Mermaid's Forest by Rumiko Takahashi First Story: Mermaids Don't Smile Translation by Dan Su Anime Berkeley A young girl is sitting up in her futon (bed) in an old-fashioned Japanese house (complete with paper walls). She seems upset. It is night and outside, strange wailing noises can be heard. Mana: Old woman! Are you here, old woman! Old Woman: You couldn't sleep, Mana-sama? [note: the -sama ending is more polite than -san] Mana: What an irritating sound... It hurts my ears... Kill them all! [the creatures making the sound] Old Woman: It can't be helped... Whenever there's a full moon... The scene shifts. We see a young man strolling along a beach. He seems to have traveled a great distance. Radio: And now for our next request, the Checkers'... [Checkers is a Japanese rock group] Girl1: Oh my God, take a look at that... Girl2: Who is that guy? Girl3: He's so dirty! Still looking at the map in his hands, the traveler asks a fisherman for directions. Fisherman: You're going to Nosurizaki? No road goes there! It's completely surrounded by mountains. The seashore is rocky So you can't get there by boat either! Traveler: I'm going to crawl into the center of those mountains... Lady: What are you going there for? Fisherman: Nobody lives there! Traveler: That's good! Fisherman: What are you really up to? There's nothing there! Traveler: I'm looking for something! MERMAIDS! Fisherman: Mermaids? We catch a glimpse of the traveler's destination. We see a house there. In it, we see Mana eating dinner. Old Woman: Mana-sama, you have grown quite beautiful. I'm pleased. Protecting you up until now has been well worth it. You've never been more beautiful than you are now. Mana: Shut up! You say the same damn thing every day! Mana recalls when she was little... Mana: ( When I was a child, the old woman used to take me in her arms and carry me outside... ) Old Woman: This village is so completely surrounded by mountains... that we cannot even set one foot outside this place. Old Lady1: Mana-sama... Old Lady2: She will become quite beautiful (when she grows up). Mana: ( But now that I've grown up, the old woman can't carry me outside anymore... ) I want to walk... The villagers are having a meeting (Mana is not present). Strangely enough, all of the members are women. Leader: Mana-sama is already 15 (years old)... One of us must die. Ayu. It's your turn. Old Lady1: Yes... Old Lady2: Among us all, Ayu has lived the longest... Ayu may be the oldest but she looks like a middle-aged woman! Old Lady3: Tonight, alright? Ayu: Yes. Later that night, the villagers gather in front of a small pond located in some kind of underground cavern. They are all armed with harpoons except for Ayu. Ayu takes off her clothes and quietly slips into the pond. We hear her scream as the villagers stab her to death. Then we see an old woman cutting off a piece of flesh from Ayu's dead mermaid body. Mana: What kind of meat is this? Leader: We caught a very rare fish. Mana eats the mermaid flesh. Mana: ( Mmmm...This is the first time I've tasted such a delicious fish... ) Mana notices the old woman staring intently at her. Mana: What the hell are you looking at? [literally, "Is a person eating a meal such an unusual thing!!"] Later on, outside... Old Lady1: I heard that she ate it. Old Lady2: Then, was she alright? Old Lady3: Yea, after she ate it, she was still as lively as ever. Old Lady1: Until it has become blood and flesh and spreads all over her body, we can't really say anything. One of the villagers comes rushing into the scene. Runner: Everybody! Emergency! Old Lady1: What is it? Runner: A man...there's a man!! Old Lady4: What? A man?! Somewhere in the woods, the traveler is examining a tree. Traveler: What's this? Isn't this a mark from an edged (sharp) tool? There are people here. Old Lady1: What have you come here for? Traveler: I'm not looking for trouble. [literally, "I'm not a suspicious person"] Old Lady4: Are you lost? Old Lady1: Do you have company? Old Lady2: If you were to disappear, would anyone come looking after you? Traveler: Nope. I'm all by myself... Apparently, that was the wrong thing to say. The old women waste no time in stabbing the traveler to death with their harpoons. Old Lady3: He's dead. Old Lady: Let's throw him into the "Narisokonai" lair. ["Narisokonai" literally means "one who has failed to become ." Please keep this in mind as you read on.] Old Lady: He'll be completely devoured. Not even his bones will be left. The old women dump his body in a pit. A mermaid corpse lies beside him. The traveler revives. Traveler: ugh...shit...those old women... My stomach and intestines are riddled with holes... Where the hell am I? He notices the mermaid corpse. Traveler: ..... Back to Mana... Mana: I can go...outside? Old Lady1: Yes. You can sit on this palanquin. OK. Old Lady2: Mana-sama... They hear running footsteps outside. Old Lady4: Somebody's... Leader: What is it!! The traveler enters, carrying the mermaid corpse on his shoulder. Old Lady1: Y-you... Old Lady2: You're supposed to be dead! Traveler: Hi there! Thanks for taking care of me back there. I'd like to tell you some of my complaints... But first, there's something I've got to ask you. It's about mermaids! The traveler throws the decapitated mermaid corpse in front of the old women. Old Lady2 (in terror): Hiiii! Mana: How rude! Just what do you think you're doing? Traveler: Whoa! Mana throws a teapot at the traveler. He dodges it and notices a harpoon where his body used to be. A group of old women are trying to kill the traveler. Leader: Kill him! Quickly! Traveler: Geez, what are you thinking? You'll be taken in for murder (by the police). Old Lady1: Stay back! Traveler: Out of my way, you hag! The traveler grabs a harpoon and holds Mana hostage. Traveler (to Mana): Be nice, now. (don't move) Old Lady1: Ah... Old Lady: Mana-sama! Traveler: Now we can sit down, have some tea, and have a long talk. Leader: L..let her go! You mustn't touch her! Traveler: I can't do that. I'm going to take this young lady along as my hostage. The traveler tosses Mana's blanket aside (Mana is still in bed). Traveler (surprise): Ah... Mana's feet are shackled! The traveler carries Mana on his back (piggyback). Old Lady: What are you doing? Traveler: This is what I'm doing! Later! Old Lady: Mana-sama! Mana: Let me down, you bastard! Mana is trying to choke the traveler. Traveler: Isn't there any good in you? What will you do if I die? The chase is on. The old women are throwing harpoons at the traveler. One of the harpoons grazes Mana's face. Traveler: What the hell?! They're trying to kill both of us?! Old Lady: Give her back!! Give Mana-sama back!! The traveler and Mana find refuge in the Narisokonai den. Traveler: You've had these shackles on for as long as you can remember? Geez...what are they trying to do to you... The traveler is cutting away Mana's shackles. Mana (straining): Uh... Traveler: Does it hurt? Hold on a little bit longer. At last, Mana's feet are free. The traveler tears away part of Mana's kimono and uses it to bandage her bleeding ankles. Traveler: We should do something about your face too. The traveler soaks a cloth in the pond. Traveler: It's salt water so brace yourself. (this is going to sting) Damn, it's (the wound) all covered with blood. There was a lot of blood but the wound isn't serious. It'll heal soon. Mana: Where do we go from here? Traveler: We're not going anywhere. Because I finally found a mermaid. Mana: A mermaid...? Traveler: It was dead though. Mana: Oh, you mean that headless corpse? Mana said that line rather casually. Traveler: ... ( scary woman... ) Mana: And what will you do after you find a mermaid? Traveler: I ate mermaid flesh... It was several hundred years ago... "I was a fisherman...One day, we picked up a peculiar meat (flesh)..." Fisherman: Isn't this the mermaid flesh I've heard so much about? Fisherman2: Mermaid flesh is said to contain the secret of eternal youth and longevity. "Just for fun, we ate it...However..." One of the fishermen turns into a hideous monster. Fisherman: Ugh...AAARRGHH!!! Others: Uwaa!! "One man died. The next day, another man coughed up blood and died. One by one, my friends who ate the mermaid flesh died. I was scared." Traveler: I don't want to die... "But I didn't die... I found a wife and I lived my life, forgetting all about about the mermaid flesh. After twenty years, my wife said..." Wife: I'm afraid of you. Even though I grow old, you remain young. Old Wife: If you eat mermaid flesh, you will have eternal youth and longevity, Yuhta. Yuhta: Not only will I live forever, but Even if I receive fatal wounds, they quickly heal. I'm scared of myself... Old Wife: You must see a mermaid. If you meet one, you could ask her how to change back into a human being. I'm not sure, but all I know is that only a mermaid can help you. Yuhta: ..... "I left my village...in search of mermaids..." Yuhta: You probably don't believe me... I've been wandering around for several hundred years. Oh, she fell asleep... Even though someone was telling his story... But Mana is only pretending. Mana: ( Why... Why did they throw their harpoons at me? ) Old Woman: Mana-sama, you are so precious to us. [idiom: "You are our treasure"] Old Woman2: We would sacrifice our lives to protect you. Mana: ( I don't understand... Now they don't care if I die? ) Mana and Yuhta hear something coming...It's a Narisokonai! Yuhta attacks the monster with his harpoon and sickle but the monster keeps coming. Yuhta: It's no use. It's not working at all! Mana: It's futile. The only way to kill this beast is by using poison. Yuhta: Poison? How the hell are we going to get some poison??? Meanwhile, outside, a young lady is looking for the two. She hears Mana's cry for help. Lady: ( Narisokonai... It has come out?! She dips her harpoon in poison and runs to the Narisokonai pit. Lady: Mana-sama!! The lady stabs the Narisokonai with her harpoon. The monster manages to knock the lady down before it runs away. Yuhta: ..... Hey... Lady: You don't have to worry anymore, the harpoon I stabbed him with was dipped in poison... It will die soon... Mana-sama, let's go home... That's not the only Narisokonai... Mana: ..... Yuhta: Nari...sokonai? It was the same. Mana: The same? Yuhta: My friend who ate the mermaid flesh and turned into a monster...that thing was the same kind of monster... Anyways, we'd better get out of here. If I can get this lady some medical treatment quickly she'll make it... Yuhta carries the lady on his back. Yuhta: Wait for me. After I drop her off, I'll come back for you. Mana: I want to walk by myself... Yuhta: That's impossible. Your feet have been shackled for some ten years. To be able to walk, not to mention stand up... Nevertheless, Mana tries to stand up. She falls. Yuhta: ..... OK? I'm going to carry this lady to the village. Stay here. Don't move. You can't move, but I thought I'd say that anyways. Yuhta arrives at the village. Leader: What happened to Mana-sama? Yuhta: Drop those harpoons! If you kill me, you'll never find out where Mana-sama is!! Leader: ..... Somebody attend to Kajika's wounds. [By the way, "Kajika" is a type of fish - a bullhead/sculpin] Two young women come out to take care of Kajika. They bear a striking resemblance to her. Yuhta: ( Three sisters...? ) They all go inside to have a talk. Yuhta: This is a very strange village...all women... Also, when I take a close look at them, These old women's faces are so similar... They give me the creeps... Leader: Who are you? Why are you looking for mermaids? Yuhta: Sorry you went to the trouble of giving me some tea. Yuhta throws his teacup at the ground, breaking it into pieces. Leader: It wasn't poisoned. Yuhta: It wouldn't matter anyways. Yuhta cuts his arm with a shard of the teacup. The wound completely heals after a few moments. Leader: You ate mermaid flesh? Yuhta: I want to be human again. Leader: If you were to meet a mermaid, she would be able to help...? Yuhta: Yes. That's what I heard. Leader: Is being eternally youthful so painful? If you want to die I could cut off your head. That way, you wouldn't have to see a mermaid. Yuhta: Stop joking around. I'm saying that I want to age normally and eventually die of old age. Leader: Where is Mana-sama? Yuhta: You know. Where the mermaid was.... At the entrance to the Narisokonai pit, Mana is struggling to stand up. Mana: I should be able to walk... Because I was able to stand up... With the support of a tree, Mana manages to stand up. Mana: I can walk... I can walk! Yuhta is still talking to the village leader. Yuhta: What is Mana-sama to you all? Why did you keep her legs shackled? You know that "Narisokonai" in that pit? That was the wreck of what was once a human who ate mermaid flesh. Am I wrong? Leader: You seem to know a lot of things, young one. Yuhta: Don't mess with me. This year I turn 500 years old! Mana is hobbling along in the woods. Kajika: Mana-sama? We've been looking for you. Mana: Kajika...are your wounds OK? Kajika: Yes, completely. Kajika helps Mana. Mana: It's alright. I'll walk by myself. The leader of the village continues her explanation. Leader: Mana-sama's "youth"... is the "youth" of the women of this village... Just as humans become forever young when they eat mermaid flesh, when mermaids eat human flesh they are reborn young. Yuhta: Say what? All the old women of this village are...mermaids? You've got to be kidding. Leader: ..... We can't eat just ordinary human flesh... Only the flesh of a young girl that has gained eternal youth from eating mermaid flesh. For this purpose, once every few decades or so, we leave the village to obtain a baby girl. But mermaid flesh can also be a terrible poison. Most of the young girls either underwent a violent "transformation" or, if their bodies couldn't endure it, they died... Even if they escape death, they will become "Narisokonai", hideous creatures that live forever. Yuhta: What in the world? You mean that monster in the pit... Leader: But Mana-sama is perfect... Yuhta: In other words, Mana-sama was raised as food for you (mermaids)? How disgusting! There's no way I'm going to hand her over to you guys! Mana: Let me go! What are you doing?! Mana is being prodded along by a group of old women with harpoons. Her hands and arms are tied up. Yuhta: Mana! Why... Yuhta is impaled by a harpoon from behind. He gets rid of the attacker. Leader: I'm sorry to say... There is no way for you to return to human. Yuhta: Huh? Leader: "If you meet a mermaid, she might be able to do something for you..." What that really means is that if you use a mermaid's poison, you can die. The poison that is made from letting a mermaid's carcass rot in a poisonous herb... That is what that harpoon is covered with... The leader points to the harpoon impaled in Yuhta's body. The group of old women carry Mana off. Mana: Let me go!! Let me go!! Yuhta: Huh... You think I'm going to die...in this kind of place?! Yuhta rescues Mana and brings her over to a shed. Yuhta: Mana! Fire! Yuhta splashes some old women with gasoline and Mana lights them on fire. Then they run away. Old Lady: Now what do we do? Leader: Just stay calm. We should take our time and follow the blood tracks. That man won't last too long. (can't go too far) Yuhta and Mana are still trying to run away. Yuhta: If I don't make it, just like when you were a child... (I want you to leave) Mana: There's no way out of this village. They're going to eat my flesh? I can't believe it... Yuhta: I don't want to believe it myself. And the fact that all those dirty old women are mermaids... Only made me want to not believe it more. No dreams, no hope... [Yuhta is referring to his dream of becoming human again] Yuhta falls down. Yuhta: (Go find) a place...to hide... Mana takes Yuhta to a pit. Yuhta: We won't be running into another Narisokonai will we? Mana: It's a different pit. Yuhta: ( The smell of salt... ) The pits around here are all connected to the sea, aren't they? Mana: Yea. Because of that, when these pits are filled with salt during every new moon or full moon, the Narisokonai are chased up the pits and wail. That's what the old women said... Yuhta: Push me... I'm going to pull out this harpoon... Mana pushes him against the wall and drives the harpoon out of Yuhta's body. Yuhta: Oh...OK... Now...suck out..the poison... Mana obligingly does so. After she's done, Yuhta is still lying still. Mana: Is he dead? Meanwhile, just outside... Old Woman: We've let them take refuge in one of the pits... What do we do now? Should we go in and look for them? Leader: No. All the pits are connected. Sooner or later, a Narisokonai will find them. It seems Mana can hear the old women talking. Mana: ( Narisokonai?! The pits are connected...? ) Old Woman: What if she is eaten by a Narisokonai before we find her... Leader: Shall we open the floodgate? Old Woman: The mountainside lake's floodgate? Leader: Yes. We should let the water flow into the pits. There's only one exit to the sea. We should wait there. Old Women: What about the village? If we open the floodgate, the village will be destroyed. But... Mana: If they don't eat my flesh now, they'll probably have to wait another several hundred years... Mana picks up a harpoon and fights the Narisokonai coming towards her. Yuhta is still out cold. Outside, the floodgates are opened and the rushing water runs through the village. The flood enters the pit and flushes Mana and Yuhta out into the sea, where the old women are waiting. Old Women: Here they come! Yuhta is awake now. Mana is unconscious. Both of them are underwater. Yuhta sees an approaching group of mermaids. Yuhta: Mermaids?! Uwaaa!!! One of the old mermaids swims up and sinks its teeth into Mana's arm. The old mermaid is instantly transformed into a young mermaid. The mermaid seems to have been reborn in Mana's likeness. Yuhta: Mana?! Why you... Mana's face... The face of the woman who bit Mana, as... Yuhta thrusts his harpoon right into the mermaid's face. Yuhta fights his way to the surface. He puts Mana down on the seashore while he goes back to fight the mermaids. The leader of the village (in human form) approaches the unconscious Mana, with harpooon in hand. Mana wakes up in time to notice the harpoon at her throat. Leader: You shall be eaten! Yuhta: Old woman, damn you!! Leader (to Mana): If you survive, what will you do? Mana pushes the old woman away from her. Mana: You think I'm going to allow myself to be eaten?! Leader: Compared to the pain of living forever and wandering about without associating with people, dying here and now is the only relief. Mana: I will live! I will not be killed! Leader: ..... Is it too late? Going back to the true character of mermaids, These mermaids that were unable to eat your flesh... they can no longer return to human form. Mana: Why didn't you try to eat me? Leader: That's because I am the same as you two... The old woman is crying. Leader: Because I am a human that ate mermaid flesh. This is the only place where this silly old woman can live. Together with mermaids... Without any kind of joy, without laughter, without sadness, just living... Yuhta: I'm taking Mana with me... Leader: I will stay here... until I rot... Somewhere far, far away from mermaids, on a cliff overlooking a small seaside town... Yuhta: Once in a while, there are fun things to do in life. Since it's too long, it's not something you would call, "life". Mana: Is there anything painful? Yuhta: Rarely. Yuhta takes Mana's hand. Yuhta: Well, until we get sick of it, let's live. It can't be that bad. ---End of First Story