Zorro (novel) blossoms into a romance, and Diego is forced to remain at home to recover after suffering a few broken ribs during the attack. Diego and Bernardo then undergo a test to prove their maturity and to find their spirit guide, a totemic animal which would guide the boys' future. Bernardo's spirit guide is a horse, in the form of Tornado, a motherless colt which Bernardo encounters and cares for. Diego's is a fox ("zorro" in his native Spanish) who saves his life. After the events in the forest, Alejandro, oblivious to the Indian training Diego has been receiving, receives a
Zorro Zorro's identity. In McCulley's later stories, Diego's surname became de la Vega. In fact, the writer was wildly inconsistent. The first magazine serial ended with the villain dead and Diego publicly exposed as Zorro. But in the sequel, the villain was alive and the next entry had the double identity still secret. Several Zorro productions have expanded on the character's exploits. Many of the continuations feature a younger character taking up the mantle of Zorro. McCulley's stories are set during the during the era of Spanish California (1769–1821) and, although exact years are often vague, the presence of the Pueblo