No More

Chapter 1 – The Right Moment

Ayel had noticed how Nero had become distracted of late. But who was to blame him. They'd been imprisoned in this miserable place for years that go past uncounted and unwanted. All of them were nearly at their limit now. They were desperate for the comfort of a home they knew still existed. But Ayel knew deep down that it wasn't meant for them. No matter how much he longed to return home; to view beautiful Romulus from the Narada's orbit, to breath the fresh air, to watch the sun set over the Apnex sea and to just simply live. But it wasn't meant to be. He knew Romulus had not yet been destroyed in this time. But it had been. As Nero had said, if it hadn't happened, they wouldn't remember it. Romulus was dead. He still saw it every night.

The Romulans continued to work hard in the mines of Rura Penthe, under the constant watch of the Klingon Guards. Ayel stood for a moment to watch Nero as he worked further along from where he was. His lean, well-toned and tattooed body glistened with sweat under the harsh lights and his eyes were pitch black and focussed. The Captain had been quiet recently, rarely speaking to Ayel through the telepathic connection they shared. He only seemed to communicate with actions now, as it had been for the past few weeks. Ayel narrowed his eyes as he watched Nero strike at the rock face with the pickaxe, his muscles flexing gracefully and showing off that magnificent form of his. He was up to something.

"What's up Romulan?" drawled the closest guard. "Had enough?"

Ayel stared at the Klingon, looking straight through him. "Why bother asking?"

"Don't you take that tone with me! Are you asking for trouble?"

Ayel's gaze turned lazy and he shrugged. "Not particularly."

He went to walk away, but the Klingon grabbed him by the arm and pulled him back. Some of the other Romulans turned round quickly, torn between running, getting back to work or causing a riot. Nero however, seemed oblivious.

"You're always trouble!" the Klingon hissed. "Like your Captain!"

"If you say so."

Ayel shoved the Klingon away and brushed himself off, watching as the guard clenched his fists. He wanted to rush at him and strike him down for his attitude. But Ayel didn't care. So long as they left the rest of the crew alone, he didn't care. So long as they stopped taking Nero away for weeks and bringing him back half dead, he didn't care.

"You have guts Romulan, I give you that," the guard sneered.

"I imagine so," Ayel noted, blandly. "I've been here long enough."

The alarm sounded at that moment to signal the end of the shift. Fortunately, none of the Romulans had merited a twenty four hour shift this time. Ayel glanced at Nero again, who was stood still staring hard at the rock face. He tried to read him, but his ability was not as great as the Captain's. He could enter his mind anytime, even anywhere. Ayel shivered a little before heading towards the exit. When Nero was taken away, Ayel had often been surprised to find him easily getting into his head. The surprise was always somewhat exhilarating.

"Am I that much of a distraction Ayel?"

Ayel flinched a little from the shock of hearing Nero's voice in his head. He looked round and saw that his Captain was there alongside him, not looking at him. Of course, it was no surprise that Nero had been able to hear what he had been thinking.

"Are you planning something?" asked Ayel.

Nero's eyes narrowed. "You should know the answer to that."

"I suppose you would know that. Just don't get yourself hurt again, Nero."

"I'm only waiting, for now."

"Waiting? For what?"

"The right moment."

As they walked along the corridors back into the prisoner's common room, Ayel was pressed closer to Nero by the rush of the other prisoners. He felt his breath catch in his chest as he sensed Nero's warmth and smelt his skin. A pleasant shiver ran up his spine and in that moment, his eyes locked with the compelling darkness of his Captain's. Ayel never doubted for a minute that Nero knew exactly how he made him feel.

"Come with me," Nero told him.

Once back in the common room, Nero left for his cell, Ayel following him as ordered. This was the same thing Nero often did since the past few weeks. They'd spent a lot more personal time away from the rest of the crew of recent. Not that the crew were suspicious of it, Ayel just didn't want them to feel detached. But their loyalty was undying, just like his.

"Ayel," Nero's voice was unusually soft. "Don't worry."

He looked away for a moment. "Of course not, sir."

Once back in the cell with the door shut behind them, Ayel waited in anticipation of what his Captain's actions would be. He instantly felt warm hands pressing him back against the wall and the feeling of hot, moist tongue on his ear tip. One side of his face was cold against the damp wall, contrasting oddly with the warmth of Nero's breath on the other. Possessive hands turned him round until his face was full of Nero, ragged breath followed by wet tongue on his chin, trailing upwards. Ayel breathed out a sound of pure need, closing his eyes as Nero's tongue slipped into his mouth and their lips met.

He was hard already, almost as much as Nero. This was always so welcome after working all day in the mines. Ayel squirmed in Nero's arms as he felt his teeth sink into his lower lip, copper green blood trickling out. Nero tasted it with his tongue before withdrawing and taking in Ayel's expression. A small smirk tugged at the corner of his lips and he leaned further into Ayel, his hands pulling at his shirt. He ripped the thin fabric clean from his frame, his hands exploring and his nails clawing at the intricate black marks on his shoulders. Nero lowered his head, his lips and his tongue tending to the areas where his hands were absent. Ayel raised his head a little, moaning and arching into Nero.

"You've wanted this all day Ayel," Nero's voice invaded his mind.

"Captain Nero..." his thoughts were jumping all over the place.

"Do you need me, Ayel?"

What a question. "Nero..."

"Because I need you. Tell me, Ayel. What do you need?"

"I need you, Nero. That is why you must not die here."

Nero smiled, the first smile that had been on those lips in many years. Ayel did the same, feeling for a moment that his Captain had come out from the shadows. He was up to something, he knew it, but right now it didn't matter. Nothing else mattered as he felt the rest of his clothes ripped away from him and his back pressed against the cold floor of the cell. Ayel watched, but was unable to predict the exact intensity of the sensation that coursed through his body at the touch of Nero's warm flesh against his. He closed his eyes, groaning as Nero rocked against him and leaned forwards, biting hard into his ear. The blood felt warm on the back of his neck and Nero followed the flow down, licking and biting his neck.

Excitement flooded Ayel's veins as Nero's thighs shifted, spreading him wide to the point where he was begging. Nothing mattered now, not even Rura Penthe. Nothing seemed depressing as Ayel felt Nero over him, inside his body, inside his mind. In these moments of pure bliss, it was almost as if none of it ever happened. Romulus wasn't dead, they could return to the Narada and their lives and just forget. Oh, but Nero's invasion was always so sweet and so complete, Ayel thought as Nero's teeth bit down on his nipple. He arched into Nero with a longing groan, feeling his nails scraping against his sides, feeling him hot and hard inside him.

"Soon Ayel," Nero's voice was a whisper in his thoughts. "Soon."

Ayel couldn't stand it as his hands moved to attend to himself, wanting Nero to take him over the edge. In the last few moments, Nero demonstrated stamina that Ayel believed was impossible given the length of time they'd been imprisoned. But that thought seemed for a moment so meaningless as he let go, feeling Nero do the same. Ayel rolled onto his side, Nero laying down behind him and curling into him. He closed his eyes, feeling Nero's fingers caressing the tattooed patterns on his back. It felt relaxing, the scraping of nails followed by the wetness of tongue and the grazing of teeth. Nero was still so restless, but Ayel wanted to sleep.

"I'm feeling it now Ayel," Nero murmured. "Can you?"

"What?"

"The right moment."