Red lights were flashing. The sirens were screaming for attention, drowning out the consistent moan of the gravity engine. Panicked people paced quickly from one end of the station to the other. Things aboard The Horizon weren’t looking great. Yet Alan Coley thought that this was the perfect time to sit down and have a cup of dehydrated coffee.

The Horizon was a state-of-the-art solar observatory in an orbit around the star 3820-Sagittae. The main purpose of the facility was to collect data on energy capturing and applications; everyone on board was either a scientist or an engineer. Alan was the latter. His area of specialty was to maintain the solar shields; large, reflective panels that protect The Horizon and its inhabitants from the frightening temperatures and radiation courtesy of 3820-Sagittae.

As Alan neared the bottom of his cup, an announcement was broadcasted throughout the station.

‘Alan Coley, could you please report to the Bridge. Alan Coley.’

With a reluctant sigh, Alan drained his cup and walked to the bridge.

~~~

‘Well, you are right: this is a problem,’ Alan confirmed. He stood on the Bridge surrounded by concerned looking meteorologists and official looking people. On a screen in front of him, large red letters flashed the words “solar flare eminent.” Surprisingly, it was the first time solar activity had threatened the relatively new station.

‘But the good news is that I think you’re all taking this all too seriously,’ Alan said with a bored yawn.

The dozens of people on the Bridge all breathed a sigh of relief. Alan could actually see the worry drain from their faces.

‘What I mean by that,’ smirked Alan, ‘Is that you are taking this all too seriously because, simply put, we are all screwed.’

The panic reappeared in the eyes of the meteorologists. Alan caught the steely gaze of the station Captain, Astrid Reener, from the back of the Bridge. Her grey eyes bored into him, daring him to continue.

‘Let me spell this out for you,’ Alan said, glancing back at the Captain. ‘One and a half trillion tons of super-heated plasma is going to be ejected at five-hundred kilometres per second directly towards us. This station wouldn’t last very long without our solar shields; in fact without them we would have been fried months ago. But the reality is that at the time of ejection, The Horizon will be sitting directly in the path what is called the prominence.

‘I’m sure you all remember that compulsory introductory video we had to watch before employment. Remember that footage of the huge loop of fire erupting from the surface of the star? Yeah, that was a prominence.’

A middle-aged meteorologist with sweat beading on his forehead stuttered out a question. ‘So what do you suggest we do?’

‘I’m not in charge here, I’m just the engineer,’ Alan said, rolling his eyes. ‘The only certainty is that we have less than three hours to live; which is why if you have any further questions, you can find me in the dining hall enjoying my last drink.’

As Alan left the bridge, he felt the cool daggers of Astrid Reener watching him as the hydraulic doors hissed shut.

~~~

Unfortunately for Alan, the only alcohol on board was powdered and had to have water added to it before being shaken and served as something that poorly resembled the real thing. Despite this, Alan prepared himself a scotch and propped himself up on a stool.

‘Mind if I join you?’

Alan didn’t bother turning around. ‘What’s up, Cap?’ he asked, tapping his fingers to his temple in mock salute.

‘Cut the crap, Coley,’ Astrid barked as she sat down next to him.

They sat in silence. Captain Astrid Reener came from a well-known military family that manages a large floating outpost above a planet called New Phaeton. Alan had heard rumours that the reason why Astrid was assigned to oversee a bunch of scientists was because of an argument she had with her father. He wasn’t sure if it was true, but Alan thought that if it was it was true, it would certainly explain her steely attitude and harsh tendencies.

‘If she can prove herself here, she’ll probably be permitted to return,’ Alan thought.

Alan pressed his face into the plastic counter and lazily watched Astrid pour water into a silver pouch of dehydrated whiskey. Her eyes were surprisingly pretty; shining similarly to the silver sparkles ingrained into the counter. Her hair was tied up for convenience and her navy blue uniform was pressed and neat.

Astrid caught Alan eyeing her off, but instead of mentioning it, she sat there with an annoyed look on her face.

‘You know, it took me the best part of an hour to try and calm those blabbering scientists down,’ she said eventually in her deep yet feminine voice. ‘If you had been a little nicer, maybe I wouldn’t have had to waste one of my precious hours on those sweat-bags. You really do lack sympathy.’

‘You aren’t exactly an angel yourself, Captain. I honestly don’t like being cooped up in this death trap. I only took this job because it gave me a reason to leave behind my pathetic family on New Ceres.

‘Shut up, Coley. I didn’t come here to listen to your life story.’

‘Oh? So why did you come here?’

The Captain drained her whiskey before speaking. ‘Although it pains me to admit it, we’ve got less than two hours until we’re stardust; and before I die, I’d really like a fuck.’

Alan raised an eyebrow. Astrid stared right into his eyes, her face expressionless.

‘Look, don’t get the wrong idea; I’m not in love with you or anything. You just happen to be the hottest piece of ass on this station and I need some dick.’

‘And what if I say no?’

‘I’m not asking for your permission.’

Alan looked into her fierce eyes. She wasn’t bluffing. Alan was convinced that Astrid was more than capable of throwing him to the floor if she wanted to. Oh well, it couldn’t be helped. He wasn’t really intending to decline anyway.

‘I guess I don’t have any choice, do I? When do you want to do this?’

‘Now.’

‘Now?’ Alan ran his eye over the empty dining hall. ‘Here?’

‘Right now, right here,’ confirmed Astrid, a smirk on her otherwise cool face.

‘I’m sorry, but I’m having a little trouble comprehending this.’

‘Please, take your time; it’s not as if we’re about to die,’ mused Astrid.

‘Well I apologise for having morals,’ snapped Alan. ‘But usually I don’t fuck women in public places.’

Astrid leant in very close to Alan. He could feel the warmth of her breath sticking to his face.

‘The way I see it,’ she said softy, ‘Is that anyone that walks in on us is going to be dead in two hours anyway.’

Alan paused before speaking. She had a very valid point. However if Astrid was better informed about the current situation, she probably wouldn’t even have suggested the ludicrous idea. Maybe he should have been more honest…

As Alan pondered this, Astrid removed her pressed trousers and panties, dropping them to the floor.

‘Here, grease monkey,’ she said, sitting herself on the counter in front of Alan. ‘I assume you know how to eat vag.

Astrid rested her legs on Alan’s shoulders, hoisting her shirt up slightly higher to allow for better access. Alan dismissed his hesitancies and spread Astrid’s lips apart, snaking his tongue into her depths.

‘Oh yeah…’ Astrid moaned. ‘This is exactly what I need.’

The Captain placed her hand behind Alan’s head and pushed him in closer. She ground herself into his face, feeling the stress leave her muscles as she sank into the warmth of his mouth. Her arousal increased, liquid dripping from her insides and down Alan’s chin.

Astrid heard the sound of the hydraulic doors hissing open. Two fumbling scientists wandered in looking like lost sheep.

‘Oi! You nerds piss –‘ Astrid’s sentence cut short and a loud moan escaped her throat. ‘Just…fuck off.’

The scientists scrambled out of the door, tripping over themselves in a hurry. Alan grunted into Astrid’s crotch as his head was grasped firmly from behind. He wasn’t even licking it anymore; Astrid was just rubbing herself on his tongue.

‘Ah fuck,’ Astrid groaned. ‘A little more. I just need a little more.’

Her breaths came out in gasps as she worked her pussy into Alan’s mouth. Alan’s head was forced harder and harder into Astrid’s moist flesh. He felt as if he was going to suffocate. Then it stopped. Her pussy quivered and her body shuddered.

The Captain let out a loud, relief filled sigh as her desire was quenched. Alan withdrew his face from her crotch, a foul look on his face.

‘You are such a bitch!’ he spat. ‘I agreed to have sex with you, not to be used as your boy toy!’

‘Quit your whining and grow a dick.’

‘Your attitude is really pissing me off,’ Alan said, looking at his superior in disgust.

‘Well that’s a relief,’ smirked Astrid.

‘You’ll fuck me harder if you’re angry.’

Astrid looked into Alan’s eyes and saw genuine anger glaring back at her. She did intend to provoke him, but now she was slightly concerned. She observed the offended engineer, considering that maybe he wasn’t in to rough sex. Apologising would be the best option.

‘Listen Alan,’ the Captain said in a slightly quieter voice than usual. ‘I’m sorry about what I did, I was out of place.’

Astrid averted her eyes and looked at the floor. Her legs dangled over the edge of the counter and her typical crisp white shirt was crinkled and unbuttoned from the bottom.

Alan stared at Astrid blankly. Was she seriously apologising? The fierce Captain Astrid Reener; known across the sector for her unmatched discipline and tough training methods? Suddenly Alan didn’t feel angry anymore. Is she scared of me?

‘My bad, Captain. I guess I overreacted a bit,’ Alan said, forcing a smile. ‘And since when were we on a first-name basis? You called me Alan just before.’

Astrid’s eyebrows creased in irritation.

‘Shut up, Coley. Are you done blabbering?

‘Yes, Astrid.’

Astrid narrowed her eyes and began unbuttoning the rest of her shirt. Alan admired her smooth, unblemished skin, her chiselled collarbone and pale breasts. She caught him gawking.

‘Yes, Coley; I do have tits,’ Astrid said, rolling her eyes.

‘Well I wasn’t sure,’ mocked Alan. ‘You should try thin clothing. It does wonders for small boobs.’

‘Coley,’ warned Astrid. ‘A slap wouldn’t be out of the question in this situation.’

‘I’m not apologising,’ Alan said stubbornly, dropping his pants to the floor.

Despite the climate controlled atmosphere, the air was still slightly chilly on bare skin, so Alan left his shirt on. Astrid, however, was built tough and was lying back on the counter with her legs spread and stripped of her clothes.

‘Alright, Coley, stick it in.’

‘Hey! A little respect would be nice,’ Alan exclaimed in mock offence. ‘This is a man’s cock, not some run-of-the-mill dildo that you can simply print whenever you please.’

‘Yeah, yeah, get on with it; we literally don’t have all day.’

Alan winced. He was considering telling Astrid the truth when she snapped at him for hesitating too long. It could wait.

Alan stroked his soft cock until it was an appropriate firmness, watching it inflate in memorising bursts. He continued to stroke himself while he stuck a finger slowly into Astrid’s pussy, testing the texture and slipperiness. Satisfied, Alan grasped Astrid’s hips and slowly pushed his cock into her.

‘You’re unexpectedly easy to enter, Captain.’

‘Are you calling me a slut, Coley?’

‘Now, now, Captain; an experienced woman like yourself should be fully aware that it’s the arousal that determines how loose a pussy is, not how many dicks it has swallowed.’

Alan kept thrusting slowly into Astrid, allowing her to adjust to his size.

‘Really? How do you know about that?’ Astrid asked, genuinely surprised.

‘I read it in a psychology journal a couple of years ago,’ Alan replied.

Alan could feel Astrid’s pussy loosed slightly more. He could move a bit faster now.

‘I was going to say,’ Astrid said mid-moan. ‘I’m probably the least slutty woman in the sector. I’m in a relationship with my duties; there’s simply no time for dick.’

‘That surprises me,’ Alan grunted. ‘You seemed to be pretty slutty half-an-hour ago.’

‘Let’s not confuse slutty-ness with horny-ness, Coley.’

‘I always thought those terms were interchangeable..?’

‘Just shut up and concentrate on fucking me. Men can’t seem to focus on more than one thing at a time.’

‘Ouch. That’s a generalisation, by the way.’

‘I said shut up!’

Alan smirked and pushed himself into Astrid’s body, feeling her hips grind against him and savouring the contact of their flesh.

Astrid was confused. She had been accustomed to rough sex her entire life. Slow, gentle lovemaking simply didn’t fit her character. Yet Alan’s deliberate and controlled strokes were so…moreish. Gone were the fast, shallow thrusts she was used to. She relished the sensation of Alan’s cock gliding through her pussy, down the canal that shaped itself just for him and penetrating her deepest folds. If rough sex was fast-food, then what she was experiencing would have to be fine-dining.

Astrid was abruptly filled with a deep sense of regret. All her life she had been nothing but a cold-hearted bitch. This is what her life was missing. A man who she could settle down with in the evening, who she could share a bed with and who she could touch. Her life seemed to be devoid of the compassionate touch of another. Now in an hour she would be dead.

‘Oh fuck, Alan yes!’ Astrid moaned as a wave of tingly pleasure washed over her, eliminating the negative thoughts. She was glad Alan was being gentle.

Alan, however, hadn’t even considered being rough with Astrid. Initially he was frustrated, but he felt that rough sex made the woman more of an object. It lacked the intimacy that sexual congress was meant to be about. Besides, if you go too fast you don’t get the chance to appreciate the body. The sensitive nerves in the head of Alan’s cock brushed up against every unique fold in Astrid’s pussy. It was a different experience with every woman, which is why Alan liked to take his time.

Astrid was obviously having issues trying to stop moaning so much. It seemed as if she wasn’t used to expressing herself this openly. Her teeth were clamped over her bottom lip and her eyes were scrunched shut. Alan could see her eyelids trembling.

Despite her best attempts, Astrid couldn’t hold it in any longer, and let out a pent-up breath accompanied by a faint moan. She swore.

Alan knew he wouldn’t last much longer and thrust quickly a couple of times to bring himself closer.

Astrid could feel the change in his pace and knew he was going to cum soon.

‘Alan. I want you to cum inside me,’ Astrid groaned. She was going to die soon anyway, so she might as well let him.

With a few final staccato thrusts, Alan pushed his cock into Astrid’s soaking depths and emptied himself. Astrid could feel the contracting of his scrotum and twitches of his cock as each spurt was shot into her.

The only sound in the almost vacant dining hall was that of heavy breathing. Astrid spoke.

‘I am satisfied. Thanks for the fuck.’

‘You speak so eloquently, Captain,’ Alan said in a voice dripping with sarcasm.

Astrid removed herself from the counter and stood on wobbly legs. Her inner thighs were damp with her own lubricants and small beads of semen clung to her.

Silently, Astrid slipped on her panties and buckled her trousers around her hips. She attempted to dress herself respectably, yet she still looked like she had just gotten out of a sauna.

‘I suppose it doesn’t matter what I look like now anyway,’ Astrid said to Alan, who was putting on his pants. ‘We’re all going to be charcoal soon anyway, so I guess I can get away with the “just been fucked” look.’

‘Ah yeah…about that.’

Astrid frowned. ‘What do you mean “about that?” This better be good, Coley.’

‘Well, I’ve got some good news,’ Alan said, forcing a chuckle. ‘See we’re not about to die. It was just joke! Captain..? Why is your face red?’

‘Did you do this just so you could have sex with me?!’ exploded Astrid.

‘As I recall, you were the one who approached me.’

‘You didn’t answer my question!’

Alan silently shrugged and tipped his hand side to side.

‘Goddammit, Coley! You came in me! What if I get pregnant?’

‘Okay. First of all, I didn’t actually think anyone would believe me. I mean, let’s be realistic. What kind of person puts a state-of-the-art solar observatory in a close orbit around a star without some kind of shield system that could manage to reflect the magnitude of a solar flare? Especially when the likelihood of encountering such a situation would be extremely high in the long term! Common sense, it seems, isn’t that common! Almost everyone on board is educated and yet no one stopped to think realistically.’

Astrid stared back at Alan, seemingly lost for words. The anger in her eyes seemed powerful enough to boil the liquid off her corneas. She eventually sighed and stood up.

‘Well, I better go tell the crew that they can stop wishing for a miracle,’ she said, adjusting her hair and straightening her uniform. ‘But just so you know, you will be punished.’

‘I guess I deserve that,’ Alan said with a grimace. ‘What can I expect?’

Astrid walked over to the doors of the dining hall. They hissed open, waiting for Astrid to walk through. She pondered briefly before turning back and replying.

‘My quarters. One hour after the night cycle begins. Got it?’

‘Yes, Captain.’

Astrid allowed a small smirk to flash across her face. ‘Don’t be late.’

The hydraulic doors shut silently as Alan watched the back of the Captain disappear towards the bridge. He sighed.

‘Maybe I would have been better off cooked like a lobster,’ he said to himself.

Alan looked towards the drinks dispenser.

‘Time for a coffee.’