After a brutal winter, Rhiannon came to Dòmhnall with the news that she was with child again. He was overjoyed, but at the same time, he was worried Rhiannon would get darker as she grew more powerful. It had been five years since Micheáilín was born. Surprisingly, her promiscuity stopped when she met Dòmhnall. There were days that Dòmhnall did not know who he was married to. There were times when Rhiannon acted like Jezebel. Dòmhnall prayed every day that was not the case, for he had seen that his God is stronger than his wife ever was or ever would be.

" Mamaí, will it hurt?"

"It will, my little rose."

"Did it hurt when I was born?"

"Yes, But it was a beautiful pain."

"Will this baby be a ruler, too?"

"I don't know. Only time will tell. The same thing goes for when you will be queen."

When her time came, Micheáilín tried to help her mother as much as she could. While Dòmhnall was there to catch the baby, Micheáilín was there to comfort her mother and wipe a cold cloth on her forehead.

"It's a girl, Rhiannon."

"My eyes are blurry, Dòmhnall. Is she beautiful?"

"She is, my love."

"She is pretty, Mamaí."

Rhiannon felt another painful contraction coming on, and she screamed at the top of her lungs.

"Rhiannon, you're not done. We're having twins."

"Twins?"

"Mamaí, you can do this."

"Rhiannon, you have to keep pushing."

Micheáilín held her new baby sister while her mother kept pushing as hard as she could.

"It's a boy, Rhiannon."

Dòmhnall cut the cord and cleaned up the baby boy and handed him to his big sister, while he cleaned up Rhiannon.

"We have to give them names, Dòmhnall."

"Let me name them, Mamaí."

"What names do you choose?"

"Áilgheanach for the boy, and Rúadhnait for the girl. She has red hair like you, Mamaí."

"And his hair is brown."

"He's yours, Dòmhnall. I promise you he is yours."

"He has Micheáilín's facial structure, and she gets it from me. I know he's mine, Rhiannon."

Dòmhnall knew the twins were his, because Rhiannon had not gone on her dark escapades for almost two years.

"Hand me the babes, Micheáilín. They need to be fed."

"They sure are hungry, Mamaí. Was I a heavy feeder?"

"Yes, probably more so."

"Come with me, Micheáilín. Let's leave your mother and the babes to rest and we'll go fix supper."

"I'll go pick the herbs, Athair."

The twins were also in Dòmhnall's nightmare, dead on the ground just like he was. Ever since he had the dream, he prayed day and night that it would not come to pass. He never revealed the details to his family, and he never would.

"Micheáilín! Don't ride off too far!"

"I won't, Athair!"

Ten more years had gone by, Micheáilín had started to grow into a beautiful young woman, and by the time she had turned fifteen, the local young men had started to chase after her. One man in particular had caught her eye.

"Young man, could you tell me where I might be able to water my horse?"

"There is a pond just up ahead. It has good, clean water."

"Thank you. What is your name?"

"My name is Iollan. And your name?"

"Micheáilín."

"And I presume you are the daughter of the woman who we call the Red Witch. Mainly because of her red hair."

"My mother has red hair, yes, but surely she is not the only one in this land with hair of that colour?"

"No, but she is the only one who practices what she may call magic, but what the rest of us know is witchcraft."

"It is not witchcraft. It is something else I have not the words to describe."

"If you want to call it that, my lady. And I also know that you knew where this pond was. I've seen you fish and swim here before."

"Are you always watching me?"

"No, my lady. Even though this land with no name is vast and people are scattered, people still manage to form villages. A handful of us here know of your family, just not you personally."

"I have seen you around, lingering. Never really with anyone."

"I tend to keep to myself. I never really need anyone. However, people seem to have a need of me. I am the apprentice of the local blacksmith."

"I can't wait until the blacksmith is dead. He wants my mother so much, he sabotages every horseshoe my father brings to him, like he wants to kill him."

Iollan offered to ride with Micheáilín to her house, to make sure the local blacksmith would not follow her home.

"You're welcome for the escort, my lady."

"You really didn't have to, Iollan."

"Nonsense. I don't like my master any more than you do."

"Well, I'll be sure to send anything we need fixed or made through you."

"What do you say we go for a ride tomorrow evening?"

"I would be glad to."

"I'll see you at sunset then."

"Sunset."

WhenMicheáilín walked into her house, only her father and siblings were there. Her mother was nowhere to be seen.

"Where is Mamaí, Athair?"

"She headed out for a ride not too long before you got back."

"I didn't see her anywhere."

"Who was the young man I saw with you?'

"His name is Iollan. He is the apprentice of the blacksmith. And he promises to handle our items himself."

"He is the first young man I have seen you interact with."

"He is the only one to have shown consideration and kindness. Athair? Athair what's wrong?"

"Your mother hasn't run out in five years. And tonight, she decided to."

"That one day, some years back, I saw when she came back covered in blood. Athair, you were a lord in the other world, and you are a commoner here. I love Mamaí very much, and I know you do as well. But here it seems like you are a slave to her. Like we are all waiting for her to fall apart. From the time I was born, she has been telling me that I will be queen of this land. But have I been crowned? No, I haven't, and I probably never will."

Dòmhnall agreed with his daughter, and he wondered if his only purpose in this world was to help begat a dynasty, and if his wife even really loved him. Micheáilín had gone outside to bring in water from the creek to heat up for her sister's bath, when the water had begun to turn a blood red.

"Micheáilín, do you have enough water?"

" Rúadhnait, get back inside. Grab Áilgheanach and hide underneath Mamaí and Athair's bed. Go! Athair! Athair, come outside! Hurry!"

"What is it, Micheáilín?!"

"Look at the creek! It's blood red!"

"Thus saith the Lord, in this thou shalt know that I am the Lord. Behold, I will smite with the rod that is in mine hand upon the waters which are in the river, and they shall be turned to blood."

"Athair, this isn't the Exodus! The waters have no cause to turn blood red here!"

" Micheáilín, the water isn't blood red. The water is blood."

"Where is Mamaí when we need her to explain this?!

" Micheáilín, calm down!"

"Athair, we won't have clean water to drink or bathe in for who knows how long?!"

"Where are the twins?!"

"Hiding under your bed."

"The only thing we can do now is go inside and start praying."

When they went back inside the cottage, the twins were scared to death it was someone else until they heard their father and sister's voice.

"Athair! Micheáilín! Where's Mamaí?!"

"We don't know, little ones. Hopefully, she'll be home soon."

"Athair, we need to keep the curtains down."

"Why? What's going on outside?"

As they were looking out of the kitchen window, the sky turned to black and the sun disappeared.

"Athair, there is only one person who could have called this and she is not here!"

"Children, get back underneath the beds. You as well, Micheáilín. I'm going to look for your mother."

"Athair, I'm not getting underneath the bed, who will protect the twins if I'm hiding under the bed?! You've taught me how to fight, I'll be fine!"

"Micheáilín-!"

Dòmhnall grabbed whatever gear he needed and saddled his horse to go find his wife. He hooked a lantern to his saddle to light his way in the darkness. As he continued, he came across the cave from which he entered this world. Sitting at the entrance was his wife.

"Gwnewch i'r annilysau hyn wybod mai fi yw'r pwerus, a nhw yw'r di-rym. Helpwch nhw gyda'u hanghrediniaeth."

"Rhiannon."

Dòmhnall crouched down next to his wife, and in front of Rhiannon was a dead goat, and candles were lit all around it.

"Fi fydd y meistr, nhw fydd y gaethwas."

"Rhiannon, please wake up out of this."

"Fy merch fydd brenhines y wlad hon, ond fi fydd y gwir lywodraethwr."

"Rhiannon, you promised me. You promised your children!"

"Trowch yr awyr o ddu i wyn."

Unhappy with his wife's latest actions, Dòmhnall ran to his horse and grabbed the lantern from his saddle and threw it at the goat his wife has sacrificed to herself. The goat became engulfed in flames.

"Do you hear me now, Rhiannon?! Do you see me now?! What is this madness?! You haven't run away from us in ten years and now you start again, why?! What did we do to you?! Your own daughter, who you claim will be queen of this land, and even myself, have begun to doubt you!"

"You doubt me, Dòmhnall?!"

"You have given me no choice! What was I even brought here for, Rhiannon?! In Ireland, I would married a woman who would have never given me as much trouble as you!"

For that remark, Rhiannon slapped him across the face, and hard. In retaliation, Dòmhnall grabbed her by the throat and started to choke her. And in looking at his wife's face, he saw Micheáilín.

"You have finally realized that I am stronger than you, Dòmhnall."

"No, my love. I realized that I don't have the strength to take my children's mother away from them. Do you know how often I wish you were not a goddess? That you were just some lowly common girl with nothing to live for except to put food in her belly and love her family? The locals call you a witch, a whore, a murderer. How many men have you been with intimately since we married?!"

"None, Dòmhnall, I swear!"

"You see, I don't know how to tell if you are telling the truth. Your own children figure you for a liar."

"Where are you going?"

"Back home, my children need me. And since you turned the sky to light, I won't need my lantern."

" Dòmhnall, don't you dare turn around back home!"

Dòmhnall left his wife screaming but he did not dare look back. He was in a hurry to get home to his children. Halfway on his ride home, he made his horse stop and he threw himself on the ground to pray.

"Dear Great God Almighty, maker of worlds, crafter of stars, potter of people, painter of the skies, sculptor of the mountains, please hear my prayer. Please help me protect my children from the evil my wife indulges herself in. Protect them from the evil that is my wife. In your most holy and gracious name, amen."

He then continued on his journey home, and when he got back to the cottage, what he saw was less than thrilling.

"Athair, you're home!"

"Micheáilín, why are there so many bodies?!"

"It was Mamaí! She tried with all of her might to open the door but I would not let her come inside! When I wouldn't let up, she started killing random people! Look! Over there in the creek is the blacksmith! He bled to death as I watched her cut off his manhood and then light it on fire! The twins and I stayed under the beds until it was all over, then she ran off!"

"I came across her in a cave, she was indulging in black magic, as always."

"Athair, she threatened to summon the dead."

"Lord Jesus, King of Kings help us!"

"She was going to take Áilgheanach and run away with him. She was saying her daughters must die. All of my life she has been telling me I will be a queen, and now she wants me dead?!"

"I don't understand it either, Micheáilín. All we can do is pray."

Dòmhnall had made his own copy of the Bible from memory, including the Apocrypha. He kept reciting Deuteronomy chapter six verse four over and over in Hebrew.

"Hear oh Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is one."

There was a knock at the door, and before he answered, Dòmhnall kept hold of his Bible to keep his wife at bay.

"Where are my children, Dòmhnall?!"

"You can't have them, Rhiannon! They don't want to see you! You have scarred them for life with your murderous rampage! This is the worst it has ever been! And now you want to kill your own daughters?! You plan to run away with our son, kill our daughters, and probably kill me! Over my dead body, you are taking our children! In the name of God Almighty, I send you back to hell where you belong, witch!"

Rhiannon took out her dagger and stabbed Dòmhnall in the stomach. Unbeknown to her, Micheáilín and twin had snuck outside through a window and had started running away, but they were not fast enough. Micheáilín looked back at the house, and saw her father bleeding out.

"Athair!"

She ran to her father's body and hugged him tight, not knowing the twins were looking.

"You witch! You just had to rule everything! You had to make sure all of the prophecies against you didn't come true!"

"You knew?!"

"Yes, Mamaí, I knew! I know of the prophecy that says I will be queen, and for me to become queen, it means you have to die! But no, no! It would have been easier if you had been the one to die instead of the innocents! Instead of my father!"

"This will all happen my way, and no one else's!"

Rhiannon grabbed Rúadhnait by the waist and hugged her daughter to her, and told her to close her eyes. Rhiannon then slit her daughter's throat.

"NOOOOOOOO! Rúadhnait!"

"You know what happens next, Micheáilín!"

Áilgheanach ran to his mother and started hitting her with all of his little might, but Rhiannon slit his throat as well. Micheáilín attacked her mother, and it turned into a violent catfight. Micheáilín hit her mother hard on the head, and knocked her out. While she had the free moment, she went and grabbed her father's sword.

"Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied."

Rhiannon had woken up, and she stood up ready to face her daughter.

"You can't hurt me, Rhiannon. I can never die!"

Micheáilín charged at her mother, and stabbed Rhiannon in the heart. Rhiannon's body writhed like a headless chicken, so Micheáilín cut off her mother's head. She lit funeral pyres for her father and her twin siblings. She did not want carrion beetles to eat at her family's remains. She put their ashes in tiny jars and wore the hard around her neck. At last, Dòmhnall's nightmare came true.

"I don't know who's worse, Mamaí. You, or Jezebel."

Suddenly, the spirit of Rhiannon lifted from her body and went into Micheáilín. Rhiannon's trials were far from over.

"You were the daughter of the Red Witch?"

"She wasn't just a witch. She was the Triple Goddess. And I was not her only daughter."

"You defeated her, you saved us!"

A rush of people came towards Micheáilín and shook her hands and hugged her, thanking her for their lives.

"Please, leave me be! I would like to grieve for my family in peace!"

"Now that the witch is dead, I propose, we name a ruler of this land! And who better to lead us, than the one who defeated the witch herself!"

A flower wreath made of red rose vines was placed on Micheáilín's head, and Micheáilín realized the prophecy had come true.

"My lady, what name do you give this land?"

"The name my father chose. Terebinthia."

As Micheáilín uttered the name, the land split into many islands, with the very land that Micheáilín lived her whole life on being at the centre of the sea.