The Earth becomes the arena of a secret and long-lasting war waged by two powerful space civilizations who dream of forcing people to mold their history to suit the interests of aliens. But not all earthlings agree to be weak-willed puppets in someone else's theater. Both on the distant planet Valhalla, and in Russia, which is entering the Great Patriotic War, everywhere Andrei Novikov and his friends prove that they will never become a blind tool in the hands of representatives of the “higher” intelligence.