Issue2

1. Jim (Lurker By Proxy) asks: Do you ever intend to have Sean Lord Derry formally empowered? Since he already shows some magical potential, I would love to see him empowered and able to function as a "Deryni."

Katherine says: Since we deal with some of Derry’s issues in KKB, maybe you ought to re-ask this question after you’ve read the book, based on a reassessment of his situation.

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2. Maia Bakroeva asks: I am a big fan of your Deryni books, and would like to ask about the untimely demise of my favorite villain, Wencit of Torenth. Namely, what were his hoax Camberian Council arbitrators supposed to do at the end of High Deryni? How could Wencit claim that the duel was legal if the impostors were to attack Kelson et al in the full sight of two armies? Also if the truth of Wencit’s dying by poison rather than being defeated magically in the Duel Arcane were to become widely known, would Torenth consider itself free from any obligation to pay fealty to Kelson as Overlord of Torenth? Or does death by any means constitute legal defeat in the Dueling Circle?

Katherine says: I rather imagine that Wencit’s plans had very little to do with what was "legal." He was looking for a semblance of legality, but whatever would have happened in the rigged Duel Arcane would have been inside the circle, and therefore unclear to those watching. Beyond that, Wencit would have regarded victory as the important thing, regardless of how he won it. After all, once he’d won, who was likely to stop him from doing what he wanted?

Re: Wencit dying by poison rather than being defeated by magic—actually, he was defeated by magic, in a sense. Kelson reached out magically and stopped his heart. (Granted, he was already incapacitated and fatally stricken at that point, but he still died by magic; and the important thing is that he died.) As for Torenth paying fealty to Kelson as Overlord—read KKB. I think you’ll find that, by the end of the book, the question is moot!

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3. Bart M. Kleber writes: If the Camberian Council is mainly designated to police Deryni activity in Gwynedd, how can they presume to do so if several of those members are not native to Gwynedd? How can they presume to police Deryni in other neighboring lands without being totally ignored?

On a somewhat different note, are you offended if someone writes a Deryni fan fiction story without getting your permission first?

Katherine says: As the Chronicles continue to unfold, we’ll find that the goals and focus of the Camberian Council have shifted and metamorphosed numerous times over its two centuries of existence, responding to changes in local conditions. We know how it started, and the state it was in during the first decade or two of its existence; and we know what it had become by the time of Kelson’s accession. There’s a lot of history in between those two times—fodder for many more books, God willing!

Re: fan fiction—so long as such fiction is written not-for-profit, and with the understanding that the characters and universe are mine, with due credit given, I have no particular objection if fans write stories solely for their own enjoyment and that of their friends and other fans. [Any financial gain, I get to share. After all, it was my idea and my hard work over the keyboard!]

But sharing the enjoyment is the reason I started Deryni Archives, more than twenty years ago. I do vet all the stories that go into DA, and many of them are very good, indeed! (I’ve just read and edited two wonderful stories by Melissa Houle and Laura Jefferson that will be in the next issue, due out in the next month or two.) In general, I recommend that fan writers not get carried away with putting my major characters into adventures that would be in conflict with the Canon of novels and stories that I’ve done; we aren’t likely to publish those!

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4. Katherine Lazo has questions concerning the Lammas Night/ Adept series family connections: Assuming that the Audrey referred to in The Templar Treasure is the niece of Sir John Graham mentioned in Lammas Night, how is it that Caitlin Jordan is Gray’s great granddaughter? Considering her age, she can’t be his descendent through a second marriage (one contracted after the events in Lammas Night). So (probably) Sarah/Lady Jordan is his granddaughter? However his "only son" Richard wasn’t said to have a wife and children and there was no mention of Gray having any daughters; given the war and how Audrey was taking part in the war effort, I would have expected Gray to have expressed concern for any daughter of his if only in passing, unless she/they weren’t involved in the war effort in the way Audrey was? Also, since Oakwood is the home of the Selwyns, how come Gray was referred to as "Oakwood’s master" in your Tales of the Knights Templar short story, "Obligations", or will this be cleared up if Katherine writes Lammas Night II? Just wondering.

Katherine says: Ah, this comes down to precision, or lack thereof—which was deliberate, because of wanting to leave lots of doors open for the eventual sequel to Lammas Night, which will also tell the story of Philippa’s part in the later war effort. [Christiane Buehler wanted to know about that. Hi, Christiane!]

John Graham’s wife Caitlin was the daughter of Brig. Gen. Wesley Ellis. They had one son, Richard, who died with Prince William.

Gen. Ellis had another child whose daughter was Audrey—who was, therefore, granddaughter to Ellis and Gray’s niece by marriage. Audrey married Michael Jordan, second son of David Jordan Earl of Selwyn and the Hon. Alexandra "Alix" Deville. (Their first son, Geoffrey, also died with Prince William.)

Michael married Audrey later in the war. (He had become Viscount Jordan on the death of his elder brother Geoffrey, and became Earl of Selwyn on the death of his father.) Their son, merely identified as Lord Jordan in Templar Treasure, marries a lady named Sarah, and their daughter Caitlin Jordan is the Caitlin of The Templar Treasure. (Undoubtedly there are other children not named.)

What is not mentioned is that David Jordan Earl of Selwyn did not survive the war. After his death (no doubt in heroic circumstances), his widow Alix married Sir John Graham—thereby making Michael and Audrey Graham’s stepson and step-daughter-in-law. (This is also why he would have been referred to as "Oakwood’s master", by marriage to its mistress—though technically, Michael would have inherited Oakwood , once he became Earl of Selwyn. But I’m sure he would have been quite willing to give Graham the courtesy of seniority in this extended household.)

The children of Michael and Audrey would have known Graham as their grandfather, because he was married to their grandmother, so Caitlin Jordan—named for Gray’s first wife (who was also Audrey’s aunt) would have known Gray as her great grandfather, and would have referred to him as such.

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