"There's nothing more to find around here," he cried to his owner, "I've searched all over this area, and haven't found anything new or exciting for weeks!"

His owner thought this over and asked Tiran if had ever been to the Southern half of the Island.

"Well, no. It's too far from home to travel in a day."

Seeing how important it was to let their young Kougra seek out new things, Tiran's owner gave him permission to head out on his own for a while, and explore until his heart was content. Tiran was overjoyed! "Thank you, thank you!" he yelled excitedly, and ran off to gather supplies for the trip. His owner helped him pack some kraku berries, banans, and omelettes, as well as his favourite blue fuzzle for the journey. Wishing his owner goodbye, he headed down to the other side of the island.

After days of searching, he suddenly came to a strange and ancient looking temple covered in ivy. Being terribly curious, he walked all around until he found the opening. Slowly walking up the old stone steps that led to the entrance, he peered inside. It was very dark, and it took a while for his eyes to adjust. When they did, he saw...

When he was done, he looked at the statue of the king Kougra. A piece of his paw seemed to have chipped off. Tiran looked around and saw a rounded stone, with one edge rough. He climbed up the statue and placed it where it belonged, only to find the whole paw fell off when he did so. He swiftly grabbed the rock before it shattered and looked at it. The paw was hollow!

He pulled out a piece of paper from the inside. It was old and yellowed, but still in pretty good shape. It read, "To whoever finds this: Press the little Kougra on the wall."

Tiran ran up to the wall and, putting both paws against it, pushed the little Kougra with all his might. The stone block went all the way through, revealing stairs. Tiran, grabbing his bundle, walked down. There before him...

He looked for a way around the mirror, anxious to find whatever secret was at the bottom of the stairs. He sniffed and scratched, but there seemed to be no way through.

Frustrated, Tiran pawed angrily at the mirror itself. Instead of resisting, the mirror merely rippled, like the surface of a pond. He threw a rock at it. The rock pulled against the surface of the mirror, then broke through. The mirror calmly settled back into place.

Shrugging, Tiran began to slowly walk through the mirror. On the otherside, he discovered he was coated with mirror!

There were smoky, darkened parts where his stripes had been, and each individual hair was covered in bright, pliable, reflective glass.

Tiran was even more shocked when he looked up and saw...

It must be bigger than the Faerie Queen's castle! Tiran thought to himself. The statue was made from smooth, dark obsidian. The surface reflected his new mirror form, which in turn was reflected by himself. Small puffs of smoke came from the statue's nostrils. Its eyes burned so bright and hypnotic that the entire giant seemed to pulse with energy. At the same time, the Sphinx-like pose the statue took would fill your heart with an eerie sense of calmness.

Slowly, Tiran approached the statue. The ground was hot against his paws and smoke wafted through the air. The closer he came, the more he could distinguish a huge door between the two paws. Guarding the door were two very large Lupes. Each one carried a long tiger-striped spear on their back.

"I have to get in!" Tiran thought.

Suddenly, he came up with a plan. What I'll do is...

"Well, okay then, here goes nothing..." he muttered under his breath, clutching the stone in his paw. Quickly Tiran threw the rock with all his might, hurling it to the other side of room, where it shattered into thousands of pieces. Almost instantaneously, the two guards ran over towards the broken pieces.

Now it was time for him to move. Tiran ran towards the door, flinging it open and shutting it behind. As Tiran turned around he couldn't believe his eyes...

"Hello young one," he said, "and welcome to my secret palace."

"Hello," Tiran greeted him nervously.

"You are very wise and brave to have come this far. What is your name young one?" the king asked.

"My name is Tiran," he answered. "Who are you and where am I?" Tiran asked.

"I am King Kougrisisus the Third, King of the city Kougrania," the king said. "You are in my imprisonment."

"Your imprisonment!?" Tiran said suprised. "Why were you imprisoned?" he asked.

"I was imprisoned because my evil son wanted to rule Kougrania. He had tried to kill me, but I knew of his treachery so I was carefull. But one day I received a package, it was a beautiful mirror. So that night before I went to bed I looked in the mirror, but while I was looking at the mirror my Son pushed me in! The mirror had been enchanted by an evil witch so that only one of royal blood could enter."

The king was about to continue when Tiran asked "If you get in why couldn't you get back out?"

The king answered, "I don't know why, I just couldn't get back out. But you can come in and so you are of royal blood! Which is why I need you to go on a quest...

"What do you want me to do?" Tiran said with mounting courage.

The king looked back and gave him a sorry little laugh. "Here is what we are going to do" said the King, now with a small grin appearing on his face.

Their plan was perfect, almost fool-proof, it would take a big mishap to flaw it. It was simple: Tiran would wear some of the king's robes; since the guards hadn't seen him come in, who was there to assume that the robes weren't his? It just so happened that Tiran looked almost identical to the king's evil son. Upon wearing the robes, no one would guess he was an explorer, and not the Prince of Kougrania.

This time, he would not sneak. Tiran swallowed and opened the doors. The guards spun and pointed their spears at Tiran. As soon as they realized who they were attacking they both fell to their knees and begged the 'prince' for forgiveness. The plan had worked. He gently pointed to the room in which the King was being held. There the guards would see what seemed to be the body of the dead king. Tiran smiled, a little trick he had picked up while training his Doglefox, was 'play dead'. Tiran then gently asked the guards to lead him out and back to his castle, hoping the guards knew how to reverse the mirror. They nodded.

"YES!" Tiran muttered under his breath. Through the corner of his eye he saw the king, now very much alive, running behind a rock, to follow them. When they got to the mirror, Tiran was practically jumping with excitement! He stared at the guards on either side of him, expecting them to open the mirror somehow. But they didn't. They just stared at their reflections. Not knowing what to do, Tiran did the same. After a minute or two, he got this tingly feeling rush up his spine. Suddenly, he began to feel himself being broken up into millions of little pieces. Tiran, very confused, turned to the Lupe on his right. To his utter shock, the guard was being seperated into little squares which were being transported through the mirror. Suddenly, Tiran found himself on the other side of the mirror. "Wow!" he exclaimed. He understood. You simply had to look at yourself in the mirror and visualize yourself on the other side. Well, he was now on the 'free' side of the mirror looking back on his reflection on the 'trapped' side. Tiran, feeling very good about himself, turned around to go on to continue the quest for the king. However, to his utter shock, when he turned around he came face to face with...

"Who are you?" the other Kougra demanded.

"I am the prince of Kougrania," Tiran muttered weakly, so in case he knew the prince, he would not notice.

"Guards, seize him! I am the prince and heir to the throne!" The guards stood there, wondering which one was real. "What are you standing there for?! Seize him!" the prince yelled, his face turning red with anger.

"Only royal blood can enter the mirror," one of the guards said. "And he didn't enter the mirror!" The guards grabbed the prince.

"STOP! I'll have you exiled for this!" The prince angrily screamed. "Caesar! Attack the intruder!" he yelled before being thrown in a cell.

"Caesar?" Tiran asked himself.

Suddenly, loud stomping could be heard throughout the palace...

"Get him, Caesar!" shrieked the prince, pointing madly with a claw at the terrified Tiran. Caesar turned his blood red gaze to Tiran, then back to the prince. A look of puzzlement settled over the Skeith's face. Tiran suddenly had an idea.

"Caesar!" Tiran bellowed, "Do not listen to that fool. I am the real prince. It is him you want!" He raised a shaky claw to point at the true prince. Caesar's look of confusion deepened, but he slowly began to turn to the prince in preparation for an attack. Tiran was just beginning to sigh with relief when the king appeared in front of the mirror.

"Nooooo," moaned a guard, "He has returned."

"What?" Tiran said in confusion.

"Fool, you have unleashed my father's evil back onto these lands. We will all suffer dearly," said the prince.

The prince's once angry face had become fearful and Tiran was a bit shaken by it. He turned to look at the king only to find that it wasn't the king he knew. It was the same kougra, but a darkness hung over King Kougrisisus. He was evil.

"You fell right into my trap," cackled the king, grinning a feral grin. Then King Kougrisisus raised his paws and...

"You tricked me!"

"Yes, I did," The king laughed, "and now I'm going to get rid of you."

"Caesar get him!" Tiran yelled. But Caesar just stood there.

"It has been so long hasn't it Caesar?" The king said. "Tiran, Caesar was my pet and he only obeys me... Caesar! Get them both!"

Caesar was about to pounce on Tiran and one of the Lupes pushed him out of the way.

"I will not let this happen again!" The king's son yelled and ran and pushed the king into the mirror with himself. "Break the mirror!" the king's son yelled. Tiran hesitated. "Do it now before it is too late." Tiran took a rock and threw it with all his might. When the mirror broke Caesar stopped fighting with the Lupes. "The spell is broken," Ceasar said. "I can return to my homeland now," and left the temple. "What will happen to he king's son?" Tiran asked the Lupes.

"He risked his life for the world..." One of he Lupes said.

"What was his name?" Tiran asked.

"It was Tranz," the Lupe said.

Tiran walked out of the temple.

"Hey, wait." Tiran heard a voice and looked back. It was the king's son!

"Ho-ow did you... I thought-"

"Before you smashed the mirror I was able to visualize myself on the other side... but when you broke it, I was only halfway through so it took me a while to get myself together."

"Oh. What about your father?"

"Trapped for eternity thanks to you."

"I really wouldn't say that. I let him out in the first place." Tiran said in shame.

"Eventually my father would have been able to get out without your help... but now he will never be able to."

"Oh" Tiran said "well, goodbye then."

"Farewell. Oh and take this."

"What is it?" Tiran asked.

"It's a medallion for soldiers who go on daring quests. I would like you to have one."

"Thank you!" Tiran said and looked at it. It was pure gold. "I have to go back to my owner now."

"Come back one day, we could use someone like you."

"I will," Tiran answered back, and left to venture back home with his exciting tale.

The End