An Irish Retelling of The Little Mermaid
Listen my children, for I have many stories to pass on before I leave this earth. The most important is the story of a young merrow named Carra. First, we must begin at the very start. Long ago, the gods decided they wanted company. Dagda, the god of life and death, decided to create creatures to worship the Tuatha Dé Danaan, the gods. He drew up mud from the earth, and formed a creature in his image. This he called man. He created a helper for the man, called woman. He breathed life into them, and they lived. They were called children of the Earth and worshiped Dagda, the father of their nation. Just like their father, they were rather stubborn. Epona, the goddess of water, decided she too wanted a race devoted to her. She drew the waters from the deep and created a creature with fins of a fish, and the body of a woman. She breathed life into it, and it lived. She gave it the name merrow, the children of the water. Just like their mother, they were very curious. Many other races were created, the banshees, the Abhartach, but we shan’t talk about those. Many years ago that the port kingdom of Tawnylea was filled with excitement and celebration. King Finnan and Queen Eireen were about to give birth to their long awaited child. Having prayed to the gods for many years for an heir, the couple had their prayers answered. They gave birth to a son named Connall, for he was to be a great warrior. With joy in their hearts, the king and queen presented their son to their subjects. Unbeknownst to them, there was a celebration for the birth of a child not too far from their own kingdom. In the kingdom of Rathanna, Lord Fergus and Lady Aine had just given birth to a merrow named Carra. For you see, the merrow had built kingdoms and waged war just as we did. Carra was born, as her name suggests, with fiery red hair. This was quite unusual for a merrow who was always born with greenish-yellow hair. Her parents knew she would be no ordinary maiden; no she was going to do wonderful things. The children of the water and the children of the earth had long been at odds. The children of the water were all born with the gift of song. Some merrow used this gift for evil, luring men in ships to their death. Sailors were warned of the treachery of merrow, and feared the beautiful creatures. Likewise, little merrow children were told stories of men who kidnapped merrow. Humans were not to be trusted. All merrows were gifted with a cohuleen druith. This cap enabled them to dive beneath the waves. If they removed the cap, they were able to walk on land as the children of the earth did. Many merrow did this, before the men stole their caps. When a man stole a merrow’s cap, she was his. She lost all memory of her past life and was forced to stay on land. Many merrow were lost this way. Both groups grew scared of the other. Merrow, who were once very curious, grew more fearful of anything connected to man. That was, everyone except Carra. When merrow turned ten, they would go on their first exploration. Carra’s five older sisters went with her as they headed out past the kingdom gates to explore the far reaches of the oceans. As they swam they came across a shipwreck. “Stay away from there,” Bebinn, the oldest, told Carra. “Why?” Carra asked, intrigued. “It’s cursed, the children of the earth used to use it before it was swallowed by the ocean.” Carra nodded, and followed them as they swam away from it, but looked back at it longingly. In many ways Carra was not a normal merrow child. She was abnormally curious about humans, always asking her teachers about them. Her tutors expressed their concerns to her parents but they said it was just a phase. Carra excelled at all her classes, especially dance and music. Carra was born with the most beautiful voice that any merrow had ever heard. She was also the best dancer Rathanna had seen. They say that when you saw her dance or heard her sing, your heart was warmed. She was loved by all that met her. That’s why when she started to go out to the shipwreck, her sisters covered for her. Carra adored the ship, there were so many interesting things in the ship. She would spend hours in the ship, looking at the items and trying on the human’s dresses. Her sisters would make excuses for her, they didn’t understand her obsession, but they didn’t want her to get in trouble. Carra would come back and tell them all she had discovered, and they just smiled and nodded hoping she’d grow out of it. Connall too grew up much adored. He was a smart boy, eager to learn. He was rather strange in the sense that he preferred books and music to swords, but his parents never minded. He was skilled in all he did, even swords despite his lack of interest. He was kind and compassionate; everyone knew he would one day make an excellent ruler. Connall also had a deep love of the ocean; he frequently went to the beach to read with his dog Alroy. He knew of the dangers, of the merrow who could lure men to their deaths, but he wasn’t afraid. In fact he was rather curious about the underwater creatures, and hoped one day he would be lucky enough to see one. Connall got that chance when he turned eighteen. As was custom in Tawnylea, Connall had his first voyage on a ship. His father and mother watched him sail away, unaware of what was to come. They had an uneventful voyage for the most part; they sailed to a kingdom that they frequently traded with. Connall oversaw a trade, and they headed home. Carra, who had been exploring a shipwreck, saw the shadow of the boat pass by. Curious, she swam closer to it. When she realized what it was, she nearly swam away. However, she had grown bored with the shipwrecks, she wanted something new to see, so she carefully stuck her head above water. The ship was massive, bigger than she had ever seen. As she swam closer she saw them, children of the earth. They were incredible, unlike anything she had ever seen. She heard laughter, and swam within a couple feet of the ship. These creatures hardly seemed dangerous if they were laughing. That’s when Carra saw him, a tall handsome man with dark hair and sea blue eyes. He was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. He was the one that was laughing, his eyes twinkled with amusement. Someone called him Prince Connall. What a wonderful name. He seemed to sense that someone was watching him and turned towards Carra, but she dove under the water. Suddenly, as if the great goddess herself knew what was going on, the sea grew angry, tossing the boat this way and that. The sky opened up and flashed with fury. Carra heard a lot of shouting as the men on the ship tried to handle the rough waves and furious wing. In an instant there was suddenly a fire burning on the ship as a bolt of lightning struck one of the masts. Carra watched in horror as the ship started to burn. The men rushed to a lifeboat, and dropped into the ocean below. Connall was about to get into one of the boats, but was knocked out by one of the falling beams. The ship, unmanned, crashed into some rocks and Connall was thrown into the water. Carra didn’t even hesitate before diving beneath the waves to rescue him. Grabbing him, she swam to the surface so he could breath and headed to shore. It was a long swim and lasted until morning. When they reached the shore, Carra removed her cap so she could go on the land. Her scales fell away and Carra was surprised to see legs. She wobbled a bit at first, but managed to pull Connall onto the beach. He was breathing short breaths, but he was still alive. Carra sat next to him, amazed at how there was very little separating them now. Besides her webbed fingers and toes, they looked very similar. As Carra sat there she felt love wash over her. She sang to Connall the song of devotion, pledging herself to him. As she sang his eyes started to flutter open. Suddenly, there was another voice calling for Connall. Carra put her cap back on and dove into the ocean, quickly swimming away before she was spotted. Gregoir, Connall’s caretaker found him dazed on the beach. “Prince Connall, thank the gods you are alright,” he exclaimed. "Gregoir, a woman saved me, the most beautiful woman I have ever seen.” Gregoir regarded Connall most strange, and helped him back to the palace. For days Connall neither slept nor ate, searching the kingdom for this woman, but she was never found. It came to pass that the evil King Calbhach, the king of the ocean, heard of Carra’s wonderful voice. She had also grown into a beautiful maiden. He gathered twenty of his men and went to claim her as his bride. When he swam into town, the kingdom shook with fear. King Calbhach was much feared for he had black magic and the power to steal souls. Legend has it that in his palace he had a room of souls stolen from merrow who crossed him. Lord Fergus had no choice but to promise Carra’s hand in marriage. Carra, much distraught over this went to try and see Connall one last time. Two of the king’s men found her and brought her before him. “Why were you going to the surface?” “I’m quite curious about it sire,” she replied quietly. “And it would have nothing to do with a child of the earth named Connall?” Carra’s eyes widened. “I have ears and eyes everywhere dear.” “I-I…” Carra stammered. King Calbhach held up a hand. “I propose a deal, I shall let you go to the surface and you shall try to win this man. If he shan’t fall in love with you by the new moon, or shall proclaim his love to another, you shall return to me and shall forever be mine.” “I don’t understand…” “Your soul. If the new moon comes and he has not proclaimed his love, you will be my wife and your soul shall be mine.” He paused and grinned a most evil smile. “Of course, I must have your voice before you go. A child of the earth is helpless to resist a merrow’s singing, that is hardly fair. Do we have a deal?” With a snap of his fingers a scroll appeared. He held out a quill. Taking a deep breath, Carra signed. King Calbhach grinned widely. He held out a shell, and suddenly Carra felt her throat constrict. A golden light came from her mouth into the open oyster shell before shutting tightly. Carra tried to talk but nothing came out. “You better hurry,” King Calbhach said. “The new moon is only fourteen days away.” Carra quickly swam away as King Calbhach laughed.
Connall was sitting on the beach with Alroy playing his fife when Alroy took off running. When he followed Alroy he came across a woman in a thin, tattered white dress. “Sorry miss, we didn’t mean to bother you.” As Connall looked, the face seemed familiar. “Have we met before?” The woman shook her head. “You look familiar…” As he thought he figured it out. She was the woman that saved him! “You’re her!” He exclaimed, “the one that saved me, what’s your name?” The woman touched her throat. “You can’t speak?” She nodded. “Oh…you can’t be her then. Where are you from?” Carra, at a loss for what to do vaguely motioned out to see. “The sea? Were you on a ship?” Carra nodded. “You poor thing, come on, I’ll help you.” Connall brought her to the palace where she was bathed and clothed by the servants. Carra was only supposed to stay a night, until the rest of her shipmates were found, but Connall was quickly taken by the woman, as was the rest of the palace. She was helpful, curious, and filled with such joy despite not a sound coming from her mouth. She was also a magnificent dancer; no one had ever seen such a dancer. Connall found himself telling her all about his life, his dreams, and his worries. Through hand gestures and writing Carra was able to speak, and through this they were able to have many long conversations. It was on her fifth day there that a princess came to visit from another kingdom. The king and queen had planned the meeting months before, a prospective wife for Connall. In one of their talks by the ocean Connall told Carra that he did not want to marry the princess. He was in love with the woman who had saved him. She had the most beautiful voice he had ever heard. He would not marry anyone but her. Carra’s heart leaped for joy as well as broke in half when she heard this. How could she show Connall she was that woman? The king and queen were very disappointed at their son’s rejection of the princess and pressed him to get married. When he told them about the woman, they were very upset. His father proclaimed it to be a merrow and Connall should forget her. The queen very quietly mentioned Carra, if he liked spending time with her so much, perhaps he could marry her. That planted a seed of an idea in his head that grew every time he was around her. It was her fourteenth day there when he felt himself quite in love with her. He brought her to the beach to tell her. He was about to proclaim his love to her when he heard the voice, the beautiful singing voice from that day on the beach. Before Carra could stop him, he ran off towards it. Carra followed, afraid for what was to come. There on the beach was a beautiful woman, who looked quite like Carra with her red hair, singing. “It’s you!” Connall exclaimed. “It is, I have been searching for you.” “As I have you.” Carra stared in horror at what was transpiring. Something was very wrong. “Come my love, come to me and proclaim your love,” she held out her hand. Connall took a step towards her, but looked back at Carra. Carra had tears in her eyes and silently pleaded with Connall not to go. He looked back at the woman. “Leave her. Come to me, it is me whom you love.” Connall once again took a step before stopping. “I…” he started, his conflicting feelings warring inside of him. “You love me, not her.” The woman said, her voice taking a rough tone. “No.” Connall said forcefully, turning back to Carra. “Carra I…” Before he could finish, the woman had changed shape into a hideous serpent like creature. It lunged at Connall, Carra pointed and Connall turned just in time to dodge the poisonous fangs. Connall drew his sword and swung, cutting the serpent’s head clean off. As it fell it became the head of King Calbach. Carra gasped, and found her voice returned. “Connall,” she whispered. He turned at her voice. “You can speak.” “I was her, I was the woman.” Carra said. “It doesn’t matter my dear, I love you with or without a voice.” He proclaimed kissing her. With Connall and Carra’s wedding, peace was reached between the children of the water and children of the earth. No more did they have to fear each other. When they ascended to the throne after the king and queen passed, they were the most gracious rulers to have ever ruled. When Connall and Carra grew old, they walked into the ocean to never be seen again. It’s said that they are still alive today, and if you listen closely on a clear night you can hear the most beautiful voice singing, accompanied with the fife of her beloved.
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