- For the actual nursemaid, see Hulda (nurse).
Hulda was an ambitious female mage adept who acted as an agent of the Empire. Using blood magic, she was able to keep herself far younger than her actual age.[1]
She supposedly began her quest in Hardorn, where she molded and subverted Crown Prince Ancar, shaping him into a sadistic monster and eventually becoming his lover. Claiming that she was looking for a suitable bride for him, Hulda chose Valdemar's Princess Elspeth.[2][3] Recognizing the vast magic potential in Elspeth, far outstripping Ancar, she inserted herself into the Royal Nursery.
She killed the real nurse Hulda, who was on her way from Rethwellan to be the infant Princess Elspeth's new nurse, and took her place and name. Prince Karathanelan was dead when she arrived, so there was no one to identify her.[2]
Hulda purposefully trained Elspeth to be a brat, instilling in her the belief that she was more important than everyone else. She hoped to shape Elspeth into a ruthless monarch and blood-path mage like Ancar.[4] Lord Orthallen also paid Hulda,[2] knowing that if Elspeth was a brat she would not be Chosen and could not inherit the throne.
One remarkable achievement was that Hulda never did magic in Valdemar, and thus escaped the attention of the vrondi.
Hulda was found out but escaped capture, going to the Hardornen Court. When Talia fell into their hands as an envoy, she and Ancar took sexual pleasure from torturing her. At one point, Hulda laid her hand on Talia's upper chest, magically causing a burn and a mark that would never go away. Hulda encouraged Ancar to attack Valdemar, stirring his fury at "women" who defeat him.[2]
Ancar demanded more magic lessons, not knowing that he was incapable of rising above master level. She gave him excuses, but Falconsbane opened Ancar's eyes to the facts. Ancar had lost several wars with Valdemar, Hulda was more interested in gaining power, and she would never teach him more. Ancar turned against her and had her imprisoned in the bespelled cell she had created to hold Talia.[1]
When Elspeth and Darkwind defeated Ancar, Hulda was freed from her cell by a fellow ambassador of the Empire. When the ambassador was killed and his portal dissolved, Hulda launched an all-out attack on Elspeth and Darkwind that ended with Elspeth's throwing knife firmly embedded in her eye.[1]
Emperor Charliss later admitted that, while he found Hulda useful for the self-discipline which allowed her to operate inside Valdemar for so many years, her rampant ambition was a problem. Eventually, when that ambition outstripped her utility, he would have had her killed anyway.[5]
In the series[]
Hulda appears in the following works:
- Arrows of the Queen, Heralds of Valdemar, volume 1
- Arrow's Fall, Heralds of Valdemar, volume 3
- Winds of Fury, Mage Winds, volume 3
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Winds of Fury
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Arrow's Fall, Chapter 8
- ↑ However, Exile's Valor changed that, placing Ancar's birth only a year before Elspeth's. In that case, she would have gone to Ancar only after fleeing Valdemar.
- ↑ Arrows of the Queen
- ↑ Storm Warning, Chapter 1