Page 52 of Naga Warrior's Mate

“Cannot match a warrior’s mate bond.”Dernin’s scales rippled with power.“You want to see a real champion?Let me show you.”

Chapter 26

Alaysia

Alaysiagrippedtherailingof the viewing box, her knuckles white as she watched Dernin stumble forward.His movements were sluggish, uncoordinated—nothing like his usual grace.Her heart pounded as Bariv landed another brutal hit.

“Something’s wrong,” she whispered to Marcella.“Look at how he’s moving.”

Marcella leaned forward, eyes narrowing.“The wine.They must have drugged his glass.”

Below, Dernin’s tail lashed out, but the strike missed Bariv by inches.The crowd roared as Bariv countered with impossible speed, his muscles rippling with an unnatural sheen.

“And look at Bariv,” Alaysia hissed through clenched teeth.“He’s moving faster than ever.They enhanced him too.Didn’t they?”

“Wouldn’t put it past Fyret.”Marcella’s voice dripped with disgust.“He’s got too much riding on this fight to leave it to chance.”

Dernin swayed, barely dodging a punch that would have knocked him unconscious.Alaysia’s stomach twisted into knots as she spotted blood trickling from gashes above his eyes.Those same eyes that had looked at her with such tenderness last night now seemed glazed and unfocused.

“We have to do something,” Alaysia said, starting to rise from her seat.

Marcella grabbed her arm.“And what exactly would that be?Get yourself killed trying to stop the fight?”

“I can’t just watch them destroy him!”The words came out as a choked whisper.“After everything he’s done, everything we’ve...”She touched her lips, remembering their kiss from that morning.

Below, Bariv slammed Dernin against the wall of the ring.The impact echoed through the arena, drawing cheers from the bloodthirsty crowd.

“Come on, Dernin,” Alaysia murmured, pressing her hands together.“Fight it.Please fight it.”

She watched in horror as Bariv’s enhanced strength sent Dernin reeling again.Fyret stood at the edge of the ring, a satisfied smirk playing across his face.The sight made her want to tear him apart.

“Bastard,” she spat.

Suddenly, Alaysia noticed Dernin pushing himself away from the wall, his golden scales glinting under the arena lights.Something had shifted in his stance.Gone was the drugged stumbling, replaced by a deadly focus.His hand brushed against his wrist where her hair was tied, and his jaw set with renewed determination.

“Look!”She grabbed Marcella’s arm.“He’s fighting it off!”

Dernin’s tail whipped out, catching Bariv mid-stride.The Jorvlen stumbled, his enhanced strength working against him as he overbalanced.Dernin lunged forward, moving with calculated precision rather than brute force.

“That’s it!”Alaysia jumped to her feet, no longer caring about proper decorum.“Show him what a real warrior can do!”she screamed.

Below, Bariv lunged with his artificially enhanced speed, but Dernin was ready.He twisted aside, using Bariv’s momentum to send him sprawling.The crowd’s roar grew deafening.

“You’re supposed to remain neutral,” Marcella reminded her, though her eyes sparkled with approval.

“To hell with that.”Alaysia leaned over the railing.“Come on, Dernin!”

Her heart soared as Dernin executed a complex series of strikes, each one precisely targeted at Bariv’s weak points.He wasn’t just fighting anymore.He was strategizing.

Bariv’s enhanced strength sent Dernin skidding back several feet, but he recovered instantly, his tail coiling beneath him for support.Blood still trickled from his wounds, but his golden eyes burned with clarity.

“He’s wearing Bariv down,” Alaysia whispered, hope blooming in her chest.“Look how he’s making him waste energy.”

She caught Fyret’s scowl from his viewing box and felt a fierce satisfaction.Let him witness his plans crumbling.Let him watch as Dernin proved stronger than any drug.

“Fight, my love,” she murmured, pressing her hand to her heart.“Fight.”

Alaysia held her breath as Dernin’s tail swept Bariv’s legs out from under him.Bariv crashed to the ground with a resounding thud that echoed through the arena.Before he could recover, Dernin pinned him, his muscled arms holding Bariv down while his powerful tail coiled tightly around Bariv’s legs.

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