Cold As Ice: RWBY

Hell on Earth

Felix was right; therapy was torture. After they got me suited up in a white aura suit, they went to work to make me walk again. It was the same thing over and over again for hours. All I had to do was lift a five pound weight off the ground with my legs and hold it for a minute. I strained, and clenched my teeth as I lifted it off the ground for the 25th time. "One, two, three..." my trainer counted off. My legs started to shake as I reached 15 seconds. I dropped the weight and and sucked in a breath. "One second more than last time," my trainer informed me. I nodded my head, sucked in a breath and tried again. My trainer started counting again. "One, two, three, four..." I became lost in my thoughts. I remembered Weiss pointing at me and saying, "You better pull through Ryan!!" My legs started to shake again, but I held them up, sweat dripping down my face. My trainer knelt down next to where I was sitting. "Come on!!!" he yelled. "Twenty more seconds!!" I willed my legs to not give up on me and clenched my fists, praying for this to be all over soon. "Annnnd.... time!" my trainer said. I let go and fell off the chair and onto the ground. "Perfect!" my trainer exclaimed. "Now try to get up off the ground using your legs." I groaned and tried to stand up. I got one leg up and rested on my knee, panting. I strained my legs, screaming at them to stand. I finally did it and I held out my hands for balance. "I-I did it!" I said. My trainer pushed me over and said flatly, "Now do it again." I cursed him silently and tried to get up again, refusing to stay down, not when I was so close.

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It had been four days since I first put on the aura suit. Despite all odds, I was now standing and could jog short distances. Everyone was impressed at how far I had come since day one, especially Felix. Every time he saw me walking, limping or jogging, he would give me a slight nod of his head. It was these little things that kept me going. But the one thing that I always thought of, was how happy Weiss would be when I could stand on my own once again. So I continued with my exercises, with hopes of walking on my own two legs, without help from the suit. I was most worried about the festival tournament though. I had to be ready before then. I pushed myself even harder.

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Two more days passed, and I could now walk without a limp. I could also sprint and jump, improving greatly, better than most people expected. I was jogging around the track,  when on my 4th lap, my trainer stopped me. He sat me down and went over his notes. "Well, you have passed every test with flying colors, and it seems like it's time to see if you can walk without the aura suit. I was elated when I heard that. I had waited for this day all week. My trainer took me to the armory and unlocked my suit. It unfolded and I could now step out. I sucked in a breath. "Okay, let's do this," I thought. I took a step forward and faltered. I fell on one knee and my trainer stepped forward to help me. I waved him off and tried to stand. It came a lot easier than I thought. I was now standing on my own two legs, after just a week of physical therapy, with a little help from the suit. "Congratulations," my trainer said, clapping his hands. "You have done the impossible; learning how to walk after being paralyzed in a single week." I smiled, excited to show the Ruby and the others. I started to leave, but my trainer stopped me. "Oh, just one more thing," he said. I turned and looked at him. "Yeah?" I asked. "Your father would like to give you a suit, you know, to help you further," he said.  I raised an eyebrow. "Oh really?" I asked. I pondered about this for a bit. Reaching a conclusion, I snapped my fingers. "I'll take the white one I was wearing and uh... let's see... which helmet..." I looked around me, seeing the different types. "Aha! This one!" I said. I chose a helmet with a white outline and a silver plate covering the rest of the face and top of the head. I grabbed it and put it next to the suit. "Just have my father send it to me," I said. "Will do," said the trainer. He ran off to get my order ready.

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I walked to the administrative office one last time before I left. Tell my father I'll be heading back to Beacon now. The lady at the desk nodded and said, "Have a safe trip sir!" I thanked her and started heading out the door. "You aren't going to leave without saying goodbye to me, are you?" a voice said. I instantly recognized the voice and turned to see my sister leaning against a the wall. My sister shot me a smile and I grinned. "Nice to see you too Audrey," I said. My father walked into the room and noticed us talking. "Oh good! Ryan, you're here too!" my father said. "Seeing as you're in tip top shape, why don't you have a friendly match with your sister?" he asked. "Sounds great!" said Audrey. I smirked and said, "Why not? I got time to kill." I cracked my knuckles. "You're going down dear sister." She smiled and replied, "We'll see about that."