" Ash, look out!"

" Arkinine, go now!"

Ash's skateboard zoomed through the sky and punctured the balloon.

" Looks like Team Rocket's Blasting off agaaaaaain!"

As they fell, Ash managed to hurl them faaaaaaaar away.

They zoomed away, and in their place a small spark.

Unfortunately the impact made Ash zoom through the sky.... Fast.

" Oh gosh." Ash muttered.

He squeezed his eyes shut and braces for impact.

His back hit a stone wall, and he fell into a deep hole.

" Well, that wasn't so bad..." Ash muttered as he rubbed his back.

Then he squinted up. " Okay, let's fo- OW!" He yelped as he hopped on his left leg, clutching his right.

It was bent in a really odd angle, and he groaned

" It must be sprained...." He muttered as he sat on a rock. " But I have to get out! I need to finish the race!"

After two hours of trying to get out, Ash just gave up.

So he sat on the rock, thinking about Arkinine.

" I hope Arkinine is okay." Ash muttered.

" Hey Ash? Is that you?"

Ash's ears perked up. " Gary?"

" Where are you?"

" In a hole."

Gary's face appeared two moments later.

" Where have you been?!"

" Sitting in here." Ash replied bluntly.

" Can you move?"

Ash stood up but winced slightly. " Yeah, I'll be fine."

Gary's eyes darted to his leg. " You sprained it, huh?"

" Huh? Oh, nah. It's okay, I'll ju-"

But Gary was already climbing down. " Stay."

Gary reached the bottom of the hole with a graceful leap, landing with a light thud. He walked straight over to Ash, his sharp eyes narrowing as they scanned the injured leg. 

"Gary, I’m fine," Ash insisted, holding up his hands. "Seriously, you didn’t have to come down here." 

"Yeah, right," Gary muttered, kneeling in front of Ash. "You’re just sitting down here with your leg twisted like a pretzel, and you think it’s no big deal?" 

Ash huffed, crossing his arms. "It’s not twisted, it’s just... sprained. And I was figuring it out!" 

Gary looked up at him, one eyebrow raised. "Figuring it out? For two hours? What’s the plan, Ash? Grow wings and fly out of here?" 

Ash rolled his eyes. "Very funny." 

Gary shook his head and reached for Ash’s ankle. "Hold still. Let me see what we’re dealing with." 

"Gary, really, I can—OW!" Ash winced as Gary’s fingers gently probed the swollen area. 

"Yeah, it’s sprained," Gary confirmed, ignoring Ash’s protests. "You’re lucky it’s not worse. Stay put; I’ve got something for this." 

Gary dug into his bag, pulling out a roll of bandages and a small cooling pad. "This is going to help, but it might sting a little. Don’t whine." 

"I don’t whine!" Ash argued, but he bit his lip as Gary began wrapping the bandage snugly around his ankle, the cool pad tucked beneath the layers. 

"Sure you don’t," Gary replied with a smirk. "Now, stay off this foot for a while. You’re not running any marathons today." 

Ash sighed, leaning back against the rock wall. "But I have to finish the race! Oh, and how's Arkinine?"

Gary glanced up at him. "Arcanine’s fine. The others are probably looking after him. But you need to take care of yourself first, Ash." 

Ash frowned but nodded reluctantly. "Fine. But how are we getting out of here?" 

Gary stood, brushing dirt off his hands. "We’re climbing. And by ‘we,’ I mean me. You’re getting a piggyback ride." 

Ash blinked. "Wait, what?" 

Gary turned his back and crouched slightly. "You heard me. Get on. You can’t climb with that ankle." 

"Gary, I’m not a kid—" 

"And I’m not arguing. Hop on, Ash, or I’ll carry you like a sack of potatoes." 

Ash grumbled but looped his arms around Gary’s neck, letting out a reluctant sigh as Gary hoisted him up with ease. 

"You good up there?" Gary asked, adjusting his grip. 

"Yeah, yeah," Ash muttered, resting his chin on Gary’s shoulder. "Just don’t drop me." 

Gary chuckled as he began scaling the rocky wall. "Relax, I’ve got you. I’m not the one who flew into a wall on a skateboard, am I?" 

"Hey, that was strategy!" Ash defended. 

"Sure it was," Gary teased. "Now hang tight. Let’s get you out of this hole." 

As they reached the top, Pikachu darted over, squeaking in concern. 

"Pika pi!" 

"Hey, buddy," Ash greeted, giving Pikachu a reassuring smile. "I’m okay. Gary here made sure of that." 

Gary set Ash down carefully, letting Pikachu climb onto his trainer’s shoulder. "There. Safe and sound. Now, let’s find Arcanine and figure out what trouble you’re going to drag us into next." 

Ash grinned, giving Gary a playful punch on the arm. "You love it, and you know it." 

Gary rolled his eyes but couldn’t hide the small smile tugging at his lips. "Yeah, yeah. Let’s just go before Team Rocket comes back for round two."