Mike tore through the clouds, wings carving through the night sky. Each beat of his wings thundered like war drums, carrying him southward toward the promise of more battle and joy. The desert fell away beneath him, swallowed by dense jungle and the black shimmer of the Gulf. His scales burned with heat, his heart pacing his excitement for battle.
But the skies above southern Mexico did not wait for him. A shriek split the heavens, shrill, ancient, unnatural. The clouds churned, curling inward as something vast and serpentine erupted from the storm. Its body gleamed yellow, red, and green, scales flashing like gemstones in lightning's grip. White feathered wings spread wide, beating once, twice, scattering the clouds.
The air itself bent around the creature, a long snake-like dragon that coiled through the night with impossible grace.
Mike's breath caught for a heartbeat, his chest heaving as his eyes locked on the thing that dared to block his path.
Then the voice came.
"Kill it."
Bahamut's roar thundered inside his chest, a command that rattled his bones. The First Dragon's fury crackled through his scales, ancient hatred boiling like magma. "That feathered worm. That cowardly pretender. Quetzalcoatl. Tear his wings from the sky!"
Mike's lips peeled back into a snarl, flame leaking between his teeth. His tail lashed the air, the wind screaming as he surged forward.
Quetzalcoatl answered with a hiss, his coils unfurling in a spiral of color and feathers. Light blazed from his eyes, a storm of emerald fire that streaked across the sky.
The two dragons of scale and flame collided above the jungle, thunder cracking with the force of their clash. Mike's claws raked against feathered wings, sparks cascading across the night.
Quetzalcoatl echoed in a low hissing voice, his fury reverberating through the air: "You do not belong here, hatchling of the forgotten. This sky is mine."
Bahamut roared again, louder, drowning everything in absolute command. "Kill that foul feathered worm, Hatchling. Rip the snake apart. Let the false dragons know there is only one true dragon!"
Mike's fire flared, his wings beating harder, his body shuddering with the pull of both voices, the serpent before him and the Bahamut within. His talons found a weak point, tearing through Quetzalcoatl's flesh as blood rained in crimson arcs across the night sky.
The joy of battle with a strong opponent had begun long before South America. In the skies of Mexico, where a feathered serpent and a dragon tore the night apart.
A deafening roar filled the air as Mike slammed into Quetzalcoatl mid-flight, wings beating furiously as he kept clawing away at the serpent. Sparks of crimson fire and emerald wisps of flame spilled into the clouds. The serpent's body coiled, hundreds of feet of jewel-colored muscle and shimmering feathers wrapping through the night sky. White wings scattering the air into a hurricane. Mike's fire caught in the winds, pulled into spirals of molten flame that lit the jungle below.
Mike's chest heaved with exhilaration. Each strike, each slash, each taste of blood was ecstasy. His tail whipped forward, cracking across the serpent's flank, scales shattering in a spray of yellow and green.
The feathered dragon hissed in fury, his voice a storm across the sky: "Hatchling! This is my dominion! Your fire will burn no further!"
Bahamut roared within Mike, his voice iron and rage. "He lies. He has always been a coward, hiding behind humans and gods. Devour him, hatchling!"
Mike's lips peeled into a savage grin. His joy rose with every heartbeat. The serpent was strong, he felt the raw thrill of battle building.
Their struggle raged across the sky. Mike bit deep into Quetzalcoatl's neck, black and crimson flame spilling between his fangs. The serpent screamed, twisting and slamming his coils around Mike's torso, wings straining as he dragged the dragon toward the earth.
The jungle trembled as their bodies collided with a force that split trees and shattered stone. Mike ripped free with a roar that shook the jungle, wings beating furiously as he soared upward again, claws dripping with serpent blood. Swallowing the chunk of flesh he tore from Quetzalcoatl's body. The wounds on his body began healing.
A dark, guttural, and unhinged laughter tore from his throat. But the laughter died as the sky split with golden light.
Dozens of angels appeared in formation, spears glowing, wings burning white against the night sky. Their leader's voice rang out:
"Foul abominations, surrender your lives!"
Mike's joy snapped. The fury erupted in a hateful growl. His head whipped toward the angels, fire boiling in his chest.
"Fuck off," he snarled. His voice carried across the sky, a predator's growl. "This is my battle!"
But the angels did not stop. Their spears hurled light through the clouds, lancing toward dragon and serpent. Quetzalcoatl shrieked in defiance, his coils thrashing as he batted two from the air, feathers slicing them apart.
Mike's rage broke.
His wings snapped wide, his body swelling with molten flame. The joy of the fight was stolen, replaced by fury so deep it burned through his mind.
"FUCKING ANGELS," he rumbled, his voice shaking the air, "AGAIN? YOU INTERFERE AGAIN?"
The next movement was visceral slaughter.
Mike surged upward into their ranks, claws ripping through armor, crushing bone. He seized one angel mid-flight, biting through his halo in a crunch of light and bone, his jaws tearing the body apart. Blood rained across the jungle floor.
Another drove a spear toward his heart. Mike caught it, snapped it like a twig, and rammed the jagged end through the angel's skull. Flame erupted from his maw, a cone of black and crimson that reduced them to ash.
Screams filled the sky.
Bahamut roared with savage triumph in Mike's chest. "Kill the feathered bats!"
Mike bellowed in reply, his roar rang across the jungle as angel after angel fell. He smashed, burned and dismembered every angel he could. The fury of them interfering in another battle drove his mind into a frenzy.
The angels scattered, their formation breaking in terror. Their commander tried to rally them, but Mike's claws caught him by the throat, wings hammering the air as he drove the angel into the clouds below. The body vanished into flame, leaving nothing but falling embers. Bloodied, smoking, and triumphant, Mike turned back to his worthy opponent.
Quetzalcoatl's coils had risen again, emerald fire blazing from his wounds. The serpent's eyes burned with fury as he struck, wings spreading wide against the blackened sky.
"Dragon," the feathered serpent hissed, his voice thunder and storm. "Your arrogance ends here."
Mike's claws flexed, his eyes burning with joy.
"Good," he growled, fire spilling from his jaws. "Then let's finish this."
The air boiled as dragon and serpent surged toward one another again, flame colliding in a cataclysm that lit up the night sky.