The Sea Witch lived at the edge of a dark place called Gooba.
Its swirling waters were known to swallow up all kinds of creatures.
Most sea folk were afraid to swim near it.
They'd heard scary stories about curious mermaids who swam too close to Gooba and never returned home.
"Grandmother told me about the home of the Sea Witch when I was small,"
the Little Mermaid thought as she swam along.
"But it can't be that awful."
"Stop, Princess," a small fish suddenly cried out.
"Do not go to that terrible place."
"Don't worry, little fish," said the Little Mermaid.
Then she thought to herself, "The Sea Witch will grant my wish.
I just know she will."
The lovesick mermaid swam on and entered the gloomy realm of the Sea Witch.
"This place is as ugly as the Sea Kingdom is beautiful," she said to herself.
Instead of gleaming, white sand, the sea floor here was dark and slimy.
Mud seeped from every hole and every crack.
"Where are the sea flowers?" wondered the Little Mermaid.
"Where is the seaweed?"
"Get out of Gooba, Princess," hissed a snake from the mouth of a cave.
"Who's that?" asked the frightened mermaid.
The snake vanished into the darkness of the cave.
All of a sudden, the Little Mermaid saw twirling cones of water, twisting this way and that.
The cones were swallowing up everything within reach.
Anything that became caught in the churning water was sucked down into the mud.
"I am not afraid," she said to herself.
"My strong tail can take me around the danger easily."
And she swam around each cone of whirling water in her path.
Next she came to a muddy forest of thin trees with bony branches.
Each long branch had twigs that moved like fingers, grabbing anything nearby.
The trees' sticky fingers held fish bones and pieces of wood from sunken ships.
The skeletons of drowned sailors hung from the tree branches.
"Oh dear," thought the Little Mermaid, "the trees never let go of their victims!"
Terrified, she stopped.
"I don't think I can do this!" she cried.
Her little heart thumped with fear and she almost turned back.
But then she remembered her Prince.
"For the sake of my love," she thought, "I must go on."
Before she entered the forest, the mermaid braided her flowing hair close to her head.
Then she darted through the water like a nimble fish.
The slimy branches stretched out their fingers to seize her.
But she was too fast.
They could not catch her.
Finally she reached a clearing in the sea forest.
Fat worms stood guard and long snakes slithered about.
The Little Mermaid saw a shack built of bones.
The Sea Witch was sitting in front, picking her teeth with a seashell.
With her tangled hair and beady eyes, she looked horrifying.
At her feet sat a dozen pet frogs, croaking at her.
"Welcome, Little Mermaid.
I was expecting you," said the Sea Witch.
"And I know why you are here.
You want to be a human.
What a very foolish idea!"
Then the Sea Witch began to laugh.