Lennox is a troubled teenager with no family. Ava is eight months pregnant and fleeing her abusive husband. Heather is a grieving mother and cancer sufferer. They don't know each other, but when a meteor streaks over Edinburgh, all three suffer instant, catastrophic strokes. . .only to wake up the following day in hospital, miraculously recovered. When news reaches them of an octopus-like creature washed up on the shore near where the meteor came to earth, Lennox senses that some extra-terrestrial force is at play. With the help of Ava, Heather, and a journalist named Ewan, he rescues the alien - who they christen 'Sandy' - and goes on the run. But they aren't the only ones with an interest in Sandy. Close behind are Ava's husband, the police, and a government unit who wants to capture the creature at all costs. . .