Disclaimer: I do not own Storm Hawks. I am beginning to think that no one on this site does.

Warnings: rated for a reason, explicit male/male scenes, dubious consent from both parties, Aerrow is…confused

Dark Dreams

Aerrow shot up in bed. His tangled sheets were damp with more than just his sweat. He turned around with a frustrated snarl and sunk his fist into his pillow. It wasn't fair! Why did he have to dream of his most hated enemy in such a…compromising way? He hated Dark Ace, the betrayer, the murderer of his father…didn't he? Aerrow stamped on the unwanted thought. Of course he hated him! Perhaps that was it…perhaps he hated Dark Ace so much that he wanted revenge, he wanted to humiliate Dark Ace. Yes, that was it! That was all: he wanted to hurt Dark Ace. After all, it wasn't as if he would ever let Aerrow do those sorts of things to him. Those things that plagued the young Sky Knight's sleep…

Aerrow rolled over and snuggled down into the covers, relieved to have thought of a logical explanation. The problem was that at 3:00am any thought could seem logical…

The next morning Aerrow was a knight with a mission. He realised that the only way to free his sleep was to give his subconscious what it wanted. He had the bare bones of a plan.

Obviously he couldn't just steal a crystal from Piper. That would invite too many questions. However, he was nothing if not resourceful and with his subconscious screaming at him through the night, he was motivated.

In the end it was a simple mission to find what he was looking for. By following rumours and hunting during his down time Aerrow soon had his bargaining chip.

(---)

His next task was to confront Stork. The Merb was busy at his favourite task, namely tinkering with the Condor.

"Hey Stork, I have a challenge for you if you're interested," Aerrow remarked.

"Oh no, I am not going in to certain doom for any reason. If you want to challenge someone, talk to Finn." Stork shuddered. "Life is enough of a challenge as it is."

"No not like that, a technological challenge." Now he had piqued Stork's interest.

"Go on."

"I was wondering if it was possible to rig a communicator to contact anyone anywhere."

Stork thought long and hard, his eyes darting as he pondered. "For the ordinary individual no, for me… possibly. Give me a few days and I'll see what I can do."

As Aerrow had expected Stork was not boasting. He had soon produced the required item. After explaining the process and details at length he let Aerrow test it. Aerrow took it to his quarters and contacted the last phase of his plan.

(---)

"Aerrow," came Master Cyclonis' hiss. "A pleasant surprise, but perhaps a mistake?"

"Not a mistake, an offer," Aerrow replied.

Master Cyclonis tilted her head to one side. Aerrow held up his offering. "Do you know what this is?"

"Of course, do you?"

"Yes, a felix crystal, a happiness generator, rare but…"

"Not particularly dangerous if it fell into enemy hands," Cyclonis interrupted. "A good trade, young Aerrow, but I don't hold any of your friends, what do I have that you could possibly want?"

Aerrow licked his lips, suddenly nervous. "The Dark Ace."

Master Cyclonis raised an eyebrow. "What makes you think I would trade the life of my best commander for any sort of crystal?" She seemed more curious than offended.

Aerrow tried to calm himself, this was it. "I won't kill him. I just…want him," Aerrow hated the weakness in his voice. "You can have him back when I'm done," he added, trying to sound stronger.

Master Cyclonis didn't smile, merely considered. She knew she could trust the honour of this Sky Knight and she was definitely a pragmatist. Besides, after Dark Ace's recent failings it would be a most fitting punishment…

"Aerrow?"

"Yes?"

"I think I can arrange that. I assume you want to be able to subdue him and I can arrange that too."

Aerrow leant in closer to his altered communicator and listened to Cyclonis' whispers.

(---)

"You summoned me, master?"

"Yes, Dark Ace. I have mission for you. Aerrow of the Storm Hawks has a crystal to give me. You will meet him in neutral space and retrieve it."

Dark Ace knew better than to question. He would be told all he needed to know and nothing more.

"Oh and Dark Ace,"

"Yes, master?"

Master Cyclonis held up two thin, silver bands, inset with some pulsing crystals. "My latest experiment. Wear these around your wrists. They are for protection."

Dark Ace took them without question and strapped them on his wrists, saluting as he left. The crystals throbbed with malevolent light.

(---)

Aerrow and Dark Ace met on a small, inconsequential terra. Aerrow keep repeating Master Cyclonis' instructions in his head.

"I'm surprised that you're here like this, Aerrow. You would probably think this was a trap," Dark Ace taunted as he dismounted.

"Oh, I know it's a trap," said Aerrow quietly, noticing the shine above the other's black gloves.

Dark Ace suddenly looked wary. He did not like the Sky Knight's tone. Aerrow smirked and fired a shot of crystal energy from his blades directly at his foe. Dark Ace dodged easily, but the bands on his wrists mirrored the blue glow and sucked in the bolt of energy.

Aerrow smiled as he watched his enemy crumple to the ground, unconscious.

(---)

Dark Ace awoke gradually. His mind recovered before his body.

Protection! That was his master's idea of protection! Suddenly Aerrow's words came back to him, chilling him to the bone. Oh, I know it's a trap…Dark Ace went very still, wondering what Aerrow had given his master that was enough to buy his life.

His master had threatened him after his recent failures, but to have him executed by his enemy… He shuddered, no that's exactly the sort of thing she would do. Of course, this begged the question of why he was still alive.

His eyes flickered and he saw that he was standing in front of a tree, the rough bark inches from his face. Wait… his legs didn't have that much strength yet…Ah, he was tied to a tree.

"Shit," he muttered.

"Awake then?" came a voice, Aerrow's voice.

"No, I always swear in my sleep," came Dark Ace's acidic reply. He smiled to himself, imagining Aerrow's scowl. The only possible reason he could still be alive was because Aerrow wanted something and it was unlikely that what he was looking for was sarcasm.

"You should be afraid, Dark Ace," Aerrow said softly.

"Really? If you're going to kill me then I have nothing to lose."

"I'm not going to kill you."

Now that was puzzling, thought Dark Ace. But he merely shrugged as best he could with his arms bound above his head. "What, some light torture, then? Come now Aerrow, we both know you're incapable of something like that." You're not me, he added silently.

"I'm going to humiliate you."

"I see, are you going to steal my clothes and leave me tied to a tree on an anonymous terra?" he smirked.

"No!" He heard a strange note in Aerrow's voice, a sort of embarrassment, almost guilt. Could it be…? No. He was just hearing what he wanted to hear. Probably.

He heard Aerrow clear his throat. "I'm not going to do something that childish. I want revenge and I'm going to do something that I know you'll hate."

Dark Ace was curious despite himself. Aerrow sounded like he was thinking of something pretty serious, perhaps the boy had grown up a bit. Aerrow stepped closer.

"You Cyclonians fuck with Atmos so I'm going to return the favour."

If Aerrow had been able to see Dark Ace's expression he probably would have laughed. The older man's surprise was almost comic in intensity. Of all the things the commander had expected, this was not one of them. He had thought he had heard something like guilty lust in the Sky Knight's voice, but this?

Of course Dark Ace wanted the boy. He had thought about it frequently. But he wanted the boy, he wanted to own him. He didn't want Aerrow to have him, certainly not like this.

"That would technically be torture, Aerrow and as I've mentioned before, I don't think you have it in you. Further, I doubt you've ever done this before. Be reasonable Aerrow. If you really want something like this, I assure you that you'd have a much better time if our positions were reversed…" Dark Ace let just a hint of smugness into his tone.

"Shut up! I don't want you. I know it's torture, that's the point!"

Dark Ace nodded to himself, suddenly a few things became clearer. Aerrow was clearly trying to deal with feelings that he could only accept in terms of darker emotions. The boy was wrong, it wasn't that he didn't want his enemy, it was that he didn't want to want him.

"If this is what you think you need to do Aerrow, that's fair enough, but nothing will save you the next time I have you alone. You may be afraid to admit it, but I will not hesitate to give you exactly what you want. The other option is for you to untie me and we can both pretend this never happened." Of course he planned to pounce on the red-head as soon as he had gotten off those damn bracelets, but Aerrow didn't need to know that.

"So you want me, that's interesting. I'll take my chances though."

Dark Ace scowled. Without wasting further words Aerrow snaked his hand under Dark Ace's top and gently ran his hands down his side and gripped his pants.

"Be reasonable Aerrow, I'm sure you've never-" Dark Ace bit his lip in order to suppress a moan as Aerrow began to fiddle with his pants. The black haired commander silently berated himself. It had been so long since he'd settled his needs with Cyclonian prisoners that even this boy's clumsy advances were affecting him. It didn't help that he had spent evenings contemplating the seduction of this teen. That he had pondered the feel of Aerrow's body or the scent of his skin. The sensations were too sharp, as if the world was dull grey and only the bright red hair and emerald eyes that stared at him were real.

He shook his head, trying to clear it, perhaps the bracelets did more than simply knock him unconscious.

Aerrow was surprisingly efficient with the removal of the commander's pants. Dark Ace tried to keep his breathing calm and even but he hissed as Aerrow's fingers closed around his arousal. There was no denying that.

"You do want this, don't you?" Aerrow asked. His tone was fierce.

"You have a lot to learn, Sky Knight. It would make you blush to know the things that I regularly think of doing to you. Your presence merely brings those thoughts to the surface, but you were right about one thing."

The Sky Knight rose to the bait, "yes?"

"It will be humiliating being taken by you." He gasped as Aerrows fingers tightened around him in annoyance. His involuntary sound seemed to please the other though.

Aerrow placed his fingers lightly on Dark Ace's face, quite close to his lips.

"A good way to lose a finger, Aerrow," he growled.

"I am not as ignorant as you think. In fact, I'm giving you a chance to make this easier for yourself."

Dark Ace's scowl deepened when he realised what the boy was suggesting. "And why would you offer even that much to me if I am to be your torture victim?" he asked.

"I told you before I want to humiliate you, that's why I dream…" Aerrow's mouth snapped shut as he realised what he had been about to say.

"Really now, you dream about me? About this? How interesting."

"Shut up, this is your last chance, Dark Ace."

With an exaggerated sigh Dark Ace took the teen's fingers in his mouth. He had no desire to be damaged. It was humiliating of course, but the revelation of Aerrow's dreams made it easier to bear. Besides, it gave him an excellent opportunity to torment the young Sky Knight. Dark Ace was far more experienced and brought all of his skill to bear. His tongue stroked the digits in his mouth. He gently rubbed and sucked and swirled them around, making the Sky Knight's breathing hitch.

He smiled around the other's fingers, "I think that's enough, don't you?"

If he could have turned around he was sure he would have seen Aerrow blush.

"It's not too late, Aerrow, we could still…alter this."

He waited.

"Not in your life, Dark Ace," the teen ground out.

Dark Ace sighed again. The boy was so foolishly stubborn. He smiled to himself. Although he would never admit it, it was one of the reasons he liked him so much.

He gasped as he felt Aerrow's finger at his entrance.

The boy was true to his word and proceeded with surprising gentleness. In a way it was more humiliating to enjoy the feeling of those slim fingers moving inside him than to simply be taken. Aerrow was certainly pleased by the responses he caused. Especially when his enemy couldn't help but buck back against those slicked fingers.

Dark Ace barely suppressed a whimper when Aerrow withdrew. His expression darkened at his own weakness. He simply hadn't had time to take care of his needs and now any sort of contact felt good. At least that's what the commander told himself.

He braced for the inevitable and tried to relax. He knew enough not to fight this. Naturally he let no other possible motivations for not fighting entered his mind. He didn't want this, not like…

"Nhuh," Dark Ace moaned when he felt Aerrow sliding in. The teen was still gentle, belaying his words about torture. He even paused when he was fully sheathed. Perhaps for his own control, perhaps not. When he started moving though, all the thoughts in Dark Ace's head seemed to flee.

(---)

He knew in theory that it could be pleasurable. He had seen the reactions of some of the prisoners he had used. He knew that he could even find the right place most of the time. But he never imagined that it could feel like this.

"Oh Aerrow," he groaned, heedless of the indignity of surrendering to his foe like this. He pressed his forehead against the tree and bucked his hips back against the Sky Knight.

Aerrow was moaning just as hungrily as him. Dark Ace was surprised at the youth's stamina, but he figured that the foolish boy was resisting his own enjoyment. That suited the commander just fine.

He gasped as fingers grabbed him again and began to stroke. Clearly Aerrow wanted to see him come. It was probably to do with his idea of 'humiliation'. He shrugged and jerked into the Sky Knight's grip. After a few moments he came, his foe's name on his lips. With a faint smirk he bucked back and tensed, forcing the Sky Knight to finish as well.

Aerrow cried out and Dark Ace smiled when he heard his own name. He knew that Aerrow would not be pleased to have lost control and even less pleased by how much he would have enjoyed it.

They both sagged, panting, Dark Ace against the tree and Aerrow against him.

"I didn't say anything you know," said Aerrow, breaking the silence.

"I didn't hear a word," smirked Dark Ace. "That still won't stop things from being very different the next time we meet alone."

"Whatever. Here's the crystal, by the way." Aerrow dropped the felix crystal. Dark Ace could hear the overwhelming awkwardness in the young teen's voice. The next moment Aerrow buried Dark Ace's sword in the tree, half a meter or so from his head.

Dark Ace immediately grasped the point. By straining his bonds close to the crackling red energy he would eventually burn through the ropes by proximity to the heat.

It would give the Sky Knight time to get away before the Talon Commander could get free. Dark Ace was impressed despite himself. The boy was wise to be wary and had clearly put some thought into this. However, the dark haired man also found this mildly disturbing.

Aerrow departed without another word. Dark Ace waited until his skimmer was out of sight before he strained to release himself.

"If you think this will be enough to stop your dreams, little Sky Knight, you have a lot to learn," he muttered to himself.