Physically, Meesei was growing stronger, even as her magic grew steadily more strained. The effects of each restoration spell was compounding on top of the others, making her more threatening to Harriet in melee combat. Although, Meesei did not doubt that her skill would still outmatch her own. The words of the crowd did not register in her mind as Meesei continued to bolt around her opponent. She kept her pattern as unpredictable as possible, often changing the direction she escaped, but sometimes repeating them so Harriet could not rule out any direction. At one point, Meesei even teleported close enough to make a thrust with her spear, though she had to bolt away again when the attack failed. 

As feared, Meesei's magicka was draining, but the ring's enchantment had not yet failed. Worse yet, there was no way to know how much of a charge was remaining on it. Although she was not yet entirely exhausted, she could feel the magical fatigue creeping through her body. If there was one thing she had to avoid, it was draining herself of magicka entirely. It was time for a new strategy, one that did not rely on magicka, and one which could actually give her the advantage. 

Meesei bolted as far as possible from Harriet while still remaining in their fighting area, then threw her spear at Harriet to delay her while she renewed the shield spell on herself. For the first time since their fight began, Meesei spoke, though only briefly. "You should not forget, Harriet. I have my own magic ring." 

With those words, Meesei underwent a rapid transformation into her werewolf form. She showed no need for any mental or physical transformation; it simply occurred on demand. This was the first time Meesei had taken her wolf form in front of the clan, and it was a sight that might give even Harriet's supporter's pause. In her normal form, Meesei did not appear exceptional for a lycan. By virtue of her beast blood, she did of course have a muscular build, but not to the extent of someone like Harriet. However, in her werewolf form, that did not seem to matter in the slightest. She was larger and stronger than a normal lycan in no insignificant way. As the Champion, with Hircine's blessing, she had a body fit for the [i]alpha[/i] of alphas. Beyond that, the Ring of Hircine granted her perfect control, in and out of beast form. By its influence, her and her beast spirit could work in unison, with each of their strengths complementing the other. If those factors were not enough, Meesei had not just maintained her stamina for the fight, she had increased it with her restoration spells. She had fortified her speed, strength, agility, and perceptions, and her shield spell still protected her, though she would not be able to renew it without transitioning back to her normal form. 

Altogether, Meesei had been increasing her own strength while working to tire out Harriet. It had not been her only plan for the fight, but it was not an accident. Without transforming, Harriet would be at a massive physical disadvantage to Meesei, and if she did transform, she would be losing both the ring and her mail. Harriet had been keeping Meesei on the defensive so far, but she hoped to make this the turning point of their battle. She did not attack first, and instead waited for Harriet to make the first move. She let out a menacing growl, a display that was more a show of power for the crowd than for Harriet.

---

"With pleasure." Lorag grunted before stepping away from his position in the front of the crowd to join Janius. Most of the people were too fixated on the action to bother giving them any more than a passing glance. As they reached the exit to the chamber, Lorag looked to Janius beside him. "You have his scent? I think I've heard about this squirrely little worm, if it's the one I'm thinkin' about. It'll be a cold day in the Deadlands before I let this one get away."