Calibrations

California 2010

For the second time since he'd left 2019, Figment panicked. He looked all around the Trans Am, opening up the trunk and searching under every seat, but he couldn't find his watch. He couldn't imagine what could have happened to it. He knew that he'd had it when he arrived in 2010, and he knew that he hadn't taken it off. He must have dropped it somewhere, so if he retraced his steps, he would find it. The time machine couldn't have gone far.

"I don't think it's in the car," Poison concluded as Figment kept digging around underneath the driver's seat.

"I'm just quadruple checking," Figment said calmly, but on the inside, he was terrified. What would he do if he couldn't find his time machine? How would he save Frank?

"Hey Poison, how many comic books do you have in here exactly?" Pepper asked as he looked for Figment's watch under a giant stack of comics.

"Shut up," Poison said. "I bet your car isn't any better."

Figment tuned them out, but he was getting desperate. He had no clue what he was supposed to do. He remembered being here before, but he couldn't remember how he'd gotten his watch back. There had to be a way. He just hadn't thought of it yet.

Meanwhile, Ray Toro was on his way home, singing along to the radio. He drove fast, and as the engines roared, he congratulated himself on a job well done. The video for "Na Na Na" would surely turn out well, and he hadn't gotten any new assignments from the Watch, so now, he could go home, relax, and spend some time with his wife Christa. Already, he was sure that today would be a great day.

He hadn't bothered to take off his jacket, but he didn't mind. It was comfortable, and he liked the design a lot. He was genuinely excited for Danger Days: he was sure the fans would love the concept as much as he did. Sometimes, Gerard's obsession with the album scared him a little bit, but he couldn't deny that the My Chemical Romance lead singer was one of the most creative artists he knew. He almost felt bad about what would happen to Gerard in the future, the twists of fate that were yet to come.

He thought back to when he had met the Gerard from 2019 while they were recording the Black Parade. He had done exactly what he was trained to do, but he never found out what happened to Gerard afterwards. Presumably, Billie had dealt with him in whatever way he saw fit; most likely, he had just sent him back to his own time, like he did with most chrono-criminals. Sometimes, he felt bad about arresting one of his closest friends, but he was sure that he'd done the right thing. He was an Agent of the Watch, after all. It was his job to keep time travelers safe.

Ray put his earpiece in, just to check in with Billie. "Director Armstrong, this is Senior Special Agent Toro," he said. "Do I have any assignments?"

He heard some muffled noises, and then Billie Joe's voice finally cut through. "Ray, Green Day is literally about to go onstage," he said. "Do you really think I care about Watch business right now?"

"I'll take that as a no," Ray said as he took his earpiece out. He looked ahead and kept on driving down the highway, the Los Angeles skyline looming on the horizon.

While Ray drove, Figment paced around the Trans Am, trying to think of a way out. His past selves were only distracting him, with Poison showing off his dance moves, Youngblood and Pepper watching Poison dance, and Revenge sitting in the car and sulking. As far as he was concerned, if he couldn't find the time machine, he only had one option.

He would have to contact the Watch.

It seemed counterintuitive. The Watch wanted nothing more than to send him back to his own time, and if they did that, then he wouldn't be able to save Frank. However, the Watch wouldn't want to leave a time machine in 2010 for anyone to find. They hated that kind of chaos. Besides, Figment knew that they had the resources to look for his time machine. If Billie could track him through time and space, then he could surely find a missing watch. Figment's best shot was to find a sympathetic Watch agent and get them to find his time machine. If they sent him back to 2019 instead, then he would be no worse off than he was now.