In December 2022, biology teacher and former Green Beret, Dan Forester, fails to get a job at the Army Research Laboratory (ARL). During the broadcast of the World Cup, soldiers from the year 2051 arrive to warn that, in their time, humanity is on the brink of extinction due to a war with alien invaders referred to as the "Whitespikes." In November 2048, the Whitespikes suddenly appear in northern Russia, their means of arrival on Earth undetected by satellite or radar, and proceed to kill the majority of the human race within three years. In response, the world's present-day militaries are sent into the future via a wormhole device called the "Jumplink," but fewer than 30% survive their seven-day deployment, prompting an international draft.