King Kelson's Bride

by Katherine Kurtz

  SÉAN Seamus O’Flynn, Lord—Earl Derry, former aide to Alaric Duke of Corwyn and now his lieutenant, Deputy Regent of Marley, occasional member of the Privy Council of Gwynedd, age thirty-one.

  SÉANDRY, Uncle—Briony de Morgan’s pet-name for Séan, Lord Derry.

  SIANY—daughter of Lord Savile and Lady Sivorn, age seven.

  SIDANA Quinnell, Lady—Princess of Meara and first wife of King Kelson, murdered by her brother on her wedding day in 1124.

  SION Benét, Sir—Under-Chancellor to the Royal House of Llannedd and youngest member of the Camberian Council; a descendant of Sir Sion Benét, who was a cousin of Earl Jebediah and a friend and supporter of Saint Camber; age forty-two.

  SIVNEY—son and heir of Lord Savile and Lady Sivorn, age nine.

  SIVORN, Princess—sister of Létald Hort of Orsal; widow of Prince Richard Haldane Duke of Carthmoor and wife of Savile Baron Kishknock; mother of Princesses Richelle and Araxie by her first marriage, and Savilla, Sivney, Siany, and Sorley by her second; age thirty-nine.

  SOFIANA, Princess—Sovereign Princess of Andelon, wife of Lord Reyhan; mother of Princes Kamil and Taher; aunt of Lady Richenda; member of the Camberian Council; age forty-eight.

  SOPHIE—maid to Queen Jehana.

  SORLEY—son of Lord Savile and Lady Sivorn, age six.

  STANISHA, Princess—posthumous daughter of Lionel II late Duke d’Arjenol and Princess Morag, sister of Liam-Lajos and Ronal Rurik; age six.

  SULIEN of R’Kassi—early Deryni scholar, author of the Annales Sulieni.

  TAHER, Prince—second son of Sofiana Sovereign Princess of Andelon and Lord Reyhan, Deryni; age twenty-eight.

  TEYMURAZ, Count—half-brother of Lionel late Duke d’Arjenol, full brother of Duke Mahael and Count Mátyás; uncle of the late King Alroy Arion II, King Liam-Lajos II, Prince Ronal Rurik, and Princess Stanisha; Count of Brustarkia and third in line to the Torenthi throne, Deryni; age thirty-three.

  THOMAS Cardiel, Archbishop—Bremagni former Bishop of Dhassa, now Archbishop of Rhemuth; age forty-eight.

  TIBAL, Count—son of Lady Vivienne de Jordanet, now Count de Jordanet in Joux, Deryni; age fifty-four.

  TIERCEL de Claron—late member of the Camberian Council, who trained Prince Conall in the use of his Haldane potential.

  UNGNAD, Count—Deryni Count of Fajardô in Torenth.

  URSULA, Lady—granddaughter of Braon, late Prince of Howicce; age nineteen.

  VANISSA—former mistress of Prince Conall, and mother of his natural daughter, Conalline Amelia; age twenty.

  VASILLY Dimitriades—Chief Chamberlain to the Hort of Orsal; age forty-one.

  VIVIENNE de Jordanet, Lady—coadjutor of the Camberian Council; mother of Tibal Count de Jordanet in Joux; age seventy-five.

  WENCIT, King—late Deryni ruler of Torenth (1110–1121), brother of Princess Morag, uncle of King Liam Lajos II; killed by King Kelson in a duel arcane in 1121.

  Appendix II

  INDEX OF PLACES

  ALTA JORDA—seat of the Jordanet family in Joux.

  ANDELON—a sovereign principality immediately bordering the Forcinn States to the south, currently ruled by Princess Sofiana.

  ANVIL OF THE LORD—a large desert region lying to the east of Jáca, Bremagne, and Alver, and south of R’Kassi, consisting of a number of small independent Moorish states.

  ARJENOL—a large duchy in eastern Torenth, closely associated with the royal House of Furstán; recent dukes include Lionel II (1100–1121) and his half-brother, Mahael II (1121–).

  BELDOUR—capital of Torenth, sited near the confluence of the Beldour and Arjent Rivers.

  BREMAGNE—a large kingdom situated across the Southern Sea to the southeast of Gwynedd, currently ruled by King Ryol II, brother of Jehana Dowager Queen of Gwynedd.

  BRUSTARKIA—a county of western Arjenol, currently ruled by Count Teymuraz.

  CALAM—a sovereign grand duchy of the Connait, currently ruled by Grand Duke Gron III.

  CARTHMOOR—a royal duchy in southeastern Gwynedd, just southwest of Corwyn, currently ruled by Duke Nigel, uncle to King Kelson.

  CASSAN—a duchy in western Gwynedd which includes the Earldom of Kierney; recent dukes include Duncan (1121–1125) and Dhugal (1125–).

  CIRCASSIA—an emirate in Libania.

  CLAIBOURNE—a duchy far north in Gwynedd, encompassing much of the ancient principality of Kheldour; currently ruled by Duke Ewan III.

  CLOOME—a small earldom in the southwestern region of Meara.

  THE CONNAIT—a confederation of sovereign states located west of Gwynedd and south of Meara, loosely governed by the Connaiti Council of Sovereign Princes.

  COROTH—capital city of the Duchy of Corwyn in Gwynedd.

  CORWYN—a duchy located in the southeastern corner of Gwynedd, ruled since 1091 by Duke Alaric Morgan.

  CZALSKY—a county of northeastern Torenth, currently ruled by Count László.

  DERRY—a small earldom located north of Corwyn, currently held by Earl Séan O’Flynn.

  DESSE—the principal inland port town of Gwynedd, located south of Rhemuth on the confluence of the Rivers Eirian and Molling, and representing the farthest navigable point on the Eirian into Gwynedd.

  DHASSA—a free holy city of eastern Gwynedd, once an independent Prince-Bishopric, situated between Gwynedd and Mooryn; currently the seat of Bishop Denis Arilan.

  EASTMARCH—an earldom in eastern Gwynedd, currently held by Earl Burchard de Varian.

  ELEVEN KINGDOMS—ancient name for the entire area including and surrounding Gwynedd.

  FALLON—a small kingdom lying south of the Forcinn States and north of Bremagne.

  FIANNA—a small sovereign county lying between Fallon and Logréine, south of the Forcinn States, known primarily for its wines.

  FORCINN STATES—a group of five sovereign states located south of Torenth and Tralia, under the overlordship of the Hort of Orsal (who is also Prince of Tralia).

  FURSTÁNÁLY—principal palace of the Kings of Torenth in Beldour, famous for its Hanging Garden, one of the seven architectural wonders of the world.

  FURSTÁNAN—a Torenthi town located near the mouth of the Beldour River.

  GREAT ESTUARY OR TWIN RIVERS STRAIT—the waterway between Corwyn and Orsal leading to the mouths of the Western and Beldour Rivers in Torenth.

  GWYNEDD—the central and largest of the Eleven Kingdoms, held by the Haldane family since 645; recent kings include Malcolm (1025–1074), Donal Blaine II (1074–1095), Brion (1095–1120), and Kelson (1120–).

  HAGIA IÓB’S—the oldest Christian church in Torenth, located in Torenthály; burial place of Furstán I, first King ofo Torenth.

  HORTHÁNTHY—the summer palace of the Hort of Orsal on the Ile d’Orsal.

  HOWICCE AND LLANNEDD—two kingdoms located in the southwestern portion of the Eleven Kingdoms, united under the personal rule of King Colman II.

  ILE D’ORSAL—an island off the coast of Tralia in the Southern Sea, constituting the original settlement of the Orsal family; it includes the town of Orsalis.

  JÁCA—a sovereign principality lying to the east of Fallon and west of the Anvil of the Lord.

  JÁNDRICH—a duchy of northern Torenth.

  JOUX—a sovereign duchy of the Forcinn States.

  KHELDOUR—an ancient sovereign principality located in the far north of the Eleven Kingdoms, now a part of Gwynedd.

  KIERNEY—an earldom in western Gwynedd, now a secondary holding of the Dukes of Cassan.

  KILARDEN—an earldom in northern Meara.

  KILLINGFORD—site of the bloodiest battle fought in the history of the Eleven Kingdoms, between Gwynedd and Torenth, at a ford on the Falling Water River north of Valoret in the year 1025.

  KILSHANE—an ancient extinct barony in Kierney.

  KOMNÉNË—a small county in southwestern Arjenol.

  KULNÁN—a county of western Torenth.

  LAAS—the ancient royal capital of Meara, located on the west coast of that
country.

  LENDOUR—an earldom in south central Gwynedd, now a subsidiary title to the Duchy of Corwyn.

  LOGRÉINE—a sovereign principality of the Forcinn States.

  LORSÖL—a duchy of southeastern Torenth.

  MARLUK—a Torenthi duchy lying on the south side of the Beldour River, currently merged with the Crown.

  MEARA—a former sovereign principality in the far western region of the Eleven Kingdoms, now part of Gwynedd.

  NIKOLASEUM—the seven-tiered monument erected at Torenthály by Arkady II King of Torenth to the memory of his brother, Prince Nikola; it is considered one of the seven architectural wonders of the world.

  NUR HALLAJ—one of the Forcinn States, bordered on the east by the Kingdom of R’Kassi.

  NYFORD—a port town in southern Gwynedd situated at the confluence of the Eirian and Lendour Rivers.

  ORSAL AND TRALIA—a principality lying east of Corwyn across the Southern Sea, and south of Torenth, ruled by the von Horthy family, whose current prince, Létald, bears the title Hort of Orsal and Prince of Tralia; the Principality of Tralia is the mainland portion of the country.

  ORSALIS—the town and harbor of the Ile d’Orsal.

  ÖSTMARCKE—a duchy of eastern Torenth, situated to the west of Arjenol.

  RATHARKIN—the new capital of Meara after the union of Meara and Gwynedd in 1025, displacing Laas; seat of the Bishop of Meara.

  RHEMUTH—the capital city of Gwynedd, called “the beautiful,” seat of the Archbishop of Rhemuth.

  RHENDALL—an earldom of western Kheldour, in northern Gwynedd.

  R’KASSI—a great desert kingdom lying south of Torenth and Tralia and east of the Forcinn States.

  SAINT CONSTANTINE’S CATHEDRAL—the chief seat of the Archbishop of Beldour and Patriarch of All Torenth, currently Patriarch Alpheios I.

  SAINT GEORGE’S CATHEDRAL—seat of the Archbishop of Rhemuth, currently Archbishop Thomas II Cardiel.

  SAINT HILARY’S BASILICA—the ancient royal basilica located within the walls of Rhemuth Castle, of which Bishop Duncan McLain is rector.

  SAINT KYRIELL’S—a village located in the hills northeast of Caerrorie, where some of the Servants of Saint Camber went into exile after the imposition of the Statutes of Ramos in the tenth century; rediscovered by King Kelson in 1125.

  SAINT-SASILE—a monastery in the southern Torenth town of Furstánan on the Beldour River.

  SOSTRA—a county of western Torenth, centered on the town of the same name.

  SOUTHERN SEA—that part of the Atalantic Ocean lying between Gwynedd and the Forcinn States, Fallon, and Bremagne.

  TORENTH—major kingdom bordering Gwynedd on the east, whose recent kings include Wencit, or Wenzel II (1110–1121), Alroy Arion II (1121–1123), and Liam-Lajos II (1123–).

  TORENTHÁLY—the country seat of Torenth’s kings, located north of Beldour, which includes the Church of Hagia Iób, the Nikolaseum, and the Furstáni royal tombs.

  TRALIA—see Orsal.

  TRANSHA—an earldom in Gwynedd bordering Kierney and the Purple March, now owned by the Dukes of Cassan.

  TRUVORSK—a duchy of central Torenth.

  VALLA DE COURCY—the estate of the de Courcy family in Gwynedd.

  VALORET—the old capital of Gwynedd during the Festillic Interregnum (822–904), and the seat of the Archbishop Primate of Valoret and All Gwynedd.

  VÉZAIRE—a sovereign grand duchy of the Forcinn.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s Imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

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