About Resistor by C.E. Clayton

Title: Resistor
Author: C.E. Clayton
Series: An Eerden Novel
Genre: New Adult, Cyberpunk

Ellinor Rask has wanted one thing for the past eight years: vengeance. But when Ellinor is captured, she finds herself dragged back into the world she walked away from, entangled once more with friends she would rather forget.

As if that weren’t humiliating enough, Ellinor learns first hand that her magic can be stripped away by a piece of bio-tech—and her ex-boss is happy to leash her with the technology in order to get what he wants. If Ellinor behaves, the device will be removed. All she has to do is deliver a package. One containing a creature created from raw magical energy and discarded technology. Simple, right?

But when her goals start getting people murdered, Ellinor has to decide if the year’s planning, her honor, and even her own magic, are worth the lives it’s costing. Dodging ruthless gangsters, she finds herself on the run with a creature of immeasurable magical abilities alongside her one-time friends. Now, Ellinor must relearn to trust the people she once abandoned. She must put her faith in technology, and her life in the hands of independent contractors, all while racing to deliver the package before it gets taken by force, or worse, the creature decides to make an appearance itself.

Excerpt from Resistor by C.E. Clayton

© 2020
C.E. Clayton

She gasped; her heart tripped over itself at seeing her belongings. It was like seeing a beloved friend after an extended absence. Rushing to Kai’s side, Ellinor’s fingers danced over her combat armor, reverently fluttering over the familiar worn edges; she pulled it close to her face and inhaled.

The armor Misho had gifted her hadn’t been lost.

She closed her eyes and saw Misho smiling back at her, his bright amber eyes flashing in delight as he watched her put the armor on. She could feel his long, graceful fingers trailing her curves as he appreciated how the fine craftsmanship hugged her body. She saw him lean down to kiss her, his full lips just a breath away—

Kai gruffly cleared his throat, and Ellinor’s eyes snapped open.

“You need a minute alone with it, Ell? Bit of privacy maybe?” Kai said, wiggling his bushy red eyebrows at her.

Ellinor frowned and cradled the gear to her chest. “Don’t be absurd. And what did I say about calling me Ell?”

“You said not to.”

“Damn right! Traitors who collar me with despicable and inhumane technology aren’t allowed to call me Ell. We’re not friends, Kai. Not anymore.”

Her heart twisted further. She didn’t want to push Kai away, not really, not again. But how was she supposed to forgive him?

“Ah, c’mon, it ain’t that bad! How can it be? It’s just a blasted piece of magic bio-tech. Just means you can’t cast is all. You don’t need abilities to kick ass. Besides, I done told you it ain’t personal. Don’t mean we can’t be friends, or friendly with each other, anyways. We were thick, you and me, not that long ago. Nothing’s gotta change unless you want it to.”

But everything had changed. Nothing felt or even tasted the same anymore, thanks to Cosmin. And Kai helped him.

Ellinor growled, “Don’t talk about things you know nothing about!”

Cosmin’s profession was in smuggling and selling illegal magitech and weapons. They harnessed natural magic and, when combined in a bullet or shackle like Ellinor’s, had devastating effects. Such items were highly regulated by the politicians and police, making them a hot commodity in the ground level markets. Cosmin was well versed in the effect his device had on Ellinor, it was his specialty.

She jabbed her finger in Kai’s chest, the bouncer bots buzzing a warning at his side. “You have no idea what this is like. What this feels like. What this does to a caster. This isn’t like those shit cuffs you had me in. I could still feel my magic. I could still summon it. This? It would be like me taking your hands away. There would just be a dead, empty space where your hands used to be. There wouldn’t even be phantom pains reminding you that your hands were once a part of you. Only a gap of where something vital to you once was.”

She took a step back, stuffing her hands under her arms, clutching her armor tight to her chest, as the automatons continued to buzz. “I can understand why you wouldn’t recognize the hole you’ve left me to fester in without my abilities, but Cosmin sure as shit does. He knows exactly the kind of hollow emptiness that comes with neutering a caster. Of how it makes you feel like you aren’t even a person anymore. So don’t you dare pretend that it’s just business because you’re hoping Cosmin will let you into his bed one day. It’s never happening, Kai!

“Once this job is done, I never want to see you again.” She shuddered reflexively. “If I do, abilities or not, my face will be the last thing you ever see. You got that?”

His shoulders drooped, and he took a step back. Kai was not magically inclined. He had no idea what it felt like to be cut off from a piece of himself so completely he couldn’t even feel a whisper of it anywhere.

Kai wouldn’t meet her eyes. His chin sagged to his chest, and he jerked his thumb back toward the door. “You just come out when you’re ready. Be quick, though. Cosmin’s expecting us to shove off soon.”

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C.E. Clayton

C. E. Clayton was born and raised in the greater Los Angeles area. After going the traditional career route and becoming restless, she went back to her first love–writing–and hasn’t stopped. She is the author of young adult fantasy series, “The Monster of Selkirk”, the creator of the cyberpunk Eerden Novels, and her horror short stories have appeared in anthologies across the country. When she’s not writing you can find her treating her fur-babies like humans, constantly drinking tea, and trying to convince her husband to go to more concerts. And reading. She does read quite a bit. More about C.E. Clayton, including her blog, book reviews, social media presence, and newsletter, can be found on her website: https://www.ceclayton.com/

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