1564, Granada. The Moors have unsuccessfully tried to rise up against their Christian oppressors and the town has been painted with the blood of their victims. Hernando, a young Arab with a Christian father, is despised by the townsfolk and by his own step-father for his 'tainted' heritage and is banished to live in the stables. Hernando finds comfort in his affinity with the horses and becomes an expert muleteer. News of his special touch reaches the King of the Moors and he is appointed to fight the Christian troops sent by the Spanish King Philip II. There he meets Fatima, a young girl with black eyes who will become the love of his life. But his step-father cruelly marries her instead and forces Hernando into slavery. With the help of his Christian friends, he and hatches a grand plan to reconcile the two warring faiths - and the two halves of his identity...