Only six of us remained on The Stern Beauty: Morias, Fí, Tadg, Fern, myself, and Tadg’s remaining soldier (Nosy). One of the first things I did after the impromptu funerary rites had been to attempt to officially introduce myself to the soldier. It went pretty well, I think:

Me: Hi. I’m sorry for not introducing myself to you sooner. I’m Bren.

Nosy: I don’t care.

Me: Well… what’s your name?

Nosy: Far Thing.

Me: What?

Nosy: Farthing over your stupid questions.

What an asshat. “Nosy” he would remain.

Tadg partnered with me on watch. Occasionally we would switch positions with Morias and Fí. Nosy partnered with Fern and acted as her navigator as she tried to limp the ship to Gorias as quickly as possible.

For hours we scanned the dark water, searching for the shoreline. I learned the huge island containing the cities Gorias and Findrias was called Emain Ablach. It meant “Isle of Apple Trees.” Tadg was quick to admit that the isle was more of a continent than a true island.

The attack on Tadg’s camp on my first day in Annwn continued to weigh on my mind. I didn’t know who the Fomorians were, and I didn’t understand their place in this world.

“What is it you would like to know about the Fomorians?” Tadg asked me.

“Who are they? Morias said they aren’t actually giants.”

“He’s right. Though in battle they are strong and formidable, they are not nearly as tall as the Fae in the foothills of Tech Duinn.”

I just stared at him.

He sighed, clearly remembering now how little I knew of this world. “Tech Duinn means House of Donn. It is the fire-breathing mountain looming over the Midlands.”

“I saw that mountain when we splashed down in the Pool.” I suddenly remembered that swimming in the Pool was a no-no. “Er…sorry about that by the way.”

He shrugged. “It was an anomaly. My sources tell me that you should have stepped through directly to Gorias from Ériu, if that was Fí’s desire.”

“It was my first time flying Air Fíadan.”

He stared at me.

“It was an airplane joke…Never mind.”

He ignored my comment, picking up our conversation where we had left off. “There are few known Fomorians left in this world.”

“Sure didn’t seem that way the other day.”

The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

“This is true.” Tadg’s expression grew troubled. “It seems that despite the edict from High King Nuada, the Fomorians continue to swell their number.”

“What edict?”

“Many years ago, my father banned the Fomorians from entering their Deep Realm refuge. He also banned them from traveling back to Ériu in order to prevent them from seeding the humans there.”

“What do you mean ‘seeding?’”

“To prevent them from breeding with the humans.”

“Ah…” It sounded like King Nuada was trying to make it more difficult for Fomorians to procreate and age their young. “So, changelings and Fomorians are similar in some ways.”

There was a moment of tense silence, and I realized what I had said and who I had said it to.

Tadg stiffened. “Fomorians are nothing like changelings. Changelings come from the Tuatha, who are born from Mother Life and Father Death. Fomorians are bastard whelplings of a human man.”

I was processing his words rather slowly. It was early, and most of what Tadg said didn’t make a lot of sense to me. But it did seem that he was sensitive about this topic for some reason.

“Who is the Fomorian patriarch?” I was eager to change the subject.

“His name is Neit.”

“King Neit?” I asked, remembering what Morias had told me on the way from the Midlands.

“He is a king from your realm, not mine.”

“Will you tell me his story?”

“If you insist. It is a short tale. King Neit came to this world many years ago… even before the Tuatha came to be. He was a King among men, and during one battle an enemy badly injured him. It is told that he was near death when he fell into the sea. Through some twist of fate, he came to Annwn and the magic of this world changed him.”

“Was he the first human to come here?”

Tadg nodded, seeming to relax a bit with the change of topic. “This was before the time of the sages. It was before recorded history. However, among the stories of their people, he is thought to be the first.”

“What happened to him when he arrived here?”

“The magic of the world gave him enhanced size and strength. It also gave him accelerated healing. They say he formed a stronghold in the Deep Realm, beneath the Well of Wisdom.”

“Did he marry or have kids?” I was still unsure of Neit’s offspring.

“He had several children with human women that he brought to our realm.”

“Morias said that Balor was one of his sons. Who else is there?”

“Elatha, Balor, Corb, and Tethra.”

“You sure know a lot about them.”

Tadg gave a disgusted sneer. “I like to know my enemy. It is Prince Elatha that you will want to know about. He was the father of Bres, the first High King of the Tuatha.”

“How is that possible?” I asked, more to myself than to Tadg. “Does that mean…”

“Yes.” Tadg had anticipated my question. “Prince Elatha and Mother Danu produced a heir, even before the Tuatha were birthed into this world.”

“So Danu is like… your grandmother?” I was trying to make a family tree in my head, but the lines were crisscrossing in my mental image.

“Yes.”

“And she gave birth to King Bres with a Fomorian prince, and then later had a whole bunch of kids (including your dad) with the God of Death?”

“Precisely.” Tadg’s tone was sour, as if this topic was pouring salt into a fresh wound.

“Is that why you don’t like the Fomorians?” I asked, hoping not to make him angry again. “Because you feel that Mother Danu, or the Goddess of Life, or whatever you called her, chose to lower herself to have offspring with a human instead of another God?”

“I suppose if I were being honest, this would be one reason I do not like the Fomorians. But even more than that, I do not like the way High King Bres treated my people and favored his Fomorian kin. I do not like how they have defied my father in the years since. I do not like that they now attack us openly.”

“Why are they rebelling against the edict now?” I wondered aloud. “Does this Cai Maccán have anything to do with it?”

“Some believe that to be true, but time will tell.”

“What about King Neit and Prince Elatha?” I asked. “Wouldn’t they put a stop to anything that might endanger their family?”

“Elatha is dead. He passed just before the Cold Moon, four years ago. But Neit has many reasons to despise my father, so perhaps Cai is his new warlord.”

“What will happen now?”

“There will be blood, certainly,” Tadg said in a faraway voice.

A shout came from the helm. “Land!”

There was a collective cheer from the other survivors aboard The Stern Beauty. But Tadg and I remained silent, pondering the war to come with Cai Maccán and his Fomorian brothers.