Cronus of the D. F. C.

A police detective is assigned to a unit that uses a machine to glimpse shadowy images of future events; when the device reveals a woman's imminent murder, he must try to stop it. The apparatus yields indistinct, shifting scenes and an imprecise time window, forcing the detective, a scientist, and a veteran captain to infer physical details from silhouettes, narrow a search area, and test experimental aids such as a signal-responsive armband. The narrative centers on the procedural effort to interpret prophetic evidence and the tension between preventing harm and merely responding after crimes occur.