Maybe not a heart attack, but a fainting spell was seeming far more likely by the second. He gripped the back of the couch as if it stood a chance of throwing him from it, but more because of the flood waters that were, to his mind's eye, rapid rising.

The approach of another presence - a startling riot of violet and gold with a gaping hold made of darkness at the heart of it - only brought him a moment's pause. He wasn't sure if he should warn it about the water, and it was hard to speak beyond the panicked sobs for breath.