A Child Born of Sea and Shore

by Hawki

A year had passed since Ariel had joined the Dry World. One year as queen of Denmark, and with it, the obligation to produce an heir. That should have been simple, even if her friends and family of the World Beneath the Sea had disappeared from her sight. But there were older things than mer in the world. As malignant as bitter breeze, who upon the wind carried death.

1. Prologue: Sister Death

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The Little Mermaid: A Child Born of Sea and Shore

Prologue: Sister Death

Ariel groaned as she made her way through the darkness.

Shadows danced, as if to the music of Chernabog himself, in this place, now scant better than a mausoleum.

Death stalked her this night. The darkness of the sea claimed its children in the end. Why would the Dry World be any different?

What would happen if she passed this night? Under the eyes of those long dead?

"You are dying, Little Mermaid."

Thus spoke the creature not of flesh. She looked upwards though eyes weighed by oblivion. The eyes of Ariel, blue as spring sea, met the eyes of Death. Grey like her sisters, yet only in hers was there cruelty. She carried spear as her father might her trident. Her breastplate remained in place - the Mother Sister, who waged war against a queen.

"You are dying," the being repeated. "Last breath approaches, and we shall take it."

The eyes of Death shone in glee. Joy and spite mixed – the pleasures of the meanest ghost, mixed with the eternity of one as old as the world itself.

"What are you?" Ariel whispered.

No answer was given. Ariel struggled to breathe, and with each breath, the smile of Sister Death grew wider. Her anticipation growing for the moment of closure.

She struggled to take to foot, but there was no strength left in her legs. As weak as a newborn, her eyes filled with fear rather than wonder, as they beheld the Devil and the Prince of Thorns.

"Neither steel nor fire can avail you," whispered Sister Death.

Ariel made neither sound nor motion. Her breathing faded. Her mind retreated, replaying the events of the last eight months within the splinter of her mind. Love, life, and loss, for she could not be saved by litany this night.

Her last breath approached, and Death was pleased. The nightmare that had begun months hither had reached its coda.

And with weary eyes, Ariel prepared for…

The End

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A/N

So, this started out as a oneshot, but it got so long, I ended up making a multi-chapter. The story that I intend to post is about five times longer than the original version.

At this point in time, I don't have much to say as far as author's notes go, but I will say ahead of time that this has taken material from a variety of sources, and even in the context of Disney's The Little Mermaid, it's actually quite striking how contradictory material is (books, comics, heck, try aligning the cartoon with Ariel's Beginning). I'd be surprised if there's any canon sticklers for this IP, but basically, picked and chose how to present material.