"Hang in there!", a young boy pleaded with a shivering voice.
Step for step, a raven-haired trainer forced himself along a lonely way that didn't seem to end at all and every step was more painful than the one before. Within his arms, he held a small yellow Pokémon that was covered with bruises and scratches; it was his best friend, Pikachu.
"We have survived worse than this, haven't we?", he chuckled forcefully as if he was trying to make the situation look better than it actually was, but deep down, he knew that it was the complete opposite.
His yellow rodent didn't move, although Ash could feel the weak breathing of his pal and how its chest went up and down.
Suddenly, Ash dropped onto one knee before he squeezed his eyes and when he opened them again, he could see how a drop of blood fell from his face onto the ground. It was just the first of many to follow and Ash's forehead hurt extremely.
Panting, the boy fought against his desire to lay down. It wasn't time for that, not yet when his buddy needed help.
"No time for resting!", Ash told himself, standing up again.
By this time, every step had become a challenge, but it was a challenge that Ash needed to master.
"Don't worry! We'll soon find someone, who can help you ...", he continued to talk, trying to keep himself awake, but slowly but surely, he doubted his words that he had said for almost an hour.
Now, the sun even started to disappear behind the trees and the sky was tainted into several kinds of red, yellow and mixes of them. Under normal circumstances, it would look beautiful, however, Ash had only one thing on his mind; finding help.
Seconds turned into minutes, minutes turned into another hour and he still couldn't see anything.
Normally, Ash wasn't someone, who would lose hope, but the sight of his injured friend forced his eyes to water up and after his first tear hit the ground, several other drops of water joined it. They weren't from the boy though, but rather the sky that 'cried' in its own way.
It became dark and it started to rain, making it difficult for the trainer to keep on.
'Please, somebody help us ...', he thought desperately.
The rain drops multiplied and it almost became a downpour.
The tears, the blood and the raindrops became one before they went down the cheeks of a lonely trainer that slowly but surely, had problems to keep his conscious.
Shortly before he considered the fact that he was lost, Ash imagined that he saw something in the distance. Unfortunately, the lack of light and the heavy rain made it difficult to tell what it was though.
'Please, let it be it ...', Ash pleaded to no one in particular.
When he was closer, Ash realized the outlines of a house and after a few moments, he could even spot light through a window. A smile formed on his face and finally, he could believe his own words again.
"Pikachu, there's a house!", Ash said enthusiastically, despite his panting.
"Pi ...", the yellow rodent answered subconscious.
Mobilizing his remaining power, Ash started to walk quickly towards the light, despite his own weakened condition.
Eventually, he saw a wooden fence an Ash's mood became brighter.
Unexpectedly, he fell forward, but fell onto his side to prevent that he would drop onto his Pokémon.
It was a hard impact onto the ground and the boy couldn't explain why he fell from out of nowhere.
