In the opening scenes of this gripping story, the legendary comic author Oesterheld appears as a character, pen in hand, diligently writing late into the night. Suddenly, a mysterious man materializes out of thin air in his room—Juan Salvo—who then begins recounting his incredible tale. The narrative is presented from Salvo’s first-person perspective as he shares the harrowing events that unfolded in his life and the city of Buenos Aires.
Salvo was living peacefully with his wife Elena and their daughter Martita when catastrophe struck. Without warning, an ominous, deadly snowfall blanketed Buenos Aires and the nearby Vicente López area. This strange, lethal snow—designed to kill on contact—wiped out all living things it touched, turning the environment into a frozen wasteland. Miraculously, Salvo and his family survived because their home was entirely sealed, shielding them from the deadly ice fall. During the outbreak, Salvo was playing a game of truco with friends—Alfredo Favalli, Lucas, and Polski—when the horror began. Polski, worried about his family, tried to return home but tragically perished soon after leaving, caught in the deadly snow.
Realizing the imminent danger, the survivors quickly halted their normal routines and donned insulated suits to leave their houses and seek supplies. A young boy named Pablo joined their group, offering hope amid chaos. Sadly, their fragile safety was shattered when a deranged survivor killed Lucas, emphasizing the lawlessness and brutality that now gripped Buenos Aires. Facing a violent, anarchic world, Salvo and his companions attempted to escape the city, but before they could leave, they were recruited by an improvised military force.
Salvo, along with César Troncoso as Alfredo Favalli and Pablo, joined the military efforts, leaving Elena and Martita behind in their home. As the story unfolds, the horrific reality behind the snowfall is revealed: it was part of an alien invasion. The invading forces initially attacked enormous beetle-like creatures equipped with towering lightthrowers. These gigantic insects revealed their true nature by having devices on their necks, which indicated they were controlled remotely by an unseen alien entity—the “Hand,” so named because of its multi-fingered hands. It becomes evident that the “Hand” is itself being manipulated from afar by a larger alien force, simply referred to as “Them.”
The military sets up its main base at the River Plate stadium, banking on its massive walls to serve as a formidable barrier against the alien technology. During a daring night mission, Salvo and a metalworker named Franco venture beyond the safe confines of the stadium to gather intelligence. They uncover the dark secret: the beetles and other human survivors under control are all lined with devices that make them into obedient automatons. As they gather data, they discover that the “Hand” controls not only the insects but other humans turned into mindless soldiers, all manipulated by the elusive “They.”
The situation worsens when the military is ambushed at Plaza Italia by enormous creatures called Gurbos, which decimate most of the forces, leaving only Salvo, Favalli, and Franco alive. These survivors then track the main alien invasion fleet to Plaza del Congreso, where they successfully destroy the alien’s control dome—referred to as “Them”—and make a narrow escape. During their retreat, they find Pablo and Mosca, a historian and fellow survivor, who had been separated during the chaos. Their victory is short-lived, as a nuclear strike launched by foreign nations targeting the alien invaders obliterates Buenos Aires, adding a tragic layer to the ongoing chaos.
But the invasion does not end there. The aliens set a trap, leading remaining human pockets to falsely believe they are in safe zones free of snow. Favalli, Pablo, and Mosca sacrifice themselves by allowing themselves to be captured and converted into automatons, enabling Salvo and his family to escape. In a strange twist, Salvo stumbles upon a spaceship and, in the process of desperately pressing buttons, accidentally activates a time machine. This anomaly transports him into a different universe, where Elena and Martita are stranded elsewhere. Over time, Salvo masters the ability to travel between different worlds and eras.
This newfound knowledge explains his appearance at Oesterheld’s house and the cosmic nature of his story. As the narrative concludes, Salvo realizes he has returned to Buenos Aires just a few years before the invasion begins. He rushes home to reunite with Elena and Martita in a stable time loop, choosing to forget the horrors he experienced. Meanwhile, Oesterheld—powerless to alter the future—decides to immortalize the story by creating a comic about the events, turning the incredible tale into a legendary narrative of resistance, sacrifice, and cosmic mystery.
