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Kerowyn

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Kerowyn is the granddaughter of Kethry. She is the daughter of Lenore, the youngest daughter of Kethry and Jadrek, the Archivist of Rethwellan. Her father, Rathgar, was an ex-mercenary who fell in love with Lenore and inherited the manor which Kethry, Jadrek and Tarma had used as a school until they retired. She is the heroine of the song "Kerowyn's Ride" in which she took revenge on the bandits who had killed her father, seriously wounded her brother and kidnapped his bride. She did so with the aid of the spelled sword Need (which had been given to her by Kethry), with assistance from Tarma the Shin'a'in Swordsworn, and Warrl the kyree.

After the completion of the events recounted in the song, Tarma declared that she was a natural warrior and trained her in both swordcraft and strategy. During the training she had a brief affair with her fellow student, Prince Darenthallis of Rethwallen. After her training was complete she followed the advice of her grandmother and Tarma and joined the Skybolts, a mercenary company now led by the son of an old friend.

During a battle with Karsites she was separated from her fellow mercenaries. She rescued Eldan, a Herald of Valdemar who was being tortured by a Priestess of Vkandis and ended up falling in love with him. However, she valued her freedom and, based on her past experiences with men from her family and the countries she had lived in, chose to leave him and return to her mercenary company.

After the loss of most of her company and its commander, the Skybolts were hired by a group of merchants who had no wish to pay the fee they had promised and therefore forced her and her fellow mercenaries into an untenable position that was causing too many casualties. After she was wounded and her fellow mercenaries were being forced into a suicide mission, she severed her contract in accordance with the Mercenary Guild rules and returned to Bolthaven, the company's winter home. Unknown to her, the remaining members of the Skybolts had utilized an ancient rule of the Guild which allowed them to vote out the serving Company Commander and vote her in. They followed her to Bolthaven and as their captain, Kerowyn restored the Skybolts' strength and reputation.

During all this time she had also mastered her connection with the magical sword Need which was spelled to force its "owner" to aid any woman in need and had led her grandmother Kethry into many dangerous and unprosperous (monetarily, Kethry also being a mercenary) adventures. She had done this by threatening to throw Need down a well where she would be useless to help any woman in need of aid.

Kerowyn2

Wayne Barlowe's rendition of Kerowyn, from Barlowe's Guide to Fantasy

While visiting her old friend and ex-lover Prince Daren at his brother's court in the capital of Rethwellan, she is moved by Need and her own sense of ethics to aid Herald Talia who comes to the court asking for aid from the Rethwellan royal family. She asks King Faramentha to remember a promise made by his grandfather to the royal family of Valdemar in exchange for helping him to regain the throne of Rethwellan. She and her Skybolts are then hired by the king and sent to help the Valdemarans in their war against Ancar of Hardorn. During the battle she is thrown from her horse and mounts a white steed she assumes is "just handy" but is in fact the Companion Sayvil. Having been Chosen, she becomes a Herald of Valdemar.

Companion[]

Kerowyn is Chosen by the mare Sayvil, who is likely a reincarnation of the Herald-Mage Savil.

Gifts[]

Her Gift is Thought-sensing, or mind-reading, but she is very afraid of using it or revealing it to others. Thought-sensing is an accompaniment to Mindspeech.

Internship[]

The details of Kerowyn's internship are unknown. It is likely that her time was divided between Weaponsmaster-type work at the Collegia salle, and some work with the Skybolts at their new border town.

Family[]

  • Grandmother - Kethry
  • Grandfather - Jadrek (deceased)
  • Grandmother's Oathsister - Tarma
  • Father - Rathgar (deceased)
  • Mother - Lenore (deceased)
  • Brother - Lordan
  • Sister-in-law - Dierna
  • Significant other - Herald Eldan
  • Other - aunts, uncles and many cousins with whom Rathgar blocked contact. She met them after he died, including:[1][2]
    • Uncle - Jadrek shena Tale'sedrin (one of Kethry's sons), Tale'sedrin clan shaman
    • Uncle - Jendar (one of Kethry's sons), Adept Mage
    • Second cousin - Istren shena Tale'sedrin (one of Kethry's Shin'a'in Tale'sedrin grandsons), horse trainer

In the series[]

Kerowyn appears in the following works:

Notes[]

  1. ↑ Lordan's granddaughter, Kitha shena Tale'sedrin, has never met her great-aunt Kerowyn. ("Feathers in Need" by Jennifer Brozek in Crucible, Valdemar Anthology, volume 9)
  2. ↑ As one of Kethry's great-grandsons, Keth're'son shena Tale'sedrin is Kerowyn's first cousin, once removed. ("The Groom's Price" by Michelle West and Gail Sanders in Finding the Way and Other Tales of Valdemar, Valdemar Anthology, volume 6)
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