Connla- Celtic HeroHero

Birth and Upbringing

Connla was the son of Cú Chulainn and the warrior queen Aífe, conceived during Cú Chulainn's time training under Scáthach in Alba. Before returning to Ireland, Cú Chulainn left Aífe a golden thumb ring and instructions for the child she would bear: when the boy's finger fit the ring, she should send him to Ireland to find his father. But Cú Chulainn also imposed geasa upon the unborn child: he must never refuse single combat, and never reveal his name to anyone who demanded it. Aífe raised Connla in the warrior's arts until no fighter in her land could match him.

The Shores of Ulster

When Connla's finger fit the ring, Aífe sent him across the sea. He arrived on the coast of Ulster as a boy of seven, already more formidable than grown warriors. The Ulstermen were alarmed by the child who defeated every champion sent against him yet refused to give his name. Conall Cernach went to challenge him and was overcome. One by one the warriors of the Red Branch fell before the boy, who was bound by his geasa to fight but forbidden to identify himself.

Father and Son

At last Cú Chulainn himself came to the shore. Emer begged him not to fight, sensing the truth, but Cú Chulainn's honour demanded that he face the stranger who had humiliated his companions. Father and son fought in the waves. Cú Chulainn recognised the combat style he had learned from Scáthach, but not until he cast the Gáe Bolga, the barbed spear whose use only he knew, did recognition come. As Connla lay dying in the surf, pierced by the weapon that should never have been turned against his own blood, the boy held up his hand and showed the ring. Cú Chulainn carried his son's body from the sea, and his grief drove him to madness. The Ulstermen, fearing he would destroy them in his frenzy, had a druid enchant him to fight the waves of the ocean for three days until his reason returned.