He walked with his head down, his wings slowly dragging behind him. Sponge had already skipped all of his classes today, and probably tomorrow as well. He knew he couldn't attend any classes with any of his friends in them. It would make Mamba mad, and that would put too many dragons he cared about in danger, Sponge realized with a shudder. A gaping, long scar ran down his entire tail, from when he'd try to run away from Mamba. A thin trail of blood still trickled along his scales, which was surprising, because Sponge was pretty sure that all of the blood that could possibly have been in his tail was now gone. His legs wobbled underneath him, and he could barely think of a straight sentence from blood loss. He collapsed in the entrance of Mamba's personal cave, which was a well-lit, hollowed out cave with a massive square mahogany table in the middle. Shelves lined the walls, with trophies and treasures and books neatly displayed.
Mamba swung his head around, hissing in indignation. "Don't pass out on my carpets, I just got those." The sandwing grunted, and roughly hauled Sponge onto the table. "Sorry. I'm really light-headed…" He mumbled, staring up at the little globes of light that were slung across the ceiling. "Drink some water, sweetheart." Mamba said in a voice dripping with honey, which Sponge knew couldn't be good. "Thanks, I hope that'll help. Nebula said-" Mamba whirled around, snarling and slapped Sponge across the face, making him almost fall off the table. "NEVER talk to me about what your ridiculous "friends" have to say. After EVERYTHING I do for you, THIS is what I get in return? Do NOT bring them up again, DO YOU UNDERSTAND?" He roared. Tears welled in his eyes, as they normally did whenever Mamba hit or kicked him. "Yes, I'm sorry." He answered in a small voice. "Wonderful. Why don't you clean yourself up? I've got a surprise for you." Mamba said with a clap of his hand, snapping back into his pretend, caring persona. "Oh, and make yourself look nice." He said in a slithery voice.
(Warning: This is where the story gets more mature. If your sensitive to assault, please skip to chapter 5, thank you.)
Sponge's heart hammered like a woodpecker in his chest as he shakily rolled off of the table towards the shallow pool of water that had collected in a corner of the cave. He glanced down at his reflection, and noticed for the first time how terrible he looked. Purple bags formed under his eyes, and his scales looked dull and unwashed. Slowly sliding into the pool, he let himself disassociate for a minute. Everything is going to be fine. Sponge thought as he dunked his head under the water. My winglet is going to find me, and everything can go back to normal.
Sponge hauled himself out of the pool, put on a brave face, and marched back up to Mamba. "You look lovely." He remarked in a low voice. "What's the surprise?" Sponge demanded, growing more confident by the second. He could totally beat this old bag of bones in a fight, all he had to do was yell loud enough for someone to hear. "I have a feeling you're not going to like it very much, my brave little sea cucumber." Mamba murmured in his ear, before slamming Sponge into the table with a shove. He shrieked, slamming his tail into his captor's cheek. Mamba grabbed onto one of his horns, forcing his head down until it banged into the ground. He tied something around Sponge's mouth, which made it almost impossible to speak. Kicking and screaming, or at least trying to scream, Sponge wreathed on the ground, his wings furiously lashing out as Mamba forcefully grabbed his arms. Something clicked around his wrists, and looking up, he realized he was locked to the wall with handcuffs. "HELP!" Sponge roared around the object that was stuffed in his mouth, fear dropping like a stone in his stomach. Mamba muscled Sponge to the floor. I'm going to die... Sponge thought miserably, tears falling down his face.
"NEBUA!" Cried Sponge mournfully. "SHUT THE FUCK UP." Mamba roared, slamming his claws across his shoulder. Pain seared through him, and blood slowly dripped down his arm. "NO! PLEASE!" He cried in a muffle sob, fiery white pain surging through him in a fresh wave. He kicked out with his hind legs, this time landing a painful blow across Mamba's face. "DON'T MAKE ME KILL YOU!" The SandWing hissed, clamping his jaws around Sponge's neck. A blinding, red hot agony made him shriek as he struggled against the SandWing.
I can't let him win. I can't let him do this to me. He's going to have to kill me before I stop struggling. Sponge thought fiercely, slamming his tail into the side of the other dragon's face again. The SandWing roared, punching him across the face repeatedly. NebulaChaser… Tarragon... moons help me. He thought fuzzily, rearing his back legs and slamming them into his chest. Mamba recoiled, coughing. He grabbed something that shone ominously in the sunlight, and Sponge recognized what it was immediately.
A wicked, sharp knife came hurtling at him, landing with a sickening slice into his upper chest, near one of his shoulders. Darkness pressed around his vision as he tried to look up, and right before the darkness overcame him, he saw Mamba with a wicked smile plastered across his face. No…Nebula, help- please, please, please…. He pleaded weakly in his head, and eventually succumbed to the pain.
Sponge woke splayed out across the stone floor, barely able to think, when with a glance upward, he realized the handcuffs were off. Sponge shakily moved his talons to his mouth, ripping the gag that muffled him off. Something glittering on the ground caught his eyes, and as he looked down, he noticed for the first time the hole in his chest. Ominous red blood soaked his body, leaving dark smears on the ground whenever he moved. How the hell am I even alive right now? Sponge thought in horror. He looked around the cave, relief washing over him as he realized Mamba must have gone out for a while. Determination hardened in his stomach, experimentally flexing some of his muscles. His left shoulder felt like it was on fire, and every time Sponge tried to move his upper body he had to bite on his cheek to keep from screaming.
Paralyzing agony shot through him as he tried to stand up, immediately falling into the table. Sponge groaned, stumbling forward again. He used the walls of the cave to move, hauling himself up whenever he fell or needed a break. Finally, after what seemed to be an eternity, he struggled out of the entrance, tugging off a hanging vine that got caught on his horns from the plant-shrouded doorway.
Darkness edged his vision as Sponge worked his way along the walls. I need to get help… His mind immediately went to Nebula. No, he's probably given up on searching for me by now. Sponge thought mournfully. He stumbled again, but this time he couldn't hold back the yell of agony as his chest wound reopened. He grabbed a feathery leaf from a hanging fern from the ceiling and shoved it onto the wound, hoping that would slow down some of the bleeding. "HELP!" He shouted as soon as he got to the main hall. Dragons everywhere turned to stare at him as he fell forward. To his horror, one of the dragons writing on the schedule chalkboard wiped his head around. Mamba stared at him with unblinking, fathomless black eyes. Sponge screamed, scrambling away from the SandWing. Multiple dragons crowded around in a ragged circle, their eyes wide with curiosity. "What's happening?" One of the voices asked. He immediately recognized the deep voice of Tarragon. The hybrid SandWing pushed his way to the front, shock pulsating from him. "Holy shit, Nebula is going to lose his MIND." Tarragon whispered. Mamba grabbed Sponge by the shoulders and held him up. "My, my. Those are some nasty cuts, why don't we get you…cleaned up?" Sponge froze, paralyzed in fear. I can't go back there… He thought desperately. "I want Tarragon to help me to the nurse's office." Sponge said in a shaky voice, pointing at him. Something seemed to click in his mind, because Tarragon grabbed him by the arm and dragged him out of the crowd. "Sponge, what the FUCK happened?" Sponge stumbled after him. "I'd rather talk about it when I find Nebula.