Magic's Promise
Mercedes Lackey
 The book opens with Herald-Mage Vanyel returning to his country Valdemar from an extensive campaign along the border with Karse, the neighboring enemy country. He checks in with Valdemar's King Randale and his lifebonded mate, Shavri, and their daughter Jisa. Only a select few know that Jisa is Vanyel's daughter. Because King Randale is sterile, he had asked Vanyel to father an heir. Now, Shavri confides in Vanyel her fear that Randale is mortally ill. Vanyel and his mentor Savil return to Vanyel's family home at Forst Reach, where they find little rest or peace. His parents both try to change his mind about being shay'a'chern, or homosexual. Vanyel becomes somewhat confused about his own sexuality. He wonders if he is truly in love with Shavri. Yfandes, Vanyel's Companion, doesn't buy it and finds the situation amusing. Vanyel also meets his illegitimate nephew, Medren. Medren is small for his age as Vanyel was, and like him it appears that he is often bullied by the armsmaster Jervis. The boy has a powerful Bardic gift, and Vanyel sponsors him for the Bardic Collegium. Vanyel confronts Jervis and learns that the armsmaster is not being intentionally rough. He also apologizes for beating Vanyel long ago, and explains his difficult position with Vanyel's father. He also mentions that he knew Vanyel was shay'a'chern from the beginning, but also knew from his army service that being gay does not keep men from being courageous warriors. Vanyel accepts this and they form an uneasy friendship. The main plot focuses on how Vanyel assists young Prince Tashir Remoerdis. Vanyel and Yandes receive a psychic summons into the neighboring country of Lineas. Upon arrival, they find Tashir, who has just become a Herald, with his Companion, Leshya (nicknamed Ghost by Yfandes). Another Herald, Lores, is beating the child and attacks Ghost when he tries to interfere. He believes that Tashir is actually an evil sorcerer who has murdered his own family. Vanyel immediately stops Lores and commands him to return to Valdemar. Vanyel takes Tashir back to his own home, Forst Reach, and begins to try and discover what truly happened to Tashir's family. He then returns to Lineas, disguised as a minstrel to gather information. In Lineas magic is taboo; no one is supposed to perform it for any reason. It shares a border with Baires, a country ruled by the Mavelan, a family of mages. A treaty was signed to end the warring between the two countries, sealed by the marriage of Tashir's parents. In the treaty there exists a clause that if the royal family of Lineas dies out, the Mavelan can take over the Lineas throne, and vice versa. Vanyel meets an old servant of the Remoerdis family who tells him of Tashir's sad childhood. Tashir was physically and emotionally abused by his father and sexually abused by his mother. His mother was mentally unstable and made seductive overtures to Tashir even as a young child. Tashir looks very much like his mother's uncle Vedric, and rumor has it that he is the product of an incestuous affair between them. Returning to Forst Reach, Vanyel recruits Savil and Jervis to help. Together with Tashir, they return to Lineas, breaking through the palace's magic shields to search the place. They find a secret room which contains a "heart-stone", an ordinary rock connected with a magical "node" which is keeping a deep, dangerous fault sealed. As the stone was unstable and any magic done in the area could disturb it, a guardian family without magic was appointed. If the stone were to be removed, a giant earthquake would occur destroying Lineas, parts of the outlands, and the border of Valdemar. That was why magic was anathema in Lineas, and also why everyone in the palace was blood related member of the Remoerdis family, sworn to protect the node. In the palace Vanyel and Savil discover a "trap-spell", which targets one person and also kills the target's entire family. Tashir's family were the victims of the trap-spell, which was placed by Tashir's uncle Vedric, whose intention is to control both Lineas and Baires. (He is not, however, Tashir's father.) Vedric tries the same trick on Vanyel, who has already caught on and sent Savil away, along with Tashir, while keeping Jervis with him. In defending himself, Vanyel ends up killing most of the Baires family as well as Vedric. Now king of both Baires and Lineas, Tashir considers himself too young and inexperienced. He allows King Randale to annex the two smaller countries into Valdemar. Vanyel finally sorts out that he actually is gay, and that Shavri is just a good friend.