Author's Note

Attention, this chapter contains mentions of rape and sexual language, nothing really explicit and it remains only in the words, but if you are sensitive to these topics, read at your own risk.

The Princess of the Sun

Sproutville was a small town, it miraculously reached a thousand inhabitants, and it was divided into four main streets that converged in a huge square, where not only the town hall was, but also the market, where the farmers went to sell their products or, as was the case with Light Flare, they sold it to a merchant. The mare was advancing down one of the streets, hitched to a cart that had two barrels full of potatoes and their corresponding plants, duly separated, and six boxes full of wheat, more or less half of what she had left.

It had been three days since the changelings' monthly round, three days in which the ponies were physically, mentally, and emotionally exhausted from the extraction of love, so that virtually nopony wanted to open their market stalls, shop, or even go for a walk, at least until they recover a little. Light Flare walked at a brisk pace, ignoring the ponies around her, who in turn ignored her, for, after almost 24 years living in Sproutville, she had developed a reputation as a hermit, grumpy, and curmudgeonly. So much so, that she hardly spoke to anypony, except for the pony she sold her wares to or the ponies who sold her supplies.

The market was illuminated by almost a dozen poles where lanterns had been placed, in which the fire crackled and illuminated the place. There were few ponies in the place, but despite that, and the fact that most of the stalls were starting to open, there were already some buying some products. Light Flare made her way to one particular stand that sold all manner of fruits and vegetables, run by a pegasus who had his own farm, albeit relatively smaller than the mare's or most of the farmers in Sproutville, his market stall was almost exclusively his only source of income. The stallion's ears twitched when he heard Light Flare's cart, so he stopped setting up his stall and turned to look at the mare with a smile.

"Here is my silent provider!" he said with amusement. "Today do you have a phrase to say to me or will you remain silent?"

He was a gray-coated stallion, with a bluish mane and a cutie mark that represented a bag of bits, its name was Fair Trade. He was the only one who bought the mare's products, and she didn't seem interested in changing that. Despite having a basically one-sided relationship in which she barely spoke, the stud considered her a friend, or at the very least, a business partner. Light Flare stopped in front of his stall, and as usual, she didn't reply, just unhooking herself from the cart and preparing to unload the barrels and crates.

"I see you're still silent" Fair commented with a shrug. "Leave only a barrel of potato plants and a box of wheat."

Light Flare stopped what she was doing and turned to look at Fair Trade, her raised eyebrow the only sign of her curiosity.

"I don't have enough money this month" the pegasus said with a shrug, looking away. "I had to help my brother pay his rent this month, so I won't be able to buy you the usual."

Light Flare watched him a little longer before continuing to download, much to Fair's confusion.

"I told you that I can't buy you the potatoes and the rest of the wheat" he replied, but his complaints fell on deaf ears.

Light Flare continued to download, ignoring Fair's complaints, and when finished, turned to face him.

"Here I leave you the usual."

"You're stubborn as a mule," growled Fair Trade. "I don't have money to pay you for everything. So you can take the potatoes and whe..."

"The extra wheat and potatoes are a gift," Light Flare interrupted. "Pay me only what you can."

Fair Trade left his avalanche of objections in shock, looking wide-eyed at Light Flare.

"But... you will have much less than other months, how do you expect to survive the month without the money?"

"I still have part of my crop in the barn and some money saved" replied the mare with a disinterested shrug.

Fair looked at the mare for a while before shaking his head.

"No, I'm not going to accept it. You need that money."

"Last time I checked, I live alone, I don't have rent to pay to anypony, and my farm gives me a harvest big enough for me to keep some. You, on the other hoof, have a family to feed and you don't have as many products to sell on your own, you need all the help you can get."

Despite her words, her expression remained unchanged, her dull eyes staring at Fair Trade, who, after a few moments' deliberation, sighed and nodded, approaching his booth.

"Okay, you win" he said as he rummaged through his saddlebags, from which he extracted a small bag of bits.

Fair passed the bag to Light Flare, who hefted it with her magic, opening it and seeing a nice pile of bits.

"There you have 100 bits," Fair said, a small smile spreading across his face. "And... thanks... I knew there was a good heart inside that curmudgeonly mare."

Light Flare barely paid attention to that statement, putting the bag of bits in the saddlebags she had on the robe that covered her body, hooking herself to her cart to start walking away.

"See you next month, Flare" Fair said with a happier tone than when she arrived.

The mare didn't seem to hear his farewell, as she kept walking without returning his gesture. She walked through the market without paying attention to the others, who moved out of her way, some of them looking at her suspiciously or even fearfully.

"Look where you're going you fucking bitch!"

Light Flare stopped, turning her head in the direction the scream had come from, to her right. A few meters away, there were three ponies, a pegasus mare, an earth pony stallion and a unicorn stallion, the latter was the one who had shouted, and in front of them, lying on the ground, was an earth pony mare, who looked in terror of the pony that had yelled at her. He was Rough Wood, a unicorn with brown fur, a black mane and a cutie mark that represented a trunk breaking. He was the son of the mayor of Sproutville, Scroll Wood, and as such, he was untouchable, doing and taking what he wanted and nopony seemed to care or they were too afraid of him to do anything about it.

"I'm so-sorry... I di-didn't see yo-you..." the mare said between stutters, lowering her gaze and not daring to meet his eyes.

"Sorry? Do you think that's enough?" Rough growled. "If you want to prevent me from notifying my father, you'd better compensate me properly."

"Ho-how do yo-you wa-want me to ma-make it up to you?" the mare replied, afraid of the answer, everypony knew the rumors of what Rough and his friends did to the ponies, whether they were mares or stallions.

Rough stared at the mare for a few moments before speaking.

"Lucky for you, I don't feel like fucking you today, and you?" he said turning to his friends.

"Nah, I pass" answered the earth pony.

"Tempting" commented the pegasus, studying the mare, licking her lips. "But maybe another day."

"Then you will have to compensate me with your money" Rough said after refocusing on the mare.

"Bu-but I ne-need the mo-money to buy this mo-month's fo-food."

"And what the hell do I care? Give me the money if you don't want me to change my mind and fuck you right here like the worthless bitch you are."

Despite the sparks of anger that were beginning to ignite inside her, Light Flare looked away and continued on her way, quenching the anger that rose in her every time she saw that bratty brat. She had gone years without getting into trouble, she wasn't going to start doing it for a mare she didn't even know, no matter how much her insides burned with rage.

She walked out of the busy plaza and into one of the streets, stopping in front of a store on the left side of the road, a sign above the door saying Antiques and Exotic Products. Light Flare unhooked from her car and entered the small establishment. The room was lit by a chandelier hanging from the ceiling, four shelves, two on each side of the store, where several different products were displayed, many of them antiques, but many other products not usually seen in Sproutville, like apples, something rare in town, or even cocoa powder, something even more exotic. In front of the entrance there was a counter, where the owner was, and a door to her left that led into the building.

The owner was a unicorn mare, with reddish fur and an orange mane, her cutie mark being a jewel, and her name was Jewelry Refiner, and like Fair Trade, she was one of the lucky few (or unlucky, depending on how you look at it) who had interactions with Light Flare. She ran the store with her husband, a pegasus who spent most of his time out of town, exploring the country for antiques to sell and exotic goods that would interest the ponies of Sproutville. Between her hooves, the mare had an old golden helmet, although it was rusty in some places and, running along the top of it head from the front to the beginning of the nape, a crest from which some tufts of mane protruded, although almost everything had disappeared. She was busy wiping the metal surface clean, but when her ears twitched at Flare's approach, she looked away from the ancient object and smiled at her customer.

"Ah, Flare, it's you. What do you think?" she said as she showed the helmet. "My husband found it on one of his trips. It belonged to an ancient guard that protected the kingdom of Eques..."

"Do you have mine?"

Jewelry Refiner blinked in confusion before sighing, slightly annoyed.

"Right, I forgot that you're not interested in ancient history at all. I'll be right back."

The mare left the helmet on the counter and went into the store, certain that Light Flare would not steal anything. After a few minutes, she came back out, carrying in her magic a rather large bag that she left on the wood.

"Here it is, moon tea, it took my husband a little longer to find it. There aren't usually places that sell these things."

Light Flare grabbed the bag in her magic, studying it before nodding and turning back to her saddlebag, where she pulled out her bag of bits. Taking out twenty-five coins, she left them on the counter and took the bag away, without saying goodbye to Jewelry.

"I don't know why you like that tea so much" murmured the mare as she picked up the coins. "But I'm not the one to judge others, see you next month, Flare."

The mare left the store, ignoring Jewelry and hitched herself to her cart, starting to retrace her steps and heading back to her farm.

It had been a few hours since Light Flare had gone to Sproutville. She was now in her kitchen, patiently waiting for the tea she had put to boil in the kettle to finish brewing. Once ready, she poured some into one of her cups and went out onto the porch, where she lay on the wood and watched the horizon, trying to ignore the Hive and focusing on the moon. The only sound present was the crackling of the fire from the torches that lit her farm and the chirping of a few crickets, which sang almost at any hour.

Light Flare took a sip of her tea and closed her eyes in satisfaction, enjoying her moment of peace and forgetting about all problems for a few minutes. Her moment of peace was interrupted by a particular sound that made her ears perk up. With a frown, she tried to locate the source of the sound, and after a few minutes, she did, in the sky above her farm. Opening her eyes, she raised her gaze to the sky, scanning the night for those responsible, for she knew that sound all too well, changelings, and if she did her math right, there were three of them.

After a few minutes, the incessant noise of a changeling flying grew louder, and before long, they came into range of torchlight at last, three changelings flying without lighting their horns, in complete darkness, two stallions and a mare. They landed, not on her farm entrance, but directly in front of her front porch. Light Flare frowned slightly, getting up and setting her mug down on the railing before walking down the stairs.

"I have already given you my share of the harvest, what are you doing here?"

The changeling in the center looked at her carefully, glancing sideways at the mare to his right, who nodded subtly.

"I guess you're Light Flare, right?" he said as he refocused on her.

Light Flare glanced at the changeling mare before nodding.

"Yes, there is any problem?" She said with a half growl.

"I have heard that you do not possess love."

"I don't have it, is that a crime?" Light asked with a raised eyebrow, trying to keep her nerves under control.

"It is when you use an illusion spell to make it look like you don't have love."

Light Flare was silent for a few moments before focusing on the changeling mare.

"You were that mare that came here with the collectors."

Even though she tried to keep her face calm, Light Flare saw the nervousness on her face.

"My friend is an expert at detecting illusion spells, and yours was very powerful, she almost had a hard time finding it. No wonder you've been able to live here for so many years without being found, the collectors aren't the smartest changelings in the hive. "

Light Flare watched the changeling carefully, studying him.

"So you've found me out."

"That's right, your lie wasn't as effective as you thought."

"Neither is yours" Light Flare said matter-of-factly, watching as the three changelings tensed. "I mean, just three changelings to arrest a mare who has used illusion spells for 24 years to hide her love, I don't see any elite soldiers or high level changeling mages to counter that. Besides, coming here without lighting your way? I have the impression that it is to hide your movements, and not from me precisely."

The changeling who had been speaking regarded the mare for a few moments before sighing.

"You're smart, just as I expected."

In an instant, his body was enveloped in a green fire, characteristic of changelings when they comes to transforming. His two companions looked at his leader not with surprise, but with concern. When the flames died down, left behind was the bugpony she had known for years, in his place was a very different version. His chitin was light green, much darker in the chest area, and with a sky blue shell, with yellowish eyes. The holes in his paws completely disappeared and his face now had more distinctions compared to those of common changelings.

"I am Captain Tweezers, and I and my companions serve King Thorax."

The other two changelings looked at each other before sighing and lighting up their bodies as well. The mare changed her color to a soft violet, her horn smaller than Tweezers's, and her shell a deep purple, as were her eyes. The rest turned bright and colorful red, his horn disappeared, but he made up for it by becoming the largest of the three, even larger than the unicorn, his shell dark red and orange eyes. Light Flare watched them carefully before speaking.

"Let me guess, you are that resistance of which so many rumors are heard."

"That's right," confirmed Tweezers, "she's Shell," he said pointing to the changeling mare, then gesturing to the stallion, "and he's Sting."

"Delighted, now get out of here" said Light Flare sharply. "I've had no trouble with the Hive for years, I have no plans to change that."

"The Hive isn't looking for us, and neither are you, you're safe. We just want to talk."

"Of what? What the hell do I have that interests you so much?"

Tweezers looked at his companions briefly before replying.

"We were sent here to try to locate and, if possible, rescue a possible ally that the Hive are keeping locked up."

"And what does he have to do with me?" Light Flare asked impatiently.

"We found him yesterday," Tweezers continued, apparently not hearing Light Flare's question, which made her even angrier. "We couldn't rescue him, the Queen made sure of it, but he told us there was somepony nearby who could help us... a mare capable of hiding in plain sight from the Hive."

Light Flare growled to herself, a slight suspicion as to who this ally was.

"And how do you know that mare is me?"

"First of all, your love concealment spell" Tweezers said with a shrug. "Too powerful and subtle to be the work of anypony. And then there are your plant preservation spells." The changeling looked over his shoulder at the orchard. "More powerful and effective than the ponies around here have."

Light Flare growled, turning around and starting to walk away from them, back to her house.

"I'm not the mare you're looking for, I'm just good at magic, my parents were high level wizards, nothing more. And I'm getting sick of this" Light Flare stopped on her porch, grabbing her teacup in her magic and looking over her shoulder at the changelings. "Get out of here, you're having the wrong pony."

"You're her, right? The Princess of the Sun."

Light Flare was silent for several minutes, minutes that felt long and tense, especially for Shell and Sting. Tweezers didn't take his eyes off the mare, and she kept her eyes on him. At last, the mare carried her cup into her house, setting it on her kitchen table before facing the changeling from the top of the porch.

"That Princess of the Sun is a legend, a myth."

"I thought the same thing about our possible ally, then I found out he was real" Tweezers said with a shrug. "If he is real, then so are you, Princess of the Sun."

"And what makes you think I'm that princess?"

"Other than advanced spells? He gave us a description in case we found you, a taller than average mare, slightly tapered horn, white fur, and pink mane. You're a little sloppier than I thought, but it's definitely you."

Light Flare was silent for a few moments before speaking.

"In case it's true, which it isn't, what do you want from me?"

"We need your help."

"And what makes you think I want to help?"

"I've heard the legends, about your kindness, mercy, and your ideals of a world of friendship and harmony. You can't ignore all of that forever."

Light Flare started down the stairs and advanced until she was face to face with Tweezers, looking him straight in the eye.

"If I were the Princess of the Sun for real, I've been ignoring all of that for 1000 years, and I could do so for many more centuries."

"The ponies...no, all the creatures in the world need you" Tweezers said firmly.

"The legends say that the Princess of the Sun disappeared, have you ever wondered why?" asked Light Flare, tilting her head slightly. "Haven't you considered that perhaps the Princess thought the creatures of the world weren't worth it?" the mare watched Tweezers for a few more moments before turning and starting to approach her house. "Go back the way you came, you won't find your princess here."

"He said you could refuse" Tweezers said as he stepped forward. "And he told me, in that case, to tell you that if she could see you, Luna would be very disappointed."

Light Flare stopped abruptly halfway up the stairs, turning her head to look at the changeling, and her eye, for the first time in a long time, began to glow a little brighter.

"What have you said?" She told him in a low and threatening tone.

Despite the shiver that ran through his body and the alarm signals in his brain, Tweezers stood his ground.

"I said Luna would be very..."

He couldn't finish the sentence, as he felt a blow to his jaw, so hard, it propelled him back with overwhelming force. He crashed to the ground and crawled on the ground for a few meters, destroying the orchard, until he finally stopped.

"Tweezers!" Shell yelled as she moved closer to her superior.

Sting positioned himself in front of his teammates, trying to keep the distance between them and Light Flare, who was now where Tweezers had been before. Despite being taller than her, his body was trembling slightly, which made him furious. Why was he being afraid? The beaten changeling managed to sit up with Shell's help, massaging his jaw, which was thankfully unbroken, watching the mare. He hadn't seen she coming, she had moved quickly, very quickly.

"NEVER say that name again" Light Flare said, and even though she tried to keep her voice under control, her eyes shone, coming back to life, and they were furious. "Get out of here and never come back."

"I was right, you are the Princess of the Sun" Tweezers said with a small triumphant smile.

Light Flare growled and turned around, ready to enter her house.

"We'll be in the Dead Forest for a week, in case you change your mind" Tweezers said as he got up with the help of Shell.

"You can skip the wait and walk away" Light Flare growled before slamming the door.

The three changelings were left alone on the farm, the crackle of fire and crickets the only sound. After a few moments, Shell scowled at her superior.

"Are you crazy? How the hell can you provoke her?"

"He said that would make her react, if he was right, she would come."

"I keep saying this is a bad idea," Sting commented.

"You're not going to tell me that the Princess of the Sun doesn't exist, are you? You just saw her."

"He never specified who the mare he was talking about was, and if she were the Princess of the Sun, I don't think she would want to help us. You heard her, she has ignored the suffering of all of Equestria for 1000 years."

"She once cared, not just for ponies, but for any innocent creature. She will help us, we just have to give her time."

"Do you really want to wait for her?" Shell said, directing her gaze to the silhouette of the Hive, illuminated by the moon. "They'll realize we're not here."

"Does matters?" Tweezers replied. "They won't worry about three unimportant drones. We're safe" the changeling opened his shell and took out his wings, much more stylized than those of the changelings of the Hive of Queen Chrysalis. "Let's go."

Tweezers took flight and flew away, disappearing into the darkness. Shell and Sting looked at each other before sighing and following him. Light Flare watched them from her house, through the curtains. Making sure they were gone, she walked over to the teacup, taking hold of it in her magic and watching it for a few moments. Leaving it on the table again, she began to walk towards her bed.