The world is divided into several totalitarian regimes. The European regime rules with an iron fist, and technology has been reduced to a minimum. During a public execution, a technician notices strange, very tall men standing and watching. They are not seen by people standing right next to them. The men behave as if they know they cannot be seen. Then one of the tall men realises that the technician can see them. And that catches their attention. The technician doesn’t know whether to be pleased with this attention. He joins the resistance after an old-fashioned aeroplane flies overhead, followed by an unidentified flying object. He discovers that humanity is on the brink of extinction, through its own doing.