Earth Cell by Charles Brass Excerpt

Title: Earth Cell: The Ux-Blood Trillogy (Book One)

Author: Charles Brass

Genre: Science Fiction

For centuries, the League of Cells and the Witches Guild have worked together to maintain order and stability across the overweb’s countless worlds.

Walking the pash of a warden for the League of Cells requires dedication, sacrifice, and devotion, as young Maels Raptori, the last of his kind, has learned. But he’s embraced these hardships, for serving as a warden represents the highest honor one might achieve in his lifetime. For six years under the tutelage of his adopted father and the wardens of Earth Cell, he has prepared to fulfill this dream.

When a powerful intruder nearly seizes control of Earth Cell, Maels is tested beyond anything he has experienced. He finds the strength to defeat the invader, but his trials have only begun. Chaos is spreading across the overweb, engulfing all who stand in its way. The conflict soon breaches Earth Cell. Alone on a world of violence, at the mercy of ruthless captors, Maels discovers his years of dedication and devotion may not be enough. To save Earth, he may be called upon to male the ultimate sacrifice...

Author Bio

Charles Brass works as a CT/MRI technologist in a new stand-alone 24-hour emergency clinic in a small town south of where he lives, some thirty miles west of Minnesota’s Twin Cities. During his six years of active duty service in the United States Navy, he served five months in Bahrain during the first Gulf War. Now, with a BS in Animation under his belt, he has visions of a successful patient education video business filling his days while CT and MRI scans on sick and injured people visiting the local Emergency Center fills his nights.

For more information, visit his blog at http://seabrassproductions.com or his Author Information page at http://clear­viewpressinc.com. Additionally, he can be reached via email at seabrass@seabrassproductions.com.

Charles plans to devote time to a few shorter works that have been brewing in his brain juices for some time, then resume writing novels. He expects to publish his next novel by the end of 2015.

Links

This book is available in softcover and Kindle formats at amazon.com.

Softcover:

http://www.amazon.com/Earth-Cell-UX-Blood-Trilogy-Book/dp/1935795856/ref=tmm_pap_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1379701789&sr=1-1

Kindle:

http://www.amazon.com/Earth-Cell-Ux-Blood-Trilogy-Book-ebook/dp/B0060PZHG6/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&sr=1-1&qid=1379701789

Excerpt 

We burst through the single wide door. Ehr Rhee rolled right while I ducked left, both weapons held low, Scange folded back against my forearm. Last thing I needed was to accidentally punch a blade into one of our cell-keepers.

The long, brightly tiled floor of the kitchen stretched before me. Gleaming hardwood hung above and below plain granite counters. The ovens stood on the far side to my left, the sinks and ice chests along Ehr Rhee’s side. A large chef’s island split the room, reaching a good two-thirds of the kitchen’s length. The Mobins, their mottled amphibian skin glistening beneath their pastel overalls, had indeed been cooking. Opened bags of flour, brown sugar, stai, and fruit lay strewn across the chef’s island and the floor, along with a number of utensils and mixer bowls. A large pot bubbled and steamed on the stove. Half-empty crates and boxes stood along the walls beside the pantry, which opened a third of the way down the wall on my side.

Geyayn, his two mates Silah and Yanyet, and their three children had taken refuge in the pantry. The adults held knives and large pan lids to defend themselves against the filth that had stolen into our Cell.

That filth took the shape of a large male draped in layers of leathery robes sparkling with gems and embroidered with threads that shimmered in the globe light. In his right hand he clenched a simple double-edged sword, blood smeared across the tip. A smooth, black metal cap decorated with glyphs and gems covered his large, oval head. Dark braids flowed from beneath the cap. A mask covered most of his face, leaving just his deep crimson eyes exposed. A mole dotted the corner of his right eye. He reeked of ux influences.

I noticed the mole only because two steps into the kitchen, I stepped on a small round shaker bowl and fell flat onto my back. I landed right at his feet, looking up into his face.

Had his blade been in the proper position, he could have taken my head clean off with a quick slash. But the Mobins had claimed his attention. Their yelling masked the sound of our entrance, and their continued cries kept the intruder distracted another vital second.

Clearly startled, he leapt away, twisted and stepped backward, ending a short distance from the stove. The tingle of ux influences in my puush organs diminished. Too slow, I slashed up. Scange caught some fabric but mostly cut air.

“Ah, the cell guard,” the intruder growled, a hint of amusement in his rumbling voice. “And there’s two of you! A delight to have you join us.”