Nasca has installed the Emperor Kukulkan in his newly built palace, a palace full of secret passages and spy-holes. Nasca calls for Royal sacrifices to appease the new God Teshcata now that the old religion of the peaceful God Quala (The Feathered Serpent) has come to an end. Princess Chimalma is told that she must marry Prince Heumac, to bring peace again to their nation. A young servant boy, Tozo, arrives at the palace with a gift for Princess Chimalma.
Otolmi the blind man rescues Tozo after he has had his cloak stolen. The blind man tells him of his dreams and together they try and discover the secret of the palace walls. There they discover Maxtla the palace builder. Before he dies he presents them with his chart of the palace. Prince Heumac is presented at the throne of Kukulkhan as an intended for the Princess Chimalma. He is given leave to sit at the Jaguar Throne as their new champion. Nasca promises to give Mahoutec the weapons to destroy Prince Heumac. He is told by Teshcata that he must kill Kukulkhan too ...
Tozo finds the secret passage that allows him entry through the Palace wall. He needs to find his master and warn him of the danger foretold by Otolmi's dream. Kukulkhan spends the night alone in the temple, to receive council from the Spirits of the Dead. He receives a grim judgment though, but is Nasca behind it all? Nasca threatens Princess Chimalma, and then goads Mahoutec into fighting Prince Heumac so that he can reclaim his right to the throne. He spies on the Princess as she preys to the God Quala, not Teshcata as he demanded.
Prince Heumac convinces the Princess Chimalma that there might be foul play at work in the death of Emperor Kukulkhan. The Prince finds a fragment of Maxtla's chart in the Temple, and starts unraveling its mystery. Nasca tries to convince Mahoutec to order his armies to attack the Toltec camp without any order from Chimalma. He tries to convince him that Heumac is a sorcerer, but Mahoutec needs proof. Tozo is captured and tortured by Chadac. Nasca poisons him, but he is rescued by Heumac. Nasca and Chadac find and burn the other part of Maxtla's chart.
Chadac and Nasca's poisoning of the Princess Chimalma is blamed on Prince Heumac's "sorcery". He tries to convince Mahoutec of Nasca's treachery and the existence of the secret passages, but fails. Nasca uses the sleeping Chimalma as a reason to get Mahoutec to lead his army on a surprise attack on the Toltec camp. Tozo hides with the sleeping Chimalma, and finds the antidote. Returned to the throne, she tries to banish Mahoutec for his attack on the Toltec camp, and have Tasca and Chadac arrested. Her guards do not listen to her though.
Princess Chimalma is rescued from the Chamber of Screams by Tozo and the blind man Otolmi. Otolmi tells her that she must go back into the Chamber, with wax in her ears to protect her, then return to the throne to make his dream come to fruition. Nasca tries to scratch Mahoutec and poison him as he is asking too many questions, only fails in his task. In a fight though, Chadac spears him through the back. In a procession, Prince Heumac is taken to the Pyramid of the Sun for his sacrifice, where Nasca uses an eclipse to try and convince the people to support his God.
Following the death of Nasca, Empress Chimalma wants the blessing of the people for her upcoming marriage to Prince Heumac. Xipec, Governor of the Gold Region has come looking for slaves, and challenges the match. Otolmi the blind man suggests that Prince Heumac undertakes the perils of the Stone Cage to prove himself worthy of the title Emperor. Keelag, a mad recluse, is chosen to embalm the body of Nasca.
Having been miraculously resurrected by Keelag's magic potion, with her help Nasca devises a plot to strike the city with a plague of madness and help bring about the downfall of the Empress Chimalma. Prince Heumac and Tozo face tests of courage, wisdom, and ingenuity while trapped in the darkness of the Stone Cage. Chimalma has a vivid and scary dream.
Tozo and Heumac return from their tests, much to the delight of the Empress Chimalma. The Coronation of Chimalma and Heumac is announced, but it cannot take place until the missing crowns of Chichen-Itza are found. The task of finding them is down to Tozo. The statue of Tescata is pulled down, and in it's ruins Tozo finds the the mirror that holds the key to the hiding place of the missing crowns. Nasca though, wants it also. Keelag shows Nasca how to use magic powers to control the minds of all men.
Tozo is captured by Nasca and tortured by Xipec to try and find the whereabouts of the sacred mirror of Teshcata. Prince Heumac searches for him in vain. Nasca uses his magic lamp to mesmerize Chimalma and her councilors, making them think he is Otolmi, to exert his evil influence over them. Keelag poisons the first of the city wells. As the madness spreads, one of its victims is brought before Chimalma and the court.
Prince Heumac and his army make for immediate departure to rescue Tozo, who is still being tortured outside the city by Xipec. The forces of evil gather momentum, and Nasca tricks Chimalma into believing she is responsible for the madness and plague that has struck down the city. To atone, she must forfeit her life so he poisons Mataque to try and kill her.
After burying Chimalma alive, Nasca kills the old woman Keelag. Chimalma is rescued though, by Prince Heumac. Tozo discovers the secret of Teshcata's dark mirror and solves the mystery of the missing crowns of Chichen-Itza. Xipec challenges Heumac to a fight to the death in hand to hand combat. After Otolmi claims to be responsible for the madness, Chimalma, Heumac and the court of guards go to find and confront Nasca, but he hypnotizes them in one final desperate bid to seize power by pretending to be Teshcata. Only Otolmi sees through the facade.
