Chapter 156 The eye of the tiger

Chapter 156 The eye of the tiger
Koth watched as his father, Mika and Maglo walked out of the forest.
"You are too late, Father, the talisman doesn't exist any longer," he said.
"Oh, I know. We watched from a safe distance. Good riddance, the thing was too unstable; you were right to destroy it," his father said. Warning bells were ringing in Koth's head. The only time his father was this pleasant was when he wanted something, and Koth was trying to figure out what that 'something' was.
"Congratulations, brother. It was quite a victory," Mika said. He walked towards Koth and reached out his hand. Koth was still trying to figure out the play and reached for his brother's hand. They shook hands, and Koth couldn't for the life of him understand what was going on. Then he felt it. Something ice-cold clamped down around his wrist, and he felt drained of energy.
"Koth!" Irin called. He looked down at his hand. A cuff sat around his wrist that shouldn't be there. Tiger's eye. Mika had blocked his magic! He felt Irin's magic swirl in the air and smirked. His father and brother would soon be dead. Something cold was pressed to his stomach. Maglo had walked up to them and pressed a knife against Koth.
"Don't do anything stupid, my lady," his father told Irin. "I believe you have witnessed the Tears of Nee'ndal being used before. I even believe my son was the target back then as well." Irin froze, and Koth felt her magic disappear. She stared at the knife.
"He's your son!" she whispered.
"So he is, and I would like him to stay alive. I would appreciate it if you refrain from using your magic, shouting or fighting us in any way," his father told her. She looked at Koth, and he could see the pain in her eyes. If they were doing all of this, they had something truly terrible planned.
"Don't listen to him, little one. Fight, scream, and run. It will be okay," he told her. All he wanted was for her to be safe. As long as she fought back and made noise, he knew his friends and the rest of the company would come rushing. He didn't care what would happen to him. If she was safe, that was all he could ask for. Irin shook her head and crossed her arms, waiting. Koth swore internally at her stubbornness.
"I knew you would see reason. I could tell you truly love my son. Mika, get the wagon; Mago will keep your brother in check," their father said. Mika disappeared into the woods. Irin moved closer to Koth.
"Back up, I don't trust you," Mago hissed at her. Koth growled.
"It's okay, I know you are scared of me," she told him with a smile. "I will stay to the side, no need to worry."
"I'm not afraid of you," Mago answered angrily.
"Sure," Koth chuckled. "Are you okay?" Irin whispered.
"I will be when I get this fucking wristband off," he told her.
"Don't try anything," Mago said, pressing the knife closer to Koth.
"Don't nick him!" Irin objected.
"Why don't you come over here and wait with me? It will put Mago more at ease, and we need to get to know each other if you are to become my daughter-in-law," Koth's father said. Irin looked at Koth, at the knife, and he could see her jaw tensing as she nodded. Koth watched as she walked over to his father. "I think you and my son make an excellent match. It will be nice to welcome you into the family. It seems I forgot to teach all three of them about the joy of marriage. I'm happy at least one of them figured it out on his own." Irin glared at his father.
"And your way to show him how happy you are is to block his magic and threaten to kill him?" she asked.
"Well, Koth has a tendency to do things the way he likes to do them. This is just a way to make sure he does what is best for the family." Koth ground his teeth, his body itching to fight back. The thing that stopped him was Irin. He knew he couldn't make a move without the poisonous knife cutting him. If it did, he knew Irin would try to save him again. He remembered how she had looked when he had woken up by the lake, how close she had been to dying. Koth refused to put her through that again, which meant he needed another plan.
"Don't think about it," Mago told him.
"About what?" Koth asked.
"About running. Your daddy dearest made perfectly clear that I was allowed to kill you if you tried. After you killed my entire party, I have a good mind to say you ran, just so I can stick the knife into you," the warlock hissed. Koth smiled at him.
"I survived it once; what makes you think this time would be different?" he asked.
"I would love to know how you did that. No one survives Tears of Nee'ndal."
"Except for me. What can I say? I'm strong, powerful, and know all the right people," Koth boasted.
"Fuck off!" Mago told him, giving him a shove. If Koth had his magic, the shove would have been what would have made it possible for him to fight back, but before he could use his physical strength, Mago pulled him in closer and pressed the knife against his skin. Before they could start their conversation back up, a wagon pulled by a horse came from the trees. Mika was on the coachman's box.
"Come along. Time to get back home," Koth's father said. He placed a hand on Irin's back to guide her towards the wagon. Koth wanted to run over and slap the hand away. He watched Irin being led to and helped up into the wagon. He could see her mind was working at full speed, and he grinned. They would get out of this, whatever this was.
"Go," Mago grunted and put a little pressure on the knife. Koth didn't mind walking to the wagon and getting into it. Irin was already there, and he would follow her. He tried to sit next to her, but Mago made him sit as far from her as possible in the limited space. Koth decided he really needed to kill the warlock.
"I think it was wise of you not to bring that sword," Koth's father said to Irin as the wagon started to move. "Not very feminine."
"It's too heavy after swinging it around all day," she said, and Koth's father nodded. Koth did his best to keep the smirk off his face. If they only knew.
The pace was slow as the wagon made its way in between the trees. Koth knew it was a way to avoid the clerics the temples had posted along the road. He also knew that if they continued straight north, they would end up on the road between Behenoth and the northern village.
"So, back to Behenoth?" he asked no one.
"Yes. It's your home," his father said.
"And it's the one place where you can keep a kidnapped cleric of Alesseja without bringing the entire holy temple down on you. And after what we did last night, not only Alesseja's temple, but all four major temples," Koth pointed out.
"Why are we going to Behenoth? Not that I can't appreciate a little family time, but to be honest, I could really use some peace and quiet at home," Irin asked.
"Behenoth is your home," Mika insisted.
"Eh, no. Gahndas is our home. We even have a nice tower waiting for us," Irin told him.
"That was before," Koth's father said.
"I don't see that anything has changed," Koth told him.
"But it has. Now we have you," his father said.
"You can't believe that you can keep that horrible warlock holding a knife against Koth for all eternity, or even for more than a day or two. The moment he stops, you won't have us," Irin reasoned.
"Oh, he doesn't need to keep it there forever. He just needs to keep it there until we get our hands on another tiger's-eye bracelet for you, my dear." Koth couldn't stop the growl that tore through his chest.
"What do you gain by stripping both of us of our magic? We will be useless to you," she asked. She was asking the right questions, Koth thought.
"You are just an end to a means, my dear girl. I have realised I will never be able to control my son in a way where his power will be mine. Too much stubbornness and free will. At the same time, he is powerful, as are you. It has been clear as you have done your journey and eliminated that... thing. Your children will be brimming with power," Koth's father told her. Koth and Irin seemed to understand what his plan was at the same time.