Chapter 9: NebulaChaser
Ever since Nebula had seen Sponge and Mamba in that cave, his emotions seemed… distant. Like nothing really mattered, and nothing was actually real. It felt like he was on a completely different planet, and everyone else was galaxies away. NebulaChaser was eating lunch by himself in the deserted art classroom, where he would usually hide from all of the other dragons. He glanced up from the meat he had been picking apart when the door creaked open. "Tarragon?" He asked almost impulsively, but when there was no response, he tried another name. "Sponge…?" This seemed to have gathered the stranger's attention. "NebulaChaser? Oh, thank goodness! We've been looking everywhere for you. Come quick!" It took a few moments of Nebula staring at the shadowy figure before finally registering who it was. "Keanu? What's wrong?" Without another word, the SkyWing sprung out of he room, leaving NebulaChaser to scramble to his feet and chase after her.
Nebula sprinted down the hallways, his head reeling. He swerved around a group of IceWings, his heart pounding so hard that his ears thrummed with the sound. Finally catching up to Keanu, he realized where she was leading him. Her lean body seemed to navigate easily through the other dragons, like she was a shadow. "Why are we going to the nurse's office? Is everything okay?" Keanu paused in front of the entrance, looking up at him with an uncharacteristically serious expression. "NebulaChaser, when you go in there, promise me you won't freak out." Her yellow-brown scales glistened in the weak setting sunbeams. Nebula's stomach twisted as he nodded, and Keanu slowly stepped sideways. He ducked into a labyrinth, its twisting corridors stretching out in front of him. Tarragon leaped forward when he saw Nebula, grabbed him firmly by the wrist, and shoved him roughly into a curtained off small room. Tarragon pushed the curtain aside, slipping away. His heart almost stopped when he saw who was lying in the bed.
NebulaChaser stood rigidly over the bed, staring at Sponge with wide, ember eyes. Before he knew what was happening, Nebula knelt down sobbing. Tears flowed down his face as he reached shakily towards Sponge, and the SeaWing slowly opened one eye. His eyebrows lifted when he saw Nebula, and let out a cry of joy. He threw his arms around the massive NightWing, and Nebula wrapped himself around Sponge in return. His throat was too tight to speak, so he sat like that in silence for a while, hugging Sponge fiercely.
Sponge pulled away, the lanterns that were strung from the ceiling reflecting light off of his dusty green and gray scales. Light bounced off of his yellow eyes, seemingly illuminating the small room. The entire world seemed to hold its breath, every cricket and bird silenced, as Nebula leaned forward and pressed his mouth to Sponge's. Sponge arched his back and pressed harder against the NightWing, his tail twisting around the other dragon's. Nebula clenched his fist, a fierce wave of wanting washed over him as he kissed Sponge. It took every ounce of self-control he could muster to pull away, panting. "I can't believe you're okay. I-" Sponge smiled his charismatic, toothy smile, which shut Nebula up almost at once. "I'm not alright, though. I literally almost died. Like- three times. I can't even believe it." Nebula's eyes widened. Something seemed to darken on his brow as he slowly turned away. "Where is Mamba?" A blinding anger seemed to swathe every rational thought.
Sponge grabbed his wrist, yanking his attention back. "That's the thing- something isn't right. He's abnormally strong." Sponge took a deep breath, weaving his fingers between Nebula's. What the hell is he talking about? He thought stubbornly, regarding the SeaWing with skepticism. "I think… Mamba is an animus."
NebulaChaser's heart seemed to quicken until it was hammering in his chest, the small curtained off room spinning around the two dragons. The color drained from his angular face as he stared at Sponge in consternation. "You're kidding, right?" Sponge slowly shook his head, suddenly doubling over. Nebula inhaled sharply, grabbing his hand. "What's wrong?" With a stricken look, he realized that the stab wound on his shoulder had torn open from the sudden movement. Blood pulsed from the white cast, staining it a sickening deep red. Their eyes met with shared horror. "HELP!" Nebula bellowed, tearing the curtain to the side and sprinting down the hallway. The nurse was bent over a male IceWing with a crooked wing, tenderly wrapping it. "His stab wound reopened," The NightWing explained in a breathless, frantic voice. The nurse sprang to her webbed feet, hurriedly running back towards the sectioned off room. When Nebula tried to follow her, she extended one tan and light blue wing which halted him. "You need to wait out here." She murmured gently. He snarled, panic lapsing his judgment. "I have to help him!" The NightWing barked, his tail lashing wildly behind him. "I need to focus, which would be difficult with his panicking boyfriend looming over my shoulder." She reasoned, signaling to a crimson red and white RainWing that was hovering nearby to stand between him and the curtain as the nurse entered.
Nebula paced up and down the foyer, watching dragons enter in and out of the curtained room in varying stages of panic. As he waited, something finally registered within his mind. "Did she… just call me his boyfriend?" Nebula furrowed his brow, feeling butterflies flutter in his stomach as he fiddled with his blue stained talons. Gut-wrenching yelps and screams echoed throughout the seemed to still as the SeaWing stepped out of the small chamber. "His stitches have come undone, and he's losing a lot of blood. The wound is on a tendon that connects his neck to his shoulder muscle, which is why any sharp movements from his head would reopen it. Sponge is going to be put into a medically induced coma, he's in too much pain for us to operate on him. It's just so that his body has time to heal." She informed him delicately. Before he could respond, tears were flowing from his eyes. He hunched over, sobbing. The SeaWing wrapped her wing around his shoulders in a comforting embrace. "I just got him back… And now he's going to be gone again." He whispered in a strangled tone. "I'm sorry, NebulaChaser. I know you care a lot about him, but this is just the best option for the time being. He'll be back before you know it."
The NightWing slowly lifted his gaze, staring fuzzily at the nurse. "What's your name?" He whispered suddenly. "Barnacle." She answered. "Thank you for trying to help him, Barnacle." Nebula slowly stood, dragging himself out of the labyrinth. Only one dragon was on his mind right now other than Sponge. As he rounded the corner, Nebula saw Tarragon, Keanu, and Duckweed all waiting in an anxious silence outside of the healing rooms. Without a word, Nebula ran forward, closing the distance between him and Tarragon. He collapsed into the other dragon, hugging him tightly. Tarragon stroked the back of his neck in a comforting gesture, his rough claws brushing lightly over the NightWing's neck spines. NebulaChaser sobbed into Tarra's shoulder, all of the efforts to hide his emotional distress lost. "They're putting him in a coma." Whispered Nebula, tears streaming down his cheeks as he pulled the hybrid closer. Duckweed gasped, turning towards Keanu with a distraught look.
"I just got him back, and now he's being taken away again." The NightWing pulled away from Tarra, the hitch in his voice making the sentence seem frail and shaken. "I know. But he's alive, that's all that matters. You'll get to see him soon, and now you know he's safe." Tarragon wrapped his barbed tail around Nebula's. "It'll all be okay."
Chapter 10: Tarragon
The days after Sponge's return were rough. But as the days turned into weeks, Nebula and Tarragon seemed to drift closer and closer together.
Tarragon sat on the ledge he always sat at, staring up at the saturated horizon. The setting sky was marbled with brilliant hues of crimson to fiery oranges and yellows, like fire illuminating the skyline. He surveyed the autumn landscape, searching for a particular set of scales. With a huge grin, Nebula came crashing into the hybrid from behind, a laugh tumbling out of his throat as he pinned Tarragon to the rocky surface. Tarragon smiled up at the large NightWing, his gaze following every line of muscle etched into his broad chest. "How was your training session?" Tarra asked casually, slithering out from underneath Nebula to squish in beside him. "Eh, it was fine." The smile faded from his white-freckled face.
Tarragon inhaled sharply, reaching upward to cup his cheeks. "You've got a new scar." He observed, rubbing a talon gingerly over the freshly healed gash. As soon as Nebula had started these "training sessions", more and more scars began to populate his chest and neck. A particularly gnarly one ran from his shoulder up to his ear, which he didn't even care to tell Tarragon about until he finally noticed it. No matter how hard he pried, Nebula wouldn't say a word about these training se
But yet, there seemed to be a shield that Nebula had built up around that secret. Stubborn fucking NightWing. Tarragon chuffed in his mind, an inkling of affection making his heart do the ridiculous flutter whenever he thought about NebulaChaser. Tarragon twined his tail around the other dragon's. Everything is going to change tonight. Nebula has been pushing himself too hard. Between all of his stress about Sponge and his "training", he could use a bit of a break. He thought with satisfaction at the plan that had long been forming in his mind. "Hey, are you busy tonight?" Tarra rolled his shoulders easily, leaning his head to glance sideways at the larger dragon. "Nope, why?" The perfect response. Just what I was looking for. He thought, the corners of his mouth quirking into a smirk. ssions. Tarragon would bombard him with concerned questions, like how are those scars healing so fast? Where is he going? Who is he training with? Why is he even training in the first place?