The Shirker

"Mainstream Sci-Fi masquerading as Space Opera and giving us all the advantages of both." - Reedsy Discovery
Abandoning another man's conflict is a choice. Abandoning your own conflict is not.
Recently discharged from the Aeronautical Expansion Defense and secretly suffering from PTSD, Vio Recarey arrives on the frontier world Obcasio II with nothing but the clothes on his back. All Vio wants is an opportunity to forge a life for himself in the wealthy city of New Luucrum, but with no money and no connections he instead quickly makes acquaintances in LowLuu, the vagabond city formed in the abandoned mining tunnels below New Luucrum.
When Vio saves the lives of an influential philanthropist and his stunning wife, Vio seizes the opportunity he's been looking for, much to the disapproval of his LowLuu friends. This new lifestyle attracts complications, ones which set Vio on a path that anchors him to the planet, thrusting him into situations where his actions, or inactions, could have long lasting and grave circumstances for everyone on Obcasio. Vio begins to realize he's traded one life of loneliness and violence for another, and no matter how hard he tries, he can't outrun his trauma.

Community leader. Particle physicist. International Assassin. Mark J. Schultis is none of these. He wrote his first story in elementary school and has spent a lifetime keeping that childhood passion of storytelling alive, studying theatre and filmmaking before eventually earning his writing degree from the University of Pittsburgh. A perpetual night owl and pizza connoisseur, Mark was born and raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania where he lives with his family.
You can follow Mark on Facebook, X (Twitter), and Bluesky or you can check out www.MarkJSchultis.com