"How we've longed to hold you, dear one," Marillee wept. "All this time, in the darkness, we remembered," she said. "We remembered how we left you, without explanation, without hope, and how we grieved! How beautiful a woman you have become, and how powerful, that you found this place."

The skin of Marillee's face bulged and rippled, as if something flitted briefly beneath its surface. Jalwyn, who watched the reunion wordlessly, gasped and drew back. Teraud noted the motion and snarled, baring sharp white teeth.

"Say nothing, mage!" he hissed. His handsome features contorted in the same fierce manner as the woman's. The flesh of his exposed neck undulated. "Breathe a word, and I shall carve your throat!"

Silky lips closed smoothly over the bared fangs. The bulge in his throat abated. When Teraud turned to Alonna, his smile was beatific, welcoming, his face comely and exuberant once more.

Jalwyn, dumbfounded, looked to Alonna, who took her first unsteady step towards her parents . . .

Welcome to Undermarch, where Creation seeks a second chance.