Ronan retreated several feet, establishing a mindlink with his warriors to order them out of his path.
The four men scrambled back as Ronan's wolf burst into a sprint, charging toward the precipice.
Taking a powerful lunge into the air, he launched himself across the wide gap between the two plateaus, a perilous leap with no margin for error.
His wolf's claws slammed against the far ledge just as he shifted back into human form, his fingers scrambling for a hold on the rocks attached on its cliff side.
"Alpha Ronan!" the warriors shouted from the opposite cliff, their hearts pounding.
Loose gravel cascaded into the abyss, but Ronan dug his fingers in deep, hauling himself upward until he finally pulled his body over the lip of the plateau.
He turned around, pulling the folded map from between his teeth. Offering a quick smile to his worried warriors, he gestured that he was fine and signaled for them to wait for his return.
