Meesei was able to dodge away from her claws, but Harriet was not in a prime position to be pounced upon. Though Meesei was fast, and her jump was impossible to completely avoid, Harriet twisted to one side and attempted to strike away Meesei's oncoming arm. Harriet would have jumped away if it weren't for the success in Meesei's manoeuvre. Harriet yelped in pain as she tried to tug her arm from the clutches of Meesei's teeth. There was a grapple despite both still standing. This was exactly where Harriet did not want to be. In an attempt to fight back, Harriet brought her free hand up under Meesei's chin and tried to tear at her throat.

---

With a growl, the Argonian gave nothing back but a scornful tone. "Let me go, you brutes! Once my packmates hear of this, the duel will spread to a fight and you will be slaughtered!"

"You know..." Janius blinked a couple of times as he regarded the side of the Argonian's face that he could see, "You don't seem like the dobbing type. Perhaps we might find more answers in your belongings, or your contacts. I hear that a certain fatherless young man was consulted by an Argonian with your description...right before he took a silver knife to Oswall's gut. Perhaps he's got something to say about you?"

After a few silent moments, the Argonian's breathing slowed and he closed his mouth to swallow. He spoke further with desperation, but this time held a more diplomatic approach. "Alright, I can lead you to my belongings if you like, just let me up."

Janius guffawed. "Nice try. How about we tie him up, Lorag? I think Meesei would want a word with our new friend."

Though Meesei was unable to pounce Harriet, she was able to sink her teeth into Harriet's arm. She thrashed her head back and forth to tear at the muscles, while also digging the claws in her left hand into Harriet's shoulder and attempting to use the leverage it gave her to force Harriet to the ground. With her right arm, she was ready to counter, which was precisely what she needed to do. With any fight between beasts, lycans included, the throat was often the final goal. If either side could gain a firm grasp on the neck with claws or teeth, it could often end the fight in seconds. As such, a skilled lycan always kept in mind that weakness. Meesei expected that Harriet was ready to defend against such an attack, just as she was. Without releasing her jaws, Meesei quickly brought her free hand up to her own throat with the intent of intercepting and grabbing Harriet's other arm. The longer she could keep Harriet from escaping her grasp, the more chance she would be able to gain the decisive advantage in their grapple. Even if Meesei could not gain a hold over Harriet's arm, she could at least protect her throat, at the expense of some injuries to her arm.

---

Lorag started to laugh after the Argonian gave his rather unimpressive threat. "Really, you think they're going to start a fight over you? Yeah, after you just tried to abandon them and run away from this place, I'm sure they're goin' to just leap to your aid." He commented as he stood to his feet and nodded to Janius. He had not managed to run far before being downed, so Lorag was able to quickly walk over and grab the bag of food. He took the rope that would have been used to keep it tied shut and handed it off to Janius. "Here. I guess we should find somewhere to take him. There's no telling what this snake might try if we bring him back to the duel. Probably best to let Alpha handle him." Lorag suggested.

Everything was going wrong for Harriet. She raked at Meesei's arm instead of her throat and was shaken about by the other arm. Meesei's jaws were clamped like a toothed vice. The pain was such that Harriet cried out and threw her head forward and her caught arm down in desperation, trying to wrap her teeth around Meesei's face. Her fangs caught around one side of Meesei's snout and around the upper part of her face. A fleeting resistance of flesh found one tooth reaching Meesei's eye. It was not an easy angle to grip from, however, and Harriet's jaw swiftly slid away, scratching Meesei's face as it went. With no other opening, Harriet occupied herself with staying balanced and trying the same attack over and over again.

This was beyond Harriet's skill. In the desperate gnashing she was not paying attention to Meesei's remaining free arm.

---

Janius hummed and nodded in agreement before binding the fleeting Argonian's hands and legs. Only then did he let him up and lead him hobbling to a secure room.

The tide of the battle was quickly turning in Meesei's favor, though she was not proceeding without injury. Her shield spell was providing resistance, but it could not stand against the strength of a werewolf. Her arm now had several gashes from Harriet's claws, her snout bled from Harriet's desperate retaliation, and she was forced to release the injured arm from her jaw's grasp to keep herself from losing an eye. However, it seemed that Harriet's desperation had clouded her judgement, as it was obvious that her attention was nowhere near Meesei's free arm. Harriet was a strong fighter, in and out of her wolf form, but this mistake could very well be the end of the fight.

Meesei struck diagonally up from below Harriet's line of sight to bury her claws into Harriet's neck, though, her intention was not yet to kill. She intended to stab her claws into her neck, but not into the precious blood vessels that carried the blood to and from her brain. She wanted to leave her claws there for the moment, to keep Harriet mere inches from death, but not yet kill her. Meesei still wanted the chance to interrogate Harriet, and she did not need to kill her to win the fight. Though, she would if it was necessary.

At the same time, Meesei released her grip with her other hand on Harriet's shoulder, then quickly jabbed her claws toward's Harriet's right eye while she was likely distracted by the hand near her throat, fully intent on blinding the eye. It was a highly offensive approach which left Meesei open, but Meesei felt her potentially-fatal attacks would force Harriet to at least attempt to defend.

Whatever shouting there was from the crowd ceased in this bind. Harriet redirected her thrashing to the arm that jabbed towards her throat. The strike had come as a shock, evident by her wide eyes and gaping mouth. Her strikes were not ordered and powerful as they were previously, however. They better resembled wild flailing. Her glazing eyes and choking sputters told why. Meesei's claws were strangling Harriet.

Whether Harriet was open or not, she had nowhere near the awareness to react in time to Meesei's other arm short of closing her eye as a reflex. Meesei's other claws jabbed into the eye socket regardless, but Harriet only managed a pitiful squeak from her constricted wind pipe as her back arched in pain. Her slowing arms likely preceded passing out if Meesei kept her grip.

At this point, Harriet was essentially at Meesei's mercy. She had to push through the pain of Harriet's claws thrashing against her arm, but they were weakening with every second that passed. Meesei's grip was restricting her breathing, and her eye socket was filling with blood. Even if Harriet somehow freed herself from Meesei's grasp, her damaged vision would all but guarantee Meesei's victory. Killing Harriet would be easy, but the duel did not necessarily need to end with a death, and she still wanted to keep Harriet alive.

Now was the time to force Harriet's submission. Her surrender would be just as effective at proving Meesei's dominance to the clan as her death, perhaps even moreso. Alternatively, if Harriet refused to give up, Meesei could just continue to constrict her windpipe until she fell unconscious. It would not be immediately lethal, and enough of her magicka had returned that she could probably keep her alive.

"Surrender, and keep your life!" Meesei shouted, her voice echoing through the now-silent chamber.

For tense moments after Meesei's roaring demand, there were no sounds but the gagging and ever-lightening choking of Harriet's throat. There didn't appear to be any reaction from her except pain as her thrashes faded to harmless swats against Meesei's arms. She started to open and close her jaws a few times, but had no way of talking. With one last aimless swipe across the air in front of Meesei's front, Harriet's entire body slumped. Even her legs buckled under her own weight as the only thing holding her up became Meesei's arm.

"...she defeated her," a voice quietly whispered, "She really is Hircine's champion."

The portion of the crowd that was on Meesei's side started to shout "Victory!" Out of unison, but all as loud as they could. Eventually, it steadied into a chant. "Victory! Victory! Victory!"

The other portion were somewhere between worried and startled. Many had their mouths agape. Thankfully, they didn't seem up to fighting now. Any with weapons in their hands were hanging them low in their grips. Their morale had been shattered.

As Harriet's body went limp, Meesei released her grip on her neck and dropped her to the ground. The end of the fight was met with cheering and praise from her supporters, and silence from Harriet's. She had been arguably the strongest warrior in the clan, someone who her alphas looked up to as a superior; as a leader. But now, she lay at the feet of the Champion, defeated. In front of nearly every alpha in the clan, as well as most of its other warriors, Meesei had proven herself the strongest. The fight had been even, perhaps even weighted towards Harriet due to her ring, but the fact that Meesei had emerged victorious regardless meant that none could reasonably challenge her claim.

Nearly as quickly as she had transformed in the first place, Meesei shifted back into her normal form, with the Ring of Hircine reforming back on her finger. Given that it was the only object capable of remaining with a lycan through a transformation in such a way, the nature of her engraved metallic ring would not be a mystery to those attentive enough to notice. As for the other ring she had been holding under her tongue, Meesei took it in her hand and looked it over for a moment. Even just by observing it in the fight, she could tell that it was no ordinary enchanted ring. Its properties were unusual, and its power quite noteworthy. The charge it carried was greater than any reflection enchantment she had ever seen, so it demanded to be studied. For the moment, however, she simply held on to it, as there were other matters for her to attend to.

Despite her victory, Meesei was quite obviously injured. She was bleeding from the side of her snout, and there were sizable gashes on her arms. With the fight over, the pain would hit her soon, but she still did not prioritize dealing with her own wounds. Instead, she knelt down beside Harriet. Her windpipe was now open, allowing air to pass through once again, but Meesei needed to ensure that she actually started to breathe again. If her breathing resumed quickly, there would be no damage to her mind. In the time that she had spent in her wolf form, Meesei's magicka had recovered enough for it to be used again. She started by placing her hands on her chest, then targeting her restoration magic towards her diaphragm to prompt it to fill and release the lungs once more. Most of the time, the body would be set back to its natural rhythms if magic could be used to start the process. As with any serious injury, there was always a possibility of death, but as long as Harriet was properly monitored, she could live. Meesei stopped the bleeding from her neck and eye, then stood back up and directed her attention to a few of the healers who were present. "Keep her alive, but have her shackled, and make sure she is under guard at all times. It is not yet her time to die."

Finally, Meesei turned to Harriet's alphas. They had supported her, despite the nature of the allegations against her. However, that did not necessarily mean they were all enemies to the clan. If Harried had indeed been corrupted by Clavicus Vile, then it was possible that some of her alphas were corrupted as well, but Meesei doubted that all of them could have been corrupted. With any conspiracy, the more individuals involved, the greater the chance for failure. If even one of them resisted corruption, then that person could reveal the entire plan. More likely was that Harriet had commanded them through respect. They followed her strength and leadership, so they could not imagine that Harriet would betray the clan. But, if that was the case, then Meesei might too gain their loyalty. They respected Harriet's strength, but Meesei had just proven herself the stronger. It would not be immediate, but if she approached them with the same strength and ferocity that Harriet had shown them, they might come to accept their Champion.

"Through the trial of combat, Hircine's will has been shown. Are there any who would challenge this outcome?" Meesei asked the crowd, though her eyes were on Harriet's followers.

Where Harriet's breathing had been a whistling wheeze, Meesei's magic helped to open her throat up again. It started with a sound like a long, constricted gasp, but by the second breath, she appeared stable. At this point, her body began to contract until she was in Orc form again. Just as well, as her beast form might have been too heavy for the stretcher that the healers had brought out to pick her up.

Meesei's offer came with no counter-challenge from any in the audience. Swords were slid back into scabbards, shields were slung over backs, and hammers were rested by their heads on the ground.

A section of the crowd once again parted for Najirra. He was supported by his daughters again, but he gently brushed them off and gestured for them to wait at the edge of the dais as he shuffled the rest of the way to Meesei on his own, limping on his cane. He had a serious face as he walked up to Meesei, but he was not as disappointed or cross as his exit had been. "Champion, thank you for staunching this wound. This one was afraid that this floor would be riddled with the dead my the end of the hour. If I may," Najirra raised one hand up to Meesei's wounded arm and began to speed up the healing process with his own yellow restoring light. "For such grievous crimes, Harriet would be put to death, but these eyes can see a different fate for her on your mind. What fate would you have for her, and for the clan?"

All the eyes in the room were on Meesei, expecting an answer. Indeed, the fight was meant to be to the death.

"Indeed, the only fate for a traitor is death." Meesei answered. She combined her own magic with Najirra's to stop the bleeding on her arms and snout almost immediately. Though, it would take longer to mend the wounds entirely. All of the crowd, even Harriet's supporters, were looking to her for her decision. Without an Alpha, Meesei was now the strongest symbol of authority they had, so they would follow her direction. Of course, she still intended to replace Jerrick with a new Alpha, instead of herself, but that decision would likely take a few days, perhaps longer. For now, she needed to give her answer on how they would resolve the final details of this terrible episode in the clan's history.

"But, before her death can come, I need to examine her. I mentioned before that her mind could potentially be under the influence of Clavicus Vile's magic. If that is the case, then it would not have been Harriet who performed the betrayal. Her body would simply have been a puppet to the Daedra's will. To kill her under those circumstances would not be right. However, if her mind was her own, and the betrayal her choice, then she will receive her execution, after I have time to interrogate her. As for the method the method of execution, and who will carry it out, I do not believe I should be the one to make those decisions, even though I have the authority. Jerrick, from all I have heard, was an honorable man. In enough time, I am certain we would have become friends, but I knew him for only less than a day before his death. Ultimately, when he died, I lost an ally. But you, all of you, his brothers and sisters; the members of this clan, you all lost a leader. Those close to him, his lieutenants, they lost a friend. And his family..."

Meesei turned to face Vera in the crowd, then walked up to her. "Vera, you lost your husband. Your son lost his father. If you choose to accept, it would only be right that you choose the method of his murderer's death, and who will send her to it." Meesei offered, her tone showing her sympathy.

There were murmurs, but most appeared to be in agreement. They could understand that their enemy could hold great power over minds. It was only just that Harriet be checked over for traces of such power subjugating her.

Vera couldn't quite bring herself to look at Meesei once attention was brought to her. She kept her head bowed to the ground and her hands clasped together. "If it really was her...if she killed Jerrick of her own volition. I think..." She stopped to take a quite breath, "...no, making her suffer is not going to bring him back. If she must die, I do not care by who or how, only that it is swift."

Najirra nodded, "We will leave the remainder of decisions in your hands, champion."

"Hey, Meesei!" Janius' voice sounded from the door to the dining hall, "You'll never guess who we found trying to slink away while all the fighting was happening. A certain Argonian man we've heard about?"

Meesei let out a sigh once Janius shouted out from across the room. The fight was over, Harriet's judgement had been decided, and the crisis, it seemed, had passed without unnecessary bloodshed. But, she could not start to think that her responsibilities were over. There was yet much to do. She had to examine and interrogate Harriet, select a new alpha for the clan, and now, it seemed, deal with one of her potentially-corrupt lieutenants. Harriet still needed to be stabilized, and a holding cell prepared, so she supposed she could deal with this Argonian first.

Meesei started to head towards Janius, but detoured a moment to pick up her clothing and other belongings from the ground in the training arena. Such a quick transformation had snapped some of the strings, but by design, they were easy and quick to replace. She slipped the ring she had taken from Harriet into one of the pouches, then carried her belongings under her arm over to Janius. "Galsek, I assume? Did you detain him? I suppose it would be best for me to deal with him now, rather than later."

As the fight had started, Ahnasha had left the room with Rhazii for his protection. Only now that she had heard it was over did she return At first, she ran up to Meesei with worry, but then calmed once she saw that she was mostly unharmed. Or at least, not severely wounded. "Oh thank Hircine you're okay. Not...that I ever doubted you, of course." Ahnasha said with a smile. It was forced levity, but after all they had been through, she wanted to get away from the constant sense of danger that had been hanging over them.

Kaleeth had been in the crowd for the duration of the fight, and while she approached Meesei and Janius as well, she did not say anything for the moment. Meesei's fighting had impressed her just as much as it had most of the rest of the clan.

Without being asked, Darahil calmly walked up to the dais as Meesei was leaving and began to shout order into the crowd once more. It was merely brief instructions to go about business as usual and that leadership selection would be dealt with soon. The crowd began to disperse now. Many of Harriet's followers seemed listless, but not violent by any means. If anything their state was simply one of uncertainty.

"We tied him up and have been keeping him in a room nearby," Janius said as Meesei approached. "I'll take you there." Janius turned around and walked back towards the dining hall, but not before throwing Kaleeth a quick smile. He at least seemed certain that the main danger had passed.

Fendros stayed by Meesei's side. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Ahnasha and Rhazii unmarked by the incident. "Are you all okay? It was a rush to get out back there. I was afraid someone might be trampled."

Behind Ahnasha, Sabine quietly crept up to everyone and managed a small smile at them. "Is it over?" she asked. The movements of her mouth revealed a small bruise on her cheek.

Janius pointed it out while they walked. "What happened to you?" He asked Sabine half casually.

Sabine rubbed her cheek, "I got hit by an elbow. It was an accident." She walked closer to Meesei and looked up at her with a worried frown, "Are you hurt?"

It wasn't long before Janius brought them to an empty room containing only Lorag and a tied up Argonian man. The Argonian hissed at the sight of Meesei, but was otherwise helpless where he sat bound in ropes. Despite it being the first time that the whole pack had been gathered in one place since the day they arrived, Sabine, Fendros, and Janius didn't know what to do with themselves.

"What are you all here for? Did you all want a quarter of Galsek as a souvenir? You'll all be punished for this!" Galsek struggled, but got no closer to freeing himself.

On their way to the room Janius was leading them to, Meesei looked down to Sabine and gave a light smile, even as she put her hand over her wounded arm and winced due to the stinging pain. "Honestly, I would be lying if I said I was not, but I will be fine. My body has been through much worse before. I just need time...and perhaps a bath." She said with a slight laugh, as a good portion of her body was still covered in blood. Now that she had a reasonable amount of magicka, she cast a spell over her entire arm to numb the area. On the surface, the wound had been closed and the bleeding stopped, but underneath the scales, the muscles were still damaged.

Once in the room with Galsek, Meesei placed down her belongings in the corner, then approached the bound Argonian. Given the possibility that he was in the service of Vile, she kept her posture strong, and her tone serious. Her battle scars were fresh and bloody, which to some, might seem intimidating. She stared him down, ignoring his protests until he finished speaking. "Harriet is defeated by my hand, and her judgment rendered. After I have the opportunity to appropriately examine and interrogating her, she will face her execution for the murder of Jerrick. No protest was given, even from Harriet's supporters, as they have accepted Hircine's will. And I will say in no uncertain terms that you are suspect as well. You spread misinformation during the investigation, and as Janius tells me, were attempting to escape the ruin during the fight. I have more than enough evidence to suspect you, and after what I have done for this clan, there is no one who will attempt to counter me. So what you are going to tell me, right now, is why you attempted to flee. Unlike Harriet, I have no reason to believe you have killed anyone, so you may yet find leniency for any crimes you have committed if you admit to them. In fact, I promise it." She offered.

Galsek heard Meesei out, leering at her eyes in anger. When she finished, his head bowed down, he closed his eyes, and he sighed through his nose. His tone in responding was not mournful, rather it was disappointed. "So she is dead, despite it all. Just as I thought might happen..."

He paused for a few moments, almost as if he wasn't going to answer at all, but he looked back up at Meesei with just as serious an expression as she was giving him. "So you want to promise leniency? Leniency is uncertain. I want leave to exit this mountain if I answer you. Nothing less."

"She is not dead yet, but yes, it is a guarantee at this point that the traitor will die." Meesei answered. She hoped that Galsek was as much of a coward as she suspected, because if so, she might get the information she needed. Letting him go was a risk, especially if he was actually a servant of Vile, but after a few moments of thought, she deemed it to be worthwhile. After all, Vile's followers might not tolerate failure, so he might expect death from them as well.

Meesei stared into his eyes for a few moments, judging his expression, then crossing her arms and giving a nod. "Agreed, on a few conditions. I want all evidence you may have on your person, in your room, or wherever you have hidden it. We are going to search all of these things regardless, but handing them over willingly will allow you to be released more quickly. You will answer all of my questions to my satisfaction, and only after that will you be released. I will give you appropriate supplies, and then on my honor, I promise we will allow you to leave. If you do not accept this deal, then you will, of course, be held here in a cell for as long as it takes to determine your role in all of this. If you accept, then you can start by telling me why exactly you were trying to flee."

Stepping closer to Galsek, Meesei placed a hand on the side of his head and charged just enough restoration energy into his head to be felt. "Oh, and do not think you will be able to lie to me. There are applications of restoration that allows one to examine the small, involuntary reactions that the body gives when lying." She said, though she of course was bluffing. The techniques she spoke of did indeed exist, but they were not nearly accurate enough to determine for certain if someone was lying. It could give a slight indication one way or another, but not nearly enough to be relied upon. Of course, Meesei had demonstrated that she knew magical techniques that were unknown in Cyrodiil, so it was entirely believable that she could actually do what she described. Galsek had not seen her question any of the suspects in the investigation, so he had no way of knowing that she did not use such techniques. She would be looking for lies, but mostly through more traditional methods.

Galsek flinched as Meesei's magic flowed. He bared his teeth and let out an annoyed snarl as he made his decision. "Fine," he said resentfully, "I answer, I leave. Anything of Galsek's is at your mercy." Galsek pitched his head to one side momentarily to stretch his neck before continuing. "I was leaving for fear of being caught up in your accusations. I know the boy told you what I said to him. Even with the ring, Harriet's hubris was too great to see past her common solution; fighting. I knew she would not succeed." Galsek glowered at Lorag and Janius, "My time to escape was nigh, if it weren't for your worm and your toad."

Far from offense, Janius had to stifle a laugh into a snort and cross his arms.

Meesei's expression was entirely emotionless, giving no visible reaction on whether or not she believed him. Of course, her next questions would give that away. Even if her magic could not reliably discern a lie, her perceptions and reasoning gave her the hint that he was trying to deceive her in at least some form.

"I think there is more to it than that, Galsek. Harriet was known to be perhaps the best fighter in this very large clan. Our battle was not easily fought, and she did nearly kill me. But me, you knew nothing about me. You did not know how strong of a mage I was, or how capable a fighter. You could have learned that I was a mage, but with that ring of hers, it would be very reasonable to believe she could kill me. So, how could you know that she would lose? If anything, my victory should have been just as much of a surprise to you. I was heavily on the defensive until I transformed, and I believe I remember Janius running off before that. Perhaps if you actually believed I was the Champion, then you might think I would win, but in that case, why would you actively try to sabotage the Champion's investigation? Answer me, Galsek, and answer honestly." She demanded.

Galsek spat to one side and rose his voice, "It was a hedging of odds, you lackwit! I happen to know what kind of strength and tenacity lies in one such as Hircine's champion." His voice levelled again, "If Harriet had won, I would come back after a day easily explained. If not, I would be accused. She said she needed defence against magic, I gave her the means." Galsek exhaled, but he wasn't quite done. "Perhaps I knew a little about the Orc slayer that was your ascendant quarry." His voice was intentionally deepened and grumbly, "Perhaps I knew about the fate of the previous champion. That enough is demonstrative of your power."

As far as Meesei could perceive of Galsek's expressions, he was still outwardly angry, but that was possibly an attempt hide small details. He was fidgeting, fearing for his life.

Meesei still believed that Galsek was trying to hide something. In fact, since he admitted he knew and believed that she was in fact the Champion before the fight, she had a very good reason to think he was being deceptive. Already, his story was forming holes. He was already quite obviously afraid, and after she really started to press him, she hoped that fear would force him to come clean.

"My magic may not be able to tell exactly what your lie is, but I know you are attempting to deceive me. Your story's foundation is built upon mud. You just said that you thought I would win because I was the Champion, and you knew of my capabilities. You believed I was the Champion before the trial started, and yet, Harriet's 'defense,' if you can call it that, which she discussed with all of her alphas, including you, was that I was an imposter. They proposed that I, for whatever reason, sought to bring chaos to this clan. And yet, as you just admitted, you believed I was truly the Champion. Not only that, but during my investigation, you decided to convince Caleb that Oswall was the traitor, and prompted him to make an attempt on his life. It was an action intended to cause chaos in the clan, and could have sabotaged my investigation. You are saying you did that, despite knowing I was the Champion. You did nothing to convince Harriet or her alphas that I was the Champion, despite knowing it was true. You managed to get Harriet a ring of reflection in an attempt to kill me, despite knowing I was the Champion. None of those actions suggest you were as innocent as you tried to make yourself appear. I offered, in good faith, to let you go if you answered my questions. No matter who you are, or who you are allied to, I will keep my word, but only if you keep yours. So you need to start explaining. Right. Now. Your motivations, Harriet's motivations. Everything. No more lies, no half-thruths, and I will let you leave this place with all the supplies you need once I have your answers, and am able to search your belongings. You do not want to experience the alternative."

By this point, Meesei was capitalizing on Galsek's fear. She did not shout, and hardly raised her voice at all, but her tone still seemed somehow more menacing. Certainly, she had a talent for conveying emotion without the need for volume.