//------------------------------//
// III 
// Story: Finding Harmony 
// by Alice Eddor 
//------------------------------//

A young man of seventeen jogged anxiously through the streets of Canterlot, unsure of why what he found made him so anxious. While searching for something, anything, in the Canterlot Libraries that would tell him something about the imminent threat of the Shadow Beings, he ran across an odd picture in a surprisingly old tome. The woman had scared him, her eyes violent and stature more than regal. Next to the picture of the woman was an image of her mark. As soon as he saw it, he slammed the book shut and sprinted from the library, his entire body chilled to the bone. He didn't know who to turn to, or if he wanted to turn to anyone. His first thought was his parents, they might know something, but both of them had gone, joining the fight elsewhere, leaving him alone. He was more than competent on his own, but he missed parental guidance.

His second thought was his friends, but they would dismiss his feelings. They always did, and it didn't matter anyway, they wouldn't know what to do about this, what was there to do? They couldn't change what he was best at. His final thought was desperate, but it was all he could think of doing. He was going to the princesses. If anyone could tell him if he was over-reacting, or if it actually meant something, it was they. He sincerely hoped it was nothing, but couldn't shake the feeling that it was something important.

He reached the gardens of the castle, running past the statues and wandering guards towards the doors of the castle. Everyone was allowed in the entrance hall to admire the decor, but getting into the throne room would be harder, and to contact the princesses nearly impossible. But he had magic; he knew he could over-power the guards. It was his 'special talent'.

He climbed the main stairs in the entrance quickly, glancing about as he did so. He was surprised the guards weren't more opposed to him entering, though he supposed they would begin to question his intentions once he got nearer the throne room.

He opened a rather official looking door and peered inside. It looked to be the right way, and he was about to go through it when he heard a voice behind him, and turned.

"Yes?" he asked, looking the guard in the eye and pretending that nothing was wrong.

"May I ask what you're doing here?" the guard asked, taking a step forward.

"I have urgent business that I need to take care off," he replied.

"Business with who?"

The young man glanced around before answering, unsure of how to proceed. This guard was going to get in his way; he had to talk to the princesses. The more he thought about it, he knew they were the only ones who you tell him what he needed to know.

He moved swiftly to the guard, reaching out with his hand as he did so. The guard barely had time to react before he was on the ground, his memories clean. By the time he hit the ground he was unconscious. The young man glanced around again before casting a cloaking spell on him to prevent anyone from finding him. He would wake up within the next ten minutes, completely visible. Timed spells, one of his specialties.

He turned back to the door and walked through it, thinking that it might be simpler just to cloak himself. Self-cloaking was difficult, but perhaps worth it. It was then that three more guards intercepted him. Yes, defences had picked up. He ducked by them, aware that he was being targeted. They much have some kind of surveillance, why didn't he think of that? They would know what he was doing, though they wouldn't know of his intentions.

He jet of magic whistled by his head and singed his hair. He turned, putting his hands side-by-side and firing off his own blot. It was stronger by far, illuminating the entire room. When the light faded, all three of the guards were sprawled on the floor. He burst through a second set of double doors, not bothering to check their condition. There were healers in Canterlot; they could heal them if their injuries were bad enough. If they weren't there was no harm done.

He quite honestly had no idea where he was going and decided it would be a good idea to try and figure it out. He ducked behind a curtain and put one hand on the wall of the building, the other on his head. He had never tried this spell before, but it seemed like a reliable one, and not entirely impossible. He felt the magic activate, and immediately his mind was flooded with images of long corridors, suits of armour and armed guards. He sped through the halls in his mind, finally coming to a very intricately detailed set of double doors that would not open. This had to be the right set.

He removed his hand from the wall, a map laid out in his mind, a track he would follow. There were guards in the way of course, but he was stronger than them, he had proved that already. All this being done, he sprinted from his hiding spot and turned down a corridor, one that he wouldn't turn down under regular circumstances. He had mapped out the fastest route with his spell, the route that had a small amount of guards. The less resistance he faced, the better.

Any guard he met along the way went the same way as the three guards he had faced. It wasn't long before he reached the enormous set of intricately detailed double doors that he knew led to the throne room. Two heavily armed guards stood in his way. He frowned at them and they frowned back, as though they were confused as to how he had gotten there. He walked forward, hoping that he wouldn't need to take them out as well. Just before he reached the door, the guards crossed their spears in front of it, blocking his path. He raised an eyebrow at them, a silent dare.

Inside the throne room, Celestia and Luna sat side-by-side, deep in conversation. The addition of Queen Chrysalis to the battle worried them. Any one of their guards could be a changeling. An explosion from the doors interrupted their conversation, both women directed their attention to the entrance of their throne room, and they were greeted with a flash of white light and a cloud of smoke. Celestia rose, prepared to fight whatever foe this was, though she hoped in her heart that it was Twilight Sparkle. She had not seen such abilities since her young apprentice had left her.

The smoke cleared to reveal a young man whose bright red hair covered one eye. Orange magic pulsed around his hands, and his visible eye glowed the same vibrant colour. He looked like a lower-class resident of Canterlot, one who had more than enough money, but did not indulge in the finer things. The glow faded and he returned to his normal condition, meeting Celestia's eyes.

"I would like to discuss something with you, Princess."

In the statue garden below them, stone cracked, and a smile crossed his face.