"ARE YOU KIDDING ME!?" Roland shouted in disgust "OUT OF THREE GOOD RECRUITS HE IS THE ONLY ONE THAT LIVES!?" He pointed to the comatose elf lying on the ground, his head slightly bleeding where it had smacked against ground when Alistair had failed to catch him.

"The Keeper did say he was quite remarkable." Duncan remarked "Roland, he is your brother now, and he deserves more than your petty dislike."

"This is not a 'petty dislike'! I loathe him!"

"What!? You love me!?"

Roland snapped his head down to look at the now fully awake elf "I said 'loathe'!" He instantly hissed through his clenched teeth

Horrified, Theron looked at him "I'm not hearing a difference!"

"Wha- ONE is to like, a lot! And the other is to hate with the passion of the fade behind it!" Roland screeched

"How the fuck are you suppose to tell the difference when they're pronounced the same!?"

Roland made a strangling motion with his hands, completely frustrated "They're not!" He barked "One is 'loathe' and the other is 'love'!"

Theron didn't get it, he kept only hearing one word. He just stared at the older man with the same expression he would have if someone had just puked on his head. The elf shook his head and muttered "I will never understand the Ferelden language."

oOoOoOo

Sidelined. Theron had never been sidelined in his life. He was one of the best warriors of his clan, and yet here he was, be sent off to 'light the bacon'. Why in the goddamn would he need to light some bacon!? There were in the middle of a war, for fuck's sake! Now was not the time to be thinking of cooked meat! No matter HOW delicious it might be!

And getting to said bacon was proving more difficult than he thought. You would think the Darkspawn had an undying obsession with the two Wardens by how quickly they were able to track them down. But Theron no longer felt like he was about to pass out every second, and even felt like he had renewed energy. So the Darkspawn really stood no chance against the pair. Alistair had heard that the elf was an excellent rogue and had seen him fight the darkspawn in the Wilds, but to see him fighting without the Taint coursing without mercy through his veins… The warrior hoped he'd never have to fight the elf.

They sprinted up the steps to the final floor where they would at last be able to light the bacon. Alistair, who was ahead of the elf, stopped on a dime, and Theron ran straight into him. The warrior didn't even feel the elf who was rebounded onto the floor.

"God's, you're such a little shit." Theron muttered and quickly picked himself up to look at whatever stopped the human in his tracks. The elf's jaw dropped when he looked upon the lumbering mountain of a Darkspawn. The elf groaned, then sprinted towards the beast, yelling "C'mon now! It's not gonna' kill itself!"

Alistair snapped out of his fear, and turned to his other companions "He's right! Let's go!" and then charged the brute.

Theron jumped onto the ogre's thigh, stabbing one of his daggers into the flesh. The brute roared, and smack Theron away. The elf skidded across the floor, and into a nearby wall with a nasty cracking of his rib. The rogue groaned in pain, and picked himself up. Alistair and the other warrior who had followed the two up here were busy trying bring down the ogre. Theron prepped his swords and sprinted towards the beast again, only this time lunging higher with his jump, and rammed his swords into the brute's back. The ogre screeched and the men all suddenly thought that that might be the last sound any of them heard.

The ogre staggered around, trying furiously to tear the elf from his back. Theron pulled out one of his blades, and reemerged it into the base of the beast's neck. Grunting and groaning, the brute finally fell to its knees in defeat, then flopped to the ground with its dying breath, nearly falling onto Alistair in the process.

Theron pulled his blades free, "I hope to never have to face one of those again." he said

Alistair smirked at his now blood soaked comrade, "You probably will, they're pretty common when you're with the Grey Wardens."

Well then, it's a good thing I'm not staying long, isn't it? Theron didn't say, instead he said "I bet we missed the signal, we should probably just light the damn thing."

"Good thinking," Alistair commented, and trotted over to the signal fire. "I'll light the beacon now…"

Theron's eyebrows shot up as he realized his brainless mistake. He smiled inwardly to himself, Bacon… He thought Wow, I really am terrible at the Fereldan's tongue.

The elf stepped up to the window and looked down at the massacre below him and grimaced and the scene. Alistair lit the signal and the sudden brightness lit up all the spilt blood as if it were Wintersday. Alistair joined him at the window, and frowned. Theron leaned passed the opening, and looked to where Loghain's army would be marching in.

But they didn't.

Theron knitted his eyebrows together in confusion. "What the fuck?" he asked, as he saw the army turn the other way and begin to walk.

"What?" Alistair asked, and leaned over the railing to see. His jaw dropped, "Maker's breath!"

Theron threw his hands up, "We're going to lose the battle if he doesn't get ass in there!" he growled

Alistair just stared in silence, trying to understand what was going on. Theron felt his anger growing. "C'mon!" He nearly yelled "I have someone's balls to cut off!" The elf turned on his heel and dashed back towards the stairs. But when he threw open the door, he was met with a knife slicing its way through his stomach. Theron gagged on the blood that forced its way up his throat.

"Theron!" Alistair shouted, the Hurlock withdrew his blade and Theron fell to the ground. Alistair tore to the elf and cut the Hurlock down with much effort. The warrior then knelt over the elf, pressing his hands to the wound to try and stop the bleeding. "Hold on, Theron." Alistair pleaded, then turned to look over at the mage that followed them up, "You know healing magic, don't you...?!"

He replied with something Theron couldn't hear, and sleep the elf simply stared up at human, unable to say anything.

"Don't worry, you're safe now." Alistair said

But Theron could sense the Darkspawn making their way to them too, and he knew he wasn't going to make it out of this one.

Don't worry, Tamlen... won't be long until I see you now...