There's no time to do anything but fall. He doesn't bother trying to get up, not until the creature's long gone, and he's not sure he's capable of lifting his sodden clothes off the ground. His head swims, his shoulder burns. His legs ache from the climb, and he's no closer to getting Alex back.

But he'll never find her up here in the dark. He needs to tell what he knows, and maybe find someone with the right kind of magic to counter it. They might not be dead. It might not be too late.

He drags himself up, steadies himself on a rock and moves off, heading down this time. He'll come back in the morning.