"STOP, THIEF!" Those words echoed through the entire bustling city of Canterlot at quite an early hour in the morning. The sun's beautiful red rays were barely visible, and didn't even pass the horizon, yet. Then there was the vast number of oddly shaped clouds over the distant town of Ponyville... somewhat shaped in a checkered pattern.

The odd shapes of the distant clouds were just enough to keep the guards' attention away from the figure wearing pitch black clothing, a black hood, and a black mask. He stood a good two to three feet taller than the stallions, so it was a mystery how he was able to slip away from the guards' grasps so easily... but such is a necessary skill for a figure that was on countless WANTED posters scattered across villages, towns, and cities alike.

Below the WANTED posters, the figure's name appeared only as "Shade". The hairs that stuck from the front of his hood appeared to be a dark brown color, and his eyes appeared to be as green as a pair of emeralds. Whenever he spoke, he also appeared to speak in an accent, due to the fact that he wasn't originally from Equestria, anyways. According to his claims, he was on a ship from a distant kingdom similar to Equestria named "Asgalon"... and the capital city of that kingdom was "Camelot", from the isle of "Britannia".

Strangely enough, economic trade between Equestria and Asgalon were quite popular, even though most ponies didn't even learn what a human looked like. In fact, the only human that they knew about was the one from the WANTED posters... and sure enough, many of them cleared the streets the moment that they saw him running over the rooftops, while groups of guards tried surrounding him from down below.

As soon as he was at the end of the last rooftop he stopped for a split second and watched as the guards continued to pile up in numbers with their spears held towards him. Then he grinned beneath his mask before walking backwards a couple steps and leaping down the roof, only to catch onto the tip of the house's roof and kick his legs into the window, while the guards either rushed to the door or to where they estimated he would land once he fell down.

From inside the house, he ran from one end to the other, grabbed a hanger from a wardrobe, and slid across the clothes line that was attached to the windowsill on the house right next to them.

The guards finally reached the room, only to gasp when they saw Shade already inside the other house holding his middle finger up at them. They glared at him before rushing back to the outside and charging towards the other side again, while dividing a few groups of guards to scout the buildings that they passed. Little did they know, however, that Shade was no longer even in the houses, but rather, was running through an alleyway not too close by the rows of houses. The alleyway led to the Business District. Without even having to give it much thought, he decided to hide in the least likely of places where any guards would search for him... a boutique.

Shade sighed in relief when he saw that the boutique was unoccupied at the moment. He gently closed the door and stepped inside before scratching his chin from beneath the black mask that covered the lower half of his face. With a shrug, he decided to walk up to the counter where the "Bit Register" was. Then he reached behind his back and drew a dagger, before jabbing the blade between the upper crack of the register's door, and then bashing the tip of the handle of his dagger with his left hand; tilting the blade inside and opening the register in the process.

His eyes widened at the amount of bits that were piled inside the register. There were well over twenty stacks of ten bits in one compartment, but there were ten compartments altogether... and most of them were packed full. He gave an impressed whistle before reaching into the register to "inspect" a "few" of the coins.

The sound of the door slamming shut caught his attention, though. Shade looked towards the entrance and smiled when he saw a unicorn guard that seemed different from the rest. His coat was white, his mane was blue, and his armor was purple with golden trimming on the corners.

The unicorn glared at the human before growling, "Shade... I should've known."

Shade shrugged his shoulders while balancing a coin between his fingers and replying in his accented Equestrian voice, "Ah, Shining Armor... let's see. How many encounters have we made, exactly?"

Shining's glare intensified. "This would be the third time this month, in fact... and I don't intend on there being any more!"

Shade chuckled before flipping the coin in the air and catching it with his left hand. "Huh... now where have I heard that one before, I wonder?" He mockingly scratched his chin in thought before raising his right fingers as he began counting. "There was that one time in the Museum of Starswirl the Bearded... oh, and let's not forget the one over in the Canterlot National Treasury... and then, there's this one! In this boutique!"

Shining pointed his spear at Shade and spat, "You've broken the law countless times, Shade! Now, turn yourself in, and maybe I'll put in a good word for you! Then you may not end up in the gallows where you were intended to be!"

Shade hummed while looking up at the ceiling. Then he shrugged his shoulders before looking at Shining again. "Sorry, bud. Not interested. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some important things to do!" Before he could turn around to leave through the back door, Shining's spear swished past his right cheek with an inch of air in-between his ear, and pierced into the wooden security bar. Shade raised both eyebrows before attempting to remove the spear... only to find it stuck deep enough to the point where it couldn't even budge.

With an unamused sigh, Shade turned around and shrugged his shoulders. "Y'know... that was a really, really impressive move there... but all the same, it was also very... very stupid, for you see," he drew his sword from the black sheath dangling over his left hip, "NOW I may actually have to kill you."

Shining snorted at his comment, "Huh, is that what you think?" Then he drew his sword and raised it towards Shade with his piercing glare still intact. "I beg to differ."

In the blink of an eye, the two clashed swords together. Then the swords continuously clashed together in a fluid motion, as both combatants kept their right hands forward and their left hands behind their backs.

Shade was the first to notice, and smiled. "Huh, you seem rather different from the rest of the guards, now that I mention it."

Shining scoffed, "Well they don't let just anyone become the Captain of the Royal Guard, you know!"

"Ah, touche." Shade replied with a nod before the two continued clashing swords once again. Then Shining found a vantage point and swirled the swords in a circular motion until Shade's grip was weak enough. Finally, with a quick flourish, he disarmed Shade of his sword and thrust his sword towards Shade's chest.

Shade reacted quickly and gripped onto the nearest object beside him... a pink dress. The sword pierced through the dress, but the impact caused enough of a delay for Shade to move out of the way, wrap the blade in the dress, and disarm Shining from his own sword.

Shade quickly gripped onto the handle of Shining's sword and aimed it at Shining, while Shining in turn, did a backwards roll towards Shade's sword and lifted it up off the ground.

"Hey, a true stallion doesn't fight an opponent with a different sword... perhaps we could trade right quick?" Shade asked.

Shining smirked at Shade's request. "Do you honestly believe that I'm that stupid?!"

Shade shrugged his shoulders before replying, "Eh, could've fooled me... but here, this sword really isn't my style, anyways." With that he threw the sword in the air with the blade tilted upwards.

Shining stared in disbelief as what the infamous rogue said was actually true... or so he thought, until Shade gripped onto a mannequin and threw it directly into Shining's chest, disarming him of Shade's sword, and sending him backwards on the floor.

Shade quickly slid forward and caught the falling sword with his left hand while picking up his own sword with his right. Then he sheathed his sword and nodded his head to Shining. "Well, it's been fun, but I've got to run now!" He then ran towards the front door while Shining sat up and focused his magic on the door handle. Right when Shade's hand was just inches away from the lock, the lock to the door handle disappeared.

Shade tried moving the handle, but despite no longer having a lock, it was still locked. Shade groaned before kicking on the door, only to realize that it swung inside, and not the other way.

With another unamused sigh, Shade turned towards Shining again and said, "And yet again, you do something impressive, yet stupid... you see, now, not only have you locked us both inside this boutique, but," he raised Shining's sword up with his left hand while drawing his sword with his right again, "now you have no weapons!"

Shining's eyes widened as the sudden realization hit him. Then Shade decided to act quickly and thrust Shining's sword towards his own chest, but Shining thought ahead and already had his hands on the mannequin.

The sword's blade pierced through the mannequin, but not all the way through. Shining decided to use the situation to his advantage though, and rotated the mannequin counterclockwise to disarm Shade of the sword... which succeeded. Then he caught the handle of the blade with his right hand, blocked Shade's incoming left swing, and raised his sword with the mannequin still attached to the tip of the blade.

Shade eyed the mannequin warily before dodging another swing from Shining's sword, though he had to roll out of the way, as the mannequin added more blunt force to Shining's weapon.

Shining then sliced downwards with extra force, which sent the mannequin flying towards Shade while he was standing back up. Shade, however, raised his foot back and kicked the mannequin out of his way before turning towards Shining with a smug grin on his face. Shining took note of that and returned the smug grin.

"You know, despite being an annoying thorn on my side, you're a cut above the average criminal that I usually face!"

Shade shrugged his shoulders before replying, "Well, they don't consider just anyone as Equestria's Most Wanted, you know!"

Shining nodded his head. "Good point." Then the two clashed swords once again, though this time, Shade moved behind a round clothing rack filled with dresses and dodged Shining's sword while occasionally using the clothes to his advantage by either letting Shining's sword catch onto the cloth or tossing a dress over his face to impair his vision.

Finally Shining had enough and attempted to run around the rack, only for Shade to keep his distance. Then he grinned mischievously before shoving the rack towards Shining, sending him into a wall filled with rolls of cloth and other sewing materials.

Shade then looked up and saw a window of opportunity... or in this case, a window that was still open to let any heat out of the house. He also noticed a ladder conveniently lying right below it, and decided to try standing the ladder up to escape with.

His plan was short-lived when Shining intercepted his path with his sword held defensively. "I will not let you escape this time!"

Shade smirked before shrugging his shoulders once again. "And who says you have a choice?" Then they clashed blades once more. This time, however, Shade was able to disarm Shining of his sword by shoving the clothes rack from behind his back onto Shining's chest. Then he gripped onto Shining's sword again and attempted to strike at his neck, but Shining quickly bucked the rack with his right hoof, which was enough to leave Shade winded from the impact, and send him tumbling backwards on the ground, though he managed to keep his grip on his own sword while dropping Shining's sword, and stood back up quickly, while Shining lifted the ladder up with both hands and gripped it firmly with a determined glare on his face.

Shining charged towards Shade while Shade raised his sword defensively and anticipated an attack. Instead, though, Shining managed to swing downwards while Shade tucked both arms in and slipped through one of the holes between the steps of the ladder. He then chuckled before raising his sword towards Shining again, only for Shining to grin in response and pull the ladder back.

Before Shade had time to react, the ladder's lowest leg tripped him and sent him falling backwards while Shining managed to reclaim his sword and point it towards Shade.

Shade quickly kicked the ladder with enough force, however, that it sent Shining on the ground, but by the time Shade was able to stand back up, Shining was already up as well. Then they clashed swords once again. Shining nearly toppled over the ladder, but managed to keep his hooves floored, while Shade kept his eyes peeled on Shining, though in his mind, he already had another plan in motion.

Finally, when the ladder was behind him, Shade propped it up with his right heel and managed to get it propped on top of the mannequin with the taller corner tilted up and the shorter corner on the ground level. Due to his eyes' focus in Shining's eyes, however, he knew that Shining didn't even notice. Then Shade backed up slowly while Shining continued to attempt to close in the space between them.

He didn't even realize when the ladder was between his hooves until it was too late. Shade quickly jumped back and landed on the lower half of the ladder, which sent the upper half directly up, and in-between Shining's legs. The second the ladder hit something, Shade could only picture the sound of a bell ringing.

Shining's eyes were instantly covered in tears and his thighs were tucked inwardly, but he still managed to wobbly hold his sword defensively... though his defenses were too weak for him to do anything else, as Shade quickly hit the sword out of Shining's hand, kicked him to the ground, and held his sword up to Shining's chest triumphantly.

Shining glared at him before coughing a couple times. "Y-you... t-that was a... a dirty trick!"

Shade smirked before replying, "I'm a rogue, pal... what did you expect?"

Before anyone could say anything else, a frying pan came from out of nowhere and bashed Shade in the back of the head. He stood there silently and blankly for a moment before unconsciously falling onto the ground, while a thin mare with a white coat and a neatly combed pink mane stood and stared nervously at the two.

Shining weakly smiled before trying to stand back up to regain his composure. "Excellent timing, Misses Fleur De Lis!"

Fleur weakly smiled at Shining before helping him back up to his hooves. "Just thought I'd drop by to browse for new clothes, but ended up hearing all the commotion instead. Had to sneak into Fancy's kitchen to get this frying pan... was worried he'd notice me."

Shining accepted her helping hand and stood back up. Then he smiled at her before shaking his head. "Honestly, if I didn't even notice you, I doubt if he would've. Regardless, though, you will be reimbursed for the damages done here, as I'm certain you own a share in this place."

Fleur shook her head before replying, "Oh, there will be no need!" She looked down at the unconscious human before adding, "So long as justice has been done, I'm certain there should be a lot less empty pockets around, now!"

Shining smirked before picking his sword back up and sheathing it. "One can only hope so... perhaps now, the citizens will be able to sleep peacefully again!"

The sound of guards rushing inside the building caught both of their attention. Shining looked up at the first of the group and waited for them to do the usual "salute-and-greet" routine. When they did so, the front guard said, "Captain, your sister's ceremony should begin in four more hours, but we need your aid in the decorations for the festivities!"

Shining nodded his head and smiled. "Of course! I just..." he looked down at Shade once more, "... had a few obstacles that had to be dealt with." He then smirked before shaking his head. "Don't think I'll be seeing you around, Shade." He looked up at the guards behind the first one and pointed at Shade. "Guards, see to it that this man be taken to the dungeons at once... and prepare a medal for Misses Fleur De Lis, and her act of bravery for the capture of the infamous 'Shade'."

The guards saluted him before cuffing Shade's arms and legs together and carrying him over their shoulders. The front-most guard, however, remained there and awaited Shining's orders.

Shining looked at him and smiled. "Soldier... please assist in cleaning up this place. I would help too, but as you said, I have to help prepare the ceremony for my sister's ascension as a new princess."

The guard saluted him. "Yes, sir! And... outstanding work, sir!"

Shining nodded his head and smiled. "Thank you... and sorry, but I must take my leave now. Feel free to drop by for the ceremony off-duty, by the way. You'll earn it by helping Misses Fleur De Lis."

The soldier nodded his head and got to work. Shining proceeded out the door and started walking towards the castle gates with a cheerful smile on his face. "I can't believe it... Twily is going to be a princess, now! Oh... curse you, liquid pride!"

Meanwhile, on the outskirts of the city, a small group of diamond dogs wearing long black hooded cloaks stood in a circle with their eyes focused on a single mark on a sheet of paper. The mark was a red paw print on a blotch of black ink.

The tallest of the group looked back and forth from the others before asking, "So, the plan is in motion, correct? You all know what must be done?"

The others nodded their heads before digging a hole below the gates where nobody would notice.