The transition leads to a variation as the verse riff. There are additional sixteenth-note attacks on the G power chord, and it is followed by a triplet flourish before leading to E (with the E power chord back in the higher register).
This melodic change impacts the character of the riff. The half-step relationship between F and E creates a powerful sense of tension—one that is intensified by the B above both notes—and it also connects the riff to the Phrygian mode. The minor-third descent from G to E, on the other hand, is a more consonant movement and harkens to the E pentatonic minor scale (which is distinguished by the movement between E and G). The final variation increases the sense of energy by filling in space with additional notes and adding the triplet.