They reached the Keep and hid around the corner, trying not to alert the Qunari in front of the Keep to their presence. Theron peeked his head around the corner, counting the Qunari in front of the Keep mentally. Too many for a straight up fight.
He ducked back and looked toward everyone, who looked back expectantly. All except for Meredith, of course.
"They've taken the Keep," he said, noticing several of the Templars look at each other. "Looks like there are too many for a straight up fight."
"What should we do?" Hawke asked, curious. "I know you have a plan."
"We should draw them out. Get them to charge to here." He pointed to the ground on their side of the gate that would have blocked the Keep off from the rest of the city had it been closed. "Once they get here, we attack."
He noticed Meredith raise an eyebrow. "And how do we draw them out?" Hawke asked.
That's when Orsino spoke up, "I'll do it. Just be ready."
Theron nodded before Orsino disappeared around the corner. He turned and moved closer to Merrill, whispering so quietly that only she could hear him, "Tell Hawke and the others to head for the Keep once the fighting starts. I'll be right behind you."
"Why?" Merrill whispers back, matching the volume of Theron's voice.
"Just do it. And make sure Meredith doesn't see you all."
Reluctantly, Merrill nods and leans toward Hawke, whispering to him.
Theron turns around and hears Orsino shouting, followed by the sounds of fireballs exploding and the charging roar of the Qunari. He readies himself for the ambush, drawing his blades as he hears the Templars behind him do the same.
Three. The roar of the charging Qunari grows louder. Two. He hears Hawke and the others sneak away from the rest of the group, ready to charge into the Keep. One. Orsino rushes by, soon followed by several Qunari.
"Now!" They charge and Theron decapitates one Qunari with his Dal'Thanu and stabs another with his Dar'Misaan. He notices that there are less Qunari than he originally counted, though that was probably because Orsino had killed them with his fireballs. He ducked a swing from a Qunari and felt a slight breeze as a greatsword swung over him and into the Qunari. He rolled away from the Qunari and saw Carver nod to him, nodding back before he turned to block a blow from another Qunari. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Hawke and the others enter the Keep, closing the large doors behind them.
He ducks another swing while slicing another Qunari across the gut, following with a kick to the side of the head, knocking the Qunari to the ground. He chopped downward into the Qunari's back with his Dal'Thanu, parrying a blow from yet another Qunari. A blade emerged from that Qunari's chest and quickly retracted. The Qunari collapsed, revealing a Templar who was soon brought down by a spear. Theron charged at the Qunari who threw the spear, dodging and flipping over swings on the way. He ducked under a swing and kicked the back of the Qunari's leg, causing it to buckle, and followed up with a knee to the face, then he stabbed the Qunari in the gut. He turned around and saw a Qunari charging at him, who was hit with a lightning bolt and collapsed to the ground, face-first. He looked in the direction the bolt had come from and saw Orsino, who was busy casting a spell, not noticing the Qunari charging at him from behind. Theron reacted instantly, throwing a knife at the Qunari, hitting his ankle and severing his Achilles tendon. The Qunari's step faltered, causing him to face-plant into the ground before Theron threw another knife, hitting the back of his neck, severing his spine.
After a couple more minutes of fighting, all the Qunari had been killed. Theron retrieved his throwing knives before he rushed into the Keep. He reached the doors and opened them, rushing through them and heading toward the throne room.
He heard the distant sound of fighting, though the size of the Keep tended to carry echoes throughout. He heard the sound of clanging metal come from behind him, indicating that the Templars had entered the Keep.
He finally reached the throne room and heard sounds of fighting coming from inside. Oddly enough, it sounded like there was only two or three people fighting. He opened the door and saw Merrill and the others standing off to the side watching something in the center of the room. He followed their gaze and saw Hawke fighting the Arishok… alone. A duel? He's going to get himself killed.
Merrill must have heard Theron enter, because she looked at him and motioned for him to stand with them. She seemed worried. He walked over, keeping an eye on the duel in case Hawke needed help. He saw Hawke duck a swing and take a few steps back before summoning large rocks to serve as armor.
The Arishok charged horns first, almost like a bull, and Hawke barely dodged out of the way, following up by launching a glyph of paralysis, trapping the Arishok for a few precious seconds. This allowed Hawke to ready himself to cast a firestorm on top of the Arishok. Unfortunately, the Arishok broke free just before he was bathed in fire, dodging out of the way and charging at Hawke again. This time, Hawke wasn't fast enough to avoid the Arishok completely, the massive Qunari's horn catching him in the gut, sending a chunk of his armor flying and throwing him to the ground a dozen feet away.
Theron heard Merrill gasp before Hawke slowly stood up, clutching his side. He had lost his grip on his staff, which was further away than the Arishok was. The Arishok charged again as Hawke rushed for his staff, only for the Arishok to tackle him, sending them both to the floor. The Arishok straightened himself so that he was on his knees, straddling Hawke. He raised both his weapons, preparing for a killing blow. Theron found himself hoping that Hawke would blood magic to save himself.
Before the Arishok swung down with his weapons, Hawke summoned bolt of lightning from his hand, electrocuting the Arishok, but not killing him. Hawke then followed up by launching a stonefist into the Arishok's face, sending the Qunari flying back a few feet. Hawke scrambled to his feet and managed to grab his staff as the Arishok recovered from the blow, standing upright, blood dripping down his face.
Theron saw the beads of sweat on Hawke's forehead. He was tiring. The Arishok, however, was in peak physical form. He could keep going for hours. Hawke might only last a few more minutes unless his adrenaline kicked in, though he wouldn't be able to do much with it other than survive a little while longer. I've beaten the odds. Who's to say he won't?
The Arishok charged again, but Hawke didn't even budge. What is he doing? The Arishok continued to charge, Hawke still not moving. Then a blast of bluish white mist burst from Hawke's staff, enveloping the Arishok and shrouding him from view. Everyone was silent as the mist cleared, revealing the Arishok, encased in ice.
The nobles cautiously began to cheer before a loud crackling sound reverberated around the room. The cheering stopped immediately as everyone focused on the Arishok, a chunk of ice missing from his arm, revealing his skin. Hawke stepped closer to the Arishok, drawing out a knife and putting it in front of him, the tip pointed at the Arishok. Bit by bit, the ice that encased the Arishok broke off until both his arms were free, then his legs, then his torso. Hawke thrust his knife into the Arishok's chest, pulling back before the Arishok collapsed, the ice that encased his head shattering upon impacting the floor.
Theron walked forward, looking at the Arishok, who was still breathing. "You have changed nothing," the Arishok said to Hawke, still sounding strong despite the fact that he was so near death. "This 'city' will fall apart in its current state of chaos. Then you will wish you had submitted to the Qun."
"Maybe, maybe not," Hawke replied, defiant. "But you won't be around to see it." He knelt down and slit the Arishok's throat, placing the knife back under his belt as the Arishok bled to death in a few seconds. Theron heard clapping and cheering coming from behind, along with rapid footsteps approaching Hawke. Merrill.
The rocks that encased Hawke disappeared before he turned around, Merrill embracing him. Theron noticed Hawke wince and he looked down to where the Arishok's horn had hit him, seeing a gash in his robes that went deep into his side, blood gushing from the wound.
"Anders!" Theron shouted, grabbing his attention. He gestured to Hawke's wound as Anders approached, then he watched as Hawke's skin stitched itself up, healing the wound.
Then, Meredith, her Templars, including Carver, and Orsino entered the room. Merrill released Hawke and he approached Meredith, Theron approaching as well. The Qunari that lined the room filed out the doors without a word.
"Is it over?" Orsino asked.
"It's over," Hawke replied.
"Then it appears Kirkwall has a new champion," Meredith states plainly, no amount of joy or relief in her voice.
The Templars begin to cheer as do the nobles who were left. All except Carver and Meredith. Carver stayed quiet, seeming annoyed that, once again, he was in his brother's shadow. Meredith simply glared at Theron and Hawke both, Theron staring her down. At least the Qunari are gone. Hopefully I can just be with the clan without any interruptions from now on…