************************************  
The Whore and the Captain: Part 1 
************************************* 
 
                       
               -- ROME  A.D. 2370 -- 
 
 
"Over here, Jean-Luc,  I have found an old sign." 
Professor Vicelius was a distinguished elderly gentleman who wore 
one of those big-brim hats that archaeologists love. He handed 
over a broken piece of inscribed stone to Picard, who cleaned off 
the dirt with a small brush. 
 
"Yes," Picard said, examining the marble, "it does appear to be a 
marker of some kind. You are the Latin expert, Professor, can you 
translate the inscription?" 
 
The Professor examined the piece closely, "It says Domus  
Matrillae, The House of Matrilla.  Interesting..." 
 
The enterprise was in orbit around earth while several senior 
officers attended training sessions run by Starfleet's Recreation 
Department.  Picard, very in character, chose an archaeology 
seminar held in Rome.  It was amazing to him that, after hundreds 
of years of excavations in this eternal city, there were still 
artifacts to be found.  Professor Vicelius was an old friend as 
well as an eminent classical archaeologist.  Picard had found this 
trip to be thoroughly relaxing and educational, so far. 
 
"Follow me," Professor Vicelius beckoned, "I want to 
show you something really unique.  We are on the cutting edge of 
archaeological technology." 
 
Picard and Dr. Vicelius walked over the far side of the dig.	 
Two graduate students were operating a machine that resembled	 
a large phaser canon. Around the periphery of the area mechanical  
hooks were moving in and out of the generated beam.  It 
appeared that objects were being pulled from nowhere. 
 
"This instrument, Jean-Luc, is the first wormhole generator to be 
used specifically for retrieving  archaeological artifacts.  We 
actually pull objects out of space-time.  Of course, this is still 
experimental, but it is an wonderful feeling to hold an actual pot 
instead of a potsherd." 
 
Picard was both impressed and confused.  "Doctor, how can you just 
reach in and take things out of time? What if you grab hold of 
something that shouldn’t be displaced?" 
 
Dr. Vicelius shook his head, "Don't worry.  We're not changing 
space-time.  We have a method of looking before we leap.  See 
those goggles?  Go take a peek, you'll be astounded." 
 
Picard walked over to a viewscope being used by a student. The 
young man reluctantly gave up his position to the Captain, who 
after a few seconds exclaimed, "Incredible, I wonder..." 
 
He never finished his sentence.  A huge flash occurred by	 
the wormhole generator. The smoke cleared quickly, but Picard had 
disappeared. 
 
                             
                    --  ROME  A.D. 31 -- 
                        
  
"Quis est, Matrilla?"       
     <Who is it, Matrilla?> 
 
"Nescio, Miryam. Est vir calvus, inustitate vestitus." 
     <I don’t know, Miryam. He’s a bald man in                  
        strange clothes.> 
       
"Estne mortuus?"   
     <Is he dead?> 
 
"Non credo."   
     <I don't think so.> 
      
Matrilla and Miryam both poked at Picard with their fingers trying 
to get a reaction.  Matrilla was the older of the two; a corpulent 
matron with a belly so pendulous that her dirty blue stola was 
"decincta" <unbelted> as if she were pregnant.  Miryam, in sharp 
contrast, was a lovely young woman with dark Mediterranean 
coloring.   Her brown eyes gleamed with fire and a wisdom far 
beyond her years. She also was the most popular whore in 
Matrilla’s brothel. 
  
Miryam bent close to Picard and shook his head, hoping to wake 
him.  She was successful.  Picard started coughing and moaning, 
and his eyes fluttered.  Matrilla was relieved that she would not 
have to explain a strange dead man to the authorities. Any 
suspicious activity might cause her brothel license to be revoked. 
She called in one of the eunuchs to help move Picard to a couch. 
 
Picard had regained some consciousness. His vision was blurry and 
he was extremely weak, but he was aware of being carried from the  
floor to some kind of bed or couch.  He only vaguely remembered 
where he had been before everything went blank.  Faint voices were 
speaking a language that was unintelligible to him, yet somehow 
familiar.  As more of his vision came back, he saw he was in a 
small room with several pieces of exotic furniture and walls 
painted with large friezes.  He recognized it as Roman and 
wondered if this was an archaeologist’s dream, or more likely, 
nightmare. 
 
A lovely young woman bent over him.  She looked Middle-Eastern 
but was speaking a language that he finally recognized to be 
Latin. 
 
"Tibine est nomen?  tuum nomen?"  <What is your name?> 
 
His first instinct was to reach for the tricorder but he stopped 
himself. A special version of the universal translator that 
contained all known earth languages, past and present, had been 
downloaded into it.  This  was often used by archaeologists during 
excavations.  He was reluctant to activate it while this woman was 
present but the question being asked was clear, especially to a 
native speaker of a romance language. Given the situation, 
"Picard" seemed a quite adequate response.  
  
"Peeecaaaduh," the young woman repeated, imitating what to her was 
a very odd sounding name.   
 
Picard passed out again and the two women decided it would be best 
to remove his unusual clothing.  He was also carrying some unique 
objects that they could not identify. Since they were professional 
prostitutes, not thieves, they gently undressed him and placed his 
belongings on another couch. 
 
Matrilla gestured to Miryam that they should quietly leave the 
room.  The man needed to recover in peace.   
	 
Outside the room Matrilla instructed Miryam, 
"Until I decide what to do with this stranger, Miryam, I am making 
it your job to take good care of him. And don’t annoy him with 
questions. He is obviously someone of wealth and nobility.  Did 
you notice his hands, his skin, his teeth..." 
 
"His big cock," Miryam interjected, grinning mischievously and 
holding up two hands to mark the length. 
 
"Miryam, you really are a wanton she-wolf." 
 
"Of course, Matrilla," Miryam answered back saucily, "why else 
would I  be here in this she-wolf den?  But I love my work, and it 
will be my pleasure to take care of Picard. hahahahaha."  Miryam 
laughed even louder at the old woman’s feigned outrage. 
 
Matrilla sometimes thought that Miryam enjoyed her work too much.  
If she didn't know that Miryam was a former Judean slave, Matrilla 
would have suspected her of being one of those rich Patrician 
women who worked the brothels in disguise to make up for a 
impotent husband.  She wondered how a pretty young woman like 
Miryam could get such tremendous pleasure from fucking strange 
men.  "But," she thought to herself, "it keeps the clientele 
coming back." 
 
                    ************ 
 
Picard woke up with an agonizing headache and feeling of nausea.  
He slowly recalled what had happened, but hoped it would turn out 
to be a huge holodeck joke that some member of his crew had 
orchestrated. 
 
"Computer, end program." 
 
Nothing happened. Picard wondered if they had rigged the computer 
not to respond to his voice. He was not appreciating the joke. 
 
"Computer, this is Captain Jean-Luc Picard. End holodeck program 
immediately."  
 
Still nothing changed.  Picard tried to stand up but waves of 
dizziness caused him to sit down again.  The realization was 
settling in that the holodeck was not responsible for his 
predicament. 
 
As he slowly regained his stability, he noticed that he was 
completely naked.  This panicked him, not so much from modesty, 
but because his comm badge and tricorder were now gone along with 
his pants and shirt.  He tried to calm down, reasoning with 
himself that the clothes were probably somewhere within the 
chamber.  He turned and saw his clothes and equipment neatly 
placed on another couch in the corner of the room.  As he walked 
over to retrieve them he heard a voice from behind him. 
 
"Picard, valesne maius?"   <are you feeling better?> 
 
He turned and saw the same young woman that had leaned over him 
when he first woke up. She was standing in the doorway staring at 
him and babbling away in Latin.  He grabbed the comm badge with 
his left hand and initialized the translator, leaving the 
tricorder on the couch since he had no pockets or belt. 
       
"Picard, didn't you hear me?  Are you feeling better?" 
 
She spoke to this naked man with a casualness that only a whore 
could have.  Naked men were an everyday occurrence for Miryam, 
although this one was much better looking than most she had seen.  
She hoped he would not make her wait long; she was already wet and 
throbbing for him. 
   
"Yes, thank you, I am much improved," he said in a voice that 
betrayed his discomfort.  He was awkwardly trying to get dressed 
as fast as possible, a task made more difficult by the need to 
keep hold of his comm badge. 
 
Miryam walked over and interrupted his dressing, grabbing his 
shirt out of his hands in a very matter-of-fact way. 
  
"The britches and undergarments are all right.  They only make you 
look like a foreigner.  But this small tunic will have to be 
replaced.  It is too unusual. You will draw unnecessary attention 
to yourself. I have brought you something more suitable." 
 
She threw his shirt in the corner and replaced it with a white 
tunic and sash. Without being asked, she helped him slip it on, 
letting her hands fondle and caress him in the process.  Picard 
saw the wisdom in this maneuver and made no attempt to argue with 
her.  He was a little surprised at the way she touched him, but 
she had given him good advice and he attributed her actions to 
cultural differences. He still did not know where he was or who 
this woman was, but he decided to be cautious and wait a bit 
before interrogating anyone. 
  
"Thank you. I concur completely with your observations.  I insist, 
though, on wearing this pin and carrying this instrument."  
  
She nodded approval without questioning and he placed the comm 
badge on the tunic and the tricorder in the belt. Picard took a 
deep breath and tried to relax. 
 
"And by the way," he said, "you have the advantage.  You know my 
name; I don’t know yours." 
 
She smiled warmly at him, "They call me Miryam." 
 
                     ********** 
 
Miryam arranged for a discreet male slave to attend to the 
stranger's personal needs and help him clean up. Later Otho, 
Picard's new 'valet', led him into a kitchen area where Miryam was 
waiting with some food. As he and Miryam sat together eating  
bread and fruit, Picard saw this as an opportunity to get some 
answers.  He could guess where he was, but had no clue WHEN he 
was.  He considered for a moment how best to construct his 
question so as not to alarm Miryam or give her too much 
information. Disturbances in time were serious; he had to be 
careful not to reveal anything concerning future events. 
It seemed best to feign partial amnesia resulting from a pretended 
head wound; that way he could avoid answering questions. Not that 
anyone was asking.  
 
"Miryam, a blow to my head has made me forget some things.  Can 
you tell me where I am?  How did I get here?" 
 
"We found you unconscious in that other room. I don't know how you 
got there.  I was hoping you would tell me."    
 
"You say 'WE'?  Who else knows about me?" 
 
"Well, WE all know about you now," she said as she gave him an 
affectionate pat on the knee, "but it was Matrilla and I who found 
you.  Matrilla is the old woman who runs this brothel and watches 
over the girls here." 
 
Picard couldn’t resist letting a small grin slip out.  A brothel 
explained the many strange things about this place.  Actually, he 
thought he was very lucky to have been found unconscious in a 
brothel, rather than inside a prison or the middle of a market-
place. At least he would be fairly unnoticed here.  
 
"I am assuming that this is Rome.  At least that's where I was 
before I fainted. Unfortunately, I don't remember exactly where I 
lived or much about my life prior to the accident."  
 
"Yes, Picard," she said shaking her head at his misfortune, "you 
are still in Rome, just south of the Forum along the main road." 
 
Picard thought for a moment how best to ask the year.  This was 
not going to be easy. 
 
"Miryam, forgive this ridiculous question, but I must know -- who 
is in charge of the city now?" 
 
"Who is in charge?  That is a strange question, Picard.  I'm not 
even sure what you mean.  But if that's your way of asking who is 
the Emperor, I will tell you it is still that monster Tiberius. 
Thank God he has chosen to live in Capri, far away from here. You 
must have hit your head very hard if you were able to forget 
Tiberius!" 
 
She reached out and stroked his leg with two fingers;  it was the 
act of a person offering comfort.  Picard responded to the 
friendship she was offering. He briefly returned her touch by 
placing a hand on her shoulder, somewhat embarrassed by this 
almost involuntary gesture. That brief exchange lasted only a few 
seconds, interrupted by Otho bringing in some wine. 
 
Picard had gotten the answers he needed. He also had a gut feeling 
that this woman Miryam was quite intelligent and perceptive, and 
he would have to be very careful. The irony of the situation was 
not lost on him. As an amateur archaeologist he should be enjoying 
every second of being here, but he was not thrilled about the 
possibility of never getting home.    
 
They sat silently - eating, relaxing, and observing each other.  
Miryam was as perceptive as Picard had feared.  She wondered if he 
really expected she would not notice that his lips were speaking a 
different language than her ears were hearing.  She had deduced 
almost immediately that the instrument on his belt, that he was so 
protective of, was the cause of this strange phenomenon.  Like 
most intelligent people living in the Roman world, she relied less 
on superstition and more on pragmatic reasoning.  To her, Picard 
was not a sorcerer or a god but someone who  possessed an 
incredible bag of tricks.  
 
She watched him carefully as they sat without talking.  
This Picard certainly was a very unusual man, but being a 
prostitute in Rome had introduced her to many bizarre people and 
bizarre behaviors. The Emperor Tiberius had invented such 
perverted practices that the common people complained there were 
no words in Latin to describe them.  Miryam knew instinctively, 
however, that Picard was not one of those twisted, dangerous 
people that roamed the city streets.  She sensed his caring and 
intelligence.          
 
While Miryam was mentally checking him over, Picard was busy 
mulling over in his mind how to begin searching for a way home. 
The wormhole that had transported him here was apparently no 
longer in that small room and might have moved entirely out of the 
building. 
 
He knew he would have to leave Matrilla's eventually to get some 
answers, and was less than comfortable about his tricorder hanging 
in plain site.   
 
Picard broke the brief silence.  "I need something to wear over 
this tunic that will cover my equipment. It is very valuable and 
might attract thieves." 
 
Responding to that comment, Miryam startled Picard by suddenly 
jumping at him, knocking him to the floor. He was not prepared for 
resistance as she straddled him and laughed in his face.  It was 
an affectionate maneuver, though, and Picard smiled up at her. 
 
In the midst of her giggling she managed a few sentences.  
"Picard, you are a moron!  What barbarian land do you come from - 
where people are such idiots?  Do you think I haven’t noticed that 
this object you carry speaks Latin for you!" 
 
She grabbed the tricorder out of his belt and waved it over his 
head, teasing him to get it back. 
   
"Does it speak Hebrew also?" she asked playfully, holding the 
tricorder up to her mouth. 
"shalom, hashem shelee Miryam...". 
  
She was thoroughly enjoying herself.  It was not often she got to 
see or do anything as intriguing as what this strange man offered. 
   
"And what are these little lights inside?  And what kind of 
material is the casing made of?" 
 
Picard just stared at her in total shock.   
 
"Don’t worry," she said pinching his cheek and returning the 
tricorder to his belt,  "I am not interested in your little toy.  
I won’t tell anyone about it.  You have nothing to fear from me." 
 
Before he could utter a word, she bent down and kissed him 
forcefully, pushing her tongue into his mouth. 
                   
His body tensed up as if in resistance; the swiftness	
of her move causing him to involuntary try to push her off.
But Miryam was a professional and she had no intention of	
letting him get away. As much as she enjoyed her customers,
she had rarely been as aroused as she was at that moment.
Picard was a very appealing man, and in comparison to what
Miryam was accustomed to, he was an Adonis.

Picard had no idea what to do.  He was not often in the 
position of being attacked by a woman.  Given his 
strength against hers, he could easily have flung her 
across half the room, but something in him surrendered  
and the battle was over.  Miryam felt his body give 
itself over to her and she relaxed her grip on him. She 
was the victor and he was the booty. Staying on top of 
him, she slowly worked her mouth down his clothed body, kissing
and caressing every inch between his lips and his swelling	
penis.  She wanted this first time to be for him alone; she	
wanted to make him moan and scream in pleasure.

She removed the tricorder from the sash and placed	
it close by so it would still function. Then, untying the belt,
she hungrily reached down his pants.
  
"Oh Picard, You are a man among men."  

She tried to get the pants off, or at least pushed all the way
down, but something about their construction baffled her.
Eventually she was able to get them down just far enough
to free up the object of her lust. His penis was only half-erect 
and Miryam pushed back the foreskin that was partially covering 
the tip. After all these years in Rome, she still had difficulty 
facing an uncircumcised man.  But circumcised or not, they all 
were the same when saluting. Putting her lips over the first inch, 
she pressed her tongue against the slit.  In less than a minute 
she had results; Picard's cock growing in length and thickness in 
her mouth.

He was in a stupor; letting it all happen; wanting it to 
happen.  She had excited him beyond the point where he could
stop.  The only sounds out of his mouth were soft moans. Miryam
let up her sucking for a moment to gaze on what she had 
accomplished. Here was a magnificent shaft on a magnificent
man.  She had to fight hard to keep herself from mounting it.

While she was momentarily preoccupied Picard attempted to flip
her over and thrust himself inside, but she forced him back down, 
pressing his shoulders towards the floor.

"No, this time you do nothing. Let me pleasure you."    

As soon as she was sure he was going to stay still she grabbed
hold of his penis with her left hand and returned it to her
mouth. Her right hand she put back down his pants to caress his 
testicles. He had never been worked on by anyone so expert,
and the arousal was too intense to last long.  In just a few
minutes he was spurting hot cum deep into her throat. 
After the last drop was released, she moved up to kiss his lips
so he could taste his own fluids on her.  She had conquered him.

                      **********
                       
It was late morning the next day when Otho woke his master.  
Picard  got dressed and then told Otho he preferred to just wander 
around by himself.
  
He was lazily observing the various items and aspects of the house 
when he was heard what sounded to him like Miryam moaning.
No one else seemed the least bit concerned, and although he knew 
better, Picard peeked into the room where the noise was coming 
from.

What he saw, what he really didn't want to see, was Miryam with a 
customer. He was a elderly man who was having a great deal of 
difficulty maneuvering around her body.  She was doing her best to 
help him and ultimately the act was consummated.  She nodded to 
the man, he handed her two gold coins, and left happy.  Miryam set 
aside one coin for Matrilla and put one into her private hidden 
box.  She turned and saw Picard.

Furious at him for watching, she ran up and slapped his face.
"Why are you spying on me?  Didn't you ever learn manners?" 

Picard knew her anger came more from humiliation than from 
anything else.  He was embarrassed at being caught. He was also 
feeling new emotions - jealousy and disgust at what he had seen.  
He wished somehow to free her from this life.

"Miryam, I'm sorry.  I don't..."

She interrupted him, "What do you think I'm doing here? Do you 
think this is a game?  This is how I make a living.  This is how I 
bought my freedom.  And this is how I will earn my escape.  So 
spare me any pity, please.  I have a better plan for my life."

He was acting so dejected, she softened up and gave him an 
affectionate caress. After the ridiculous wrestling match with 
that last pathetic customer, she was in the mood for some good  
sex.
 
"Come with me.  Matrilla has a really nice bath.  I’ll clean Gaius 
the baker off me, and then I'll treat you to a soothing rub."

The bath was extremely elegant and seemed to Picard out of place 
and out of character for the dwelling.  There was a dressing room, 
separate saunas for damp and dry heat, and warm and cold tubs.  
The whole bath was heated by flues that channeled hot air through 
the walls and under the floors.  Matrilla had spared no expense.

Miryam saw that Otho had followed and signaled him to leave, 
indicating that she would take care of his master herself.  She 
led Picard to the dressing room and took off his clothes. 

"Leave your translator here.  No one will touch it.  You won't 
need it anyway to understand what I'll be saying."  She smiled 
wickedly at him and, for the first time, he felt himself blush.  
Without a bit of modesty she undressed herself as well and then 
led him to the warm pool.  

They were alone in the water.  He began to unwind immediately, 
soothed by the warmth. Miryam had a sponge which she used first on 
herself to remove all traces of her last customer.  She then began 
to wash Picard.  She cleaned every inch of him with the sponge and 
then put it aside.  He was so relaxed he was almost asleep.  
Miryam turned her attention back to his body which she began to 
massage with her hands, gently unkinking his neck and shoulders 
and rubbing his arms and chest with enough pressure to get his 
attention.  Picard was waking up, noticing the heat not only from 
the water, but from Miryam's own body.  She had moved her rubbing 
down to his penis and testicles while she wrapped one arm and one 
leg around him.  The water gave a certain buoyancy to their bodies 
so she was able to easily press hard against him.  She was very 
aroused and was working on getting him to respond to her needs.  
No words were exchanged between them as she leaned forward to kiss 
him hard, still holding fast to his organs.  The combination of 
her ardor and her manipulation caused Picard's erection to swell 
fully.         
              
Still buoyed up by the water, she pressed up against his 
hard penis, forcing it inside her. 

"Oh yes," she thought, "this is what I have been waiting for 
since the moment I first saw you.  This is what I hungered 
for.  Fuck me, Picard.  Fuck me hard."
 
The words were unspoken but the meaning was clear.  He 
floated her around so her back was against the side of the 
pool and he began thrusting.  The moans and cries of 
pleasure from them both required no translation.  He knew 
what she wanted; he pushed in and out hard, continually, 
without stopping, until she came convulsively. When he knew	
she was finished it took only one more ejaculatory thrust 
for him to join her.
 
                     **********

Later that afternoon Picard saw Miryam putting on a cape, as if 
about to leave.  He walked over to where she stood, hoping for an 
invitation but not wanting to ask. He was about to go nuts from 
being cooped up in that house.

She saw straight into his soul from the expression on his face.

“Maybe I should bring you with me today.  You can’t stay locked in 
Matrilla's house forever."  She let out a little giggle, "and I 
think Otho is getting sick of your face."

He smiled back at her, "You’re right. I do need to get out - to 
walk around and try to remember."  And to find the wormhole, he 
reminded himself.  

She gave him a cloak to cover the comm badge and the tricorder 
and took him by the hand out through a side door.  Picard was 
instantly astounded.  Besides the fact that he had not been in 
actual daylight for so long, the sight of Rome was captivating.  
As they walked along the narrow streets, he remarked to himself 
how much it resembled pictures he had seen of the old cities of 
Sicily and Naples.  Picard forgot entirely about searching for 
the wormhole and became engrossed in merely looking around, 
marveling at everything. He listened to the strange sounds of 
an ancient city, saw people in ancient attire, speaking the 
many languages of a cosmopolitan area.  They walked for quite 
some distance - through narrow alleys lined with two and three 
story buildings - to large open courtyards and markets.  He was 
transfixed. 
 
At one point, Miryam nudged him with her elbow.

"Picard. You are staring like a stupid tourist.  Is all of this 
so unfamiliar to you?"

"Well, yes, actually I don’t remember anything of this part of 
the city.  Am I that conspicuous," he asked.

"You look like an imbecile," she replied, imitating his 
expression, "If you’re not careful, your eyes will stay 
permanently bugged out and your neck will crack."

At that moment an unkempt man stumbled out of a local shop and 
noticed the couple.  He was quite drunk and walked towards them 
muttering to himself.  Miryam was suddenly nervous, almost 
ashamed; Picard guessed this was one of her customers, but 
wasn’t sure what he should do.

"Hey, Miryam, how about a free one?"  the man shouted.  He 
lifted his short toga and flapped his penis at her.  

Miryam shouted back at him, "go home Septimus, you’ve had too 
much wine!"  She turned away red-faced.  Because of her new 
feelings for Picard, she found it difficult to have him see 
this ugly part of her life.

"Come on Miryam, let me have a quickie."

The man walked closer, still holding his ugly shriveled cock.  
Miryam sought refuge behind Picard.  Ordinarily when things 
like this happened, she would just run.

Septimus made the mistake of taking one step too close.  Picard 
grabbed him by the toga and threw him to the ground.  The 
wretch was in no condition to fight back and lay there staring 
up at his attacker.

"If you ever speak that way to this lady again," Picard said to 
him menacingly, "I will personally slit your filthy throat."   
He put his arm around Miryam and walked her quickly away.

She was impressed and grateful.  Chivalry was not a common 
practice in Rome that year.  She stopped their walk long enough 
for a hug, a quick "thank you," and the promise of a longer 
thank-you later.

                  ***********
  
After traveling a little further they arrived in front of a 
small villa in a quiet, more secluded part of the city.

"Here we are," she said with obvious pride, "this is my house."

Picard had not expected this.  "You have a house?  I mean, it’s 
lovely, but I thought you lived at Matrilla's house."

"Oh Jupiter, No!" she said emphatically. "I could never live in 
that slimepit.  I need a safe haven for myself.  Men have been 
generous to me and this is my reward. Come inside."


Her house was bright and cheery.  The floor was decorated with 
tile mosaics and the walls were colorfully painted.  She 
brought him to the center court and spread out a rug next to 
the rain pool, placing out some napkins and cups. 
 

"Sit here and relax," she said, "I'll be your harem girl and 
bring some food. Let's see how you look as a desert chief." She 
tried to wrap one of the napkins around his head like a turban 
but gave up when he kept teasing her, reaching behind for her 
buttocks.

"Forget it, your head looks better uncovered. I'll be right 
back." 

While she was gone, Picard thought about his situation.  He had 
been so distracted by Miryam that he had done nothing about 
investigating a way back to his own time.  He wondered if, 
perhaps,  he was avoiding getting back too quickly. Anyway, he 
reasoned, the Enterprise crew was certainly hard at work trying 
to find him with every bit of modern technology at their 
disposal - maybe he should just do what Miryam suggested - 
relax.
He had not behaved like this in a long time; not since he was a 
young cadet at Starfleet Academy.  He felt licentious and 
driven by sex.  It was wonderful.  And the beauty of the 
situation was that there was no Starfleet, no Enterprise, no 
one to watch over his shoulder as he allowed himself to give in 
to his most profligate desires.  And right now what he desired 
most was Miryam.   

Miryam returned about a half hour later, balancing a large 
round platter in one hand and a smaller plate in the other.  
She placed the dishes down in front of him and joined him on 
the rug.   

"Sorry that took so long.  Did you miss me?" Before he could 
answer she gave him a hard kiss and squeezed his genitals, but 
quickly released him.

Picard stared at the dishes and laughed.  The large plate 
contained a round flatbread with toppings, but the smaller one 
held a cake in the shape of a cock and balls.

"Miryam, this is a interesting course selection. Where did the 
cake come from?"

"Gaius the baker, my favorite customer, she said twisting up 
her lips in a expression of disgust. "I've been helping him out 
with his sexual problems and I suppose he thought I would enjoy 
this little gift.  Next time he shows up at Matrilla's I'm 
going to send Otho in my place."  She giggled and waved the 
cake in front of Picard's face.  "Want a bite?"

"I'll pass. What's on the large plate?  That seems more 
appetizing."

"Ah," she said enthusiastically, "this is a special treat from 
Judea that has become popular in Rome.  The matzo is a large 
round unleavened bread.  We spread olive oil on it and then 
bake it with cheese and spices.  It is delicious."

Picard, teasing her, said, "add a little sausage and you would 
have a really nice pizza."

Not knowing what a pizza was (it didn't translate), she 
grimaced at him with mock disdain,  "Sausage over the cheese? 
maybe in Rome, but never in Judea.  Besides we don't eat pork. 
Don't you know that the Romans call my country The Land Where 
Pigs Grow Old? But such a suggestion is what I would expect 
from an uncircumcised mound of stinking camel shit like you."

Picard was laughing so hard he almost choked.  Miryam, still 
toying with him, stood up and folded her hands in pretend 
indignation.  Picard tugged on the bottom of her dress, trying 
to get her back.   He wasn't interested anymore in pizza or 
sausage; he wanted to make love to her.  Grabbing her by the 
waist, he pulled her to him on the floor and put his hand up 
under her garment.  She playfully pushed him away but he was 
insistent,  Besides he knew Miryam was not seriously trying to 
avoid sex because her juices were already flowing.  He intended 
to take her right there on the carpet. 

Managing to get her down on the rug, he got on top of her, 
pressing his aching, rock-hard penis between her legs and 
kissing her forcefully.  Miryam was beside herself with lust 
and spread her legs open for him.  Her urgency was powerful and 
she moaned loudly as he entered her, "Yes, yes, oh, Picard, 
yes, please..."  

But he was overwhelmed by his own passion and came almost as 
soon as he thrust in. 

Realizing what had happened but too excited to just stop, 
Miryam put her hands on his head and pushed him down to her 
throbbing clitoris, praying he would know what to do.  He did 
not disappoint her.  Working his tongue furiously, he sucked in 
her juices mixed with his own semen.  It took only a few 
minutes for her to have an explosive orgasm.  Picard embraced 
her tightly and they stayed quietly together as he eventually 
fell into a light sleep.

                     ******

In his dream Picard was back on the Enterprise bridge, sitting 
in his chair naked with a raging hard-on.  Dr. Crusher was 
sitting next to him wearing nothing but her blue lab coat.  The 
crew moved through their duties in surrealistic slow-motion.  

"Beverly, I want to fuck you."

"Oh god, Jean-Luc, what took you so long.  Let me suck on you."

The dream doctor knelt in front of the dream Captain and moved 
her mouth over his penis until he ejaculated. 	   

The orgasm woke Picard up.  It was not Beverly Crusher but 
Miryam sucking on him as he slept. After draining him 
completely she curled her body back around his, saying nothing.  
It had been an interlude of mindless passion, precipitated  by 
nothing.  Picard caressed Miryam but he was disturbed by the 
meaning of his dream.  Why had he never fucked Beverly.  Not 
that he hadn't wanted to, or that she was reluctant.  They had 
feelings for each other.  What was he waiting for?  If he ever 
got back to the Enterprise, some things would be very 
different. He stayed awake for a long time while Miryam rested 
again in his arms. 

---- two days later ----- 

It was time to return to Matrilla's house.  Miryam could not stay  away
forever.  Walking out the door, Picard wondered if he would  ever see
this house again.  

After about a half hour, they came to a main square where a large 
crowd of people had gathered, many screaming, several crying.   Miryam
and Picard stopped to look and saw a gallows had been set  up.  There
were three children waiting for execution and the  public executioner
was about to kill one of them - a young girl.  The people watching were
shouting at the executioner. It was a  horrible scene and Picard asked
Miryam to inquire of someone what  was going on.

"You can see first hand the brutality of Tiberius.  These are the 
three children of Sejanus.  Their father was executed yesterday  and
today they will follow him. The people are shouting a reminder  to the
executioner that it is against Roman law to execute a  virgin.  Perhaps
he will let the girl go free."

As the two watched, the man threw the young girl to the ground and 
mounted her, shoving a massive erection into her, ripping her  open. 
The girl was screaming.  When he had finished his rape, he  lifted up
the girl by her hair and shouted to the crowd, "She is  no longer a
virgin,"  and quickly put her and her brothers to  death, throwing the
bodies down the steps before walking away.      

It was gruesome, and Picard and Miryam were both in shock at what  they
had just seen.  She turned to him and sobbed uncontrollable  into his
chest,  "I hate this city, I hate this city."  He said  nothing but
swore that before he left he would see to it that  Miryam had the means
to get out of Rome.

                  *****************

When they arrived at the brothel they were immediately aware of a 
great amount of chattering and activity going on.  Several of the 
girls were going in and out of one particular room whispering and 
giggling to each other.

Matrilla walked over to Miryam, trying in vain to keep a stern  face.  

"It's about time you came back.  Your customers have been  complaining
for two days."  Matrilla smirked cryptically, "And  you have been
missing all the excitement."

Miryam instantly forgot all the recent troubles and waved to her 
friends, Fortunata and Charyses. They skipped over to her,  grabbing
her hands and pulling her towards the mysterious  adventure.  Picard
was relieved to see her happy again and just  stood to one side,
watching.

"Miryam, you have got to see this," Fortunata said, "you won't  believe
it.  A strange man came to the house yesterday.  He is so  weird!"  

Miryam thought it was definitely a week for strange men.  She  didn't
think, however, that anyone could be stranger or nicer than  her
Picard.

Charyses chimed in, "He's had an erection for six hours,  Can you
believe that?  Nothing we do makes any difference.  We have  been
having so much fun with him."

Fortunata added, "Matrilla sent a secret note to Quinta Drusilla.  
She's in there now, riding him like a prize stallion."

"The Senator's wife?"  Miryam said, laughing at the image of  Quinta
Drusilla going at it with a strange man.  "Matrilla," she shouted to
the old matron, "you should bind this man in  shackles and send notes
to all the Senators' wives.  You'll make a fortune!"

"And Miryam," Charyses said in an awed tone, "he has yellow eyes."

Picard, on hearing that remark, didn't wait for an invitation to  burst
into the room.

"Data!"

Data was on a couch and Quinta Drusilla was on Data.  She had her 
hands on his shoulders and was wildly moving her hips up and down  on
him, moaning and screaming from the pleasure.  Quinta was  working up
to her first good orgasm in a long time.

Data didn't notice Picard.  He was intent on what was going on  with
this woman.  When her climax finally hit, she let out one  last scream
and collapsed on top of him.  It was then that Data  turned his head
towards the door where he had heard someone shout  his name.

"Captain,"  Data said loudly, jumping up.  As he stood up from the 
couch, Quinta Drusilla was unceremoniously detached from his still 
erect penis and tumbled onto the floor, a satisfied smile fixed on  her
face.

"Captain Picard, I am glad to see you are all right."  
  
"Yes, Data, I am fine and extremely happy to see you."  Picard  didn't
think it was necessary to mention what had just gone on.   He was sure
Data would explain eventually. "And Data, would you  please get
dressed."

"Yes Captain."  Data deprogrammed his erection and pulled on a  long
hooded robe that had been lying on the floor, seemingly  discarded in
haste.

"Data," Picard said, suppressing a grin, "where did you get that 
outfit.  You look like Friar Tuck!"

"Commander Riker felt it would be best to cover as much as  possible.
Captain, we have discovered the location of the wormhole and will be
able to transport you back to..."

Picard cut him off with a finger on his lips.  "You can tell me  all
this later." He signaled with his hands and eyes to Data that  it was
not appropriate to speak in front of all these people. If Data was
connected to the ship's universal translator or had one downloaded
directly into his programming, they would be able to  understand
everything he was saying. 

Miryam was already upset by what transpired.  She sensed  immediately
that the appearance of this Data meant the end of her  beautiful
relationship with Picard.  Close to tears, she sulked  off to a corner
of the room.

Matrilla, on the other hand,  was very intrigued by what she had  just
heard.

"So you are CAPTAIN Picard! You are a military man.  I never would 
have guessed.  You don't seem like the soldier type, and neither  does
your comrade.  What legion do you both belong to?"

"I'd rather not discuss it," Picard said curtly, brushing her  aside.
 
He had noticed Miryam in the corner and knew she was distressed.  
There was no time for small talk with this nosy matron.  He left  Data
and the rest of the crowd to fend for themselves as he took  Miryam by
the hand to an empty room.  Picard couldn't explain why  he was leaving
but he was sure the details and reasons were not  important to Miryam.
He wanted to give her a chance to express  feelings that he knew were
locked up inside.  They sat on a couch  and, nestling her head against
his chest, she revealed all her  hopes and dreams; things she had never
shared before.    

"Do you know what I would like?  I would like to go live far away  in
some barbarian land, like Britain or Germany.  Someplace where  there
is still a little unspoiled freedom left."  She sighed, "but  I will
have to stay here until I can save enough money to get  away, and that
will take a long, long time." 

"Maybe not so long," he said holding her tight, "maybe I can help  you.
Do you have a gold coin?" 

Intrigued by the hope he offered, her expression suddenly  brightened
as she ran to get him an Aureus from her hidden box.  He took the coin
and told her to wait for him in the main room.   Alone in the room he
signaled Data with the comm badge to meet  him.

"Data, I want you to return to the Enterprise.  Use the  replicators to
make six hundred copies of this gold coin.	 I also want four dozen each
of diamonds, rubies, and emeralds. Set aside one hundred coins in a
fabric bag and pack the  remainder in two inconspicuous wooden boxes.
Meet me back in  this room in one hour." 

    
                **********

The time had come for Picard to say goodbye to Miryam.  He was  not
looking forward to this, both because he would miss her  terribly and
he did not want to hurt her.  But there was no  alternative; to take
her with him was impossible. 

She was in the small room where they had seen each other for the  first
time.  Picard told Data to put the boxes in the room and  wait by the
doorway.  Miryam would not face him.  She spoke to  him with her back
turned, "Turn off your tricorder.  I don't want to understand what you
are going to say."

He gently turned her around.  Huge tears were falling from her  dark
eyes, staining her cheeks. 
 
"Miryam, I am continually amazed by you.  How do you know this is 
called a tricorder?"  She grabbed it angrily as he held it up in  front
of her.

"Just because I am a whore doesn't mean I can't read! It says  right
here on the bottom: T-R-I-C-O-R-D-E-R, a word no doubt  invented by
someone in  your country who speaks very bad Latin!"   

"And when," he asked teasing, "did you get the chance to examine  the
tricorder for inscriptions?"

"Oh," she replied returning the tease while placing the tricorder  on
the floor, "probably one of the times that I was undressing  you." She
could never stay angry at him and fought back the tears  with a forced
smile. Running her hand along his body, she stopped  to squeeze his
bulge.  He closed his eyes for a second and did  nothing to stop her
fondling. 

"Fuck me, Picard.  Fuck me one more time right here."  She hoped  the
vulgarity of her language would convey to him the arousal she  felt.

As always, he was totally overcome by lust for her.  He pressed  her
breasts and then moved his hand under her shirt and  between  her legs
to feel the wetness.  Picard knew Data was still  watching, but his
desire for Miryam were too strong at that moment  to resist. He shoved
her against the wall as she wrapped her legs  around his waist to
anchor herself.  Freeing his hard penis, he  pushed into her, each
thrust moving Miryam up and down along the  masonry, accompanied by
moans of pleasure. 

Data watched silently from the doorway as his Captain, the man he 
considered to be the epitome of human decency and honor, had crude 
noisy sex against a wall.  The grunting and moaning intensified  until
reaching orgasmic intensity.  As Picard removed Miryam from  himself,
Data's positronic brain incorporated into his programming  a new
understanding of human behavior.

"Data," Picard said without turning to face him, " please leave us 
alone for a few minutes."

"I'll be waiting at the appropriate place, Captain," he said and  left
quickly. 

"Miryam, inside those two boxes is your freedom.  Don't open them 
until I'm gone and don't let anyone else know.  Data has already  given
something to your friends, to Otho, and even to Matrilla;  everything
else is from me to you alone. I know I'm being vague,  but promise me
you'll be careful with what I'm leaving you."

She answered him with a mock insulted look, "I'm always careful; and
I'm smart.  You should know that by now."  

"I do know that, and you must believe me, you have a good life  ahead
of you." 

The farewell was becoming unbearable for both of them.  The  quicker it
was over, the better.  He gave her a kiss and walked  out the door.

"Vale, Picard. In perpetuum mei memoria tene." 

                    --- The End ---