Valdemar is a country written by Mercedes Lackey, called Misty by her adoring fans (that's us). Valdemar was founded a millenium after the Mage Wars, by Baron Valdemar, after he ran from his Kingdom, where a tyrant ruled. He settled by an existing village, and later the people there insisted he be King. Then, as he was getting old, he realized that he knew he was a good ruler, and he was pretty sure his son would be the same, but what about the rulers after that? So he went to a temple in the middle of a big field outside his palace, and he prayed for a way to make sure his Kingdon would stay in good hands. After a whole day, a light came down, and when it cleared, three white horses with blue eyes were standing there. :I Choose you: one said into his mind. Then his son and his chief Herald came out, and the other two horses, called Companions, Choose them. Valdemar decided that, while there could only be one Monarch and one Heir, there could be many Heralds, so all who were Chosen by Companions would be Heralds. Since Companions would only choose those who were pure of heart and devoted to duty, he decreed that all Monarchs must be Heralds. And so that the Monarch would always have a friend that would tell him or her the truth, the post of Monarch's Own was created. Valdemar thought this would make for steady Monarchs who made good decisions. And so there came to be the Heralds of Valdemar.

"...the power that never quite revealed itself openly but had a hand in literally everything. The Heralds." (Storm Warning, pg 168) The Herald's are "the glue that holds everything together." (Arrows of the Queen) They do many things, from riding circuit to spying, to being substitute war commanders to being envoys. Heralds know they have a high fatality rate, but they are still extremely self-sacrificing. Since no horse is faster than a Companion, they also work as couriers. The Heralds have Gifts of mind-magic, such as Mindspeech, Farsight, Foresight, Firestarting, Fetching, and Empathy. They use these Gifts in the defense of the Kingdom, and they know that they might die for that, but will do it anyway, for their duty.