Something was coming. Terra Stryker could sense a palpable shift in the atmosphere as evening approached. A current of unease played havoc with the batwalker and it made no sense. Sure she knew that she was not the Apex Predator but why was her mind and body clamoring at her to run. Ignoring the sensation Terra shifted to the more agile form of a large bat in order to hunt.
As she flew in the ever darkening skies her mind was busy with teasing out snippets of conversations from the past. These were numerous and mostly dominated with dialogue from whom she viewed as two of the deadliest enemies she had: Barker Hook and the Animal Handler. No matter where Terra went it was always in slight fear that the duo would come sweeping in and capture her again. But she was stronger now, more cunning. At one point she had even tempted fate by following Barker and sabotaging the carnival.
Hours passed. The batwalker had returned to the ground and sought shelter in a cave. From the mouth the mare stood in rapt silence as what seemed to be an omen of great importance hung in the sky. The moon, normally a pure white orb, had turned into a pale, muddy, red sphere. It appeared to Terra as though it had been splashed in blood and set out to dry. Her right wing and the clawed tip rose to trace the full circumference of the moon before it lowered. It was as if the appearance of a bloody moon had woken up something in her mind. Steeling herself against the pain to come Terra drove the clawed tip into her skin. Blood flowed and agony erupted from the site where the claw had entered her skin. It did not stop her actions though. Determined to rid herself of the past would take more than an impromptu surgery but her goal was to change the bodily mark that had galled her ever since her escape from the carnival. As the eclipse played out its beauty above down below blood continued to flow freely as slowly but surely Terra carved a new mark into her skin. No longer satisfied with a mere sliver of a crescent moon she would wear the mark of a true blood moon. A mental transformation began to unfold as she completed the process.
No longer would she run and hide at the mere mention of the carnival leaders. This was a new mare now. As her claw came to rest alongside her body Terra panted through the pain and examined her handiwork. The red patch on her breast was now complete. An almost perfect circle now sat there. Grimacing Terra set out from the cave. The moon was beginning to lose its reddish hue and beginning to turn white again. The eclipse was done but her new outlook on life was just beginning to take hold in her mind.
