Whatever anxieties about Meesei's experiment were overwhelmed by her gesture. Sabine looked at the ring in astonishment. She glanced up at Meesei, hesitating. It didn't feel right to have the ring if she wasn't champion. "...Okay," she said reluctantly. She reached out and took the little bone ring before holding it close between the fingers of both her hands. She was nervous about even dropping it.

"So I just transform? Like normal?" Sabine said. She gazed into the eyes of the carved wolf head on the band.

Even if Meesei didn't answer, Sabine knew that there was no special technique to it. She stood up, put on the ring, and started to undress. "Do you need me to do anything while transformed?"

[hr]
Fendros clenched his jaw to hold back his own empathy. Even hints of Ri'vashi becoming emotional after almost always seeing her professional and stony was powerful.

For a moment, Fendros looked away at the ground to think. He closed his eyes and sighed through his nose. When he opened them to look at Ri'vashi's face again, he brought his hand to her tensed arm. "Look, if we get through this war, there'll be a day after," he said with more sympathy than before. "When that day comes, short of Meesei pulling rank or the gods striking me down, I promise Do'rhajul will meet his just end if he yet lives. And after all these years, that day may come sooner rather than later."

Fendros craned his head down to make sure of Ri'vashi. "Are you going to be okay?"