Merlin (The Chronicles of Amber) - Personal History

Personal History

Merlin is the son of Prince Corwin of Amber and Lady Dara of Chaos. Raised in the Courts of Chaos, Merlin became interested in his father and Amber after the Patternfall war. In his youth, he studied magic in the Courts of Chaos and walked both the Logrus and the Pattern. After this, Merlin travelled to Shadow Earth to study computer engineering, assuming the name Merle Corey. During his time in college, Merlin made friends with a fellow student Luke Reynard who was, unbeknownst to Merlin, his cousin Rinaldo, son of Brand. Merlin combined his magical and computer skills to create Ghostwheel, a powerful artificial intelligence with the ability to move itself and others through Shadow.

Though Merlin was targeted for many years by an unknown antagonist, he was content to remain on the Shadow Earth. However, he became suspicious when he discovered his ex-girlfriend was murdered by a creature from Shadow, and his investigation was the catalyst for his choice to leave Earth. During the course of his travels through Shadow, he learned the identity of his nameless enemy, as well as that of his friends. With the rapid increase of his powers, the Pattern and the Logrus each attempted to persuade him to ally with Amber or the Courts of Chaos, respectively.

Merlin has a very different personality than his father and, oddly enough considering his upbringing, considers himself to be a "regular guy". He lacks both the ruthlessness and the crudity of Prince Corwin, and seems to be almost allergic to ambition, a rare trait considering his parentage.

Merlin has two half-brothers named Despil and Jurt, sons from Dara and Duke Sawall. Jurt, believing Merlin to be the favorite of their mother, tries several times to kill Merlin; however, he usually ends up leaving some part of himself behind.