Archaeologists have found on the island of Eagle remnants of slave shackles. On the expedition, rumors of an old legend spread about the figure of Achilles, who sometimes appeared on the local rock, and who was helping the sailors to find a safe fairway in bad weather. The expedition after a long search finds nothing and moves out, but the leader decides to stay. And after a while, he discovers a mysterious state created by runaway slaves...

The action takes place in Odesa in 1918-1919. At the request of General Denikin, a French squadron arrives in Odesa to restore order in the city. Odesa Bolsheviks are trying to convince the sailors to leave the city. At the center of the story is the heroic fate of Frenchwoman Jeanne-Marie Lyabourb (1877-1919), shot by French interventionists.

The head of the regional inspectorate of architectural and construction control, Veprev, writes a critical article to the central newspaper about shortcomings in local construction, thereby causing dissatisfaction with the regional leadership. They find an excuse to release Veprev from his post. But the intervention of one of the journalists in the case helps to restore justice.

The heroes of the play are the father and son, the Raskatovs, whose lives are marked by the echoes of the past war: the father, a prominent military leader, dies from wounds sustained during the war; the son perishes while disarming a Nazi chemical weapons depot.