In December, 1531, cross-currents are at work: led by the cruel Captain Delgadillo, Spanish troops are maiming and killing Indians; priests protest to the king's viceroy. Temoc, a young Aztec leader, kidnaps the viceroy's blond daughter, not to hurt her but to show her the beauties of Aztec culture; the two fall in love. Some Indians are converting to Christianity, to Temoc's dismay; he tries to murder one, the saintly Bernardino. Meanwhile, to a poor and mild Indian, Juan Diego, the Virgin Mary begins a series of appearances that Juan Diego dutifully reports to the bishop. When the bishop asks for proof, Juan Diego brings him one of the great symbols of the Western Hemisphere.