John speed-shuffled until he was wheezing heavily.

He had been running at a breakneck pace for at least forty minutes.

Surely, I would have lost them by now.

With a wince of pain, John sat down. He felt that If he didn't catch his breath, his heart would beat so hard that his ribcage would shatter.

"YIP!"

John's eyes turned in the sound.

Standing only a meter away from John were three small reptiles.

You got to be kidding me.

"Haaaaaa."

John let out a resigned sigh.

He pulled himself back to his feet with another wince of pain. And he began to speed shuffle away from the small dragons as quickly as possible.

Spikes of agony shot through his feet with every step he took.

He speed-shuffled for another forty minutes until fatigue overcame him.

He winced in pain as he sat down again.

"YIP!"

John turned to look at the dragons.

Oh god, please no.

It was like a time loop.

He would stand up. Speed-shuffle away from the dragons. Then fall on his ass again. And see that the dragons were looking at him.

Of course, after seeing that, he could do only one thing.

Stand up again!

Over and over, this repeated itself.

I….. I can't stop.

John's breath was heaving as he moved at an ordinary walking pace. His vision was swimming with black spots, and his lungs burned.

"HAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

From John came a titanic wheeze.

Then he collapsed.

Everything went dark.

His mind just couldn't take it anymore.

The constant pain was too much.

This is how I die? After the fight?

Pretty soon, John couldn't think at all.

.....

John sat in a fluffy leather-bound armchair that was specially made to be large enough to fit his fat.

He was in what would look like a library if it weren't for the empty bookshelves. In front of John was a black spruce coffee table on which he rested his feet.

He held a black coverless book in his hand. Written on the top half of this book in golden letters was this.

[The life of John]

"Funny how things end," John said to himself.

At his death, John could only feel a mute sense of acceptance.

John had spent his whole life being told death was just around the corner.

So, the fact that he had finally turned into it was kind of predictable.

"Pillars unbuilt. A life unlived. Is it death when you've never even lived in the first place?"

John could find no answer to that question.

John motioned to place the book on the coffee table across from him.

To put the book of his life down would be to accept death.

"It was a life. At least I can sa——-"

Roaring through the empty library was green light. It was light so intense that all matter was stripped away from the force of it.

Even John himself vanished.

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

....

A clear blue sky. One devoid of clouds or dreams. It was a sky that John did not often see. But right now, it immersed his view.

"I'm not dead."

"Yip!"

John's head turned in the direction of the sound. Right next to him was a green dragon. It was shining a light green light upon John's body.

There was healthy pink skin rather than fleshy welts where the green light touched him.

"Why? Why are you healing me?"

Whether or not John was stupid was up for debate. But even with that large patch of memory that he couldn't remember, he still knew that he had killed the dragon.

And he knew that these reptiles were the dragon's children.

"WHY ARE YOU HEALING ME!?!?!?!"

Kindness to someone who had wronged you.

John found the very notion insufferable and incomprehensible.

What motivation could you have to help someone who would never help you?

"ROOOOOOOOAR!"

The other two dragons roared in response to John's scream.

~NO! I won't stomach this!~

John tried to stand up. But his legs wouldn't move.

The dragon jumped onto John's chest which it had just healed.

It turned and moved its healing ray towards John's face.

John tensed his will in an attempt to make his arms slap the dragon off his chest.

But his arms didn't move.

"STOP HEALING ME! STOP!"

~If they help me. Then I'm evil.~

To have your victims save you. It was a nightmare greater than any other.

After healing his face, the small dragon moved to the arms.

It made sure not to heal the flesh near the shoulder so that John couldn't attack it with his arm.

After healing the arms, It moved onto the legs.

Again, it made sure not to heal the hips and knees so that John could not kick it.

As it did so, John screamed and bellowed at the dragon to stop what it was doing.

It wasn't right. The victims weren't supposed to help their villains.

The three dragons spent the rest of the day simply sitting and watching John with their big, beady eyes.

Finally, night came.

John let out a sigh of relief as the dragons, for some reason. Turned around and walked away.

His throat was sore from all the yelling he had been doing.

~They finally left me alone.~

Alone.

There was nothing….. Only silence.

The muted sound of trumpets filled John's mind.

A young girl's chuckles joined in.

They scraped at John's mind.

~No. Please stop.~

What he did.

It was an indictment like no other.

~No, please stop.~

"YIP!"

John's head tuned in the direction of the sound. Pressing its body against John was a small dragon. It had red skin, and its jaw made it look like it was curled into a perpetual smile.

On the other side of John was a small blue dragon. It also pressed against him.

Atop John was a green dragon.

"I'm….. I'm fine."

John fell asleep to the sound of their breathing.