𝟙 𝕋𝕙𝕖 𝔼𝕧𝕖𝕣-𝕃𝕚𝕧𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕆𝕟𝕖𝕤

In the age of primal chaos, Earth was new and undefined, with deserts, volcanoes, and swirling gases, marking the great void.

From the dull heavens, trickles of water descended, then poured into a mighty torrent, quenching the earth's thirst. Divine waters transformed arid dirt, cooling volcanoes into granite mountains, as life bloomed across the land. Red skies turned blue, marking a new dawn.

From the dark soil grew the sacred oak Bíle, nurtured by Danu's divine waters. Two acorns fell: one birthed The Dagda, "The Good God," and the other, Brigantu or Brigid, "The Exalted One." They gazed in wonder, tasked with bringing order to chaos and populating the Earth with the Children of Danu.

By Danu's divine waters, The Dagda and Brigid settled, founding four great cities along the Danube: Falias, Gorias, Finias, and Murias. The Dagda became known as "The Father of the Gods," while Brigid, revered for her wisdom, taught that true knowledge lay at the water's edge, learned from the Mother Goddess herself.

Those who revered Bíle, the sacred oak, called it "draoi" and those knowledgeable in its ways to possess oak (dru) knowledge (vid) and thus were known as Druids.

The Children of Danu thrived in their four cities. In Falias, the sacred stone Lia Fáil shouted with joy when a righteous ruler stepped on it. In Gorias, the mighty sword "Retaliator" was wielded by Lugh Lámhfada, the greatest warrior among the gods. Finias held the magic spear "The Red Javelin," which unerringly found its target. And in Murias, the "Cauldron of Plenty" fed entire nations without emptying. Thus, the Children of Danu prospered for aeons in their beautiful cities.

Then one day, The Dagda, Father of the Gods, and Brigid, the Exalted One, called their children to them.

"Earth needs your wisdom to guide its people towards virtue," said Brigid. "Head where the sun sets," she urged.

"Why should we go there?" demanded Nuada, the favourite son of The Dagda.

"It's your destiny," Brigid told Nuada. "You'll lead your kin to Inisfáil, the Island of Destiny, and stay until fate is fulfilled."

"If it's destiny," said Ogma, The Dagda's son, renowned for his handsome appearance. He possessed the gift of poetry and language, and devised Ogham writing.

Brigid warned her children: "When you reach Inisfáil, you'll encounter the Children of Domnu, claiming it as their own. Domnu, sister of our mother Danu, is her opposite, like winter to summer."

"Shouldn't we defend ourselves against the Children of Domnu?" Nuada asked.

The Dagda kindly offered, "Take the four great treasures from Falias, Gorias, Finias, and Murias."

The Children of Danu, with Ogma's sons' wives, ascended to the mountains, carried by a cloud to Inisfáil. Banba, Fótla, and Éire competed to name the land.

Night fell over Magh Tuireadh as two armies faced off across the River Unius. Seven years prior, the Children of Danu clashed with the Firbolg at Balgatan Pass. The battle raged for four days until Sreng, a formidable champion of Firbolg, challenged Nuada to single combat, severing his right hand with a single blow.

After triumphing over the Firbolg, Dian Cécht, God of physicians, fashioned Nuada a silver hand, earning him the title Nuada Argetlámh, of the Silver Hand.

Brigid's decree barred any leader with imperfections, prompting the selection of a new ruler.

In a disastrous move, the Children of Danu selected Bres as leader to pacify the Fomorii. Dian Cécht reinforced the alliance by marrying Ethne, Balor's daughter. Bres pledged to step down if he failed to satisfy the Children of Danu.

Under Bres's tyranny, the Children of Danu endured Fomorii oppression. Eventually Miach and Airmid crafted a new hand for Nuada, but Dian Cécht killed Miach out of jealousy. Nuada chased Bres to seek retribution with the Fomorii.

On Samhain's Eve, Danu's Children battled the Fomorii on the Plain of Towers. Led by Nuada, they faced Bres's forces. The Mórrígán and her sisters, Badh the Crow, Nemain the Venemous, and Fea the Hateful, unleashed chaos with their cries. Indech advised Bres to probe Danu's resilience, assigning Ruadan and Octriallach to uncover the secret.

Indech told Bres of the Children of Danu's resilience. Bres ordered Ruadan to uncover their weapon source and summoned Octriallach to investigate their revival. Disguised, Ruadan found Goibhniu, God of Smiths, Luchtaine, God of Carpenters, and Credné, God of Bronze Workers, repairing weapons behind enemy lines.

Ruadan reported back to his father, and in a fit of rage, Bres ordered him to kill Goibhniu. Octriallach found a healing spring tended by Dian Cécht and Airmid, where the Children of Danu were revived. Enraged, Bres commanded Octriallach to destroy the spring.

Ruadan tricked Goibhniu into giving him a Javelin, then fatally wounded him. Despite his injuries, Goibhniu retaliated, injuring Ruadan, who later died at his father's feet. The Fomorii mourned with a great keening, the first ever heard in the Island of Destiny.

Goibhniu was healed in the spring by Dian Cécht and Airmid, but Octriallach and his companions filled the spring with stones, ending its healing powers. Believing the Children of Danu were now mortal, Bres, angered by his son's death, ordered a pitched battle.

The battlefield echoed with the whistle of darts, the rattle of arrows, and the shouts of warriors, resembling thunder. The River Unius ran red with blood, choked with dead bodies. Indech of the Fomorii fell to Ogma, one of many Fomorii leaders to perish at the hands of the Children of Danu.

Neither did the Children of Danu go away from the battle unscathed.

Balor, son of Buarainench, a formidable Fomorii champion, possessed a malevolent eye capable of destroying anyone who looked upon it. In battle, he confronted Nuada, leader of the Children of Danu, in a fierce contest resulting in Nuada's death. Balor also killed one of Nuada's wives, Macha, the goddess of warriors, leaving Dian Cécht powerless to restore their lives.

At the death of their leader, the Children of Danu wavered and became fearful.

Lugh Lámhfada, Lugh of the Long Arm, approached the battlefield against the council's orders. Known for his wisdom, Lugh was forbidden from risking his life in battle. Despite being imprisoned for his safety, Lugh escaped upon hearing of Nuada's death and rushed to join his siblings on the Plain of Towers.

Bres, amidst his Fomorii warriors, noticed a brilliant light in the west.

"A strange sight, the sun in the west today," he pondered.

A trembling Fomorii shaman approached, trembling. "It's not the sun, mighty Bres. It's Lugh Lámhfada's radiance!"

Lugh, in his chariot, called out, "Where's Balor? Let any claiming greatness face the truth!"

The Fomorii parted, revealing Balor seated on a chair, his one mighty eye closed. Lugh's challenge echoed. Balor ordered his attendants to lift his eyelid, knowing its deadly gaze.

Lugh's precise shot with a blood-and-sand slingshot blinded Balor, causing chaos among the Fomorii warriors. Balor's agonizing scream marked his defeat on the battlefield.

The Fomorii were gripped with anxiety as Lugh and the Mórrígán inspired the Children of Danu to advance, dealing heavy blows to their enemies. Lugh confronted Bres as he fled from the battlefield.

"Spare me, Lugh, great conqueror," begged the son of Elatha, kneeling, drained of strength. "I'll pay any ransom."

"What ransom?" demanded Lugh, sword at the Fomorii leader's throat.

"I'll ensure abundant milk from our cows," Bres offered.

Bres offered, "Spare me, and I'll ensure bountiful wheat harvests in Inisfáil."

"Bres agreed to share agricultural knowledge for his life," sparing him as the Children of Danu lacked such knowledge.

After the battle's end, with the Fomorii defeated and the Children of Danu victorious, the Mórrígán proclaimed their triumph from the island's highest peaks, singing a triumphant hymn to the Mother Goddess, Danu.

Danu's triumph brought joy, but Domnu's ominous prophecy through Badh foretold barren lands, lacking virtue and honor.

"In time, your children too shall face defeat. They'll be forsaken, driven into darkness, as mine have been," warned Domnu through Badh.

"The days draw near when Inisfáil's summers lack flowers, cows yield no milk, men grow weak, and women lose shame. Seas devoid of fish, trees barren of fruit, with judges giving false judgments and honor waning. Virtue will vanish, replaced by betrayal and thievery," prophesied Badh.

Indeed, there came that time when the Children of Mil flooded into the Island of Destiny and when the Children of Danu were driven underground into the hills, which were called Sídhe, which is pronounced shee, and in those mounds they dwelt, the once mighty gods and goddesses, deserted by the very people who they had sought to nourish. The descendants of Míl, who live in the Island of Destiny to this day, called the Children of Danu the Aes Sídhe, the people of the hills, and when even the religion of Míl was forgotten, when the religion of the Cross replaced that of the Circle, the people simply called the aes sídhe by the name of fairies.

Lugh Lámhfada, once celebrated as a god of knowledge and crafts, is now remembered as Lugh-chromain, Little Stooping Lugh of the Sidhe, relegated to the role of a fairy craftsman. And, as even the language in which he was venerated has disappeared, all that is left of the supreme god of the Children of Danu is that distorted form of that name Lugh-Chromain... Lepreachun.

Sources: Peter Berresford Ellis - Celtic Myths and Legends