"Stop."
Elena's voice came across the clearing.
One word, loud but not a shout.
Just that one word was placed into the air of the clearing with the particular quality of someone who had never needed to raise their voice to be listened to.
Wrath stopped.
Mid-stride.
His foot came down and stayed there, the ground cracking under it, his body still at full size and full color, the red of his skin vivid in the night air, his chest rising and falling with deep controlled breaths.
His eyes found Elena.
Then they found Liam.
Then they went forward to neutral and he stood there and waited.
Liam looked at Elena from where he was kneeling.
Then he looked back at Wrath.
"I'm not done," he said.
Elena looked at him from the log. "You can barely move."
"I'm resting," Liam said. "I'm resting and waiting for him to get close and then I'm attacking."
Elena exhaled through her nose slowly.
