"A cave-in?!" Rubble yelled, his shock overpowering his fatigue and pain. "And I broke my leg?!"

"We were all so worried..." Marshall whispered. "The climbers made it out OK, but… it cost us way too much..."

Rubble laid back mouth agape. Just how much danger was he in?! He was almost afraid to find out, but with his questions weighing even more heavily on him, there was no taking it back now. Besides, with Marshall explaining what was going on, Rubble's memories of the event were starting to return, as piece meal as they were.

"Did I hit my head, though? Why can't I remember any of this?" Rubble asked.

"You did, but not that bad." Marshall replied. "A head wound that made you lose your memory would more likely kill you. You're struggling to remember because of the hypothermia."

"Hyper… what-now?" Rubble gave the dalmatian a confused look.

"Oh, yeah..." Marshall quickly facepalmed, remembering that Rubble wouldn't be familiar with medical terms. "Hypothermia: it's when the body gets too cold. Like, WAY too cold. One of the symptoms is memory-loss..."

Marshall was clearly struggling to explain. Rubble could only wonder if hypothermia was really that bad. It would explain why Rubble was wrapped up in blankets in a bed. But cold didn't usually linger that long… Did it?

"Everest told me all about it. It's… dangerous…"

"'Dangerous'?" Rubble parroted. "Dangerous how?"

"Dangerous because the body can't keep up with how cold it gets!" Marshall replied, obviously on edge. "In a lot of cases, it's life-threatening!"

Life-threatening.

The phrase stopped Rubble cold, proverbially-speaking. The pups were acting like he'd died, but all this time, he'd thought they were worrying too much. But now the team's medic just spelled it out for him. Slowly, a feeling of mortal dread started to envelop the bulldog.

"Are you saying… I… nearly died?" Rubble whispered.

Marshall paused. Was there really any way of putting this gently? Rubble was plainly starting to become scared at being confronted with the prospect of his own mortality. Rubble was the youngest pup out of all of them, and none of them liked the idea that their line of work meant that they dealt with the idea that they might not come back home. Marshall had to think carefully about what to say next. As stressed as he was, he couldn't risk making Rubble feel even worse.

"I wouldn't say that, Rubble..." Marshall finally spoke up. "I mean, you got hurt, but we knew what to do. You've got us, so you've got nothing to worry about."

More silence. Rubble had closed his eyes. It looked like he was trying to process what Marshall just said. Perhaps he was trying to keep it together? Marshall didn't blame him one bit. If that was the case, he could join the club.

"Marshall… was the cave that cold?" Rubble asked, his eyes still closed.

"Not the cave itself." Marshall replied. "But more like what happened when you left. See-

Marshall found himself cut off by the sound of the dog door being used to his side. He turned around to see almost of the pups come filing into the room. First came Everest, followed by Skye, Chase and then Rocky.

"Oh my gosh… Rubble! Are you OK?!" Skye barked, practically leaping across the room and landing on Rubble's bed.

"You're awake!" Rocky added, running up to the bed and joining Skye and Marshall. "Oh, thank goodness!"

"Guys, take it easy with him!" Everest yelled after them. "He's still in a bad way!"

"Rocky, Skye..." Rubble whispered. "What's going on?"

The two shot each other a surprised look.

"Guys, before you grill him, he can't remember what happened." Marshall interjected, deciding to nip their question in the bud.

"Can't remember?" Rocky echoed.

"Why?" Skye asked.

"Because of his hypothermia." Everest answered. "It can really take you out of the loop. One of the symptoms is memory-loss, after all."

"It hit him hard." Marshall said. "Try to go easy on him. By the way, where's Ryder?"

"He said he needed a minute." Rocky replied, wearing an identical expression of shock to Skye. "He'll come by later."

Rocky, of course, knew exactly why Ryder needed a minute. As the pups waited for word from Marshall and Everest, they didn't see hide nor hair of their owner. And after the rescue, he hadn't said a word. And as much as Rocky tried to convince himself that he was hearing things, he could swear that he heard crying coming from somewhere in the resort at one point.

"Chase?" Rubble finally piped up. "Are you, er… OK?"

Chase hadn't said a word since entering the room, but the look of disbelief on his face never faded. It was as if a statue had been brought into the room. A few seconds after Rubble addressed him, Chase slowly walked up to the bed his friend lay in and hopped up in front of him. Chase continued to stare at Rubble in disbelief, before dropping down and throwing his arms around him in a tight hug.

"Rubble, don't DO that to me!" Chase said, his voice muffled with his snout buried in Rubble's pillows.

"Chase…" Rubble laid back and allowed Chase to hug him, despite it hurting a little bit. "...was it really that bad?"

"Of course it was!" Chase shot back. "In fact, it was worse!"

"Well, so much for softly-softly..." Marshall thought to himself in annoyance.

"I don't think I've ever been so scared!" Chase continued. "Do you have any idea how close we were to losing you?! I could've stopped this from happening! But I let you go instead, and look what happened!"

The others looked on in surprise. "THAT was sudden..." Everest thought.

"Huh? Where did THIS come from?!" Marshall thought.

"...this is… my fault…" Chase went on, quietly. "I… I failed you..."

"Huh?" Rubble replied quizzically. "You? But how could this be your fault? You weren't even there at first."

"That's the point!" Chase broke away and looked Rubble right in the eyes. "I'm supposed to be keeping everyone safe, and here I am standing over a friend with a broken leg and hypothermia!"

"But Chase, you helped him out of the cave, didn't you?!" Skye said. "If it wasn't for your drone..."

"Drone?" Rubble parroted. "Is that how I got out of the cave?"

Chase froze. He was about to open his mouth to continue arguing, but Rubble's question made him remember that he still had a responsibility for helping his friend heal, as painful as the memories were. Besides, Chase felt like enough of a failure that he at least owed Rubble that much. He let out a sigh.

"That's right, Rubble. We needed my drone to guide you out of there. We all tried to get to the cave as fast as we could..."


Time had ground to a halt for the pups and their owner. As fast as they travelled, it simply wasn't enough. The unthinkable had happened – one of their own was in mortal danger. None of them felt even the slightest hint of excitement that they would usually have when trouble was afoot.

Chase in particular felt like throwing up the entire way. As the lead pup, he felt responsibility for keeping everyone safe and happy, and now one of them was injured and possibly close to death. Making matters worse is that the youngest of them had suffered this terrible fate. All he could think about was how he'd give anything to see Rubble returned to them safely as the Paw Patrol sped through the snowy mountains, pleading that they could get Rubble out safe.

"We're coming up on the hill, now." Skye's voice came through the boys' Pup Tags. "I'll break off and start scouting here."

The wind was picking up. The snow was falling heavily. Chase's dread was growing. "Skye… Be safe… I don't want to lose you, too..." Chase replied.

"Chase, how could you talk like that?!" Rocky shouted. "We have a chance here, and you've given up already?!"

Chase gave himself a quick facepalm. "Er, I mean..." he stammered. "We've got one pup in danger already… I don't want to make it two..."

"Chase, trust me, I'll be fine." Skye reassured him. "If the weather starts getting too rough, I'll land. You don't have to worry about me. Focus on Rubble, OK? For me."

The storm of worry continued to rage inside Chase, but with the realization that he couldn't let his fears get in the way of such an important mission, he decided to put them aside for now. "OK, Skye… I trust you." Chase went on.

"Thanks a lot, Chase. I'll be careful." Skye replied. "Skye out."

As the helicopter took a turn to the right, Chase, Rocky and Zuma continued to drive up the plowed road that Everest had left behind, eventually being met with Ryder, Marshall and Everest standing at the caved-in entrance containing Rubble's smashed bulldozer. The pups parked their vehicles next to those of Marshall, Ryder and Everest, hopping down and frantically running over to greet their owner.

"Pups. Thanks for hurrying." Ryder began. "As you know, things don't look good. Rubble managed to free his leg, but that cave is seriously dark. Rubble won't be able to see a thing. And that's why we need Chase's drone. If there's another way out, Rubble will need guiding."

"But we won't be able to get it in without getting those rocks out of the way!" Rocky interrupted. "I'm sure I've got something that can help!"

The mixed breed sprinted over to his truck to look for an answer to their conundrum.

"Huwwy, Wocky!" Zuma called after him.

"Ryder, sir, what happened to the climbers?" Chase asked.

"Don't worry, we sent them on their way. One of them has a fractured knee, but Marshall helped patch him up. He'll hold until he can get help." Ryder replied.

Everyone could only watch on as junk came flying out of Rocky's truck, none of it looking conducive to getting through the debris blocking their way.

"C'mon, c'mon… surfboard, no… Marshall's old hose, no… Umbrella, no… Oh, for the love of… come ON, Tracker… urgh, gross…"

"I thought I just heard something interesting..." Everest mused. "But I think I'll just let it go for now."

"Might be smart." Marshall added.

"Wait! YES!" Rocky shouted, sending a pickaxe flying from the back of his truck. "This'll work nicely! Why trash it when you can stash it?!"

"Good job, Rocky!" Ryder replied, running over and snatching up the tool. "This'll break through those rocks!"

Ryder ran and repositioned himself next to the pile of debris that seperated the group and their beloved construction pup. "Brace yourself, Rubble!" Ryder shouted, bending his knees and readying himself to swing.

Rubble couldn't help but jump as the loud bang of steel meeting rock rang out next to him. He didn't hear a word of Ryder's warning, for even if it had been unmuffled, Rubble was too busy trying to keep his desire to panic and cry under control. He was completely alone with the pitch-black darkness and goodness-only-knows what else for the first time in his life. Was he going to die? Could he even find a way out with his broken leg? All these questions and unpleasant thoughts overflowed in Rubble's head as a small measure of light suddenly broke through the rocks, momentarily dazzling the injured bulldog.

"Rubble! Are you OK in there?!" Ryder's voice came through the small opening.

"Ryder!" Rubble yelled. "Have you got a plan?! I wanna go home!"

"I do, Rubble!" Ryder replied. "But I need you to keep it together! I know its scary, but everyone's here! We're all gonna do our part to get you out safe! Now here's what's gonna happen..."

Ryder shouted his plan to Rubble through the gap that he'd just created. He apologised for sending Chase's drone rather than breaking him out. They may have the means of breaking down the rocks, but the couldn't risk another cave-in with Rubble the way he was. Rubble noted that the cave seemed unstable enough anyway, with a few more rocks falling from the ceiling as the pups were arriving. The clock was ticking to escape.

Despite everything, Rubble's heart began to fill with hope as Ryder relayed the plan. If he stayed strong, if he did what he was told, if he worked with the others, there was hope that he could get out safely and alive. As Ryder finished up, Rubble realized that he had to be brave. Now more than ever. He'd gone around calling himself a Super Pup in the past. The time had come for him to live up to that title.

"...where Marshall and Everest will be waiting for you. And we've got Zuma lending a paw, too. I promise. We're getting you out of there. Does that sound good?" Ryder concluded.

"Grr… You bet, Ryder!" Rubble barked. "This bum leg of mine won't- OWWWWWWWWWW! Slow… me down!"

Ryder sighed. On one hand, his pup seemed to be in far higher spirits than before. But on the other, he was still badly hurt. Not only could they not do a thing about his pain right now, but the plan hinged on him being able to drag himself to safety with Chase's help. Ryder swallowed back his worry, praying that Rubble could fight through the pain.

"Rubble… I know you can do it…" Ryder said. "But we can't waste any more time! Get ready to move! I'm not sure how stable this cave is!"

"Let's dig it!" Rubble replied, bringing a momentary smile of relief to Ryder's face.

Ryder hopped down from the pile of debris. "Chase! Is your drone ready?"

"Incoming!" Chase shouted back, as the drone slowly buzzed over Ryder's head.

Ryder had cut it closer than he would've liked with his axework, but mercifully, the drone was small enough to fit through the opening. But only just.

"Rubble… Be safe!" Ryder yelled through the opening.

"Just watch, Ryder! I'll be- AAAAAGH! ...fine!" Rubble replied, trying to keep it together through the immense pain.

From outside, Ryder could only listen to a faint "Ow… OW! Agh-! Agh..." as the buzz of the drone faded into the distance, with Rubble following, presumably, as best he could. The faint sounds were soon cut off by another boulder falling into place, blocking off the cave entrance once more.

Rubble's willpower was quite remarkable for such a young pup in such a frightening situation. Now all they could do was pray. Except for Chase. It looked as if a statue had just attached itself to his truck, unresponsive to the world around it. The spy pup was obviously focused on nothing but bringing his friend back, his eyes slanted in a determined glare.

Ryder could only drag himself back towards the rest of the group. Looking over the pups, the only expression he could see was fear. Fear for their friend's life. Ryder, of course, didn't blame them one bit. After all, he was right there with them. It looked like there were more statues than just Chase lying around as everyone stared into space.

Once more, time had slowed to a crawl. With no word from Skye and Chase concentrating on his drone, the snowy mountains had fallen as quiet as a graveyard. The silence was only broken several minutes later by Rocky.

"Guys… Rubble's gonna be OK, right? He's… not gonna die, is he?"

"ROCKY!" Marshall bellowed, drawing startled glances from all but Ryder and Chase.

"Marshall, easy!" Ryder commanded. "Rocky, I know you're scared, but talk like that is not helpful."

"I'm sorry, but… I just want Rubble to get out OK… I don't wanna lose him… I don't want… our friend to..." Rocky's voice started to crack with emotion, openly showing how scared he was.

Marshall began to feel guilty for yelling, seeing how frightened the mixed breed was. It wasn't as if Marshall had room to talk, after all. "Rocky… I'm sorry..."

"D-don't apologise, Marshall… I'm s-sorry I'm being so..." Rocky stammered.

"Don't cry, Rocky..." Ryder whispered, putting a hand on Rocky's head. "No crying until it's over. You know the rules."

Rocky glanced up at Ryder, slowly managing to bring himself back under control. "We… will bring him back..." Rocky squeaked. "...won't we?"

"Yes, Rocky." Ryder replied firmly. "We're getting him back no matter what. It's OK to be scared. You're not alone."

It was a small miracle that none of the pups picked up on the uncertainty in Ryder's voice. Rocky had said almost exactly what he was thinking. The thought of Rubble meeting his maker hadn't left Ryder's head throughout the entire mission, and he felt utterly sick the entire time. Despite this, the cloud of fear and doubt in his head was swiftly blown away by the beeping of his Pup Pad. As he fumbled for it, he found that Skye was calling him.

With a gasp, Ryder quickly answered it, only to be greeted with the sight of Skye being battered by the high winds and snow. The signal was suffering for it as well, giving Skye a slow, robotic twang to her voice.

"Ryder, sir! Come in!" Skye said, raising her voice to make herself heard over the high winds.

"Skye! Any news?!" Ryder practically demanded.

"I've found something!" Skye replied. Ryder didn't think it was possible, but he felt his hopes rise slightly.

"I can see another entrance!" she continued. "It looks like it's further down! I think Rubble could get out that way! But..."

"'But'?" Ryder, Marshall, Zuma, Rocky and Everest echoed.

"...it's next to a huge lake… And it looks like the… whoooaa, no!" Skye cut herself off as she struggled to control her helicopter.

"Skye!" Ryder yelled.

"What's going on back there?!" Chase yelled in fear from his truck, unable to take his eyes off his drone screen.

"Skye! Are you OK?! Answer me! Hey!" Ryder shouted, the terror in his voice at seeing another pup in danger evident. The pause of five seconds was utterly gut-wrenching for the group.

"That was WAY too close!" Skye eventually spoke up, to a collective sigh of relief from the entire group. "I'm sorry, Ryder, but this is getting too dangerous! I think I've gotta touch down!"

"Land your helicopter NOW, Skye!" Ryder commanded. "I won't have you in danger, too!"

"You don't have to tell me twice!" Skye replied. "Skye out!"

As the feed cut out, Ryder turned back to the group of four pups.

"Did… she just say it was next to a lake?" Everest asked.

"Yeah, it sounded like she wanted to say something else, too..." Zuma added. "...but what?"

"It's a good thing we brought Zuma, right?" Marshall opined.

"Definitely." Ryder replied. "So here's what we're gonna do, now. Everest, Marshall, Zuma. I'm going to send Skye's co-ordinates to your Pup Tags. I want you all to go and join her and wait for Rubble by that lake."

As Ryder spoke, he pressed a few buttons on his Pup Pad, and sure enough, a holographic map sprang forth from the Pup Tags of the three pups with Skye's location marked.

"Hmm… Hey!" Everest interjected. "I know where that is! I've been to that lake before! If you two follow me, I'll show you the quickest way there!"

"You heard the lady!" Marshall barked as he lead the way to their vehicles with Zuma hot on his paws.

"Hey, wait up!" Everest shouted after them, running for her plow.

And so Rocky and Ryder watched as the trio's vehicles tore down the hill, to what they hoped was Rubble's salvation. As the back of Zuma's hovercraft disappeared into the distance, Ryder and Rocky turned their attention back to Chase, who hadn't moved at all.

"What do you think is going through his head?" Rocky whispered.

"If I know Chase..." Ryder whispered back. "…and of course I know Chase… he's probably just as scared as the rest of us..."

"Rubble, why? Why did it have to be you?" Chase thought to himself as he steered his drone through the caverns, not taking its camera off of Rubble the entire time. "I've… failed you. I should be keeping everyone safe! Not trying to help them out of some dark cave with a broken leg! Please, Rubble… stay with me… And Skye… Please be OK… I couldn't deal with either of you dying… please…"

Chase's thoughts only lasted so long before he heard a sound come from his drone's audio feed. The sound of gravel.

The only light in the cave came from the drone that currently floated above Rubble's head. Despite the tremendous pain from his broken leg, the familiar buzz of the machine that served as his guiding light was quite comforting to the bulldog. As straightforward as the cave's layout was, the sheer drops and winding passages kept Rubble on the toes he had left. If he got stuck here… Rubble froze and shook his head, trying to keep that terrifying thought at bay as he willed himself forward.

"Gotta… keep… going… Not… gonna… die…" Rubble repeatedly chanted through gritted teeth, doing his best to fight through the pain. Rubble had to clear some big messes in his time, but this trumped them all. What if all that awaited him was a dead end? And the rocks just kept falling. Thankfully nowhere near him, but the fact that they were falling in the first place was scary enough. As he did battle with both his thoughts and his crushed leg, it took him a few seconds to notice the gravel shifting under his paws.

"Gotta… keep… huh?" Rubble cut himself off as he noticed how slippery his footing was and how uneven the ground was becoming. Before Rubble could change course, the floor gave way from underneath him, sending him crashing to the ground with a scream of agony as his bad leg was further agitated and he slid into the darkness awaiting him. And while he couldn't hear it, the trio at the cave entrance screamed their friend's name loudly, all seeming lost in that moment as Rubble tumbled head-over-paws into the unknown.