Tuesday Teaser

It's time for Tuesday Teaser, and time for more Harvest Young. I think I'm going with Bound by Love for Hamza's book, mainly because the last book with be called Bound by War. You know... love and war theme? It seems like this book would fit the war title, but Laken's book is last and his mate really fits that whole idea.

**TRIGGER WARNING**

TRAUMA FROM A BOMBING/ GRAPHIC DESCRIPTION OF WOUNDED


rest of Chapter Two

Neo pulled his hands out of the young male’s chest, stepped back, and yanked off his gloves, dumping them on the floor. He didn’t even have time to find a fresh lab coat before the guard flipped open his communicator.

They transported into hell.

Ash, and what appeared to be shredded scraps of paper, rained down. Black smoke billowed skyward from the section of the palace that had been destroyed. It looked as if a giant hand had dug into it and scooped out part of the structure.

Twisted metal and broken concrete lay smoldering on top of nearby flyers, which were burning, adding to the smoke. The scent of burnt plastic, metals, and plasma rose into the sky. From where Neo stood, he could see into the twisted support beams of the upper floor. Mangled wires, blowing in the breeze, hung from ceilings.

The heat was stifling. Males sat on the ground, staring sightlessly. Some wept. Others screamed. Guards rushed about, calling out orders. Palace doctors sought to treat the survivors. The palace’s red alert blared, adding to the chaos.

“Good. Gods.” Neo honestly couldn’t understand what he was seeing. It just… didn’t compute. Taking a step, he stumbled over something. Grabbing the guard’s arm to steady himself, he glanced down. “Oh. Oh… fuck.”

A hand. A fucking hand had tripped him. There wasn’t a body attached to it, either. It was an ash covered, mutilated hand with what looked like red meat and a bone sticking out.

The guard next to him heaved.

In every direction he looked there was blood splatter, body parts, pieces of clothing… and the gods only knew what he was standing in. And ash. There was a lot of ash. It continued to fall from the sky, covering every damn surface. This… this couldn’t be happening. The palace was the most fortified structure on the whole damn planet, so why was part of it in shambles? What of all the people inside it? What about….

Neo spun toward the guard and grasped him by his shirt. “My family! My mate! You tell me right fucking now, dammit. Are they okay?”

“There’s been no word from the Planetary Defense building, remember, my prince? Transporters work, but communication is spotty. The last transmission said to get you here quickly and that it was urgent. That’s all I know.”

“Hey!” Another royal guard yelled, waving his arms. “Here. Over here. I’m to escort Prince Neo!”

A groan caught his attention, and Neo turned. Nearby someone lay. His instinct to aid the wounded kicked in, and he ran to them, dropping to his knees next to a badly broken and bleeding body.

The guard yanked Neo right back to his feet. “No! There isn’t time. We must go. I can’t stress how urgent that is.”

There wasn’t time to help someone? How could he leave the male there? Gods, he couldn’t even tell if he recognized the person since half of his face was melted off. It was just gone. And limbs were blown off. How was he even alive? As he watched, the male’s eyes opened, and he gasped. His mangled body arched off the floor… then fell back, collapsing.

Neo watched him die. “Gods. Gods damn it!”

It was that moment—surround by unimaginable horror—Neo wanted to cry. To yell. Instead, he had to keep moving, keep going onward toward the next horror. He glanced down, seeing the blood bright against the gray ash on his clothes. Then he took a deep breath, because he knew it didn’t matter. There was going to be more death. More pain. And whatever awaited him was bound to upset him more than this.

Neo tried to shut out the screams of pain as he was dragged along. “But….” Neo tried to stop but his guard tightened his grip on Neo’s arm. “Just a damn minute! I thought I was needed at the Royal Physician’s office.”

The male huffed as they came to a stop by the one waiting. “I said the Royal Physician needed you, not that we were going to the Royal Physician’s office, Prince Neo.”

“Parts of the palace aren’t safe. Medical and the Royal Physician’s office sustained extensive damage. They are… not functionable. The royal family and their friends have been moved to an underground bunker. The Royal Physician has set up a temporary site there for now. Szin and Dayo are there, along with your dad and dabba. I will escort you.”

Sustained massive damage? But Szin and Dayo were there, giving birth. How is this even happening? “Why didn’t we transport in?”

“We’ve managed to get that area shielded, just in case.”

They followed the Royal guard for several blocks. The Darkkit palace was a spiraling complex, thank the gods. Not all of it had sustained damage. They entered the back of the palace and passed through several security checkpoints as they descended farther underground. Fear lingered in the guards faces as Neo passed them.

An uncomfortable feeling settled in the pit of his stomach as they hurried onward. The royal guard led them to a room, which also had numerous males on duty. Grief and anger sat heavy on the air. He could practically taste it.

As they drew nearer, a pain-filled wail reached their ears. Neo broke into a run, his instinct going into overdrive. It’s bad. It’s really, really bad. Fuck. The guards lowered their head as he rushed into a rather drab room. He skidded to a halt, the incredibly bright lights hurting his eyes. Blinking frantically, he swiped at his face, which made matters worse. A hand holding a scrap of cloth appeared in front of him.

“Here, Prince Neo.”

Taking the cloth, he wiped his face. He folded it once he was done, but the soot on it surprised him. Was he covered in ash? Since there wasn’t anything he could do about it, he stuck the cloth in his lab coat pocket. The stench of burned flesh slapped him in the face. Dread washed through him. He knew that scent… he smelled it too often in the last unit hour.

On a medibed in the middle of the room sprawled King Duran, and Neo hurried to his side. His eyes were open, but they stared sightlessly at the ceiling. A cloudy film already covered them. A dried trail of blood marred the king’s mouth. His body was still, no movement at all. No wonder, since King Duran’s chest was torn apart, the ribs protecting his heart shattered. Even the heart muscle was a mangled mess. But the massive wound was cauterized, and only laser pistols would leave behind this kind of damage. There was nothing Neo could do.

He glanced around the room. Jolak knelt next to the bed, holding the king’s limp hand. Keyno was there. So was Neo’s dabba, Doc. Where was Dale, Chad, Gibor and his dad, John? Were they with Szin and Dayo? Were they all being kept somewhere else?

Neo blinked, trying to get his brain to function as that damn wailing raked across his nerves. That unholy sound came from Jolak, and Neo’s head ache from the high-pitched crying. His eyes stung, and his nose suddenly burned. He had seen death, especially in the last unit hour, but this? His heart refused to accept what his mind already knew. King Duran was dead.

He started toward Jolak, unsure what he could do, but the grief pouring out of Jolak demanded Neo do something.

Keyno stepped forward and placed his hand on Neo’s arm. He shook his head. “I know you want to comfort him but wait,” Keyno said softly. “This is how his people guide a loved one’s spirit to its home in the afterlife.” Keyno jerked his head toward Hamza instead. “You mate, on the other hand, is close to losing control.”

Concerned, Neo turned toward Hamza. Hamza stood on the other side on the medibed, staring down at his dabba with clenched fists. He faced Neo, his lips pulled back, exposing the tips of his fangs. Neo’s stomach dropped, even as relief flooded him. Hamza was okay. He was in one piece, at least physically. But mentally? The devastation and wild anger on Hamza’s face terrified Neo. He’d never seen such unadulterated hatred. Hamza looked back down at King Duran.

“Hamza?” Neo whispered. He hurried around the medibed to Hamza’s side. But once he was there, he didn’t know what to do. The vibe surrounding Neo screamed not to touch. His body was bulked up in a dominance display too. Behind Hamza, his tail whipped angrily.

Gently Neo rested his hand on Hamza’s back, and Hamza flinched. A menacing hiss escaped Hamza, but Neo didn’t move away. Hamza would never hurt him. He knew that, but Keyno was right. Hamza was on the edge of losing control.

He wasn’t sure Hamza even knew where he was or who was with him right then.