As evening pressed upon us we approached the city of Mirage. We slowed the horses as we reached the gate, the change in ground was quite definite, it suddenly went from loose sandy soil to cobbled stones that looked like pebbles which has been washed up, there was also a covering of sand on the cobbles which crunched underneath the horses hooves. Mirage was the most beautiful place that I had seen, so much attention to detail had been placed on each building. Every building was a different colour and the roofs were decorated with swirled shells, it made the whole place look like some kind of fantasy village that had been plucked right out of a story book.

The noise of the horses hooves was rather loud on the cobbles, we headed straight for the City Hall which was located in the centre of the city. As we approached the City Hall we noticed that it was decorated just like the rest of the city but on a much grander scale. The building was the shape of a sand castle with four turrets which were topped with the swirled shells. There was a large dome in the centre which was covered in loads of different colours. This was the main building of the city and also where the Mayor lived and worked.

We reached the steps to the City Hall and climbed down of the horses, Jet helped Keera down from minx, I knew he would be rushing to her aid it was going to get so annoying. I tethered Garnet just at the bottom of the stairs.

"This place is beautiful." I said pointing to some of the buildings around. Keera nodded.

"We should go and find the Mayor to let him know we are here."Blake said.

We headed up the stairs, grains of sand crunching underfoot. The doors were very light weighted and didn't seem so secure, if I lived here I would want something much more secure. The seaside theme was continued through the interior, the place was covered in fish tanks filled with tropical marine life. It was very bright inside as every wall was white washed and stained glass panels were hung every few feet.

"Keera" The Mayor will see us now." Jet yelled, I gritted my teeth and punched him quite hard in the arm as his voice echoed through the hall. I hissed at him to shut up.

A guide lead us up stairs and through another corridor, there were doors on each side of the corridor with small copper plaques nailed to each one indicated who resided in that office and their purpose. We reached another reception area and the receptionist looked up as we clattered down the hall. Keera ventured to her desk and explained who we were and our reason for being there, she notified the Mayor and then we were led to a door set in the far wall which read Mayor Finnus. I began to wonder what this man was like.

Blake knocked on the door and then walked in, we all filed in behind him. The office was bright and spacious, more fish tanks were dotted around the room along with shelves filled with sea themed bric-a-brac. The Mayor was seated behind a crescent shaped desk with his back to a large stained glass window which depicted an underwater scene. He was very quick, he was in front of us in a flash and had thrust his hand out to Keera who jumped and chuckled to myself.

"ooh I cant say just how glad I am that you are here, I was beginning to think that you weren't coming after all" the Mayor said as he shook each of out hands. As he reached me I noticed what friendly looking man he was. He had striking blue eyes which protruded slightly giving him a distinctly fishy look. He was small and plump and had a crescent of white hair surrounding a balding spot on the top of his head, he also sported a white beard to match his hair.

"We erm, ran into some trouble on the way it caused a bit of a delay" Keera said filling him in on our delay, we had been delayed by quite a bit. I wouldn't be surprised if there had been a missing in action notice sent back to the Tower.

"No worries, you are here now. I suggest that I tell you where you will be staying while in Mirage then you can all get cleaned up and have a proper night's sleep before reporting back in the morning to get down to business" he said bouncing on the balls of his feet. I longed for a decent nights sleep with an actual bed and not a sleeping mat which was littered with pebbles.

"That sounds excellent." Jet said with a huge grin of his face, I rolled my eyes at him.

"Now I have a small house for you to use while you are here I will get someone to show you the way so don't worry about directions. Here is a map for each of you if you do need it" he handed out a small piece of paper with a detailed map on it. "a bit of advice before you go I would suggest that you do not venture out when it gets dark there have been some strange goings on of late and I would hate for something to happen to you before we can discuss these problems in the morning."

My mind began to wander as he spoke of dangers lurking in the night. "Why should we stay indoors when it gets late?" Panic started to show on my face, I thought we would be safe once we reached Mirage.

"We will discuss these matters in the morning child as the hour is getting late and like I said, no one ventures out in the night." We all nodded even though I would have been more happy to discuss it tonight so that this discussion did not make for an uneasy sleep. "Is there anything else you need before you go on your way?"

"Where is the infirmary, our friend here had an injury on the way here and needs it seen to quite urgently" Blake said as he indicated to Keera. The chirpy look vanished from the Mayors face and was replaced by one of deep concern.

"Oh my dear are you ok?"

"I am ok but it does need seen to sir" she replied placing her hand over the wound.

"I will ask the guide to take you there immediately then show you to your residence" The Mayor wandered over to his desk and called through to his secretary, after waiting a few moments there was a small knock on the door and it opened revealing a young boy who could have only been fifteen or sixteen. The Mayor gave him clear instructions on where we needed to go and stressed to him the time frame in which we had to do this as darkness was creeping over the city. The Mayor dismissed us and we headed back through the council building. Walking through the corridors I looked out of the windows seeing the light dimming outside, the city was so beautiful what kind of evil could be lurking around out there. The feeling of safety I had when we had reached the gate of Mirage was leaving me very quickly and I didn't like it.