Recently edited for minor corrections and revision.


On the belt, they have a saying:
Minerals are controlled by capitalists, flesh is controlled by entrepreneurs.

They say it’s because people preferred the competition of smaller businesses and therefore put corporations at a disadvantage to small businesses. However, it was actually a government regulation put in place in an attempt to distribute more evenly throughout the belt.

Either way, anyone with money for decent ship and a few licenses and tickets could start trading the flesh. Nearly nobody bought prostitutes nowadays, all the money was on indentured servants; anyone who had brought up a considerable debt, or wanted to make alternative payments, were now prostitutes of a different caliber. They were easier to track and pay due to barcodes assigned to a Government maintained database.

Dave had a ship for several people, and the licenses to carry them in industry-standard restraints: variable length soft-cord attached to a collar or handcuffs, although most trips didn’t require restraints. He was currently on his way to an iron mine to help them compensate for their recent expansion, as miners preferred sex in their off-hours over alcohol, which any company would try to incorporate for good reasons.

His ship had four rooms: a cockpit, crew quarters, storage room, and a service space below the floor. The cockpit is self explanatory. The crew quarters are simply two bunk beds and a table.