Chapter

Mermaid

On the banks of Sörfolda fjord I saw items supposedly dating back to the dawn of mankind – crude axes and knives. They also showed me carvings near the waterline, claiming they had been made by the mermaid and her sea children. We headed out into the fjord on a fishing boat, and the fishermen called to her, throwing gifts of coins and gloves into the water. There was no sign of the mermaid.

— Carl Linnaeus, July 13th, 1732

The mermaid rules over the sea and the waves and all the creatures of the deep. She is said to have a fish tail instead of legs, a hollow fish-scaled back, and gills. Some insist that there are many mermaids, and even mermen. Seafarers would be wise to give her offerings. She may repay such acts with favorable winds or a huge catch of fish, or punish those who fail to give her what she wants by sending storms or placing icebergs in their path. The mermaid lives in a palace at the bottom of the sea, along with her serving spirits, the humans under her spell, and her sea children – often a mix of human and vaesen. From time to time a fisherman might catch a sea child in his net and raise it as his own. Sea children never stop longing for the sea, often growing up to become excellent swimmers and fishermen.

Ritual

The mermaid dreads metal. Those under her spell can regain control of themselves if their bare skin touches steel. The mermaid will leave a vessel alone if the seafarers throw offerings into the water. Once she becomes enamored with a human, she will not stop pursuing her love interest unless he gets married in a church and wears a ring on his finger.

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