"The last of the Alicorns?" Dust answered the black mare, confused. "How can you be the last?"

"All the others have long since passed." The mare answered him.

She had an odd accent, and Dust couldn't decide what it was. It reminded him of ceveral accents from his own world, and he could hear traces of both
french and.. Maybe it was.. italic..? He had no idea.

"What about the princesses?" He asked. "Celestia and Luna. They're still alive, and Luna might be on her way here now.. I think."

"We do not trouble ourselves with the sisters." The mare said in a cold voice. "They are nothing but pawns in a game."

"What are you talking about?" Dust said, lowering his sword a bit.

"The game of Void." The mare answered his question. "And I dare say, you have played it rather well, Carrier."

There it was again. Carrier. The other mare had called him that as well, before she attacked him.

"Are you.. involved with the unicorn that tried to kill me earlier?" He asked hesitantly.

"I presume you mean Equinox." She answered. "Yes, she and I are part of the same.. Organisation. How is she?"

"I think she's dead." Dust said with a blunt voice. "She attacked me and we fell of a cliff.."

"Oh. That is unfortunate." The mare said without even blinking. No emotion whatsoever.

Without saying another word, the mare walked straight pass Dust, setting herself down in front of the spire. Dust was surprised as he saw that she didn't
have a cutie mark..

"Why don't you have any.." Dust began, but regreted he asked the moment his mouth opened.

"Cutie mark?" Aurora answered. "We don't need them."

"What 'we'?"

"The Void Seekers." She turned her head to look at Dust. "Our flanks are blank, because that is what we seek."

Dust stood confused at Auroras words.

"You call me Carrier.." He said. "Why? Does it have something to do with this..?" He brought the ring out from underneath his shirt.

"Indeed. The Jormundgand."

"The what..?" Dust replied.

"Jormundgand." Aurora answered him. "The serpent that encircles the world."

"You know what this thing is?" Dust asked her slowly. "Do you know where it comes from?"

"Of course I do." Aurora said back to him.

"Then tell me." Dust hurried to reply.

But Aurora didn't say anything else, she instead continued to stare at the spire, almost spellbound by it. Dust sighed quietly. He needed Luna now..
Something was obiously wrong here, and he didn't know if he could trust this Aurora. If he'd had his lover next to him, he might have felt more
sure as he lowered his sword and walked up to the mare. He stopped next to her, looking over the spire as well.

"Please, Aurora." He began. "Tell me what you know." He didn't feel comfortable begging like this, but he didn't know what else he could do.

"Tell me what you feel first." Aurora responded, to Dust's confusion. "Tell me what you feel for her. For Luna."

"How do you know about that..?" Dust said in a low voice.

"I feel it." Aurora answered. "As well as I can feel what you have done. Rarity was beautiful, was she not?"

"Don't talk about her." Dust said with a somewhat harder voice.

"Jormundgand tells me you killed her. And absorbed her magic."

"Please, stop it.." Dust said to her, as the orb of red light above their heads started to diminish in strenght.

"And what about that poor Twilight Sparkle, hmm? You broke her horn and took the life of her baby dragon.. You've been busy."

Dust finaly snapped in anger and shame.

"Shut up, just tell me everything you know about this thing, or I swear I'll kill you where you stand!"

He yelled down at the black mare, wanting to just bring his sword right through her chest, stop her from.. making him remember.

"But you still have not answered my question." Aurora said without flinching a bit at his yelling. "What do you feel for Luna?"

"And why do you care?" Dust spat back at her. "So you can tear up more painful memories?"

"I am merely curious." she answered calmly. "Tell me, and I'll tell you everything you want to know."

For a while, Dust reamined silent, unsure what to do. He wanted to sit down, to rest his leg, but looking around in the room, he found nothing to sit down on.
He paced for a while, stroking his forehead in angst. And all the while, Aurora didn't say a word, didn't even look at him. Finaly, fed up with his own
worries and the mares silence, Dust sat down on the uneven dune of sand surrounding the spire.

He let himself fall backwards into the sand, and for a split second he wanted to sleep. He had been so busy that he'd forgotten just how tired he really
was. But falling asleep in a place like this.. Not a good idea. He broke the silence again, trying to keep himself awake.
Luckily, the sand was perfect for his broken wings, and they didn't hurt as he let them sink down.

"I.. I love her." He said quietly from his place in the sand. "Ever since the day she.. saved my life. From an accident she herself was part of, but still."

Aurora nodded slowly at his words, but didn't say anything. Dust continued.

"She means everything to me, everything. I want to make her happy, want to see her smile. And to tell the truth, at first I thought that I didn't care about
what would happen to me, but I see now that it's wrong to think that way. I thought I would die for her, gladly, as long as she would be allright.
But if I where to die, she would be all alone, devestated. I can't let myself die, because Luna would die with me, at least in her heart.. I want to spend
the rest of my life with her.. Want to wake up every morning next to her beautiful face, spend ever day in her company. Fall asleep next to her, feeling
her warmth against me. Tell her how much I love her every day.. and to just hold her close."

Dust felt his eyes water as he spoke. If only things had been different, they might have had a real relationship, not this..

"Sometimes, I've wished I was a pony instead of human." He said slowly." That way, perhaps her sister would have accepted me instead of trying to kill
me. Life would have been so different. Hell, we could have gotten children.. I've always wanted to have children. But that's impossible for me and Luna.."

"You're a brave man." Aurora answered after a few moments of silence. "Not many ponys dare to spill their hearts like this, letting out their innermost
feelings to a complete stranger."

"I don't really care.." Dust said back. "I'm going to die soon anyway, so what does it matter? So, did my answer satisfy you? Will you tell me
about this ring now?"

"You answered me truthfully." Aurora said back to him. "So yes, I will tell you everything I know."

"Tell me what this thing is, where it came from, why it was created." Dust replied.

"It is a long story." She began. "Are you familiar with the history of Equestria?"

"A bit." Dust answered. "I've read a lot about it."

"The you no doubt know about the blizzard that brought the races into war? Thousands of years before that, before ponies even roamed this land, another
race lived and thrived across the world."

"Who, the Alicorns?" Dust asked as she paused.

"No, not Alicorns." Aurora answered him. "Look at the spire next to you. I am sure you recognise the different symbols and writings."

"Yeah, it looks like symbols from my own world.." Dust began. "But how the hell can human signs be hidden here, in Equestria?"

"Because they where here first, a long, long time ago." Aurora said slowly.

Dust's eyes widened in shock at this, and the mare paused for a while to let her words sink in.

"They prospered in this world for thousands of years, evolving and advancing constantly through the ages. They invented strange contraptions that
breathed fire, and masive, flying spires that could completely obliterate anything it hit."

"Nuklear weapons. That's what they're called." Dust pointed out. "They built them in my world as well."

"But their society was not perfect." The mare continued, not paying attention to Dust's comment. "They where so focused on their weapons and fighting,
that no one saw the real problem."

"And they wiped themselves out." Dust filled in.

"Indeed. Mankinds powers could no longer be contained, and it was unleashed upon the world. All living beings, snuffed out in an instant."

"But, then.. wouldn't there by nuklear fallout? The world would have been drenched in radioactivity and nuclear ashes."

"Like I said, it was a long time ago." Aurora answered his question.

"Still, that doesn't explain this spire, or the ring.." Dust replied.

"This place was seen as a holy place." She said. "For it was here that the first Alicorn appeared, to humankinds surprise."

"You're telling me humans and ponies used to live together..?"

"That they did. And since that day the Alicorn appeared, every generation and civilastion made their way to this shrine, to honor this new race and
pledge their knowledge to the afterworld. But once the world started to crumble, the Alicorns noticed the spire had started to change, crack.
It was clear that the knowledge and power of all mankind was too much for simple stone, and it started to give way under the preasure. Mankind
was to busy with killing each other over the most simple things, that they did not care about this."

"This is a lot to take in.." Dust exhaled as Aurora paused again.

"So, the Alicorns created the Jormundgand in secret. Crafted from pure magic, completely indestructable. The perfect vessel for all that power. And
since nothing could harm it, a small group of Alicorns where selected to hide the ring far away, and guard it into death. And we did. And they all died
together with the humans as the world burned. All but me."

"But.." Dust began. "If the Alicorns were the only kind of ponies, how come there's carwings of all different speices on the ring?"

"That, I must admitt, I do not know." Aurora replied. "Perhaps somepony else found it later, perhaps they saw it as some sacred relic. Your quess is as
good as mine in this. The ring dissapeared from its hidden shrine, and since then we have been searching for it."

"We?" Dust asked the mare.

"The Void Seekers. I created this small group of ponies, and we have all devoted our lifes to finding Jormundgand. But instead, you have found it for us."

"So you're trying to find this.. Jormund.. gand? Then why did the unicorn mare try to kill me?" Dust asked her.

"Sadly, the other three members of us all went mad. As far as I know, they found the Jormundgand, but its powers where too strong, and it broke
their minds. With Equinox dead, there is only two more members besides me, unless their dead as well. I do not know what has become of them."

"I think I understand.." Dust said slowly. "Ever since I found this ring, I've been haunted by.. I don't know what to call them. Images, maybe.
Images of Luna, and after her death, Rarity as well.. Do you know why?"

"No, I do not know why this is." Aurora answered shortly. "Perhaps you'll come to understand it yourself in time."

Dust exhaled in frustration.. Maybe he would never understand, haunted until the day of his death.

Dust.. dus.. du.. d.. dust..

Dust sat up straight as an echo reached his ears. The sand around him flew up into the air as he hurried to his feet, his woolen robe completely
covered in sand. But he didn't care to brush it off. His wings emerged from the sand as he stood up, creating a trail of sand and feathers behind him
as he hurried over to the tunnel he came through.

There was no mistaking that echo. Lunas voice.

"Luna!" He called out into the darkness. "Can you hear me?!"

Another echo answered him, this time closer.

"I'm here, sweetie!" He called out.

Where.. ere.. ar.. you.. o..

"Head for the red light!" He answered the echo, and without thinking, he ran out into the tunnel.

Towards his loved one. He kept in calling her name as he ran as fast as he could, not paying any attention to the pain building up in his thigh yet again.
Luna was more important than pain. Finaly, a figure appeared out of the shadows in front of him, running straight for him. As he saw the dark blue
coat and shimmering mane, he reached out his arms, almost throwing himself over her, wrapping his arms around her and squeesing her tight.

They both panted from the running, and shared smiles, laughs, kisses and tears, all out of joy of finding each other again.

"I thought you were dead.." Luna whispered as they pressed themselves close to each other, crying.

"So did I.." Dust answered her. "I almost thought I'd never see you again."

"I would fly across all of Equestria again to be with you." Luna replied and gave him another kiss.

Then she broke the kiss and gasped silently. She had moved her foreleg unto her back, touching his broken wings.

"Honey, what.." She whispered slowly.

"I probably won't fly again, no." Dust answered in a low voice. "But don't worry about that, it's not important right now."

"But.." Luna began carefully." Can't you just.. pull them back in?"

"I've tried, but they don't respond.." He whispered. "I think they where damaged so badly that they lost their connection with the rest of me.."

They hugged a while more in silence. Luna cried quietly into his shoulder, not only because of joy, but also because of Dust's injuries. In pained her to see
him like this. After a few more moments, the broke the embrace, but sharing one last kiss as they tore apart.

"Come on, there's something you need to see." Dust whispered.

They walked back through the tunnel, and the injury in Dust's leg started to hurt again, and he had no choice but to limp sligthly, but Luna suported him
with one of her wings. Entering the room with the spire again, Lunas eyes widened and her jaw dropped at the sight of it.

"What.. is that..?" She exhaled.

"It's.. a bit difficult for me to explain." Dust admitted. "But Aurora should be around here somewhere, she'll tell you."

"Who?" Luna asked with a puzzled look on her face.

"Aurora, I met her here. She said she was the last Alicorn, and told me all about this ring, and.."

"Dust, you didn't hit your head when you fell, did you..?" Luna asked him slowly in a worried voice. "You're not making any sense.."

Dust hurried to search through the room, calling out for Aurora, but he couldn't find her. The room was completely empty, not a single trace of her.
He scanned the sand around the pillar for hoofprints, but could only find his own tracks.

"But, she was right here, I.." Dust began, a singe of fear coursing through him.

"Love.. There's no one here." Luna said to him. "I don't think anypony's been here for centuries.."

"No, she was here!" Dust cried out. "I'm sure of it, she was just as real as you!"

Luna walked up to Dust and pulled him close, comforting him.

"Calm down, Dust.. She's not here. You must've hit your head bad when you landed.."

"But if she wasn't real.. how do I know you're real? Maybe I'm just imagining you because I long for you so much?"

Dust felt panic build up inside him.

"What if you're not the real Luna, but just that strange.. thing!"

He tried to push Luna off of him, but she held on tight, refusing to let him go. She wrapped her wings around him as well, in an attempt to calm him down.
Quickly, she grabbed one of his hands and tried to press it against her chest, but he tore it away again and again. After a slight struggle though, Dust
calmed down as she managed to put his hand against her ribs.

"See?" Luna whispered. "Feel my heart beating? That thing doesn't have a heart, it doesnt have anything. I'm real."

As Dust calmed down by the sensation of her beating heart against his palm, and her soothing words, Luna gave him another kiss, hoping that would
convince him. After a moment, Dust answered the kiss, apologising for his outburst.

"Mayne we should get out of here..?" Luna sked cautiously after they broke the kiss.

Dust nodded quietly.

"But, um.. how, exactly?" He said in a low voice, giving a quick nod over his shoulder.

"I could probably carry you on my back.." Luna answered.

"Are you sure?" Dust began. "If you can't do it and fall down, we might get stuck down here.."

"I'm sure. "Luna replied. "And if we get stuck.. At least we'll die together."

"Don't say that, Luna, we're not going to die here. I promise you that we'll live togheter the rest of our lives."

"I love you so much, dear.. But, once we get out of here, where should we go..?" Luna asked.

For a few moments, Dust remained silent, looking inte her big eyes. Then he opened his mouth to speak.

"I think.. It's time we visit your sister."

Luna raised her eyebrows at his words, but didn't object.

"It's time to end this."