Should there, by some rather peculiar turn of fate, happen to be an outside observer along its route, they would probably not even register the Iron Fox. Not just because against the backdrop of Jupiter it was a sorry sight, but because as far as spaceships went, it was anyway not the most impressive of vessels. It was the kind of ship you hired for sending ice, food and medicine to Io; the research stations there were still small, too small to warrant the use of the behemoths that handled trade between colonies. Perhaps once the mining facilities were built, the big companies would take over the route, but until then, ships like the Iron Fox did the work.

It would reach Io in a few hours; in total, the round trip from Europa was going to be seven months—four to go and three to return. And though there were a lot of things that the crews of space trading routes had in common with sailors of Old Earth, in truth this was an even more thankless job. The starry sea did not carry the seductive nature of Earth’s oceans; it lacks not beauty, but especially in a ship like the Iron Fox you rarely got a chance to look outside. More importantly though, there was no reprieve—rarely did ships, at least the smaller ones, make stops in ports other than their destinations. The seven months of this trip — not a long one by any standard — were to be spent entirely within its pathetic hull, save for the two days spent unloading in Io.

This was the reality of space travel, and it was why Tiberia, first engineer of the Iron Fox, was sucking Staunton’s cock before starting her shift. Corporate trading ships had state-of-the-art VR facilities and sometimes even synthetics to take care of sailors’ urges during the long drift across the emptiness of space. Small, independent vessels could not afford such luxuries, and the Iron Fox was smaller than most. Women crew members had quickly found out that taking on a second job on board was quite profitable if they could stomach it.

There was little that Tiberia could not stomach. Staunton held her head firmly — he always did, though she had never flinched — as he came into her mouth. She swallowed it in two quick gulps, got up and left. He had already paid her and neither of them cared to say so much as two words to the other. She took a cinnamon chewing gum out of her pocket. Water was too valuable to waste for washing out cum taste.

She was the only woman in a crew of eleven, which was what made this otherwise underpaying job worth it. Unfortunately, her client list was shorter than she’d have liked. Old Captain Higgins took his rank too seriously to fuck a crew member, though he thankfully tolerated the practice; Jones and Johnson preferred the company of each other; Burr seemed oblivious to the possibility, and Tiberia was not going to go so far as to advertise it. It was an open secret, but still a secret.

That left her with six people in need of her particular services. She had hoped to make as much money as the ship’s whore as she did for being its engineer, but it wasn’t looking likely. Staunton only ever asked for blowjobs, which were cheap, and Volkov had realised after the first month that at the rate he was using her, he’d actually end up losing money on the trip, so now rarely called on her. Vazquez and Zhang had more experience than Volkov and had done the math beforehand. That left Du Val and Khan. Du Val used to be a regular, but she suspected she now had competition from either Jones or Johnson. She couldn’t complain about it—in many ways, Johnson was more feminine than her. At least there was Khan—as first officer, Julian Khan had somewhat more money to spend, plus he was actually attractive.

Which helped, but was a secondary consideration. At this rate, she would need at least two more trips like this before she had enough money to buy her own ship. She had been saving every penny for fifteen years. Fifteen years of doing routes between Jovian moons on shitty ships like the Iron Fox, and thirteen years of whoring herself for all sorts of guys. Taking a job on a corporate ship was out of the question with her criminal record, even if the companies did not look down upon a degree from Europa’s public university. Fuck them all. Soon, a year and a half, maybe two years, and she’d have her own ship. A new one. She would stay on Europa while poor wretches like Staunton and Vazquez kept going up and down the routes till they got old — or older, in Staunton’s case — and left their bones amidst the moons.

Normally, she spent most of the day alone with her thoughts in the engine room, doing routine maintenance and filing the daily reports, dreaming the dream. The more lonely and boring her shift was, the more she liked it. Thank goodness no one could be spared to ‘help’ her. Burr, who had the role of second engineer — even though he lacked the proper credentials — did the equally lonesome ‘night’ shift to make sure someone was watching the panels.

Today, however, was different. They were getting in orbit above Io and would soon begin descent, which gave her a little more to do. So it wasn’t a surprise when Captain Octavius Higgins walked in. She had done a couple of routes on his ship before and he always did rounds when they were about to dock.

He glanced around to appear like he was doing an inspection — in truth, unless there was a red blinking light and an alarm, or smoke coming out of one of the panels, it all looked the same to him. He stood before her, looked at her, and his white beard moved disapprovingly as he pointed with his eyes. She lowered her eyes towards where he was pointing. Hell. She had a cum stain on her uniform.

The fact that the old man insisted on them wearing uniforms was ridiculous, but she got it, this was Higgins’ ship, and if he wanted to feel like a proper captain, good for him. She shrugged half-apologetically.

“How’s my ship, Ms Riva?” he asked, choosing not to dwell on the issue.

“It’s a shitty ship, Captain, and it’s a wonder they allow you to fly it, but we’ll survive the landing.”

He laughed. “You know, when you get your own ship you won’t like other people badmouthing it like that.”

“I am going to buy my ship, not search the garbage for one.”

“The Iron Fox isn’t as old as you think, Riva. So how close are you?”

“Two trips, I reckon.”

“What will you name it?”

“Alpanu.”

He raised an eyebrow. People born on the Jovian colonies had a tradition of using Roman names, and some colonists who came from the first settlers had developed a tendency towards Etruscan ones to showcase their primacy, but Tiberia Riva did not seem like a traditionalist.

“I like the name,” she said defensively. “Besides, the main export companies are first-gen dynasties. It might help me carry some favour.”

Higgins sighed. “You’re a sly girl, Riva. And a half-decent engineer. What the hell are you doing here?”

“Well sir, I killed a man when I was sixteen. It wasn’t intentional, though I reckon he had it coming, but that limited my options.”

He nodded. He probably suspected something like that—Zhang had spent as much time in jail as aboard ships, and Du Val looked like he’d been in bar fights every day of his life.

“Joke’s on them, though. I always dreamed of working on a rusty tin can such as this, greasing and kicking a shitty B-Class Drive into submission,” she said. And of being fucked by the sad, drunk train wrecks that you call a crew. She left that part unsaid.

“I’d appreciate it if you stopped insulting my ship, Ms Riva. I’m sure you’d rather be aboard the Charles Darwin III. Well, the Iron Fox would rather have an engineer who’s fully devoted to the job, but here we are. All she’s got is you, and she doesn’t complain nearly as much.”

Tiberia smiled. The old man really loved his ship.

Higgins reminded her to be in the engine room at 4am ship time for the landing, since Burr couldn’t be trusted with the job, took a half-hearted look at the reports and withdrew. She liked him.

The rest of the shift went by without incident. She left at 6, went by the mess hall to eat her daily dose of mediocre canned whatever, staying till Khan finished his own shift, then followed him to his cabin.

It had been over a week since he last asked for her services, and, to her shame, she had missed it, and not just for the money. Khan was the only one on the ship who actually tried to make her come. Sometimes he succeeded. She once had done a year-long round trip to Callisto and back—98 fucks, zero orgasms. Very lucrative voyage, but not very pleasant.

It was no wonder Khan made an effort. His wife was gorgeous. Tiberia had met her briefly during the departure from Europa. The woman had looked at her disparagingly—she probably knew her husband would be fucking her for the next seven months, but accepted it. It’s not like there was much competition. Tiberia was by no means ugly, but a life in space didn’t allow her to make much of an effort. Her chin-length bob was more a practical necessity than a choice, and years of work and of the necessary exercise aboard a ship had made her a bit more muscular than she’d otherwise prefer to be. In contrast, Khan’s wife was a delicate little thing, with gravity defying boobs (though that was a given in Europa’s gravity).

“Mind if we try something different today?” he asked.

She looked at him suspiciously. “Different how?”

“You see, my wife Juno sent me a video.”

“I’m not sure she’d like you to share it, Julian.”

“No, no. Let me start over.” He sat down and seemed to try to find the right words. “While I am away, my wife has permission to sleep with other people,” he started.

“I doubt she needs your permission.”

He eyed her with disapproval at the interjection. “Regardless, she has it. She sent me a video where she fucks another guy and wants one in return. If you are willing to do it.”

“Are you paying extra?”

“Double the usual?”

“You got yourself a deal.”

“Would you mind if we do it while watching Juno’s video?”

Tiberia certainly did not mind that. Her mind travelled to Appia and felt a jab of jealousy thinking of whom she might be fucking while she’s here. It was ludicrous, of course. Tiberia was a part-time whore and Appia was more her fuck buddy than anything else, but still.

The left wall in Khan’s cabin, which was only slightly less tiny than the rest of the crew’s quarters, became a screen. Juno, in life size, was bending over, setting up a camera, letting the viewer check her magnificent cleavage.

“This is for you, baby. I know you like watching me fuck other guys so I went and got one that will really destroy me. Enjoy! Oh, and you too, ugh, Titania, is it? Remember Julian, I told you to take good care of that ugly little bitch. So be sure to have a good time, cunt, and I expect to see you squirm when my husband sends his response. Otherwise, I’ll have him do you over and over until it satisfies me.

“Is that bitch actually, literally threatening me with a good time?” Tiberia asked incredulously.

“Don’t mind her. She’s a nice person when she’s not horny.”

The video jumped forward to show Juno in bed with a dark hulk of a man, who looked to be almost twice her height. The bed was very wide, the posts shaped like Roman emperors—it was a horrible recent fashion, but with Juno looking like a goddess, it actually seemed appropriate. The video had clearly been edited, and it was certainly not shot by the camera the woman had set up. She had spent a lot of money on this amateur porn. So much that it was probably not amateur.

On the screen, the man’s hands slowly travelled up Juno’s gown and across her inner thighs. She visibly suppressed a moan. At the same time, Khan, standing behind Tiberia, grabbed her ass with one hand, while he put the other under her tank top, reaching for her breast. Unlike the woman she was watching, Tiberia did not hold back her moaning, though it was unclear if she was more aroused by the film or the pinching of her nipples.

“Didn’t you want to film this?” she remembered to ask.

“I am. I set up the camera earlier.”

“Okay,” she said absent-mindedly, watching, transfixed, the black man kissing Juno’s stomach, slowly moving down towards her pussy. As he started eating her perfect little cunt, her legs wrapped around his head, Tiberia wanted to be in both their places.

Khan’s cock was hard as ever and pressed against her ass. She broke out of her trance and half turned her head to him, still watching his wife getting eaten out. “What are you waiting for? Fuck me.”

He pushed her hard against the wall and pulled her jeans down, holding her hands behind her back with one hand and guiding his cock inside her with the other. He started thrusting into her, slowly but forcefully. She normally didn’t say much during sex, but knowing his wife was going to watch this, she wanted to show how good a time she could give Julian.

“Fuck me harder! Do me like that guy is doing your whore of a wife.” On the screen, Juno was almost doing a full split as her lover’s giant cock impaled her tiny frame. She was not suppressing any moans now, but instead she was screaming like a woman having the best fuck of her life. It was a good thing Khan’s quarters were fully soundproof.

“Do you hear her? I bet you never made her scream like this, but I’m sure you can make me scream louder. Harder. Fuck. Me. Harder.”

He did his best to comply, and if his gaze was drifting towards the screen, so was Tiberia’s. At some point, he grabbed her by the hair and turned her towards where the camera—or one of them anyway.
“Tell her all about it, from one whore to another,” he instructed.

Tiberia smiled, her head bouncing a little with each thrust.

“So are you pleased with the way your man fucks me… Justina, is it? He knows what makes me tick, probably because he’s fucked me more times than he’s ever done you.”

She turned around and threw Khan on the floor, then lowered herself atop his cock. It slipped into her cunt effortlessly. She started riding him, pointedly watching not his face, but the wall. He was doing the same. On it, Juno was face down on a table, her fucker taking her from behind.

As Tiberia rode Khan’s cock faster and faster, so was the black man ramming Juno’s round ass. And as the man on the screen was emptying his load over the woman’s gorgeous back, Tiberia came in an eruption of ecstasy.

“Fuck, fuck, FUCK, FUCK! FUUUUCK!” She continued bouncing on top of Khan, till he threw her off him and quickly brought his cock in front of her mouth. She barely had time to open it before his cum covered her face.

She walked towards the camera till she was right in front of it and licked her lips.

“I’m not sure this was as good as you hoped. I think maybe we should try again later,” she said.

#

The Iron Fox opened its cargo deck doors and Tiberia got her first glance of the outside world in four months. The dome where the Io research facilities had been built was small. The much larger mining dome would begin construction a few kilometres away within the year.

The dome interior was not much to look at, but any skyline with Jupiter pasted upon it was bound to be impressive. Tiberia always realised she had missed it when disembarking. Soon she’d be able to see it every day.

Higgins was talking to what must have been the head scientist, a woman with bright blue long hair, a slight nervous twitching of her head and an anxious disposition.

“The water’s all surface ice, of course, we have the papers here. Taken from the first two kilometres of the ocean surface, so there was no chance of disturbing the natives with the drilling.” This was all standard. Despite various corruption scandals, the Europa authorities would never permit any disturbance affecting the native life, still isolated from the human settlement in its deep dark ocean, but the Captain made it sound like he had personally ensured the regulations were implemented. The scientists were likely from Earth or maybe Mars, so they might believe it.

The last container was unloaded. There would be a typical quality check by the Ionians, followed by a customary one-day break for the crew to unwind. By Europa's calendar, this happened to coincide with the Nova Liberalia, a festival that had become quite popular recently in the colony. Appia would likely get drunk and fuck all night. Meanwhile, Tiberia would be content to walk on solid ground for a few hours and chat with someone else than the rest of the crew. And then off they would be, another three months before being back in Europa. The latest experience with Julian had been great, but it only accentuated how less fun it was to blow Staunton or get fucked by Zhang.

There was a noise like thunder—a sound known to Tiberia only through films. Then a second later followed a louder one, as the Iron Fox tumbled on its side, half its engine blown off.

“What the fuck!?” shouted Higgins.

Jones and Johnson were pointing guns at them.

“Really sorry about this, Captain. Change of plans—we need to stick around for a bit.”