Rufario Salamanca is sent to New Spain in order to serve Friar Bernardino, whose lifelong mission is to document every thing that grows on that region. Guided by a mysterious native woman, together with his mixed race brother and the friar, they sail into swampy waters, finding marvelous beasts; the main characters of ancient pagan stories. One of these, the axolotl, is of particular interest to him, for he finds in the myth of its creation, an escape for what seems to him an imposed destiny. His search for true identity only seems crystal clear when he sees his reflection on the wise lakes where these salamanders decide no to evolve.