Chapter 3

     "There it is!" Shadow exclaimed. She folded her wings and landed gracefully on the rocky slope. She galloped around in a few small circles to help slow her momentum down. She trotted over to the edge of the mountain and stared at the sunset while she waited for Diablo to catch up.

     Diablo landed beside her, walking a few steps ahead to slow down. He watched the as the sky was dyed different shades of oranges, pink, and purples. He smiled warmly. "Beautiful."

     "Not as beautiful as the lights will be when the sunsets," Shadow added. Diablo and Shadow stood side by side until the sun had set and the moon started to rise. A flicker of light caught the corner of Shadow's eye making her turn her head. "Did you see that?" she asked.

       Diablo looked at the flickering light, his metallic purple flame markings sparkle against the moon. "Yes."

     Shadow trotted up to it and sniffed it. Just then, the moonlight shined above the cliff that they were standing on and lit up the rock that she was sniffing. She squeaked and ran back to Diablo's side. The rock glowed a few colors before the northern lights emerged from it. The lights slowly danced across the sky.

     Diablo stood there, stunned at the sight. He smiled, watching the sight and then poking Shadow with his nose. "Scared?"

     She pinned her ears and swatted him with her tail. "No! It just startled me was all," she defended. She trotted back up to the glowing stone and nudged it with her nose. The rock shifted positions and colors of the northern lights changed. "Amazing," Shadow breathed.         Off in the shadows of a boulder, a silver-white wolf lay un-noticed. He lifted his head from his paws. He spotted two Pegasus’s over investigating the light stone. He slowly got to his feet, his aged joins cracking as he did so.

     He laughed, then seeing the wolf in the corner if his eye, he turned to face it, pawing the ground with his hoof. "Back off."

     Shadow snorted in alarm and followed her gaze to where Diablo stared at the wolf.

     "Relax Pegasus’s, I have been waiting for you to come," the wolf, Jeremy, spoke in his raspy, under used voice. He approached them leisurely, his joins continuing crack as he did so. "I bet you're wondering what that is," he inquired nodding his head towards the Light stone.

     Diablo turned to face the stone, then his wings slowly expand as a display of strength. "Yeah."

     Jeremy smiled at him before approaching the stone. The female Pegasus had leapt away, he turned to her. "Don't be afraid, Pegasus, I have no interest in hurting you," he assured her.

     Shadow trotted to Diablo's side but didn't answer.

     Jeremy turned back to the stone. "This is called the Light Stone. It is used to create the northern lights, as you can obviously tell," he began.

     Diablo nuzzled Shadow, comforting her and listening to the wolf. "Yeah."

     "At first I thought that you two wouldn't come at all. I have been waiting for you for a very long time. If I am not mistaken then you two are considered the out casts of your kind correct?"

     Diablo nodded, his wings expanding as they covered over Shadow in defense. "Yes, why?”

     Jeremy sat down on the ground. "Because long ago this stone was stolen by one of your kind. Back before the time that evil existed, every creature lived with one another in perfect harmony. All the pelts of every creature, whether they were magical or not, were white. The Light Stone was a prized possession of all the lands. Everyone would stop and look at the lovely lights that it produced every night. During those times, there lived a Pegasus and he looked no different from any other. This made him feel very indifferent. He grew up his whole life longing to be different from the others. This was how hatred first came to be. He was ungrateful for what he had and who he was. Eventually he started to hear voices inside his head.

"If you take the stone, then I will grant you a wish," the dark voice kept telling him. "Bring me the stone and I will make you stand out from the rest."

At first the Pegasus resisted but as the years of living the same old life drug on, he eventually decided to take the voice up on his offer. He snuck up to the sacred platform of the stone at sunset and took the stone from the holding place. There was no one who could stop him since evil had not existed. As he flew away with the stone, the sunset slid behind the mountains and the moon started to rise. As the last rays of the sun had set, the Pegasus’s pelt had turned from pure white to night black. All the creatures were enraged when the lovely lights did not dance across the sky and they started to turn on each other thus creating the idea of hunting. As the ground was being stained with blood, a few of the fighting creatures had looked up and spotted the now black Pegasus flying overhead. He delivered the stone to this spot where it has sat for centuries."

     Diablo looks at them both, his head tilted. "So, you’re saying we're evil?”

     "No." Jeremy said flatly. "I'm saying that for all these years, the black Pegasus being evil was merely a misunderstanding. As can be told by the two of you, not all black Pegasus’s are evil. The only reason why they were ever considered evil was because of that day when a black Pegasus stole the stone," Jeremy explained. "Do you know what this mountain is called?"

     "Ah, I see." He said, lowering his head as he looked around. "No, I have no clue."

     "This mountain is called Diablo's Peak," the old wolf told them. "If you two can take this stone and place it back on its pedestal then all of the creatures of the land will second guess black Pegasus’s and instead of looking for the darkness in them-"

     "Then they will look for the light!" Shadow finished for him. She stepped forward. "Where is the stone's pedestal?"

     Diablo steps forward, his heavy body looking on the defensive side as his voice snapped at the wolf. "Too much of a coincidence!" He declares, his eyes narrowing. "Diablo's Peak' that's the most stupidest thing ever!"

     "It is only called that because about 5 centuries ago a wolf had climbed this mountain in pursuit of a deer and he stumbled over the stone. He knew immediately what it was. The deer forgotten, he carried the stone to a leader of the dragons and asked her to return the stone to its pedestal. Though she was able to reach the mountain where the pedestal was located, which that mountain is called Shadow's rock, she couldn't fit inside the tunnel that leads out to the clearing where it was located. She tried to fly over it but it was enchanted. Disappointed, she flew the stone back to the wolf and said from this day forward until a Pegasus is willing to go and take the stone back themselves, that the wolves would guard it for their lifetime. That is why it is called Diablo's Peak, it is because many have tried to return the stone but many have failed." Jeremy licked his lips and walked over to a nearby puddle to drink.

     Diablo stamped the ground with his hoof, snorting. "I will not disturb nature, and I refuse to move that stone!" He snorted, ears hung down as his wings expanded to its full extent.

     "Wait, Diablo," Shadow walked around him stood directly in front of him. "I think this wolf has a point. I mean could you imagine what it would be like if we could live life amongst our own kind without the worry of judgment?"

     "I don't care about judgment; let them think what they want!" He snorted.

     Shadow huffed. "But it's been missing for centuries!" she argued. "You know that we are the only ones who can bring it back!"

     He stared at Shadow, being very serious. "Why? There should be more than just us to bring this rock to that pedestal!"

     Shadow looked away, not knowing how to respond. An idea came to her and she gave him a devious look. "So, you're more afraid of taking a rock to an alter then you are going to war?" she laughed and turned away. "This is a simple mission that will only take a month at best."

     Diablo snorted, easily taunted as he stopped his hoof hard on the ground. "I am not scared! I have carried queens and kings to safety! If take a nice bullet for anything, but a rock?!" He snorted again, his eyes showing fury.

     Shadow looked over her shoulder and smiled. "Well then this mission should be loads easier than carrying Kings and Queens," she teased.

     He lowered his head, looking deep in thought. He shrugged, lifting his head high as he puffed his chest out and folding his wings. "Fine, mission accepted, only on terms that I lead, I got experience."

     Jeremy nodded and wagged his tail. "Great! Then that means that you get to carry the stone," he motioned towards Shadow.

     "Wait, do I have to carry that in my mouth the whole way?" Shadow asked, her ears flattening at the thought.

     "No, I have a pouch that it can go in and you can slip it around your neck. Hung on a sec and I'll go get it," the white wolf disappeared into a small hole in the ground then reappeared holding the small skin pouch. He opened it up with his paw and nudged the stone inside it; the lights disappeared from the sky. Jeremy carried the pouch over to the male Pegasus. "You'll have to put it around her neck, I'm too short to reach," he commented and presented the pouch to him.

     Diablo nodded, blushing in his mind dearly as he grabbed the pouch with his teeth, lifting it over Shadow head and gently placing it down do she can adjust to its weight. His mind traveled on, working on plans and a fast route.

     Shadow blushed and looked away, the weight of the stone felt awkward on her chest. She turned to the wolf. "Which way is Shadow's Rock?" she asked.

     "They don't call it the northern lights for nothing," Jeremy turned his muzzle so it pointed north. "It is the tallest mountain of the North. But be careful Pegasus’s, not only will creatures be trying to stop you because of your color but there are also demons and other forces of evil that don't want to stone to be returned," he warned.

     Diablo nodded his head, staring toward north as is mind traveled states and countries away, remembering something. It was a memory, of flying with a Pegasus; it was his friend in war. He smiled at the thought, and then whispered some of the words. "The sun sets beautifully...here.”

     "Well, I guess we should go then," Shadow suggested. She nipped Diablo's flank as she galloped past and spread her wings to take flight. "Come on Diablo! You can stare at the sun later! We have a mission to accomplish!" She took off into the air.

     He quickly lost his thought, smirking as he chased Shadow. "Bye elder!" He said to the wolf. He followed Shadow, a little bit behind her as his chest is at her flank, looking on guard. "Anything comes, and I'm going to kill them." He snorted.

     Jeremy rested his head on his paws and watched the Pegasus's disappear in the distance. "Good luck Pegasus’s, I have high hopes that you will succeed," he whispered to himself.