The Sword

George Harrison's weekend on Balboa Island is shattered when a red warning light on his car summons him back to the Intersolar Spaceport. His assistant, Bob Mills, informs him that an unprecedented object is approaching Earth at several times the speed of light, and only Harrison's engineering expertise can decipher the urgent message attached. Abandoning his vacation, he speeds across the bridge and is ushered through a throng of cameras into the bustling port's administration building.

At the runway a massive, silent craft settles without a sound, hovering a few feet above the concrete before gliding forward like a weightless dirigible. Searchlights bathe its gleaming hull while an alien voice, flat and emotionless, declares the arrival of the Races of Wan and states that humanity has been under surveillance. The message, delivered in perfect English, warns that our fledgling solar system is about to reach out, and the visitors expect us to respond before they act.