Benton opened his eyes with some difficulty, his head was sore yet he had no memory of being injured, he felt a great heaviness in his heart. Confused he sat up to examine his surroundings. he was on a bed of animal furs in what seemed to be a cave, he glanced down at himself and the sight of his red serge brought the painful memories of the previous day back in a rush. He pushed himself weakly to his knees, Meg, he must find her.

He stood swaying trying to regain his balance, a glance around revealed to him that he was in a cave and walking only a few steps enabled him to locate the exit. He pulled back the curtain of furs to reveal a snow covered landscape bathed in the midday arctic sun. His heart sank, yes he was an expert tracker but without boots, food and warm clothing, he would not last long out there, not even with his strength and constitution.

A noise behind him startled him from his contemplation of the icy landscape and he turned to see the arctic fairy. She had performed an illusion to make herself appear taller and more slender, like the wraith who had so mesmerised him ten year's ago at fortitude pass, then again eighteen months ago in Chicago. Surely she must know he was beyond her grasp now, he could never fall for her wicked charms again.

Victoria 's laugh chilled his bones, "I never thought I would see you again, I thought you were dead from that wound in your back, so severe it looked and so still you lay. I was overjoyed to hear from the goblin that you lived. Now he has his love, and I have mine and we can all live blissfully forever together. No one can find us here, we are safe to have all the pleasures of the world. I will treat you like a prince and lavish all my love upon you. Come to me, Ben, my true love."

Backing against the wall, Benton shook his head, surely this was some monstrous dream from which he would soon awaken to find himself in his lover's arms? He sunk slowly down the cold cave wall as Victoria loomed closer and closer.

As the days passed and Benton grew progressively sadder, Victoria realised that her fairy charms were not affecting him. He would sit slumped against the cool cave wall a faraway wistful look in his eyes, unspeaking, barely moving, hardly eating. She knew that he would pine away if she did not move him somewhere less remote so she decided to change her tactics. Summoning her magnificent dogsled, she wrapped her former lover in warm furs and led him to the vehicle. He offered no resistance, did not even grant her a look of gratitude from those icey blue eyes. She sighed as she took up the reins, he would not be able to resist her magic for much longer, not if they were somewhere warm enough to melt the frost from his heart. She would do everything in her power to make him forget the Dragon Princess and surrender himself to her own ministrations.

She had a Lakeside Palace near the Windy City and there they would be married and live in splendour. These musings kept her happily preoccupied as her team of dogs sped across the tundra, her long tresses flying out behind her, her cape flapping in the draft. The only noise, the panting of the huskies and the occasional sob from her prisoner.

"Open your eyes, Ben, we have arrived."

The mountie woke from distressing dreams to the vision of a steel castle with a large picture window. Leaning on the sill of this window, one graceful hand cupping her chin was his beloved Princess Meg. Seeing her wipe a tear from her eye, his heart skipped a beat and he gasped. His cry of "Meg" was whipped away by the wind and his attempt to leap out of the sled were unsuccessful, so securely had the Fairy strapped him in. Much of his strength had faded anyway, through lack of exercise and sustenance. They sped on to the other side of the great lake.

At the casement Princess Meg was stunned to see her beloved Benton being driven in style along the icey forshore by her evil rival Her heart shattered with the realisation that the mountie had given himself over to the forces of darkness. She let out a loud howl of despair and fell to the floor of her prison sobbing .

The Lakeside Palace was truly a splendid place, bordered by the rocky lakeshore on one side and fences of emeralds on the others. Benton resolved to regain his strength in order to free Meg from her prison of steel and to that end pretended to have affection for Victoria in order to gain her trust. She had deceived him in the past, now it was his turn for revenge. As the days passed she trusted him more and more until one day she granted his request to walk by the shore. He had been exercising regularly in the Palace gym and swam daily in the Palace Pool, he had regained his appetite and his strength, affter all he did not know what sort of challenges his quest would bring him. He looked across to the other side of the lake where the steel palace of the Little speckled Man glinted in the watery winter sunlight.

Somewhere in that building was Meg, she needed him, she loved him. He brushed a finger across his lips and relived her kisses in his mind. Soon my love, he whispered, I'll come for you.

"Where have you been, son? Haven't been able to find you for weeks." The gruff voice of his father startled Benton out of his reverie. He was busy brushing wolf hairs off his dress uniform. "I'm not sure, a cave somewhere in the arctic circle, I saw the northern lights there."

"You need help, son."

"Yes Dad, I've got to get Meg back."

"I'm sending you some help son, be brave."

With that mysterious answer, his father strode off into the mist. Benton sighed, why were apparitions always so obtuse? And what sort of help did he mean? He'd only helped him once before and that was with the capture of Gerard. Other efforts, such as lending him his revolver, had been futile.

He turned his gaze back to the lake, it was harder to see the Palace now as the sky was darkening, there was an odd rippling motion in the water too which on further observation resolved into a shape. Benton could hardly believe his eyes, yes by now he should be accustomed to seeing things noone else could see but this mermaid defied all rational explanation even in these vaguely magical times. She had long dark brown hair, a high domed forehead, pale brown skin and an alluring smile. Her voice tinkled with resonant laughter though the content of her ensuing speech was sombre.

"Hello, Benton.Your father has asked me to help you free your woman from the goblin's castle. My name is Elaine. Of course if you happen to change your mind about her, we could always work out a...modus vivendi." With that she winked suggestively.

The effort was lost on Fraser. "Why thankyou kindly, er, Miss-"

"Elaine"

"Miss Elaine, how can you help me?" Fraser reddened, "Forgive me for mentioning this but you have no...er...no legs."

"That's because I'm a Mermaid. I am the fastest creature in the water. Hop on my tail and I'll take you over-" She flicked her long fish tail in the direction of the steel palace, "there. I tell you, I am the sworn enemy of both the Arctic Fairy and The Little Speckled Man. I cannot begin to tell you what atrocities they have jointly wreaked on the Merpeople. I'll do everything in my power to destroy them. So come on, hop on, you can swim can't you?" She laughed again, a merry tinkling sound that gave Benton both courage and hope.

He took a deep breath and climbed onto Elaine's tail.

The wind was up that evening and the waves rolled. Benton clung onto Elaine's tale with desperation, often a wave would roll right over him as she bucked and it took all his strength to avoid getting two lungs full of e coli and all the other strange bacteria which made their home in The Lake they Call Michigan. When they had sailed for some time the waters were calm enough for Elaine to speak.

This is what she told the Mountie; "We are now approaching the lair of the Little Speckled Man, sometimes known as the Spotted Man, and occasionally as the Goblin with the French accent. I know him as Henri. As his Palace is well guarded you will have many enemies to fight before you can reach your princess."

She paused to pull her wet tresses away from her mouth and reached into the hidden depths of her costume from which she drew a long, lethal broadsword. She took another deep breath and continued,"Take this sword with which you may overcome every threat provided you never let it go out of your hand." She cut through the air twice, swiftly with the sword as a demonstration of its power. Ducking twice Benton thanked her and grasped its hilt in his clammy hand. The sword was heavier than a pistol or a dagger but felt very right, Benton copied her motion, parried with it and sliced the head off an imaginary enemy.

"Be careful!" his mount exclaimed,"you must treat it with respect."

Abashed, Benton lowered the weapon and drew himself upright, mentally preparing himself for battle. An image of Meg in her uniform concentrated his mind. When they arrived at the shoreline he dismounted and offered Elaine his heartfelt and kind thanks then sat on a rock to empty the water from his boots, mindful not to let go of the sword. Elaine left him with the promise of further assistance if necessary. He watched as she disappeared into the murky depths then looked up at the castle bathed in moonlight, thoughts of Meg fixed in his mind he began the steep climb along a craggy winding path.

The first hazards he encountered were two vicious sphinxes, he laid them dead at his feat with a satisfying thwack, thwack of the sword. Benton smiled grimly to himself, was that the worst the Speckled Goblin could do? He continued on his way until he came upon six fire breathing dragons. They, too were despatched rapidly. Was he beginning to enjoy this ? As he rounded the bend he was startled to come up against twenty four nymphs. He blushed the colour of his uniform. These nymphs, clad in garments Francesca Vecchio would consider too scanty, wore garlands of flowers in their hair and were of such ethereal beauty he could not bring himself to strike them. However the voice of the mermaid alerted him to the danger of these women of the night, "Strike! Strike them or you will never see your Margaret again." So he threw himself at the nymphs and slew each one of them.

Finally Benton arrived, exhausted, at the Palace walls. he could scarcely find the breath to call her name "Meg, I am here, your faithful lover come to rescue you."

Her face appeared at the casement, cast in the flickering light from the candles behind her, she seemed to Benton an angel.
This thought was soon dispelled by her harsh voice and disdainful expression; "Faithful! You call yourself a faithful lover! I saw you in that sled with HER. I saw the two of you all cosy. I read the report about Fortitude Pass and the diamonds and the Polar bear and the bullet wound, I know that you have a soft spot for Victoria. Oh, I bet you planned this all along, leading me on just to humiliate me, pretending you wanted to marry me when all you really wanted was her...that witch"

Benton stood beneath the window temporarily lost for words gazing up at the woman whose precious image he had cherished in his mind all the weeks they were apart.

He finally managed to clear his throat enough to reply, "Yes you saw me with her but she had bewitched me and kept me prisoner in her palace at the other side of the lake. Nothing happened between us, I promise you meg, nothing at all. I didn't even touch those twenty four semi naked nymphs either, except, that is, to cut off their heads, and I shut my eyes whilst doing that. And the mermaid meant nothing to me, I just rode her back to get to you..."

He stopped short as the look on her face became even more dangerous, her jaw grinding in an effort at control. "Nymphs! " She shrieked, "Mermaids! Good grief Fraser it took you almost a year to get the courage to even KISS me and here you are a month alone with her and now you are cavorting with half the female population of fairyland.

Ashamed and bewildered Benton leapt up and grabbed a strategically placed vine stem and began to climb towards the object of his desire. "Meg" he gasped, through clenched teeth, "you are wonderful when you are angry, I love you," as he reached the ledge of the window he grasped her hand and the magic sword fell slowly and surely out of his hand and onto the rocks below.

Benton Fraser clambered onto the ledge, took Meg in his arms and kissed her with passion. All anger faded from her as she led her mountie into the plushly decorated room that had been her prison for so long. "Nothing will ever keep us apart again, " she promised him as she pushed him towards the silk festooned bed. He fell backward, rather startled as she began to release the buttons of his jacket. "Meg, do you really think it's appropriate to be-"

"Shhh" she interrupted as she removed his belt.

"But here? Now? It's not safe, and anyway, I think I dropped my sword on the way up-"

"Shhh, relax, we've waited too long for this already." Benton acquiesced and they set about kissing each other with an intensity born of deep longing.

However they had underestimated the guile of the Little Spotted Man who had discovered the abandoned sword and conjured up two giants. He flew into the room waving the heavy sword with difficulty, the giants grabbed a preoccupied Benton by the arms, pulled him off the bed and laid him in irons. Meg tried to wrestle the sword from the Speckled Goblin but was pushed to the floor by one of the demon's where she lay breathless and frightened for what would become of Benton now.

The Little Speckled man opened his mouth to reveal his blackened teeth and cackled, "Now your fate is in my hands. Mountie, if you will consent to my marrying the Princess, you shall have your life and liberty."

Benton struggled against his bonds and replied, "Never. She loves me and will marry me."

The dwarf was so angered by this defiance that he lifted the sword and drove it through the brave Mountie's heart as Meg stared disbelieving. Benton fell instantly to the floor lifeless and pale. the princess stood for a moment, petrified, then ran to his body and lifted his head onto her lap, stroking the fine dark hair. She turned tearful eyes to the goblin, "You hideous creature! You cannot force me to marry you. Not even this way. You could never have his nobility, his purity of heart, his strength and compassion. You were never any match for him. I will die for the love I have of Benton Fraser RCMP." And so saying she sank down upon his bloodied body, kissed his cool lips and expired without a sigh.

Thus ended the fate of these two faithful lovers. The mermaid, on seeing them cried sorrowfully, but could not revive them because all her magic power lay in the sword. So she transformed them into two palm trees, which fondly and affectionately united their branches together and forever entwined their roots at the lake's edge.

Ray blinked as a bright light brought him out of blackness into a blinding light. He blinked once more and his vision cleared, he pushed the grasping hands away and shook his head. He could hear vague voices but was unable to recognise them or make out their meaning. Besides he was still reeling from the events at the lakeside and then later, from what the mermaid, Elaine, had told him. Benny and the Dragon Lady, both dead. It couldn't be, yet he had seen the palm trees. He had stroked their slender trunks, he had placed a silver plaque beneath them and even had an inscription engraved on it.

"In memory of my best friend and partner, united forever with his one love. Benton Fraser, Margaret Thatcher RIP "

How was he going to get through the days without Benny ? They had grown closer than he liked to admit, they'd survived so much together then...this. Why did things like this have to happen? He blinked again, keeping his eyes open this time. The world was slowly coming into focus, the blurry shapes resolved themselves into people, into three people, one he did not know was dressed in white and she held the torch, he turned his head and blinked again to clear his vision, another figure revealed itself as his sister, Francesca and the third stood behind her towards the back of the room and was wearing a hat. A stetson. It appeared to have very dark hair, was tall, walking towards him, Ray could make out blue eyes.

The American Cop scowled, "Benny? That you ?"

His voice was hoarse and the words did not sound as they should to his ears. He took a sip of the water offered to him by Francesca and made to start again, aware of the scrutiny of three pairs of eyes. The concern was quite evident, they were waiting to hear what he would say. So Ray paused and replayed his memories in his mind. Goblins... castles... sphinxes... mermaids... magic swords...nymphs...mmmmmm he thought about the nymphs again, they were very nice. Very alluring nymphs, magic spells, duels, ...the memories were starting to fade...Fraser dead, a sword through his chest, Dragon Lady sprawled across his body... Yet there was Fraser right in front of him. It seemed so real, but the rational part of his mind said, "don't incriminate yourself, Ray, there are no such things."

"Hey Ray" he heard his sister say, her voice betraying concern, not her usual robustness. Clearing his throat he finally managed to make himself heard, "Hey, Benny, Francesca. This is where I get to say "Where am I?" "

The Mountie came closer and sat down, "Ray, I am so sorry-"

"Fraser, wait, there's something I've got to say. It is so good to see you, you won't believe-"

"No Ray, listen to me before you say another word." Fraser directed his eyes towards the woman in white in a meaningful manner and mouthed the word "psychiatrist" Ray nodded. "I'm sorry I let you taste that Shaman potion, I didn't realise how potent it was. I know that it has the power to take a person to an alternative reality. One that can seem more real than that in which the user is living. Some shaman have been known to forsake the real world in favour of the illusory one, long after the effects of the drug have passed through their system. I hope that is not the case with you."

Shaking his head in reply, Ray lay back on the pillow. He had one hangover of a headache. The psychiatrist checked his eyes once more then pronounced him in reasonable shape and left.

"It really scared me when you keeled over like that Ray. Don't you ever do that to me again. We've been here all night waiting for you to come round, listening to you muttering on about all kinds of weird things.." Francesca poked him in the shoulder as she said this, in her brusque sisterly way.

"Well I'm feeling a lot better, thankyou, Francesca so I guess they'll discharge me soon. And before they do I'd like a word in private with Fraser, see you later."

Francesca left muttering about coffee and ungrateful brothers.

"What is it Ray?" Fraser asked on seeing a questioning look on his friend's face, the sort of look that demanded a straight answer, the sort of look Ray usually reserved for the interrogation room. He brushed a hand along the inside of his collar, was it getting warm in here? He was feeling distinctly uncomfortable under that scrutiny.

"Okay Fraser, I know everything about you and the Dragon Lady. So come on, spill the beans and tell me everything. If you try to leave anything out I'll know."

Adopting his "squirrel caught in the headlamp look" Fraser sat down on the chair near the bed and quietly said, "Oh dear."

End