to the young woman you were keeping an eye on?

  Toshiro: Yona? She's chosen to remain in the first floor for the time being. It's safe to say we won't be receiving her help anytime soon.

  Ragnar: That's too bad. How does the new guy stack up to everyone else?

  Toshiro: He's really quite impressive. The only two people here who would beat him currently would be Yona and yourself.

  Ragnar: I see, I'll keep an eye out on him.

  Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

  In the present, Ragnar was sitting alone with no answers. He decided to go to the others and tell them about what happened with Toshiro. Sadly, none of them had any contact with Toshiro. They sat together in the cafeteria to figure out a plan.

  Red: Mr. Toshi wasn't even a fighter! I say we run with the plan and break out of here!

  Jugo: No, we can't go that. Toshiro gathered a ton of crucial information. All of us are not escaping here with the amount of soldiers they have, it's a death wish.

  Ragnar: Right, so we need to find Toshiro or somehow learn his secrets.

  Kagura: Secrets? How about little bro?

  Ragnar: What about him?

  Kagura: Well, I just know he's really good with secrets because he doesn't talk. If I had to leave really important information somewhere, I'd leave it with him.

  Ragnar: That is a good point, I'll go pay him a visit.

  Later that night, Ragnar went to the children's team room where Raioten was still bedridden.

  Ragnar: Good evening young man, I want to ask you about Toshiro.

  Raioten immediately picked up one of his textbooks and tried to hand it to Ragnar.

  Ragnar: I'm not here to collect the books he gave you, I'm looking for any clues to what he learned during his infiltration.

  Raioten shook his head with a disappointed expression. As Ragnar apologized for the distraction, Raioten threw the book at him. Ragnar picked up the book and noticed that it wouldn't close properly. There were also a ton of extra sheets of paper that weren't aligned right. When he opened the book, he found a ton of handwritten notes from Toshiro. It turned out that Toshiro returned almost nightly in order to document his findings. He gave detailed insight into the rotation patterns and training strategies of the Futurists stationed there.

  Being overwhelmed with pride and determination, Ragnar sat in his room to sift through the notes. He spent most of his time trying to memorize everything that Toshiro wrote down. On the final sheet, Toshiro left an in-depth battle strategy based on what he found. The plan included each and every detail for the highest chance of victory.

  There was also a highly detailed map of the facilities in the Tower that weren't available to the prisoners. Ragnar was determined to find Toshiro, so Ragmar marked each room that he could've been held captive in. After finalizing a strategy, Ragnar went to announce it to the others.

  Jugo: When do you think we could realistically pull this off?

  Ragnar: According to the notes, there are only 5 days each year that this plan can be done. We strike on the very next available day, two weeks from now.

  Jugo: Wait, are you serious? We need more time.

  Ragnar: No, I can't wait for another opening. Who knows what Toshiro is going through because of the data he gathered. I'm going to strike the first chance I get, no matter what. If you all want to wait, you're more than welcome.

  Red: I'm not coward! I can't wait to get out of here.

  Kagura: I still haven't proven that I'm stronger than you, so I have to go.

  Jugo: *sigh* If we're going to do this, let's make sure we follow this plan perfectly. I'll go find sky head, he should be in perfect shape by the time we begin.

  As Jugo left to inform Raioten, Ragnar felt it was necessary to speak with Kagura and Red.

  Ragnar: Glad we're all on board. Just know that we CANNOT afford any mishaps. Under no circumstances are the two of you allowed to fight at all. There will be no physical activity whatsoever for the next two weeks.

  Kagura: Wait what!? You expect us to just sit around and do nothing?

  Ragnar: That is exactly what I expect you to do. You need to relax your mind and body just as much as you need to exercise them. I'm not asking you to relax, I'm ordering you.

  Kagura: Still sounds stupid to me.

  Red: Shut up muscle head! Just sit back and take it easy until it's time. If you even step foot in that gym, I'll kill you!

  As Kagura walked away with an attitude, Jugo finished telling Raioten about their plans. As Jugo began to go over the strategy, Raioten showed that he already knew every piece of the strategy that Toshiro wrote down. Having been bedridden the entire time Toshiro was sharing notes, Raioten had gotten extremely familiar with his plans.

  Ragnar kept the young children entertained with his old war stories. He explained his particularly violent history to cover the extra downtime that everyone had. Kagura was the most fascinated listening to the tales of Ragnar's conqueror days. In spare moments, Jugo would go to sit with Raioten in silence. Raioten was noticeably nervous about the coming day, and Jugo wanted to help ease his nerves in anyway he could.

  With each quiet day that passed, Ragnar told more prisoners about their plan. He needed to separate the rest of the prisoners by who could fight and who was considered a 'non-combatant'. Unsurprisingly, the prisoners became more energetic with the thought of escape. Ragnar was treated like a celebrity as he walked around the corridor. He remained completely focused on finding Toshiro and escaping with the fellow prisoners.

  Back in his room, Ragnar kept to himself. He couldn't wait to get back to the outside world after so long.

  Ragnar: Don't worry brother. We're getting out of here, together.

Recommended Popular Novels