"Why should I trust anything you have to say?" Merlin demanded, his eyes flickering to the open door before returning to the sorcerer.
"Well," The man uttered, seeming to truly consider the boy's question. "I didn't kill that owl of yours when I could have."
Merlin's head jerked to the side to look once again at Archimedes, staring at the bird who still cowered in fear. "What did you do to him?" The young warlock spat the question out, and the sorcerer frowned.
"A couple of simple spells is all. The creature is fine, I assure you. A bit frightened perhaps, but that is all. I merely needed to get your attention."
Biting back his anger, Merlin held out his left hand, beckoning for Archimedes as the creature watched him cautiously a moment before flying over and landing on his shoulder. Sharp talons dug into his skin through his tunic, but the pain was nothing compared to the fear he felt coming from the owl. Merlin's fingers prodded the bird gently, feeling his wings and stomach and legs while the sorcerer sighed impatiently.
"See? The bird is fine. Now, let us talk." The man gestured back towards the open door again as Merlin glared.
"Go home." The boy murmured as the owl met his eye. A moment later Archimedes took flight, and once the owl was out of sight, Merlin strode past the man and into the room behind him.
Instead of being the empty tower that Merlin had grown used to, there was now a table and two chairs sitting in the middle of the room. On the center of the table was a small, leatherbound journal. The same journal that Merlin had kept hidden beneath the floorboards in that very room. A place he'd thought had been protected with a spell.
"Funny how magic works, hm?" The sorcerer spoke as he stepped easily through the tower's threshold.
Nothing happened as he did, and Merlin's expression must have given him away because the sorcerer turned a sympathetic smile his way.
"You think a barrier spell that I created could keep me out? That was quite a foolish thing to believe on your part, Merlin." The boy grit his teeth but remained silent as the sorcerer took his time looking around the room fondly. "Tell me, when exactly did you steal my journal?"
"I didn't steal anything." The warlock muttered, surprise shooting through him at the sudden murderous look that came from the man.
"Do not treat me a fool. I know my own magic when I feel it. And the spell you used to conjure that barrier and your connection with that owl were done so through my notes." He snarled, jutting a finger to the book on the table as Merlin swallowed thickly.
"I told you, I didn't steal it. I took it home to study it in private, and when I returned you had taken all your things. I didn't even know they were your things." The boy spoke, throwing his hands out in exasperation as the sorcerer watched him.
Sitting down in one of the chairs, the man smoothed out both his cloak and expression and waved a hand to the second chair. "Sit."
Pressing his lips together into a thin line, Merlin slid uncomfortably into the chair across from the man and gripped the edges tight with his fingers. "What exactly did you want to discuss?" Merlin asked, watching as the sorcerer stretched out his hand and placed three stones on the table.
"That will come in a moment." He spoke, holding out his palm above the stones.
Merlin watched on in stunned silence as the sorcerer's eyes changed to a golden hue and he began to chant in a language the boy didn't understand. Warmth filled the room before a freezing cold sucked out all of the air, leaving Merlin struggling to breathe.
The feeling lasted less than a moment before his lungs expanded and the chill on his fingertips faded, but it was enough to terrify him. That wasn't just the air being taken from the room, but the magic itself.
Trying to catch his breath, Merlin looked back to the stones and found that in those few moments the rocks had changed, morphing into a set of cups and a pot of sweet smelling liquid. The warlock's eyes went wide in disbelief as the sorcerer poured the drink into both cups before setting one in front of the boy.
"I'm not drinking anything you give me." Merlin stated quietly, pushing the cup back across the table while the man studied him.
"If I wanted to harm you, I easily could have with that owl of yours. Why would I wait and try to poison you instead? That's just a waste of time." When Merlin didn't respond, the man shrugged. "Fine, suit yourself."
Taking a long, slow sip of his drink, the sorcerer stared the young warlock down. All the while, Merlin grew antsy, his leg bouncing up and down as he waited in silence for the man to speak.
"Why have you brought me here?" He finally demanded, unable to take the waiting any longer as the sorcerer set the cup on the table.
"Would you like to know who I am, Merlin?"
"I already know who you are." The boy stated, and at the other man's arched brow, he continued. "You're Camelot's old Court Sorcerer."
"Ralcade." The man uttered, a dangerous gleam in his eye that had Merlin sitting up straighter.
"Yeah, Ralcade."
"You may know my previous position, but do you know who I once was to the Pendragon family?" Intrigued, Merlin shook his head. "I was Uther's friend." Stunned, Merlin stared openly as Ralcade sighed.
"Once upon a time, I was even his best friend. I was who he turned to when he had no one else, or when he needed something unsavory taken care of that no one else could do."
Blinking, Merlin shook his head again. "He's never once mentioned you."
Ralcade sneered at the boy's comment, his hands landing flat on the table with a loud bang. "Of course he hasn't, because he does not remember me. No one does."
"What, they all just forgot you?" Merlin scoffed, and as Ralcade leaned back, he nodded.
"Through a strong enough potion that was laced throughout every water source, yes."
Merlin couldn't help being amazed, but also confused. "Why?"
"It was the only way to get away with my life. Uther would have killed me if he remembered who I was, or what I had done."
"So, you were around when they banned magic then?"
"No. I was here long, long before." Drawing his hands back into his lap, Ralcade tilted his head to the side while he spoke. "It was back when Uther first became king. He was still so young and often petulant. Quite like your prince is now."
Merlin opened his mouth to argue, but nothing came out. What could he say? It wasn't as if the sorcerer were wrong.
"I was a talented sorcerer, and I had been learning magic since I was a child. I was intrigued by the power and opportunities it presented to an individual. I wanted to learn every kind there was, to master and control them. I wanted to truly test the limits of what one could do with magic."
Leaning back, Merlin listened intently, his guard still raised but his curiosity piqued as well.
"Uther had heard rumors of my talent, and he came to find me while he was still a prince. He requested that I save his kingdom's dying land. No crops would grow, the soil was useless and dead. I helped him, and the following harvest there was twice as much food as before. After Uther became king, he put me here, and assigned me Court Sorcerer. I was the person he came to when he needed magic. Always."
A look of pride flashed across Ralcade's face, and Merlin began to grow uncomfortable with what he was hearing.
"I was his friend and his conspirator. In fact, I would say that our relationship was much like the one you share with the prince now. Except Uther knew exactly what I was, and he wasn't afraid."
Something about being compared to Uther and Ralcade made the warlock's stomach turn, but he remained quiet while the other man continued to speak.
"I began to study magic every waking hour when I wasn't required by Uther or the kingdom. I learned more than I ever thought possible, and I decided my next step would be to find the dragons. To learn what I could from them as well."
Merlin could admit to himself that he was jealous of that. He would love to find a dragon that didn't have it out for Uther or Camelot.
"I began to realize how little humans are capable of. Weak, pathetic creatures we are, compared to the might and majesty of the dragons. I wanted to tap into that potential and help humans to be just as powerful and strong. Magic has many limitations, but I refused to be stopped because of them."
Anger flickered behind the man's eyes, and he was no longer looking at Merlin while he spoke, but at the table and the cup that he had conjured out of stone. "Uther learned what I was trying to do, and while he supported my endeavors at first, he grew concerned by my methods."
"Your methods?" Merlin finally spoke up, regaining the sorcerer's attention as his dark eyes turned back to him.
"You cannot just create new spells out of thin air, young warlock. It takes time, patience, and practice. I needed to test my creations, both the ones you have already used and the ones you have not. Each spell required multiple tests, and occasionally people were harmed because of it. Once or twice a person would die."
A weight dropped in Merlin's stomach as he listened, and a shudder ran through him.
"Uther didn't understand the benefits that came with what I was doing. Nor did he recognize that everything I was doing was for him. He commanded that I stop playing around with forces I shouldn't and that I stick to what I already knew. But I had already learned so much, and I couldn't just quit. You understand, you have seen. There is no stopping once you start seeing the worlds beyond your own small abilities."
Merlin wanted to argue, to scream and fight back, but the fact was that Ralcade was right. How often had Gaius warned him to leave those things alone? Kilgharrah as well. And still he hadn't listened. He'd nearly killed himself to save Archimedes and he had created an unnatural bond between the two that was already proving to be trouble. He was as bad as Ralcade.
"I can teach you, Merlin." The sorcerer crooned, his voice turning soothing and sweet as he leaned forward. "I became the most powerful source of magic once I learned those secrets. It is easy once you take the first life."
Merlin paled at the very thought, and Ralcade waved a hand dismissively. "No, no. Do not misunderstand. I am not asking you to kill an innocent person. No, all you must do is kill a dragon."
"What?" Merlin gaped, staring wide eyed as the sorcerer smiled.
"I learned that by killing a dragon and siphoning its magic, I could grow more powerful. I became more, and not just in magic and power." He turned his face to the side while he spoke, and Merlin's breath caught as he stared at the scales along the man's face.
"You absorbed more than the magic." Merlin whispered, and Ralcade nodded, seeming pleased as he faced him again.
"I took its life force and made it my own. I became a part of it, and it became a part of me. That is true power." The warlock stared in horror, his hands trembling against the chair he sat in as Ralcade's smile faded.
"I became obsessed with becoming more after that. I can admit my downfalls. I became obsessed to the point where nothing else mattered in my life. Uther threatened to banish me for my crimes, and when that didn't work, he threatened my life. And still, I would not listen. Just a few days after that, he sent his guards after me."
The sorcerer's fingers curled into the table as he scowled, his words tense and full of fury. "He betrayed me, and he betrayed our friendship. What I had done for him all that time suddenly meant nothing. I meant nothing. He didn't even care that it was all for him and his pathetic kingdom."
Sucking in a breath and letting it out slowly, Ralcade released his grip on the table and refocused on the warlock who had barely dared to breathe, let alone move. "I suppose in the end we failed each other. I failed Camelot, and Uther failed me. It's time to change what happened though. I can fix all of it. Through you."
"Wait, what?" Merlin was stunned, his words finally making it out as he shook his head back and forth. "I don't want that."
"I can give you power, Merlin. More than you could have ever imagined. I can give you my power. You can become the most powerful sorcerer ever. It is destined after all."
"Not like this!" The boy cried out, pushing out of his chair and stumbling back.
"How do you know? You are destined to be great, and perhaps this is the way it shall go."
"No!"
"It's already begun." Ralcade uttered, his expression turning dark as he rose from his own chair. "Things have already begun. There is no stopping this now. You will become more powerful than even I am, and I will create you."
"You can't do this." Merlin stared, true fear blossoming inside him and turning his blood to ice in his veins. "I will not become you, and I will not kill to gain power."
"You cannot stop it or me, Merlin." Ralcade spoke with a smile, and the warlock threw his hand out at him.
"Yes, I can. And I will." Stretching out his fingers, a ring of fire appeared across the floor. Not around Ralcade, but the young warlock himself.
Jumping back with a yelp, Merlin stared around at the flames surrounding him and caught his breath as Ralcade strode forward, the edge of his cloak swishing around his feet as he did.
"You are alive because of me. Arthur, your dear prince, owes me for saving your life. Everything will be mine again, and you will help me, or I will kill them all."
"I won't let you." The warlock scowled, edging back as the circle of fire grew tighter around him.
"Let me give you a taste of what I can do to your loved ones." Ralcade hissed, thrusting his hands out as the fire drew closer and circled tightly around Merlin until the flames licked at his skin, eating through his clothes and burning his flesh.
Merlin cried out at the pain, the skin beginning to bubble on his arms and legs as tears filled his eyes. Catching his breath, Merlin thrust out his hands despite the pain and forced himself to focus.
"Broe floe mesing Iah, breeyoolah naaadryu. Broilin sar akhwah, roe hagroe nonestroe."
The flames died out at once, without a trace even left on the floor that the fire had been there at all. The only sign it had happened were the burns covering the young warlock's skin that made tears trickle down his cheeks in agony.
"You have some time." Ralcade uttered, stepping forward again and moving his hand slowly towards the boy's body.
He spoke a few words in that same, strange language, and the pain in Merlin faded. Letting out a shuddering breath, the warlock fell to his knees and met the sorcerer's harsh glare.
"But I will return, Merlin. And if you do not cooperate the next time, I will tell the prince exactly who and what you are before I kill him." Backing a step away, and then another, the shadows seemed to wrap around Ralcade and pull him back until there was nothing left but a silhouette. "I will see you again soon, my apprentice."
The shadows melted around him and a moment later the sorcerer was gone, leaving behind a chill and the harsh remembrance of flames burning his skin. Dropping his hands flat on the wooden floor, Merlin swallowed as he stared down at the cool, smooth skin of his arms. What had he done? Oh God. What had he done?
A/N
Is anyone else tired of the issues happening with ? For the record (apologies for those already reading on Ao3) but I cross post all of my stories on Archive Of Our Own, so if it's easier to get notifications for when I post there, I would try that instead! My name and story titles are all the same.
In the meantime, thank you for reading! I hope you all enjoyed, and that you got both some clarity and some new questions thanks to this infodump chapter! I'll see you guys in the next one!