The Pocket Watch

The pocket watch is an incredibly rare and complex piece of magical machinery. In a nutshell, it gives the user Chronokinesis- the ability to manipulate the passage of time.

When wound backwards, it allows the user to speed up to the point where everything else seems to be standing still, and when wound forwards, the user is “frozen” in place as their perception of time speeds up, essentially shooting them forward in time while they remain unaged.

However, it cannot transport anyone back to the past, and the watch has time limits (if you stay in too long, the watch gets stuck). Only one person can use the watch at one time, and if the watch stops while the person is still using it, they’ll either be fast-forwarding through time for the rest of eternity or will be frozen in time forever- or, more likely, their bodies will implode from the strain and they’ll be warped out of existence.

There are only a few genuine pocket watches known to exist, and this particular one has been changing hands for decades before ending up in the possession of Don Mako (a crime boss from the Midwestern United States) and later, Charlie Gibson (a con man and small-time criminal formerly in Mako's employ).

Copies of the watch have been made, but it’s such a ridiculously complex design that even the best copies were only able to do a fraction of what the original could, and besides that, were much more volatile. Users of these watches are recommended to drink a stabilizing potion before starting the watch, or they could quite easily be torn apart by its power (but even then, it’s not a guarantee).

Tool

Metal, primarily an chromium alloy and coated with porcelain enamel. Smaller, more delicate parts of the watch are made of gold, silver, cadmium, or rhodium- metals known for their magical properties.

All the bits and pieces of the watch have been enchanted in one way or another, each spell working in total harmony with the others.

About 4 ounces.

Unknown, but it's suspected to have been created during WW2 as a weapon. It was never officially used in combat, but a handful of the completed prototypes were stolen sometime in the late 50's.

They've been floating around the black market for decades now, and so far the government has managed to get back two of them.

Chronokinesis

• A person who is fast-forwarding through time is frozen in place until they reach their "destination" (i.e. If someone travels forward an hour, they are totally paralyzed for that hour). However, during that time, anything could happen to them- they could be attacked, robbed, etc., and they'd be helpless to stop it. It's highly recommended to find a safe, secluded spot to travel forward where no one can meddle with the process.


• This function has been exploited in the past- one of Don Mako's favorite ways to dispose of his enemies (or even his less-than-satisfactory earners) is to sit them down, wind the watch to send them forward in time, then, when they're paralyzed, remove the watch from their hands; interrupting the process sends an intense magical shock through the user, the end result being that they implode and are reduced down to their atoms, essentially warping them out of existence. Mako has gotten away with countless murders with this method, as "erasing" someone doesn't leave law enforcers with a lot of clues to solve the mystery, much less evidence to pin it on Mako.


• Although Mako used the watch primarily for its proficiency in offing his opposers, he hasn't been shy about using it for its intended purpose (that is, manipulating time). Only his top operatives are permitted to use it, though, and most prefer to stick with the "winding back" function (slowing down time around them). However, this feature can only be used in set increments; if you've slowed down time for more than an hour of your perception, the watch starts to overload- hence why only the best are given this privilege.


• Mako's crime family has had the Pocket Watch in their possession for nearly forty years now, and let's just say that he isn't too happy when Charlie swipes it from under his nose.


• Quite a few people are after the watch, for obvious reasons; its infamy on the black market means it'll cost a pretty penny for anyone fool enough to take it for themselves, but criminals aren't the only ones who want it- the FBI has been hunting down Pocket Watches for decades, along with mages curious of its magical properties and a handful of conspiracy theorists who just want to prove that it exists- plus a certain private detective who's taken a special interest in tracking it down.