Dr. Wallo: Designation 8 is now on Audible.

Get it now free with a 30-day trail, buy it with your membership credits, or purchase it alone at list price. Click the link and hear a sample now!

Top Men Excerpt "Something like that."

Here is an excerpt from Dr. Wallo: Top Men. To get both Dr. Wallo short stories, New Recruits and Top Men, buy them here or order the print version of Dr Wallo: Designation 8.

 The next room was more of a hallway that rounded a spire of rock. It flowed right with one large archway to another room on their right. It then rounded back to the left side of the spire and led to the main room, which held the tomb. The sarcophagus was large. On the wall behind it was another image of the armored hero kneeling in front of some symbol Austin didn’t understand. “I guess the most important part is the orbital sensors. You’re still getting a read on them, yeah?” Austin asked without turning to Darren.

 “Yeah, it’s a slightly weakened signal but it will let me know the second anyone enters the atmosphere,” Darren answered with an awe in his voice. “Beautiful isn’t it?”

 Austin looked back at him now. Darren was looking at the artwork on the wall in front of them. Austin turned to the image himself. It was beautiful, but he knew Darren meant the entire place. And he agreed. The way the light twisted into the tomb was just enough to cast a soft glow on everything. The decorations had an air of stateliness, while the design of the floor tiles displayed ample style. It almost removed the regret and remorse Austin would normally feel at any grave.

 “You guys really come through the front door?” a voice asked from just behind them.

 Austin spun around and saw a man he recognized. He sighed and his shoulders fell relaxed. How had they missed him? Austin was certain the man’s name was Neal. He was in the same organization, a doctor as well, he thought, maybe a fixer.

 “Easy to do when you have a great designer,” Austin quipped.

 “And you brought your designer on a watch block mission,” Neal said shaking his head.

 “Watch block?” Austin smiled back at Neal, only beginning to suspect the man was criticizing him.

 “I get not reading the whole file, but do you have any idea about what we’re doing here?”

 Austin laughed. “We?” He looked back to Darren. His designer only offered a shrug.

 “He shouldn’t even know about this place.” Neal’s tone made clear this was no joke.

 “I’m sorry, you want to tell me who you are again?” Austin shook off his uncertainty. He moved closer to the tomb and leaned his hip on it.

 Neal smiled and looked at the floor. He uncrossed his arms and his hands drifted to his waist, his thumbs resting in his belt. “For this mission, I say you call me captain or maybe boss, but otherwise, go with Neal.”

 “Ah, I thought that was you.” Austin kept his lean and demeanor relaxed, but it took effort.

 “Your buddy here needs to be off world, fast.”

  Austin stood as he let out his cackle. He was relieved to shift his position.

 “You’ll catch a ride with me,” Neal said plainly.

 Austin studied Neal’s face. He swung back to Darren. His expression suggested he agreed with Neal.

 “All right, Darren, I’ll catch up with you after we finish here,” Austin said, nodding. His eyes fixed on Neal’s again. He had either broken protocol or just made a new enemy.

 Darren began walking towards the large door they had entered. He stopped and turned back.

 “It’s fine now. You’ve already come through there once,” Neal said through a huff and a wave at the door.

 Darren put up a finger as if he had just realized it too. He then used his device to key up the command for the door to open.

 Austin scanned the large mural on the wall behind the casket as he tried to think of how to handle Neal.

 Neal stood next Austin as they waited for the doors to shut behind Darren. “It’s a little surreal to be standing here, huh?” Neal said, as he stared at the tapestry.

 “Yeah, it’s crazy,” Austin said.

 “Everything I’ve studied puts the pronunciation as Thucscionus.” Neal’s tone was somber.

 Austin nodded. He guessed that was the name of the man buried here.

 “Stupid sounding name,” Neal continued, “but there has been no greater story of a man fighting for the protection of a people.”

 “Right, and I guess somebody thinks his remains are worth something,” Austin said with a shrug.

 Neal sighed. “You don’t know the story do you?”

“Well, I have to assume … ”

 “Look at that casket. Look at that picture. He is buried in the armor.”

 “Yeah, the armor. Of course.” Austin smiled and shook his head. He looked back at the casket. It was enormous. “Somebody would need a forklift.”

 “Yeah,” Neal laughed. “The legend goes that another will one day be righteous enough to wear the armor.” Neal turned to Austin. “Bla, bla, bla,” he said, rolling his eyes.

 “Oh, like it’s magical.”

 “Yeah, he defeated a thousand soldiers on his own. So there is something special about it.”

 “Ha, well according to legend,” Austin said turning back to the wall.

 “Uh, no, that was well documented. It was only a couple hundred years ago.” Neal leaned back on the casket. “He then took on the main force of that army, which was bigger than that.” Neal pointed back at the fourth banner. “And defeated them, freeing several other worlds from their oppression at the same time. One of those planets swore to protect Thucscionus’ planet at the time of his death. The Anazius race is believed to have built this tomb.”

 “Wow, I had no idea. Sounds like a good file to read,” Austin said looking skeptically at Neal.

 “Oh no, none of that is in the file. I’ve just studied him. If this armor got into the wrong hands … ” Neal shook his head.

 “Bad news,” Austin added.

 “Yeah,” Neal agreed as he turned to Austin. “Look, just stick with me on this mission. Maybe you can learn a few things.”

 “Sounds good. And thanks.” Austin was sure Neal was a fixer. You didn’t really keep tabs on other agents in Designation Eight, but generally it was easy to know when you met another one.

 “No problem. Do me a favor. Sit on that for a minute.” Neal pointed towards the sarcophagus. “I want to look around.”

 “Ha, sure. Like it may just disappear otherwise,” Austin said as he hopped up onto the stone sarcophagus. As he made it up, Neal shot him a look that suggested it could.

 Neal then began to search the room. He went to corners and looked them up and down. He stood at the doorway to the room they were in and tested the direction of the draft with his thumb after licking it. He placed his ear on to random spots on the wall and then the floor. As he concluded his research of the place, he shook his head as if he had discovered some very bad news.

 “You alright?” Austin asked him.

 “Yeah.” Neal looked back at him. “I should fill you in on our suspect too.”

 “Great,” Austin said as he began to slide off the tomb.

Neal pointed at the tomb.

 “Okay, okay” Austin put his hands up and slid back in place.

 “Rylken,” Neal said.

 Austin tilted his head at the word.

 “Rylken is an evil undead necromancer who has existed hundreds of years longer than anything should. His soul is likely just as augmented as his body.” Neal looked around the room, ending his gaze up into the crystal work embedded in the ceiling. It gave light in a soft glow, making the crystal itself easy to look at without being blinding. “His only purpose has been collecting an army of unique and powerful soldiers and machines. He enslaves them, or bribes them, but controls them regardless.” Neal stepped closer to the casket again. “We’ve been watching him since he started, always wondering if he was only driven to collect the strongest force in existence or if he had intentions of using it.”

 “He plans to wear the armor?”

 “Something like that,” Neal said. “Tough to guess what crazy is gonna do next. But we know he has made an effort to find this place and that’s enough for us to send you.”

 “How is he going to use the armor if it will only work on someone like Thucscionus?” Austin asked, looking at the mural again. He could sense Neal’s look of disapproval. 

 “Right, that’s just legend.” Austin stood up on the casket. “This feels kind of stupid just waiting for him to get here.”

 “Oh, he is already here,” Neal said. He then took slow somber steps towards the stairwell. “Wait here,” Neal said, turning back to Austin. “And whatever you do, don’t get off that casket.”

 “He’s here?” Austin asked. He got it out just before Neal headed down the stairwell. He turned back to the mural and sat. What Neal had told him was amazing. Austin understood now that the banner displaying the man in front of an army was not an image of him addressing his own troops, but an image of him standing in front of the force he had defeated. 

 He took a pulse drain node from his pocket and twirled it gently in his hand. The device would wreck any electronic parts of this Rylken character. Darren was good at what he did and Austin knew he was lucky to have him. His missions, and even his life had been saved from certain doom by some device Darren had created.

 Austin put the small metal cylindrical device away as he recalled what Neal had said about him being here. Austin had never heard of a mission type that a designer was not allowed on. From what Neal said, it would only be an issue if he didn’t trust Darren. But what kind of doctor doesn’t trust his designer?

 Austin leaned back, propping his hands behind him and stretching his legs out. After a moment of silence, he began to shake his head. “Holy shit, I’m an idiot.” He stood up and looked around the room. “Pretty funny guys. You got me.” Austin hopped down from the casket. “Prank the new guy. I get it.” Austin headed towards the front door but stopped and looked back at the mural. “You in on this, too?”

 In what seemed like a response, Austin heard a chattering coming from the ceiling. It sounded like several nails tapping on the stone wall. Blurry creatures began pouring out of the crystals. They moved in the few shadows of what was otherwise a well-lit area. He ran back and hopped onto the tomb. Austin reached into a pocket, retrieved his goggles, and slid them on as he looked up. The creatures came into focus as metal spiders with legs pulled in tight as they scurried down the walls. They gave off a sharp, electric-blue glow through the view of his goggles. Austin shivered slightly as he got a better view. They had a furry center and long, thin metallic legs. 

 “Not funny anymore, guys,” Austin said.

 The swarm spread out and surrounded him. Austin decided to let them get as close as possible before he switched on the pulse node. There were so many he doubted it would take them all out, but he had to start somewhere.

 As they got close, a few jumped at him. Instinctively he began kicking them away, but one of the creatures managed to latch on. Within seconds, several more were crawling over him. He felt no bites or stings of any kind, but he waited for them. He kept a tight grip on the pulse node. The spiders on his feet jerked him to the right and Austin landed hard on his right elbow but twisted quickly to his back and barely managed to hold on to the node. He waited for fangs or claws to pierce his skin, but the spiders were clearly trying to drag him away. He could suddenly imagine a fate worse than being poisoned.

New Recruits excerpt "What the hell it is you do?"

Here is an excerpt from Dr. Wallo: New Recruits. To get both Dr. Wallo short stories, New Recruits and Top Men, buy them here or order the print version of Dr Wallo: Designation 8.

 Floyd had followed Neal much farther into the café terminal of the spaceport. He began to realize how large the spaceport was as the view over walkway rails made him dizzy. Giant voids of space that must have been thirty-floor drop-offs came from nowhere. Even though Floyd could make out the transpernets that must have been set every three to four floors, he was still nauseated. Neal’s pace didn’t help much. He wasn’t rushing, yet his stride was tough to keep up with as he darted through the crowd in what felt like random directions.

 The ceiling offered an epic view of space, full of stars and enormous ships floating, zooming, and in some cases, careening by. Eventually Floyd found himself watching Neal and nothing else. He hoped this wouldn’t go on for long.

 “No, this is it,” Neal said as he raced towards another restaurant.

 Floyd had heard this several times already; however, this time Neal didn’t stop at the door. They made it all the way in and Floyd exhaled deeply. It was as if he had been holding his breath. Either Floyd’s relief came from the nice slow jazz music playing at just the right volume, or from the fact, he was no longer ready to vomit at the dizzying heights of the spaceport’s walkways. The joint was dim and windowless. Floyd moved to a nice, quiet, out of the way table and plopped down. His exhaustion felt new, but thinking back, he knew he earned it. He had gone from thinking he was going to be arrested to thinking he was kidnapped, back to thinking he would be arrested, to being led through a terrifying maze of high platforms. He watched Neal walk to the bar to order and wondered if he could trust him.

 Neal had placed an order but came to the table with only two drinks. “Ever had a flop burger?” he asked as he set a drink in front of Floyd.

 Floyd knew he wouldn’t be able to eat, but would certainly try the drink. “Can’t say as I have. Do I want to know what it’s made of?” He took a sip of the drink.

 “Flops, I guess. Never asked. They’re damn good though.” Neal sipped his drink and looked around the restaurant.

 “Great. Want to tell me what the hell it is you do?” Floyd set his drink down and set his bag in the chair beside him.

 “Huh?” Neal turned to Floyd. “Oh yeah, I’m a fixer.” He took a bigger swig from his drink.

 “Right, like a fixer of spaceships or lifters or what?” Floyd asked, simultaneously realizing his drink was much stronger than he thought. He reached for it again.

 “Ha, no. I wish. I fix planets, governments, people and stuff.”

 “You mean like a doctor?”

 “Well, that’s the position before fixer, but I technically skipped it and went straight to fixer after my first mission.” Neal’s face contorted with frustration, as if he had been insulted. “I’ve been one for a while now.” He looked at Floyd contemptuously. “It is not as close to your line of work as the name may suggest.”

 “Wait, so are you going to take me to an interview or are you the guy who does the hiring?” Floyd looked at his glass and he was certain it now contained more than it had before his last sip.

 A big smile came across Neal’s face. “You came all the way here and you have no idea what we do, do you?”

 Floyd huffed out a laugh. “No.” A shameful stupidity fell over him as his eye went to his drink, his hands went to his lap and his shoulders sank.

 Neal sat down across from him, placing his drink at the center of the table. “Well, my friend, what we do isn’t for the faint of heart.” He leaned back and slowly reached forward with his right hand, spinning his glass. “On occasion things go wrong, on a global level and in ways that can have galactic consequences.” He leaned forward, putting his elbows on the table. “That’s where we come in. With subtlety, resolve, a bit of optimism and whatever else,” he waved at Floyd, “you can come up with, we fix it.” He grabbed his drink and pulled it closer. “We stop those from taking too much before the rest feel deprived. We restructure the plans of those who would rule worlds at just the moment before corruption reaches their heart. We inspire those to stand up who may lead thousands to build a better future. In short, we save the day all over the universe.” Neal leaned back with his drink and took a strong swallow.

 Floyd was watching him with his mouth hung slightly open. “Wait,” his eye narrowed at Neal “you’re serious?”

“Hmm,” Neal shook his head.” I thought that was good.” He stood up and finished his drink. “You want another? Our food will take a minute.”

 “Wait, what do you mean ‘we’?” Floyd looked at Neal again.

 “I’m getting another. Do you want one?” Neal shrugged.

 “No, you said, ‘in short WE save the day all over the universe.’ ” Floyd pointed at him.

 “Oh, yeah, me and you. Kind of like Dash and Metzle, the Lone Ranger and Tonto, Buck Rogers and that little robot thing.”

 “So, who is Dash?”

 “Come on, you don’t even know where we are. Of course, I’m Dash. But Metzle was always cool.”

 Neal said pointing at Floyd.

 Floyd took the last gulp from his drink and set it down. “Okay, yeah, I’m in.”

 “Great, I’ll get you another just like that one.” Neal said turning back to the bar.

 “I mean I’ll take the job.” Floyd called out to him.

 Neal slowly turned back to him. He grinned widely, then shook his head and chuckled, walking back over to the table. “You haven’t been offered the job yet.” Neal said softly. His hands reached out and gripped the sides of the table as he bent towards Floyd. “You still have to prove you can do it.”

 Floyd huffed and leaned back and away from Neal. “No problem,” he said without any idea of what it would mean to prove himself.

 “Really? Well, I tell you what. The first thing you can do to prove your ability: Get me a ship.” Neal stood up straight again as he finished. “Steal one. I’m not saying buy or borrow one, that’s easy. I want one taken without consent. And I tell you what else. The more you can prove to me afterwards that you took a design you knew little about, the better. Cause you’re going to fly it too.” His hands went into his pockets and he rocked gently on his toes.

 Floyd’s face twisted with confusion, but as soon as Neal finished speaking, he said, “Fine.” He reached for his bag, wondering to himself what might be in there that would help him steal a spaceship.

 “I’ll give you three hours,” Neal said, placing his hand on the back of his chair.

 “Fine,” Floyd said again as he peered into his bag.

 Neal shrugged. “Cool.” He headed back to the bar.

 Floyd’s computer was in the spaceport’s security system before the bartender took Neal’s order for their second drinks. He had access to every dock on it, including control over departure and arrival allowances before the drinks were placed on the bar in front of Neal. Floyd was scanning a list of vessels for a prospective target as Neal set Floyd’s new drink in front of him.

 “The drinks and meal are on me if you can get us a ship,” Neal said through a smile as he stood across from Floyd, looking around the restaurant.

 If Floyd knew even half of the ship designs on the list, he would be laughing a loud, knowing he was almost finished. Instead, he cross-referenced the list with a search engine he found more commonly used on the spaceport’s browsers. They would have access to the relevant information. It took him a few moments to understand their interface, too. “I’ll have our ride narrowed down before your burger flips its last flop.” As he finished he looked curiously at his drink. Why was he saying so many things he didn’t quite understand?

 “Good. As soon as I finish my burger, I’m going to find our mark. About an hour after that, we will need to get out of here fast.” Neal sat down and took a healthy swig of his fresh drink.

 “Do I get the details of this mission? Or am I not at that level of trust yet?” Floyd asked, surprising himself with what he thought was a good question.

 Neal leaned in closer to Floyd. “If you don’t get us a ship and a way out of here, it won’t make much difference.” He smiled with a hint of regret in his face.

 Perhaps Neal doubted Floyd’s ability. More likely, Neal was worried about their mark. Could their mission simply be to kill somebody? That didn’t seem very noble for his new career, but the thought of killing someone he didn’t know wasn’t horrible enough to deter Floyd. He wasn’t certain that’s what Neal would do, anyway. It was the thought that Neal would do the killing that made it seem less immoral to him. He eyed his drink suspiciously again. Floyd then looked back at Neal. Somehow, Floyd was finding it easy to trust him. Yet, even with the slight buzz from the strong drink, he could tell that was going to get him into a lot of trouble.

 Their food arrived on a platter and smelled wonderful. With his first bite, Floyd could tell that a flop must be some kind of vegetable, maybe the thick, meaty leaf of a plant. The chef had cooked it to perfection and stuffed it into some sort of toasted roll. Halfway through it, Floyd wanted a second one. Two-thirds through, he knew the one would be satisfying enough.

 Within moments of finishing his meal, Neal was up. “Alright, I’m off. Find us a ship,” he said,
pointing at Floyd.

 “Wait, what?” Floyd looked up from his screen. “Are you coming back here?”

 “No, no, I’ll find you. Don’t worry. I got your info. I’ll shoot you a message or something,” Neal said, heading off.

 Floyd began to get up and then sat back down. Just as his focus returned to his computer, he wondered if Neal had paid their tab. He slowly looked at the bar to see the bartender looking at him. He smiled and then quickly looked down at his computer.

 He never gave Neal his solecomm code.

Join Designation 8 today!

Enjoyed New Recruits and Top Men? Check out the first Dr. Wallo novel.

Dr. Wallo: Designation 8 in print!

You can now get a print copy of Dr. Wallo: Designation 8!

Last day to Pre-order! And SFWA!

It's less than 24 hours from the release of Dr. Wallo: Designation 8! So, if you haven't ordered it the time is running out for the $2.99 price!
I have also been very lucky to help out at the SFWA (Science Fiction Writer's Association) table at Dragon*Con and met a lot of great, friendly, and helpful fellow authors. I'd like to say thanks to Terra LeMay for running the table and for giving me the opportunity to lend a hand. Check out her work. Also pictured: J.L. Doty, Micheal J. Martinez, and Rachel Graves.

Beginings

So the Westin lobby is where I starting writing Dr. Wallo: Designation 8. So I though I would come by during Dragon*con and celebrate. This would be the place I met Busker and his crew. I'm still not sure if it's near Overton.