Chapter 124 124

Chapter 124 124
DERRICK POV

The temperature inside the room dropped so suddenly that even the air began to feel heavy against my skin.
A cold chill crawled slowly down my spine as I stared directly into Scott’s eyes, my grip tightening instinctively around the sword in my hand. Something was terribly wrong.
His gaze...
It wasn’t normal anymore.
The familiar warmth that usually existed in Scott’s expression had completely vanished, replaced by something dark, hollow, and disturbingly lifeless.
Then I saw it.
His eyes slowly darkened until nothing remained except an unnatural blackness swallowing his pupils whole.
My fingers twitched involuntarily.
Fear.
Actual fear.
For the first time in a long while, genuine unease coiled tightly inside my chest.
Why the hell were Scott’s eyes turning black?
“You catch on rather quickly,” he murmured softly.
An evil smirk stretched across his lips, one so unnatural that it barely resembled Scott anymore.
Before I could properly process what was happening, he lunged toward me violently.
Sharp claws sliced directly through the air.
Instinctively, I moved aside at the last second, but not fast enough.
Pain burned across my cheek immediately.
“Ouch!” I hissed sharply while staggering backward.
The cut wasn’t deep, but irritation flashed through me instantly.
My face.
Anything involving my face always annoyed me irrationally.
While I was still grimacing from the sting, Scott attacked again without hesitation.
This time, I reacted faster.
Metal clashed violently against claws as I blocked his strike with my sword.
The force behind his attack nearly pushed me backward.
Damn.
Scott wasn’t holding back at all.
His movements were precise, frighteningly familiar, and incredibly difficult to counter because we had trained together for years. I knew his attack patterns almost as well as my own.
Which made this entire situation even worse.
He moved like Scott.
Fought like Scott.
But the person standing before me clearly wasn’t him anymore.
The room erupted into chaos as we exchanged blows repeatedly. Furniture shattered beneath the impact of our movements, wood splintering across the floor while growls echoed harshly through the chamber.
“Who messed with your mind?!” I roared furiously.
Scott didn’t answer.
Not even a blink.
He simply stared at me with those dead black eyes while attacking again and again without pause.
That expression alone nearly unsettled me more than the fight itself.
It was empty.
Soulless.
Like whatever stood before me had already swallowed the real Scott whole.
Eventually, I managed to overpower him long enough to force him against the wall before securing heavy chains around him.
Scott struggled violently against the restraints immediately, the chains rattling loudly throughout the room.
But even while restrained, he kept glaring at me with murderous intent.
My chest tightened painfully at the sight.
Whoever did this…
They dared to touch my Beta.
“What’s going on?”
Lyka’s voice suddenly sounded from behind me.
I stiffened instantly before turning around sharply.
She stood near the doorway, her eyes filled with several emotions at once... concern, confusion, suspicion... but thankfully, none of them were directed accusingly toward me.
Relief settled faintly inside my chest.
I quickly explained everything to her as calmly as possible, though honestly, even I barely understood the situation myself.
Scott under a spell?
Mind control?
Possession?
None of it made complete sense.
“What could’ve caused this?” Lyka asked worriedly while staring at Scott. “Why is he under some kind of spell?”
That was the same question tormenting me endlessly.
Who exactly was behind this?
And more importantly...
What were they trying to achieve?
Scott suddenly began struggling harder against the chains, his voice twisting unnaturally as he repeated the same horrifying sentence over and over again.
“Kill him…”
The chains rattled violently.
“Kill Derrick…”
My jaw clenched tightly.
Watching Scott like this made anger rise steadily inside me.
After several tense moments of silence, Lyka suddenly snapped her fingers softly as if remembering something important.
“I think Delinda is the best person to help us right now,” she said quickly.
But another thought immediately crossed my mind.
“We need Morgan,” I answered firmly.
Lyka’s head whipped toward me immediately.
“What?” she blurted out in disbelief. “You want Morgan involved in this?”
Judging from her expression alone, she looked seconds away from strangling me.
Honestly, I couldn’t blame her.
“I know you don’t trust her,” I admitted while glancing back toward Scott struggling violently against the restraints. “But we don’t have time.”
Frustration roughened my voice.
“I can’t wait endlessly for Delinda to arrive while Scott keeps getting worse.”
I exhaled heavily.
“So please… let me try this first.”
Lyka stared at me silently for a moment before sighing reluctantly.
“Fine,” she muttered finally. “Call her.”
Thankfully, Morgan arrived quickly after being summoned.
The moment she entered the room, her eyes immediately widened at the sight of Scott chained to the chair.
“What happened to him?” she asked quietly.
“He’s under some kind of mental manipulation,” I explained briefly.