Alejandro knocked gently at the bathroom’s door. His neck was hurting; he wanted to get seated and get on with the job.

“Are you okay in there?” he asked, receiving no answer. He began to worry, Ed had been in that bathroom for over ten minutes. Then the door swung open and Ed Jacovazzi came out, wiping his face with the back of his hand. Alejandro looked at him and thought that his friend looked rather pale.

“Is everything all right Ed?” he asked.

“I’m fine,” he said. “Let’s go, we’re late.”

The two men strolled through the corridor. To their left, the large windows showed the skyline of the city of Amsterdam, the sun high in the sky. Its reflection on the sea gave the impression that the city was surrounded by liquid gold. Alejandro loved that sight; it was so much better than the Madrid slums in which he was born and raised. The two men reached the room where the artworks were being conserved. Nicole, the vice-senior-assistant-director, was waiting for them.

"You are late, boys."

"It’s his fault," said Alejandro, pointing at Ed. "Golden boy here was busy making himself pretty for you."

"Cut it, will you? Let’s get to work," Ed said, visibly annoyed.

"Are you okay Ed?" she asked him. "Are you unwell by any chance?"

"Just a little headache, that’s all. What’s with you people today? You act like I’m on my deathbed."

"Well I’m sorry, it’s just, I don’t want to get a bad reading from you. The next Biennale in Capetown is very important and our artists want to know if their works will be well received. If you are not at your best, you may get a wrong vision of the events and that’s-"

"And I’m telling you that I’m fine. Jesus. What’s with all this concern? Let’s just get this thing over with."

Ed sat himself in a nearby chair and Alejandro did the same. Nicole then proceeded to bring to them the artworks that would be shown at the Biennale. Alejandro grabbed the first object, a small statue made of wood and metal that showed a couple having sex, or so he thought. He never really understood the objects that were showed to him, it wasn’t his job.

*     *     *
After the fortunetelling session, Nicole asked Alejandro to stay for a little while. It was unusual but he didn’t object. Ed left the room and the two of them remained alone. For a second, Alejandro hoped that she would confess her secret love for him; it was silly but a part of him hoped so. Those hopes were crushed fairly quickly.

"We need to talk about Ed," she said. "Have you noticed something strange about him recently? Anything out of the ordinary?"

"Uh, no, not really. He seems tired, but that’s it."

"Well, I would like you to investigate this. Have you noticed how recently most of his readings are rather, how can I say, obscure? When we ask you to give a reading of the future of an object you tend to be sure of what you are saying. But with Ed, I don’t know anymore. He seems often unsure and undecided; his readings are vague, even today. With most of the objects he touched he only gave us a partial reading of their future reception. This isn’t good, and you know it."

"So, what do you want me to do, exactly?"

"I want you to talk to him, like a friend. Ask him how he is doing," Nicole said.

"But I already did that and he doesn’t want to say."

"Look," she said, gently grabbing his arm, "try again, be gentle as you can be. Maybe tell him that I noticed something is wrong and that I’m concerned. Not only me but half the board of directors is concerned about his recent performance."

"Are they really concerned about him?" Alejandro asked.

"Well, I don’t know that, but maybe you can use this to force him to talk." She smiled wickedly. "When finesse fails there is always force."

Alejandro nodded silently and left the room, searching for Ed. Usually, after a fortunetelling session, Ed liked to relax smoking a cigarette in the large balcony of the building, close by the cafeteria. He couldn’t help but think about what Nicole said to him, about Ed no longer being as precise as he used to be. Alejandro couldn’t believe he never noticed anything like that. Maybe Ed’s reputation had grown so big that he ignored his shortcomings.

After all, Ed Jacovazzi wasn’t just another precognitive individual, he was the Golden boy who could see up to a year in the future, and the best part about him was that Ed was completely human-looking. Alejandro was a mutant in body and abilities, but Ed represented something unique, the two worlds, the human and the human mutation, combined in one body. Ed had the best of the two worlds, the esper ability to see what was to come and the good looks of a Mediterranean gigolo. Only God knew how it had happened but somehow it had, a good looking mutant.

Just as he predicted, Alejandro found Ed smoking on the balcony. The sun was setting behind his back, once a golden sphere up in the sky now reduced to an orange incandescent ball melting into the ocean.

"Hey Ed." Alejandro greeted him. "How is it?"

"Another day looking at crap called art. It’s going great, let me tell you."

"Yeah, some of that stuff was, wow, really bad. Uglier than me," Alejandro joked.

"Come on, you ain’t so bad after all."

Alejandro smiled, thinking how to approach the subject.

"Look, I wanted to ask how you’re doing."

"Again? Jesus, what are you? My mother?"

"No, no it’s just ... it’s just Nicole, she was concerned about, about your performance back there."

"My performance?" Ed asked. "What’s wrong with my performance?"

"Well, huh, Nicole said that your readings aren’t that accurate anymore and, and that she is not happy about it."

Looking at his friend, Alejandro realized how concerned he really was. He wanted to stop, he had no reason to dig into his friend like this. But Nicole gave him an order.

"She also mentioned the board of directors, they are not amused by your readings recently."

"What?" Ed looked scared now, on the verge of panic. Alejandro regretted mentioning the board.

"But you know how these things are, it’s just a storm in a cup, it will pass over quickly," he said, trying to calm Ed down, but failing to do so.

Ed’s face became distorted by fear and sadness; he buried his face in his hands and started sighing, suffocating his cries of despair. He stood there, sobbing quietly. Alejandro panicked; he wasn’t expecting anything of this sort from Ed, and he tried to calm him down, weakly grabbing his shoulders to stop his sobbing.

"Maybe, maybe we can still fix it. Come on, there is no reason to react like this."

"You don’t understand," Ed said, showing his face. "I’m losing it. I’m losing my sight."

Alejandro looked at him and understood immediately what he meant. Ed looked at his colleague and felt something like relief. He didn’t even think about speaking about his problem to someone else. Noticing that he had dropped his cigarette, he lit another one. His hands were shaky.

"How long?" Alejandro asked, almost whispering. "For how long haven’t you been able to see into the future?"

"I can still see, just not as good as before. I used to have one year of time; now I can do that for just six months," he answered, puffing out smoke.

"But when did it start? And how?"

"I don’t have a clue. I don’t know exactly when, but at some point I noticed that my time in the future was becoming shorter and shorter. At first it was nothing, just a few weeks shorter than the usual, I thought, nothing to worry about. But the weeks became months and now my time is reduced to only half of what it used to be. If this keeps up I’m going to lose my ability. Do you understand what that means? Do you?" he asked, almost frantic.

"Of course I do. Have you tried to figure out what’s wrong with you?"

"Are you kidding me? I have been to dozens of doctors and they found nothing wrong with me. I’m a healthy man, solid as a rock. So I figured that maybe the problem was psychological, and I decided to go to an analyst. But nothing, nisba, nada, niente, zero. I don’t know what to do."

Then an awful thought ran through his head. He gripped Alejandro’s hand so quickly that the mutant almost jumped with surprise.

"You won’t tell Nicole about this, will you? If she finds out it’s all over for me. You won’t tell her, right? We are friends, aren’t we? I invited you into my house, eat my food, drink my wine and-"

He stopped, a new unpleasant idea coming to him. His wife.

"Gina. Oh God. If she finds out…"

"Don’t worry Ed, I won’t tell her. Calm down."

"It’s just...Gina…"

"Gina loves you, she will understand."

"Alejandro, you just don’t get it, it’s not just about my job, if I’m really losing my powers my entire life is finished."

"What are you..."Alejandro started to say, before understanding what Ed meant. "Have you been using your power outside work? That’s against advice, you know it."

Ed silently nodded in agreement. The “advice,” as Alejandro called it, was a series of regulatory guides for mutants with precognitive abilities. It was written by a team of psychologists, sociologists, anthropologists, and politicians. It was meant as a guide for any mutant who wanted to be accepted into the wider society. They were supposed to use their powers only in their selected job; using precognition during everyday life, for instance, was considered detrimental to the autonomy of the single individual.

"I know," he said, feeling like a thief being caught. "I know it was dumb, but I couldn’t help myself."

The two men fell silent. Under them there was the city, rumbling with small hovercraft and old wheeled cars. Alejandro lit himself a cigarette, the sun slowly falling into the sea.

"Maybe I can help you," Alejandro said. "How about you let my doctor visit you?"

"What’s the point? I’ve already been to dozens of doctors."

"I know, but my doctor specializes in mutants. He is pretty good and I’m friends with him. He won’t tell anyone about your problem. I can get an appointment for you using my name, so even if Nicole or the board of directors were to suspect something they won’t know that you visited him. What do you say?"

"A mutant specialized doctor…" Ed mumbled by himself. Why hadn’t he thought about that before? Probably because of his looks; he was too human looking compared to Alejandro. He felt human, despite his ability. He looked at Alejandro and his oversized cranium; that deformed man was offering him a chance.

Ed shook his hand, the cigarette hanging on lips that were curled in a faint smile.

*     *     *
When he closed the door of his luxurious apartment Ed felt a new wave of discomfort assaulting him, and he wondered if he could really trust Alejandro. The two men had worked together for almost six years and they were on good terms with each other. But was that really enough of a reason to trust him? What if he was planning on removing him from the Von Kofter Company? And why had he told Alejandro everything? Ed wondered if his desperation had really managed to get the best of him.

He went to the kitchen, pouring himself a large glass of wine, and memories of the old days came rushing to him. The old slums where he was born, the horrible deformed people who lived with him and close to him, the crooked smile of his mother and how she lacked both arms. When he got out of that stinking place he felt liberated, free from seeing those horrible people everyday. He didn’t think of himself as a mutant; he always thought of himself as human born to the wrong family. He had wondered, in the past, who could have been his father. Probably a human, a pervert with a mutant fetish; it was his fault that he grew up surrounded by monsters and he never tried to search for him.

Emptying the glass, he heard the apartment door opening and the familiar noise of stilettos clicking on the floor. Gina noticed him and gave him a bright smile.

"Home already?"

"Seems like it. They didn’t have enough crap to show me today."

"Poor you. Sitting on a chair, predicting the future and getting paid for it. What a stinking dead end job. When are you going to rock the boat, Ed? When are you going to rebel?" she joked, stroking her curly red hair.

Ed replied with a bitter smile. She had no idea what was going on within him. He tried to change the subject.

"You want something to drink?"

"No, thank you. I have been drinking with my friends. God, I hate those girls. Damn empty-headed idiots-"

"I never understood one thing," he said, pouring himself another glass, "why do you go out with those other girls if you dislike them so much? I would never want to surround myself with people I dislike."

"I have to, it’s my job. I can’t be a model forever, I need to think about the future. Designing new clothing requires people who can wear these clothes and make them look good. My friends are all good looking girls and they are perfect for the job, but they are dumb as a bag of dirt."

She dropped onto the brown synthetic crocodile sofa and Ed sat beside her. He liked the fact that she was smart; Gina was a fashion model and wanted to be a fashion designer, climbing the ladder in her field. He had no doubt that she was going to make it--she had the drive, the passion, and the ideas to make it happen.

Then he thought about telling her what was going to happen; he regretted the idea and stopped himself from speaking. Gina was a lovely girl, but she could be very superficial and materialistic. What would happen if he told her that soon he would find himself powerless? Ed was the breadwinner in the house; Gina earned a good amount of money, but her lifestyle depended mostly on Ed. Women didn’t like to be sole earners of the family, Ed was sure of that, and feared that Gina would dump him once she discovered his problem. He had to find a way to stop his power from fading; it was about his job, his status, his money, and the woman who was looking at him with bright blue eyes.

"What are you thinking, Golden boy?"

He reached for her and they exchanged a kiss, before being interrupted by Ed’s phone. He cursed at the high Heavens and answered the call.

"Hello? Who’s this?"

"Mr. Jacovazzi," said the unknown voice, "it’s a pleasure to meet you."

"We haven’t met yet, and so far the pleasure is all yours. Who are you and what do you want? I’m busy."

"My apologies. I represent a very rich client who would like to employ your talents for-"

"No," he replied. "I work for the Von Kofter Company, you want my service you gotta go through them first. Until then you can have a good evening."

He ended the call. It wasn’t the first time that someone tried to recruit him for a personal job. The thing that really stuck to Ed was the accent of the man; he’d never heard that kind of accent before. He ha no time to think about that, Gina was already kissing his neck.

"Where were we?"

*     *     *
Doctor Singh was an Indian man with short gray hair and thin glasses. He looked at the two men in front of him; he knew Alejandro very well while the other man, Ed Jacovazzi, was a newcomer to his studio.

"Mr. Jacovazzi," he began, in a deep voice, "I’m going to ask you a question that may appear unrelated to your condition, but please answer anyway. Tell me, are you still capable of doing the things you could do when you were a boy? Running very fast, jumping, pushing, playing?"

"What kind of question is that?"

"Please answer me."

"I still can do these things, but of course I’m not a kid anymore. But I’m not an old man either, I’m not even forty. What does that have to do with me?"

"Because I studied your cells, and I noticed something very strange. Your cells, those associated with mutant DNA, are aging. Very fast."

Doctor Singh gave him time to absorb the information before speaking again.

"As you know, mutants were born due to the excessive amount of toxic substances in the air and the water. Chemical pollution over the years has been accumulated in the human body, creating a new strain of human, the mutant. But the mutant is a defective human, sometimes it even lacks important body parts, like arms, legs, eyes, ears, and so forth … mutants make up for those missing limbs with esper abilities like yours. The thing about you that is most astounding is your mixture of human and mutant DNA, they balance each other almost perfectly. What is happening right now is that this balance is in crisis because the mutant cells in your body are dying: mutants have a shorter life span compared to the regular human, and your mutant cells are dying and being replaced by human cells. In short, Mr. Jacovazzi, you are slowly turning human, and your system has therefore no need for esper abilities like precognition or such."

"Fuck," Ed said, biting the inside of his cheek. "What do I do now? How do I fix this?"

"There is no fixing this," the doctor replied. "The medical condition that you want to cure is simply called aging, and reversing the flow of time is impossible. Considering the speed at which your mutant cells are dying you will lose your powers in less than two months."

"Wait," he said, trying to negotiate some form of pointless bargain, "what about getting more mutant cells into my body? There is DNA editing nowadays, they use it to make custom babies in certain cities. How about we use that on me?"

"DNA editing is useful on a baby that is being formed in a womb, not on a fully grown man. And inserting external mutant cells inside your body will probably cause some very undesirable side effects. I strongly advise you to not do anything of the sort."

Ed slumped on the chair, feeling crushed by the words he just heard. It was over, him becoming powerless was inevitable.

"Aside from this, you are in perfect health. I understand this may be a blow to you, but there is nothing wrong with you on any level."

Ed didn’t reply, ignoring the doctor’s words. Alejandro helped him, standing up from the chair.

"Thank you doctor. I’ll pay the bill for his exam."

Alejandro accompanied Ed home and sat with him for a drink. Ed didn’t even touch his glass; he felt his entire body going limp, unable to move, as though something heavy was dragging him down.

"It’s all over," he said. "I’m going to lose my job and my money, Gina will leave me once she gets tired of having me around doing nothing in the house. I’ll end up homeless or in a slum populated by mutants." He surprised himself by the way he said those things, calm and collected.

"Don’t be so dramatic. I’ll help in any way I can. Sure, you will probably lose the job, but you can find something else to do. I mean, you made people very rich with your predictions, that must mean something, right?"

"You don’t understand, all my life, I never did anything more than this. I’m a fortuneteller, I have no other skill, I never had the need to learn other skills, and I never cared; now I’m going to lose the only thing that defines me and I’ll become nothing. Who needs a fortuneteller who can’t read the future?"

This time, Alejandro had no answer.

*     *     *
The next month passed quickly for Ed. He asked the Von Kofter Company for an extended vacation, and he had spent it walking around the city, wondering about his future. He had not used his powers in the last month and was afraid of doing so, scared about how much they could have decreased. He didn’t mention this to Gina; he wanted to wait for the right moment to do so, knowing that it would never come. There is no right moment for bad news.

Sitting in a small open air cafe he just waited for the day to pass. Then he noticed a young couple coming toward him.

"Sorry to bother you but...are you that human-looking mutant who can read the future?" the woman said.

"Yes, I am that man. Guilty as charged. How can I help you?"

"Well, we were wondering...can you read us our future? We were thinking about marrying but our families do not approve, they say we should wait more time and get better paying jobs before doing something so serious."

"I’m afraid I can’t help you miss," he said, lighting a cigarette, "I can’t do that."

"Oh please mister, it would mean so much for us. It will make our parents understand that there is no problem for us getting married now."

"I’m doing this for your good. I don’t want to spoil your fun. I mean, aren’t you excited to see how your story will turn out?"

"But…"

"Not to mention that what you are asking me to do is illegal. I can’t use my powers outside of work," he said. Then an idea clicked in: he could use the woman to see how much of his powers were still with him. He reached out for her, and the woman smiled, embarrassed.

"I see, sorry if we bothered you."

"No problem," he said, winking at her, and the two shook hands. It was all Ed needed to begin his prediction. He started to peer into the future of the young woman, but the visions were spotty at best. He pushed himself further into the vision: one week, two weeks, three weeks, four weeks…

And that was it, less than a month of future foresight and it was a blurred vision, not very clear or understandable. The only thing he remembered seeing was a marriage scene and the young couple being very happy. Then the beginning of marital life together, but nothing more. It was very generic, making it impossible to give them a definitive answer; he had to work with what he had. Looking at the young woman he tried to fabricate a response.

"You two will get married and will be very happy," he said. The young woman smiled and the young couple left, saying goodbye to him. He waved his hand to them and saw them disappearing into the crowd. He didn’t lie to her; he told her what he saw after all, no reason to feel guilty about it. But he was concerned about his powers, they were fading fast, faster than the doctor anticipated. He would have to talk to Gina sooner or later, there was no way of avoiding it.

His thoughts were interrupted by a man sitting in front of him. The first thing he noticed about the tall man was his dress, a purple-colored suit with a golden shirt and a bright green tie. His eyes were obscured by purple-tinted shades. He gave him a bright smile.

"Mr. Jacovazzi," he said in a familiar voice, "How are you doing today?"

Ed tried to pinpoint the moment the first time he heard that voice. Then he remembered, snapping his fingers.

"You are the guy who called me, the one who works for the rich client," Ed said, recognizing his strong accent. The man smiled, looking relaxed.

"My name is Joseph, forgive me for bothering you again but we followed your advice and went to your employers, the Von Kofter Company, and negotiated with them. It took us some time, but they finally told us that you were not available for the time being, that you are on vacation."

"That’s correct. So don’t bother offering me anything Joseph, I’m not working right now."

"I’m afraid I have to insist. Or else I’ll be forced to report you to the authorities."

"What are you talking…" Ed fell silent. An awful idea formed in his brain. Joseph gave him another smile and showed him a small tablet, playing a short video, showing Ed and the young couple with Ed telling them about their future.

"You understand Mr. Jacovazzi that you just committed a crime that violated human/mutant relationship outside the workspace."

"How did you get that video?"

"Please. Who do you think sent that young couple to you, Mr. Jacovazzi?"

Feeling like an idiot, Ed clenched his fist, feeling sweat accumulating on his forehead. Joseph spoke softly to him.

"My employer has a need for your talent and he is willing to pay a reasonable price for it. If you follow me I will accompany you to your destination and pay you handsomely for your service. If you refuse, this video will be sent to the authorities and you will be arrested."

Joseph turned his head, looking towards the port. A small group of seagulls was flying above the water. Among them, there was also a small white police drone.

"European police security is very well equipped for dealing with suspects inside large cities. I wonder how long a man like you can last. Can you outrun and armed police drone, Mr. Jacovazzi?"

"Listen," Ed managed to say in a trembling voice, "you don’t understand...I can’t help you...my…my powers…"

"I know the regulations, there is no point in explaining it to me," Joseph said, sounding bored.

"No, it’s not about that. My abilities, my powers, they are…" he stopped talking. Was he really going to confess to that man such an important secret? He was already trying to blackmail him, what was the point of telling him the truth?

Joseph stood up. He was taller than Ed, much taller. Ed felt completely unarmed against that man.

"Please follow me. We are going to the location for your new job."

"I need to call my wife."

"You can do that while you travel. Let’s go."

*     *     *
After a short trip on a rocket jet the two men landed in another country. On the airstrip there were armed men who wore pale yellow uniforms; Joseph greeted them in his native tongue. Ed looked around and saw only a few trees and red earth. It looked like Mars, but he knew very well that he was somewhere in Africa. Joseph invited him to come down, and the two men got on a small military jeep and left the small airport Ed tried, awkwardly, to sit, but he had never traveled like that before. Joseph smiled, seeing how his guest was having trouble. Ed noticed his sneering.

"What do you want me to do?" he asked.

"We need you to tell us if something is going to work. That’s it."

"And you couldn’t find another one for the job. Do you really need someone like me?"

"Absolutely. This is a matter of life and death, we need only the best of the best for this job," Joseph replied. "We need you to touch a bomb."

Ed almost fell from his seat.

"A bomb? What for?"

"We need to know if it’s going to work properly. It’s the first time my country developed something like that, and it was very costly for us. We need to know if it is going to work."

"Then why don’t you just test it? Seems easier than just kidnapping me," Ed said, shielding his eyes from the red dust that was flying in his face.

"We can’t afford it. We don’t have the money for a second bomb, and we don’t have time. We need to use it quickly to crush the rebels. You see, Mr. Jacovazzi, my country was born from a separatist war, we achieved independence five years ago collaborating with various militias, but now those groups have revolted against us, calling us oppressors and enslavers. We can’t have another war inside our borders, we need to finish these people off as quickly as we can; a show of strength is necessary, and that is why we need the bomb to work," Joseph explained. "If the bomb works, we can put an end to this conflict between us and rebels, and many lives will be spared. You can save many lives, Mr. Jacovazzi."

"By telling you if a bomb will explode or not," he said sarcastically.

"Precisely, but you don’t have to worry. You will be paid for this job; you just need to do what you always do."

Ed felt like someone had tried to grab hold of his stomach from the inside. What to do? He was already far from home, and he had no way to go back without the rocket jet, so the only option was to play the game as long as possible until he could find an opening and escape. But to where? He had no idea in which part of Africa he was, and he did not recognize the small patches with the national flag colors on the soldier’s uniforms. Maybe he was in West Africa, or maybe in the southern region, but those were nothing but wild guesses.

"How does your power work? I have read many newspapers about you, that’s how I got this idea of using you. You spoke a lot about your success, but you never said how your power works exactly."

Ed swallowed and wiped his eyes made teary by the dust. "I need to touch the subject and then I can choose to see or not into his or her future; the same rule applies with inanimate objects. I have a time window that I can explore, for instance I can see in the future up to…" he stopped, thinking about how much time he had left. But if Joseph read newspapers and magazines with his interview then he already knew how much time he could see in the future.

"One year," he lied, "I can see in the future up to one year, but I can choose to see less time if I want to. One year is my limit."

"Very good. We won’t need that much time, a few days will be enough. I wonder, however, about something. Did you ever use this power on yourself?"

"Never," he replied, and it was true.

"Oh, you already broke the rules once before. Are you telling me you never once tried to see your own future?"

"No. There is a story about a man, a precog like me. He tried to see his own future and saw himself dying. He became catatonic; witnessing his own death and what came after killed his mind. I don’t know about you Joseph, but I think that being alive but dead inside is an awful way for a man to go."

Joseph nodded silently. On the horizon, various metallic structures were appearing; they looked like army barracks and small hangars. At the gate of the military base, Joseph and Ed were greeted by an official; Joseph seemed to be treated with the utmost respect by the men around. He presented Ed to the official, a man with a highly decorated uniform and a round face. The official shook Ed’s hand with enthusiasm and then went straight toward the bigger hangar in the camp. Joseph spoke lightly to Ed.

"That General is my superior officer. He is very happy to see you; you are a shining hope in this dark night, Mr. Jacovazzi. His words, not mine."

Ed tried to force himself to smile. He felt his legs giving out, he wanted to run, knowing how pointless it was. An invisible force made him follow the General. The small group, together with a band of soldiers who acted like bodyguards, reached the interior of the hangar, where a white, large rocket was resting. It was smaller than the rocket jet they used to travel, but it was still quite large. Judging by the size, it could accommodate five or six people, and many, many pounds of explosives.

"You can begin," Joseph said.

Ed walked slowly toward the bomb, his hand trembling visibly. He licked his dry lips and tried to calm down. He just had to lie like he did to the young couple before; it was no big deal in the end. He touched the bomb and the scene of a man whose skin was quickly being eroded while vomiting his own lungs flashed in front of him. Ed jumped back and fell on the floor, trying to remove that awful image which was superimposed on his eyes.

"Oh Christ," he said out loud. "What the hell is this thing? This isn’t just a bomb. What is it?"

"So, it works?" Joseph asked, kneeling beside him and helping him to stand.

"I think so, but that is not an ordinary bomb. What the hell have you been building here?"

"It’s a little something that we developed with our scientific and medical branch. You see, this part of the world has often been hit with various pandemic diseases. We decided that maybe these awful diseases could be weaponized and used against our enemies. It is thanks to these kinds of weapons that we managed to win our independence five years ago."

"You people are insane," Ed said while holding his stomach, trying not to puke. "You want to release that stuff in the world?"

"Calm down. The virus cannot survive long in the open air, it will last barely four minutes and then it will die out. It is a calculated risk."

Ed tried to calm himself down, as Joseph suggested. He felt sick and couldn’t get that horrible picture out of his head.

"Are you really going to use this thing? It is out of this world, it’s just too insane."

"You are a man who has lived a very comfortable life so far, so I doubt you would understand. We are at war, and all wars require a tribute in blood to end. We are willing to stop this war and pay any price in order to do so. Now, you said that the bomb will work, when and where?"

Taken aback, Ed had no idea what to say. The bomb would explode, that was for sure, but he had no idea about the time and the location. He had detached himself as soon as the images were coming to him; it was just too much. There was no way to fabricate a credible lie this time.

"I don’t know, it was just so confusing. I never touched something that would explode. And, and the stuff that I saw...it is just too much…" he said, trying to put on a dramatic scene. He saw Joseph’s eyes trying to analyze him, digging deeper into him. Ed felt like that man was trying to read his mind.

"I see," Joseph said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "You must be very tired. How about we try again tomorrow?"

"No! I did what you asked, now I want to go home."

Joseph ignored him and spoke with the General, Ed didn’t understand a single word. He passed his hand through his brownish hair, feeling that he would never see his home again.

"The General said that we can arrange a very comfortable room here for you. Please, rest and tomorrow we will try again."

"This is kidnapping!" Ed shouted, fear overcoming him.

"No it’s not. I promised that you will get paid, didn’t I?" Joseph showed him a small black sack and opened it. He then held a small diamond with his fingers and threw it to Ed’s feet.

"That diamond comes from the General’s personal collection. He hopes that you will like it."

"That’s nice and all, but I want to go home," Ed replied, picking up the diamond.

"Not until you give us a better reading, Mr. Jacovazzi. Until then, you will stay here as a guest. Fear not, you will like it here, the scenery is beautiful."

Having said that, Joseph ordered another man, in his mother tongue, to keep watch on Ed and then left with the General and his men. The soldier accompanied Ed to a small room furnished with a single bed, a metallic table and chair and a small window. Outside the sun was setting now, giving the red earth a look that could only be found on other planets. Ed sighed, feeling like a prisoner. He thought about calling Gina; after all they didn’t even take his phone. He checked and noticed that there was no signal; the only way to communicate inside and to the outside of the base was by using military equipment. There was nothing to do but to wait until tomorrow and hope for something.

*     *     *
After having been served dinner by his guard, Ed noticed something--the door of his room was never locked, he was allowed to leave the room if he wanted to, but the guard would always stay by his side. That was the only thing that prevented him from escaping. Maybe Joseph wanted to treat him well in order to gain his sympathy. Not to mention that Ed really had no way of escaping the base; it was located in the middle of nowhere and he had no idea if there was a city close by. The only one who could have helped him was a local.

While eating his dinner, roasted chicken and a few vegetables, Ed formulated a plan. In order to work the guard needed to understand his language, and that was the real gamble in his design. He stood up from the chair and went to the door. The guard, a young man with a short patch of beard under his chin, lifted his eye towards him. Ed raised his hand, trying to reassure him that he wasn’t going to run.

"I need the bathroom."

The guard stood up and walked behind him while Ed was going towards the bathroom. The fact that he understood his words was a good thing, Ed decided to put his plan in motion. He pretended to trip and fell down on his knees, massaging his leg and faking an injury. The guard reached for him, trying to help him stand up. It was all Ed needed: an excuse to establish contact with the guard, peer into his future and acquire some information that he could use to force him to escape the base.

When the hand of the guard touched him, Ed saw nothing. No vision came to him in any form. It was all normal, he was perfectly normal.

"Stand up. Can you?"

"Yes! Yes, I can stand. See?" Ed said, going back to his feet quickly. When they reached the bathroom, the guard remained posted outside while Ed closed himself up and fell into despair. Were his powers really gone for good? If that was really the case then it was all over; he had no way to escape and Joseph would discover his secret. What would be his fate then? Death? Torture? Or worse? Sitting on the toilet he grabbed his head between his hands. His powers were gone. Or maybe they were just weak, maybe he needed another chance to touch the guard. Only one more.

When he left the bathroom he pretended to trip again, and again the guard helped him. And again nothing, no visions of any kind. He returned to his cell, sitting at the table, and the guard returned to his watch outside the room.

Ed had no idea how to proceed. The only thing left was to wait for tomorrow and the inevitable consequences that were in store for him. He felt his stomach rumble a little and tried to finish his chicken. He sneezed a little while chewing and before he knew it, he started choking. He tried to spit it out, but he couldn’t. Before he knew it, he was standing and gasping for air. He felt someone behind him, grabbing him and holding him tight, and feeling himself squeezed like a broken puppet, Ed managed to spit out the piece of chicken that was suffocating him. Finding himself in the hands of the guard, Ed did not waste his chance and tried one last time. And this time the visions came to him, blurry and distorted, but he recognized a woman and two kids, two girls, one of them missing one of her front teeth.

Ed turned to see the guard and quickly grabbed him by his shoulders.

"You have a wife and two daughters, one of them is missing one of her front teeth," he said quickly. The guard looked at him confused, and Ed kept on talking.

"They are going to die," he lied. "If you stay here and the bomb goes off they are going to die. We are all going to die, we need to leave."

The guard hesitated, unsure about what to do. Ed kept on pressuring him, cornering him and not giving him a chance to think clearly.

"You know that I can predict the future, you saw me before, with the bomb. You were there, you know it."

"I need to talk with my superior officer," the guard finally spoke, “I need to report this.”

"They won’t believe you. They put too much effort and money in this bomb, they won’t listen to reason. We can only save ourselves and your family; if you talk to someone right now it’s all over."

The guard lowered his eyes, and Ed wasn’t sure that his words reached him; he could only hope that his fake story would stick and that the guard was a good family man.

"What can we do?" the guard asked.

"We must leave this base, immediately. Then I will go back home and alert my government. You will take your family far away from here. Run, that’s what you have to do."

"I don’t know if I can…"

"What are you saying? This is about your family! Won’t you save them?"

"I don’t have the money to leave and begin a new life somewhere else. Even if we escape we couldn’t…"

Ed bit his lips. He was almost there, he just needed something to convince him, a final push. And then he remembered. He showed the guard the small diamond that Joseph had given him before, and the guard accepted it and put it in his pocket.

"I will take you to the closest city. There is an old airport there. If you have the money you can go home," he said. "I will take you outside the camp, stay close to me."

Ed nodded and the two men went to the parking lot, where his former guard took a military jeep and invited him in. Once they reached the gate the guard gave an explanation to the other soldier, who took notice of Ed. For his part, he tried to smile a little, a gesture of courtesy that came off as very forced from him.

The gate was opened and the jeep roamed in the dark of the night.

"What did you tell them?" Ed asked.

"I said that the Lieutenant asked for you back at the capital."

"The Lieutenant? You mean Joseph? The tall guy in a suit?"

"Yes. But his name is not Joseph; the Lieutenant uses different names when he travels abroad for secret missions. He is a scary man, soldiers don’t discuss his orders, so if I tell them that he asked for you they will never complain." The guard fell silent for a second, "He is a scary man."

"I’m sure of it. But remember your family, this is for them. Remember."

The guard nodded with conviction. For a moment, Ed felt sorry for the poor sucker. After a three-hour drive, they saw the lights of a city. They drove towards a small, antiquated airport. Ed had never taken a plane in his all life.

"Here you can take a plane. There are other white men around the airport. You won’t stand out too much."

Ed got out of the jeep and checked his appearance in the rearview mirror. His black suit was dirty with dust, but aside from that he was okay.

"Listen," the guard said, "tell your government to send peacekeepers here when you arrive home."

"Sure I will." Ed replied without sincerity. He had no clue about how to talk to his government. And he wanted to just go home and forget about what had happened.

"I must thank you," the guard continued. "I wanted to leave the army for quite some time, but I never had the courage to do so. Your words, they gave me the strength I needed."

"Come on now, there is no need to…"

"My name is Harim," he said. "I doubt we will see each other ever again. But please, don’t forget me. And I won’t forget you, I am in your debt."

Ed felt strange hearing those words. That man, whom he had manipulated into betraying his superior officer, was sincerely grateful to him. What would be his fate? Ed wished he had his powers back. He stretched his hand inside the jeep to shake Harim’s hand. He wanted one last vision, something that could be of help to the young former soldier who helped him. The two men shook hands and Ed saw nothing.

"Good luck, Harim."

The jeep disappeared into the city traffic. Ed watched his new friend until he could no longer see him, then he hurried inside the airport, eager to reach home.

*     *     *
A week after his little adventure in the middle of nowhere, Ed was waiting for Gina outside the synthetic clothing store. On the wall nearby, the News Channel was playing. The screen wall came on and showed the face of a young woman dressed in red. Another window, close to her face, showed scenes of destruction and misery.

"-it is still unclear how it happened, but International organizations are starting to understand what events may have unfolded in the country of Akhtam, in Central Africa. Born after a civil war that started in 2139 and that lasted for five years, the small nation was torn apart by another civil conflict, this time between opposing government militias. The General Commander Azhambeete was apparently going to deal a mortal blow to his rivals using a newly developed chemical bomb that, according to recent discoveries, malfunctioned. General Azhambeete was on site when the device detonated. The device contained a particular virus capable of consuming the flesh of those who came in contact with it. The virus has a very short lifespan, less than four minutes in open air, but this small amount of time is more than enough to kill a grown man. General Ashambeete’s body was identified by dental records, since very little remained of him. The bomb exploded in a military base near the capital city of Ushindi. Many civilians died shortly after. The survivors have suffered from mutilations and disfigurement provoked by the virus. The local government is currently in disarray, since many of its members are currently deceased or missing. Among these, there is the infamous Lieutenant Kiegari that-"

The face of Joseph appeared on the wall screen. Ed stared at it until it disappeared and the News Channels was turned off by the automatic system inside the walls. He heard the seagulls flying over him, a couple of police drones were among them. He felt safe, everything was right in the world.

Gina finally decided that it was time to go, after buying a shimmering purple trench and a bright green hat. Ed felt relieved, not just because her shopping was over, but also for having told her the truth. After coming back home he had told her everything. About his power loss, about his kidnapping and his escape. Gina had listened to him and then hugged him, telling him that everything was alright. It was like being welcomed in high Heaven.

After that, he had resolved to visit Doctor Singh one last time. The doctor told him that he was indeed human now; small traces of mutant cells were still inside his body, and they could trigger visions of the future, but Ed had lost all control over them and he could no longer work at the Von Kofter Company. When they tried to sue him because of potential economic losses provoked by having kept secret his conditions, Alejandro interceded for him, negotiating that they simply let him go without benefits. That saved Ed from a long and costly legal process.

Now they were taking a walk on the riverfront, enjoying the sun and the things to come. Ed couldn’t help but think about how lucky he was. Without realizing it, he was surrounded by people who cared for him, and not just for his powers. Alejandro, Gina, and even the man who helped him escape, Harim. He wondered what had happened to him. Was he among the dead or the injured? Or did he manage to save himself and his family? He had no idea, and he had not contacted government authorities to send help. He simply didn’t think about it, too busy dealing with his own life. But now that everything was settled, he could do something about Harim, maybe find him and help him, if necessary. Another idea came to him, while holding Gina’s hand. It was something he had wanted to ask her for a while, but he was afraid about how she might react. It wasn’t an easy question.

"Listen Gina," he said, stopping and turning her around gently, "please don’t get mad."

"Now I’m definitely going to get mad."

"Please, it’s important. Why did you..." he spoke hesitantly, "Why are you still with me? I thought that you would leave after discovering that my powers are gone. Why are you still here?"

Gina looked surprised. Ed felt sad and fearful, maybe thinking that she was going to tear him apart.

"You really are an idiot, aren’t you? I love you, that’s why I’m here."

"It’s just...I thought…"

"You thought that without your powers and your job I would leave you, you told me. You think that just because I do modeling that I’m an empty-headed easy girl?" she said, pretending to be angry. "You used your powers to pick me up the first time we met, didn’t you?"

Ed stared blankly at her, feeling caught. He imagined that she would be angry, and instead she was smiling.

"I figured it out after you told me your job. You told me exactly what I wanted to hear that night."

Ed remained silent, nodding slightly. There was no point in denying it. The first time he saw her it was during a party hosted by the Company; he thought she was beautiful and managed to touch her hand, peering into her future only for a few minutes, seeing what kind of words he should use.He abused his powers to get laid, and from that point on their relationship grew into something more deeper.

"Do you remember when my parents died in that terrorist attack in Brazil three years ago?" she asked.

"Yes, of course."

"Do you remember what I did that day?"

"You cried, a lot. You threw a chair against our wall screen, breaking it. It cost a small fortune to repair."

"And then I shut myself in the bathroom, crying. Saying that I didn’t want to come out, but you spoke to me through the door and calmed me down. Remember?" she asked.

"Yes, but so what?"

"You didn’t touch me that day, I was on the other side of the door. You couldn’t possibly have known what kind of words would have calmed me, but you said those words anyway. Because you know me, and you care for me. You never needed to see the future to have me, you knew me and loved me. That’s why I’m here now, and why I want to stay with you, no matter what."

Hearing those words made Ed feel like an idiot. Gina wasn’t a bimbo like he feared, and he had underestimated her. Feeling overwhelmed by his feelings he hugged her, his heart pounding like crazy in his chest. Gina smiled and hugged him back, her shopping bags falling on the ground. The two of them didn’t speak, surrounded by the sound of people walking around them, the water from the canal flowing, the buzzing of a small drone hovering closer. They kissed and then the visions came to him.

Gina was on the ground, with a wound on her stomach laying in a pool of blood.

Without thinking, Ed pushed her onto the ground. Gina fell heavily on her back; she tried to get up, surprised and angry by this action.

"Ed! What the fu-"

A gunshot roared near her. She clamped her hands on her ears and saw Ed falling backwards. Turning her head, she saw a tall man dressed in a black suit. His face was heavily scarred, he was missing part of his lips, an eye patch was covering his left eye, and he was without a nose. He looked like he had been eaten, chewed, and spat out. When he spoke, a metallic robotic voice came out of his mouth.

"For my motherland, Mr. Jacovazzi," he said menacingly. "We both die together here."

Another gunshot roared in the air, but this time it did not come from the tall man. Instead, Gina saw the man falling on the ground with a gunshot wound to his head. Seeing his face, it was like his skin was consumed by a beast, showing part of muscle tissue and bone.

She stood up and rushed to Ed. He was shot in the stomach and was bleeding. Gina didn’t know what to do; she put her hands on the wound and felt warm blood coming out. The small white police drone equipped with a light firearm flew towards the tall man’s corpse and hovered over him while the speaker repeated the same message over and over again.

"This is police drone 0259MET of the European Federation. Please do not touch anything. Please remain in sight. A police unit is on the way. A medical unit is on the way. Please do not touch anything. Please remain in sight."

"Please help!" Gina cried out. "Somebody help him!"

The drone flew toward her and from the front of it came a small syringe.

"METAB, one dosage, inject in the injured subject. Slows blood loss and eases pain. METAB, one dosage."

Gina took the syringe and emptied it inside Ed’s body. The small drone kept repeating its orders to the small crowd that surrounded the scene. Gina slapped Ed’s cheek lightly.

"Ed, please Ed stay awake."

Weakened by the blood loss and inebriated by the painkillers in his body, Ed tried to open his eyes. It was all blurry, like his visions.

"J...Joseph...still…" he managed to say in a slumbering voice.

"He is dead, don’t worry, stay awake."

Gina almost froze when she noticed that Ed had a wide grin on his face.

"Ed?"

"Thought of...something funny," he managed to say, "I didn’t see it coming."