Standing up Scáthach looks to everyone around them, and bows her head saying, “Sorry for the disturbance it won’t happen again.”

Using her shadows Scáthach places Minabród back on her chair and says, “Minabród your human blood is not to blame you are. You failed Ferdiad.”

Minabród lowers her head and barely holds back tears from coming out of her eyes.

“But so did I as his master, Setanta as his friend, Minagrain as his sister, and Lugh as his king. We have all failed that child in certain ways, and we will never be able to take back the hurt that has caused him, but you must simply find peace in that.”

“Why! Why should I find peace in that? I couldn’t help him, I couldn’t protect him, all I could do was hurt him like a disease, and if it wasn’t due to my blood, and just due to me. Then I don’t deserve to keep breathing.”

“Minabród kids are scary, raising a child is scary. You have to teach another person how to survive be alive and navigate the world.

I have lived three times your lifetime, and the only thing I know is there is far too much I don’t know. I couldn’t tell you what’s the best way path to take in life, or even what’s the worst path.

Yet all of us here are given the ability to create life simply by existing, it is like being thrown into a battlefield naked. It is impossible to exist without failure, all parents will fail at one point in their life, you must accept that.”

“But it’s frightening.”

“I know. We have far less control over our kids than we realize, yet we have far more impact on them than we could ever realize. One out of 100 different small interactions with a child might be the deciding factor of how they end up.

But we get no warning for which interaction it is, we will only find out decades later. It is the most stressful, chaotic battlefield one will ever need to face.

Still, I think it is worth it for the sake of the love it can bring to their and many others' lives, and Ferdiad has brought lots of good and love to many people's lives.”

“But he has cut me off, and banished me away from himself due to my failures, and I am just supposed to accept that? Scáthach, I want to see my boy again, I want to listen to all his problems, and love him throughout them.”

“I am sorry Minabród, but you can’t decide that. Whenever a child trusts an adult, they are given a pass into their life that can only be revoked if that trust is broken. And all of the adults in his life have thrown away those passes.”

“So, what now? Tell me what I should do now!” Minabród says crying her eyes out.

“Wait, and keep your arms open. One day he might fall, and need someone, and he might seek you out. So keep your heart open and strong, always at the ready to wait for him to return to your side.”

“But what if that day never comes?”

“Then take solace in the fact that Ferdiad is doing good enough in life where he doesn’t need us anymore. Because more than anything else we wish and pray for peace in his life.”

As Minabród cries Scáthach holds her. With Lugh peering down at them both from his platform.

Φ While I enjoy the performance unfolding in front of me, Conchobar says, “Sorry but I need to head home now, so we should be getting to the main announcements.”

Medb says, “He is right Lugh. After today all of us will have many sleepless nights.”

“You’re right, but I had wished to allow everyone to enjoy more blissful fun before they heard our news.”

Signalling one of the servants to come over towards me, I say, “Call Setanta, and please prepare both the Conchobar and Medb’s rides.”

“About that. We currently don’t know where Conchobar’s wonderbeast is.”

Looking over to my brother, I say, “Who did you give it to?”

Conchobar says, “Setanta.”

“What?” I say staring at Conchobar.

“Yeah, he came early in the morning to grab it, like he was waiting for me to arrive.”

Turning to my servant, I say, “Didn’t you say Setanta has been conversing with Aurelius since the morning? When did he have the time to go and meet with Conchobar and then transport the wonderbeasts.”

“I wouldn’t know. According to our reports, he has been with Aurelius since before Conchobar arrived.”

Suddenly a surge of thoughts moves through my head, and I say, “Where did Setanta get the extra guards he sent along with Minagrain?”

If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

“I wouldn’t know.”

“Go check!”

My servant starts to run as I get flustered. I look down to Scáthach who is comforting Minabród and then I say, “She wouldn’t be a part of something like this especially after Aoife’s betrayal.”

Péatra placing her hand over mine, asks, “Is something wrong?”

“No, I am just having a few thoughts.”

I look around, then I start to stand up and say, “I need to check something out, I will be back.”

“Don’t get lost,” Medb says in a mocking tone.

But then on the main stage ,I hear them announce something.

One of the dancers says, “Our youngest and most brilliant star here wants to make an announcement.”

Confused, I say, “No announcement was scheduled?”

I look up at the youngest star, and before I can fully recognize who it is Scáthach jumps up from her seat.

The girl wearing says, “Hello everyone my name is Uathach Ní Máirseáil or better known as-.”

From her feet, shadows appear and swirl around the area, and then she says, “The daughter of Scáthach the hero.”

The crowd goes wild, but all of their reaction are far more tame than Scáthach who looks like she is about to blow up.

Uathach then says, “You see I have been brokenhearted recently. So, I plan on playing a fun little game, whoever manages to catch me today gets to decide who I marry. You can make it one of your family members or sell my marital rights to the highest bidder. You all have until nightfall.”

She claps her hands, and soon all the shadows on the floor form into platforms which raise all of the common folk up to where the Red branch is, and soon they start rushing around with a complete disregard of the Red branch.

As the crowds flood the area Uathach moves towards our table, and I say, “Setanta tricked us.”

Grabbing Péatra as the people rush towards us, I say, “We have to move now.”

My servants form a barricade around us, as my soldiers help all of us evacuate away. But then from the sky Uathach lands on Medb’s shoulders and says, “Did you enjoy my reveal big sister?”

Medb says, “You fool! I let you join this celebration by promising you would hide from Mother, yet you went and revealed your existence to the entire empire.”

“Oh, but you’re the one who told me to disregard rules to achieve my heart desires.”

Medb tries to grab her, but she runs past us into the castle, and I say, “We were one step behind.”

“What do you mean by that?” Conchobar says.

“Setanta is getting Aurelius and the rest of the humans away!”

Location: Southwestern forest of Gorias

Φ In a carriage I sit with the rest of the humans, as both Laeg and Ibar drive the carriage through the woods. I look down at my shadowless feet and try to calm my nerves as the humans chat away with each other.

Looks like everything is going off without a hitch.

I look out the window and quickly sit back down.

I then stare over at Aurelius and the rest of the humans who converse amongst themselves, and let out a sigh of relief.

Aurelius then turns to me, and says, “Sorry you had to bring us to Culainn’s during your father's wedding.”

“It is just easier to get things done this way, and besides it gives me a reason to avoid talking to the Red branch families.”

My plan to get Aurelius and the other humans out of here has been successful so far.

First, I got rid of the guards around this area, by sending to help Minagrain. Most people wouldn’t consider it suspicious considering how obsessed with my I am.

Next was securing Conchobar’s wonderbeast, his Hippogriff. I had to get there and move it after Minagrain and the rest had left. The griff is a wonderbeast that is very easy to train to be well-behaved, so I am sure even Aurelius and the humans could fly on it.

After that was the tricky part in which I had to somehow get both my father's spies off of me, and make sure he wouldn’t be able to catch up to me after he realised.

Uathach took care of that both for me. I am surprised to learn she is Scáthach’s daughter and shares the same abilities to make shadows. By taking my own shadow and the rest of the humans she was able to make exact clones of us.

But she also had another use which is her potential for chaos using her family relations.

While it might seem stupid, Scáthach is the only person allowed to disrespect the high king, and her child will be able to allow a beastkin to inherit her godly physical abilities. Many beastkin would even do something like foolish run around the Red branch for an opportunity to marry her.

Now it should be a straight shoot towards the griff.

Aurelius turning to me says, “Nero, Poline, Ukiyo, Mantona, Kyrios, Aurelius Jr. Which one is the best?”

“What are you even saying?”

“I am discussing baby names for when I have a child with my beloved.”

“Don’t get so ahead of yourself, please keep your hope until we get there.”

“I can and will because I trust in you no matter what.”

Smiling, I say, “Thank you.”

Hearing a noise, I say, “LAEG, IBAR JUMP OFF!”

Then I quickly grab all of the humans and jump off the carriage before a whip breaks through the carriage destroying it and killing the two horses in front.

Landing outside, I hear Laeg say, “Setanta what did you do this time!”

“Nothing!”

“I DON’T BELIEVE YOU!”

Both Laeg and Ibar stomp over toward me and jam their feet into mine, then Ibar says, “I will be reporting that you kissed another woman to Minagrain if you don’t tell us what the hell just happened.”

“You wouldn’t dare?”

“You don’t know what I would do. So, spit it out.”

Sighing I throw all of the humans into the air, then knock both of them out, and then I catch all of the humans. “Sorry, but I can’t let you two be complicate in my crimes.”

“What crimes?” Aurelius asks.

“Shh,” I say, as I focus on the sound I hear.

Looking at the source of the noise, I say, “You can come out now.”

From one of the trees Ronald Fuinseog comes out, and he says, “What the hell are you doing Setanta?”

“Trying to save my friend idiot.”

“Don’t be smart with me. You know as well as I do those humans are to be executed.”

I look back at Aurelius and the rest of the humans whose faces of worry turn to fear, but then I smile at them and say, “Sorry but I plan on letting them all escape.”

Ronald activates his legacy on his whip, and then from it numerous briars appear and he says, “We already know how this went last time.”

“You're right about that, but I forgot when being outmatched was a reason to give up.”

Moving forward, I say, “Red branch battle arts; Tulip.”

Then I move around Ronald at high speed, but he moves his briars infused with spirit energy towards me. I try to dodge them, but they're so fast and sharp that I get hit multiple times forcing me to regenerate.

But I quickly move and grab a spear from the broken, carriage and then lunge forward towards him.

As I ward off the briars he says, “You have been blessed with immense physical talent by your parents, but I was blessed with someone more the power of a god. Third bloom.”

From Ronald briar's poison is released which paralyzes Setanta's body, and then around his body, the Briars move to restrict him, and he says, “This battle is over.”