He was no longer at a loss of what to do, even if his intended course of action was stupidly dangerous, not to mention hopeful.
He had a plan.
That day went by as quickly as it had begun, as Merlin prepared himself both physically and mentally for what was to come. He needed to work out what to say, and most of all he needed a good explanation. He also needed to make himself be as non-threatening as he possibly could, and he absolutely had to make sure that nothing he said or did could be viewed as an act of offense. The last thing he wanted was a fight to happen, because that would undoubtedly brandish him as his evil counterpart.
He left his camp after the sun had risen beyond the horizon, armed with a plan and nothing else. He prayed to the gods that this worlds Arthur would be remotely the same person as he had been in his own world. He also realized that he needed to find a way to differentiate between the two worlds, because his current terminology was getting rather confusing. And if he managed to confuse himself, then surely anyone who wasn't walking in his shoes would be utterly confused, even more so than him.
He stopped at the edge of the forest, peering towards the gates of Camelot in silence. The moment he stepped out of the safe cover the woods provided him, he knew that there would be no turning back. His hands moved, checking himself to make sure that he had everything he needed, also making sure that the potion was stored where they most likely wouldn't check. It surely made walking rather uncomfortable, and it was a constant annoyance where it was placed, but he absolutely did not want to end up without the potion under any circumstances. He doubted that it'd help him, but it provided some form of comfort.
Careful adjustments were made in hopes of making this more comfortable, and he managed to place it in a spot where it wasn't as -much- of an annoyance, though he would surely never speak a single word about this to anyone.
He inhaled deeply, feeling rather anxious, before he then stepped out of the woods, passing the point of no return.
The guards were quick to notice his approach, their expressions quickly changing into something that wasn't pleasant. They were frightened to say the least, and they were likely cursing their luck under their breaths, yet, they seemed determined to hold their ground, sending a messenger off towards the castle itself to inform the king of his approach towards the gates.
His heart was beating rapidly in his chest as he brought himself to a halt at a respectable distance.
"I mean no harm! I request an audience with the King! I am unarmed and hold no ill intentions!" He announced as loudly as he could. Unarmed and no ill intentions most likely did not ease their minds in the slightest, considering what he was capable of without a weapon, and that his counterpart had likely been rather deceiving, but still, he had felt that it was necessary to include that part.
He had incredibly strong doubts in the fact that this Arthur would agree to see him, and rather believed that he'd be marching an army of knights towards the gates in attempts of thwarting what he may deem as an attempt at infiltrating the castle. He had acknowledged himself how stupid and hopeful his plan was. Another messenger was dispatched towards the castle, and the guards remained on high alert, weapons aimed in his direction. All they could do now was wait.
Judging by the time it took to get a response, he was getting more and more certain that Arthur was in fact preparing an army, but when a messenger returned without an army in sight, he felt a glimmer of hope. The messenger relayed the information to the guards, and they nodded their heads lightly.
"The King has accepted your audience. You will be escorted to the castle by a squadron of knights." A guard spoke up with a trembling voice. It was clear that the guard did not agree with his King's decision, but Merlin found himself rather pleasantly surprised, he really had not expected that this would happen, in all honestly he didn't know what he had expected.
It didn't take long for the squadron to arrive, wearing full armor with weapons drawn and shield raised. He supposed that he could understand them, even though he didn't know what his counterpart had done to earn such precautions. He was blown away when he was escorted inside the gates and found the lower town fully evacuated, probably all escorted to some faraway location within the city walls until he had passed through. Guards and knights were posted at every street corner, in pairs, wearing their full combat gear. He now understood what had taken so long, but he couldn't help but to feel a little hurt, but at the same time appreciative of how much Arthur still cared for the people, even in this world. He supposed that the Arthur in his world would've done the same, had Morgana requested an audience just as he had done in this world. Perhaps he wasn't so different after all.
The knights that were following him, or rather escorting him, were clearly on edge, and ready to strike at any sign of hostility. He didn't blame them for that either. Eventually they reached the drawbridge, very close to the courtyard. He wondered if he'd be met in the council room, or if he'd be met in the courtyard, but only time would tell.
The courtyard finally came into view, and what greeted him was a large amount of knights, as heavily armored as the rest, with the most serious and focused looks upon their faces. There was no Arthur present, and considering how his escorts kept moving forwards, he reached the conclusion that he would be brought to the council room, or perhaps even the throne room.
When the large group of knights joined in with the escorts, the throne room seemed much more likely than the small space of the council room. They sure were taking their precautions, though. It almost felt a bit excessive.
The doors to the throne room were opened, and once he was able to peek inside, a large chunk of knights entering the room first, he was greeted by even more guards and knights. It literally looked like Arthur had called his entire army into action, though he knew that it wouldn't be the case. Counting his escorts and the knights already present in the throne room, he concluded that there couldn't be more than a hundred, perhaps two hundred fully armed and armored knights present to protect their king, should the situation arise.
His gaze then fell on Arthur. He wasn't surprised when he saw the man donning full armor as well. Guinevere was present it seemed, the woman seated on her throne, with a conflicted expression on her face, with a select few knights by her side.
Morgana and Gaius were present as well, grouped off towards the side, along with some council men, near some doors, which undoubtedly lead away from the throne room. They were also well guarded. Perhaps they had insisted themselves to be present during this audience, for it sure didn't seem like Arthur held any shred of trust in the fact that he meant no harm.
The knights were standing mainly at the front of the room, but upon his entry he was clearly surrounded by the swordsmen. Truth be told, he hadn't exactly prepared himself for this scenario.
He then came to a halt before his king, noticing the expression he held on his face. Merlin proceeded to bow his head. "Thank you for accepting my request, Sire." Merlin spoke, breaking the deafening silence.
"Why are you here, and why did you wish to see me, Merlin?" Arthur questioned, clearly not bothering with any formalities or proper political manners when faced with the person he viewed as his greatest enemy.
"I'm here to tell you that you don't have to worry about me bringing any harm to you and your people any longer, Arthur. I know that you most likely won't believe a single word that I am going to say, but none-the-less, I have to at least try to explain, because I have been at a loss ever since I faced you at the gates some days ago." Merlin begun, and the room fell silent, except for some distrusting mutters among the knights and councilmen.
"Then speak" Arthur spat towards him, suspicion and distrust clearly apparent on his face.
"I don't belong to this world. I was brought to this world, about ten or eleven days ago. I come from a different world, much like this one, but there are some big differences which have left our worlds completely different in their own ways.
I do not know what this world's Merlin has done to you all. All I know is that what evils he has done to you, will likely never forgiven. And I do not ask for forgiveness, simply because I am not the Merlin who caused you all this pain and suffering. The Merlin that you know is currently destroying my home world, and everything I cherished as we speak, and that I am stuck here, unable to return to the place I came from. You must believe me when I say that I would never harm any of you, I do not wish for your fear nor to see any of you in pain. All I want is for Camelot to thrive, for you all to be happy and well.
You are all dear friends to me, and I would lay down my life in order to protect each and every one of you." He paused lightly, trailing his gaze over the mass of people, before he finally landed his gaze on Arthur.
"In my world I served you as your manservant for nearly ten years, Arthur. I traveled with you on your quests and I stood with you and did my best to keep you safe wherever you went, regardless of what you were doing. You thought of me as the lousiest, most underachieving manservant you could ever have had, you continuously chucked things after me when I was being a smart ass, you loaded me with chores when I made a mistake, and yet, I wouldn't have had it any other way. You always tried to cheer me up, one way or another when I was feeling down. It almost felt like we were brothers, and you were my best friend. I would have done anything to keep you alive, even if it meant that I would have to die in your place. You may have been a prat, but you were also the Greatest King Camelot has ever seen. You have no idea how much you mean to me, Arthur. I've supported you with all my heart, Arthur, and I will never cease to do so, regardless of what world I am in" He stated, his gaze now trailing away from Arthur's distrustful face, and towards Guinevere
"Gwen, you were the first friend I ever made in Camelot, you helped me understand how the city worked. I met you the first time when I was put in the stocks on my first day in here. You've always been the most caring and friendly person I have ever met, and I am so proud to have been able to call you my friend. Words can not begin to express how much you mean to me, and I would go to the end of the world and back, if it meant that I could keep you safe from harm. I would never want to see you hurt, nor cause you any pain. I don't think I'd be able to live with myself if I hurt you in any form or way." He spoke. He could see the suspicion on her face, but he could only hope that they would see that he spoke the truth. His gaze set itself upon Gaius, knowing full and well that he had to choose his words carefully, or else he may just be charged for knowingly harboring a sorcerer.
"Gaius. You were a father to me, in everything but blood. You taught me so much. You taught me the difference between right and wrong, you taught me just about everything I know. Because of you and your tutelage and care, I was able to learn about medicine and how to treat and take care of patients. You were always so patient with me, and yet you were stern enough to lecture me whenever I did something I shouldn't have. You never gave up on me, no matter how hopeless of a situation I had gotten myself into, and you were always there for me whenever I was troubled by something. I don't know who I would have been if it hadn't been for you. I value you so much, more than I think you will ever know. " His gaze then trailed towards Morgana, Gaius' facial expression having remained rather stoic.
"Morgana. I let you down more than anyone else in Camelot. I was a coward, and I didn't trust you as much as I should have. You have no idea how happy I am to see that you are doing well in this world, and how much guilt I feel for not being able to help you in my own world. I cared so much about you, and certain choices I had to make still haunt me to this very day. You were an amazing friend, and yet I was too much of a coward trust you to the extent that I knew you deserved. I never got to tell you how much you really meant to me, and how much I appreciated you for being who you are. If it hadn't been for you, I don't think Arthur would've seen reason in so many situations, and you were the only one who dared to stand up against Uther when you felt that his judgments were unjust and unfair. You were such an amazing support to me, and yet I let you down when you needed my support the most. I can't even express how disappointed and angry I am at myself for ever doubting you" He paused again, before he removed his gaze from Morgana, but not after noticing the saddened expression she had on her face.
"I know that you all have no reason to believe a single word that I am saying. I don't know what I can do in order to prove to you that I am not the Merlin who has harmed you all. All I have is my words, and a hope that you will find it in your hearts to believe me. I can not even begin to express how terrible it makes me feel, seeing you all be this way, and knowing that someone who bears my face and name, made you all be this way. All I know is that that Merlin is gone from this world, that I was brought here in his stead, and that I can not leave and return to my home world."
Merlin finished speaking, giving them some time to process his words. The silence in the room was deafening, and he took the opportunity to try and read their facial expressions. Most of them looked suspicious and skeptical, and a select few seemed to have their doubts.
He caught a glimpse of movement from the corner of his eye, his head snapping back towards Arthur, in time to witness the man draw his sword.
"Arrest him." Arthur commanded, and upon the sound of the command, just about every knight sprung into action. Merlin had no choice but to surrender himself, and accept arrest without resistance. This was going downhill fast. Arthur must not have believed a single word that had come from his mouth, and he begun to panic, his panic visible on his face as well.
He had known that his plan had been stupid, and that the chance of it working had been next to none. But even so, he had been hopeful. So hopeful that he truly and in all honesty had not expected this outcome. Arthur hadn't even considered what he had said to be true. This must've been the reason for why he had accepted his audience, to arrest him in order to burn him at the pyre for all to see.
"I hereby sentence you to die for the crimes you have committed against Camelot, for acts of sorcery, high treason, and for the murder of countless innocent people. You will be publicly executed by fire in two days."
As the knights and guards dragged him away and towards the cells, he caught a final glimpse of Gaius and Morgana both, noticing the mortified expression that had appeared on their faces.