Cuetzpalin Duel

In this story, Paynal is the identity which the protagonist (a 14 year old human named William Mattoni) develops after being gifted with the power of transforming himself into a super powerful "Cuetzpalin" - result from his symbiosis with a parasite-like Tonalcoatl (an organism which is both the initial and final stage of a Cuetzpalin's lifespan) who claim to have been Moctezuma Xocoyotzin, one of the last rulers of Tenochtitlán/Mexico. Moctezuma informs William about secrets from the past which have been buried sice the oppressive times of the spanish colonization, including the existence of Cuetzpalin and other inhuman civilized peoples living alongside humans. The Cuetzpalin were once powerful reptiles, sometimes regarded as gods by humans because of their appearance, lifespan and abilities, what has contributed to the development of a privileged class of Cuetzpalin in ancient Mexican civilizations. Amazed with such secrets, William has tried to approach a tribe of descendants from the ancient Mexica who unlike most still kept some memory on the Cuetzpalin - regarded as a myth by the few scholars who knew about it - and after approaching them, the threatened remnants of the Tepeca tribe (constantly assaulted by the evils of an expanding modern, industrial capitalist society), he was regarded by the local chiefs as Paynal, a prophesized messenger of Huitzopoca, the war god and patron of Mexico. With that title, William/Paynal and Moctezuma tried to take some advantage of the situation and perform several actions against the establishment, putting them at odds with authorities from the UN, both legal and criminal.

An enthusiast of mesoamerican cultures' study since childhood, William's interest on the matter has helped him a lot, however some of the things he and other specialists knew conflicted with Moctezuma's otherworldy claims, initially leading him to believe Moctezuma wasn't the one he claimed to be. It turns out, however, Moctezuma was right about most things, including the existence of some of the gods, including Huitzopoca, who despite a possible ally, would ultimately become William's enemy after William set free Cipactli, the tormented beast cursed to hold the firmament of the plan of Aztlán (a world outside William's own, unknown to most people, and the origin of all Cuetzpalin). William's true motivations are the liberation of all animals, the end of animal exploitation (yep, he's a vegan, and Moctezuma doesn't get this very right), modern, industrial and mass society, and the return to more traditional semi-nomad lifestyles, what has earned him sometimes the label of "primitivist". With Moctezuma as his power source, young William has to live and telepathically communicate with the late Aztec Emperor, and sometimes their opinions diverge: it's like a modern anarchist having to talk with an ancient king.