The first sentence opens the story on New Year's Day 1943 - a future date at the time of writing - and describes the fundamental transformations in society as the result of a new mystical source of virtually free energy.

This leads to an outburst of religious and nationalist fervor, causing the greatest, most global war in history.

Characteristic of the war are distant military marches, hence for example "battles of the Chinese with the Senegalese riflemen on the shores of the Finnish lakes."

At some point, it also becomes interested in production of material goods and produces them, in a supernatural manner, in enormous quantities.

This leads to economic collapse and, absurdly enough, deficit of all manufactured items because, allegedly, once the price of goods has dropped to zero because of absolute, nobody cares to produce or distribute them any more.