World War II firefighter and conscientious objector Harry Black lands in the hospital after battling the aftermath of German bombing in London. There he learns his brother Ellis was killed in action, and in his delirium, he blends reality with visions from his unpublished sci-fi novel and with the myth of Orpheus. It causes Harry to believe that his brother might still be alive so he journeys deep into the city's dangerous underbelly to seek him out.