Them's Fighting Toys, Sir!

“What kind of lunatic puts explosives inside a POTATO?!”

Pure shock rooted me to the spot. I didn’t know whether to be concerned that this man would even think of such a thing, or afraid of it being real. If my father’s stories were to be believed, the army did not take lightly to tardiness but, at that point, I felt safer standing outside the doorway with Kit snuggled in my pocket than where I was actually supposed to be.

Unfortunately, stealth was not my forte.

The man gestured me inside. It wasn’t a surprise to learn that the commander was the same man who’d checked me in. Covered in a sheen of sweat from the battle, I found it a little harder to be intimidated by his gaze—though that could have been because it wasn’t on me.

The commander sighed. “I understand that, but we’ve got a war coming! I need to focus on strategizing, not vegetable warfare!”

He peeked at me and I stood a little straighter. “I have to go. We’ll talk later.”

Hanging up the phone, he zeroed in on me, taking the time to watch me squirm.

“I have three daughters,” he started.

Not the opening I was expecting. He could have told me he was planning to weaponize oranges and I’d have been less surprised—though given the conversation I’d heard, that might not have been too far off. Regardless, my experience had taught me that fathers were less than thrilled to hand their kid off to a toy-obsessed guy like myself. Well, except Naoki’s dad, but he knew I didn’t like his daughter like that.

“They’re quite creative,” he continued. “I’ve seen them turn a pile of sticks into an obstacle course.”

Oh, lord, was he going to sic his kids on me?

“But they have never once made their toys effective like your marbles were.” He narrowed his eyes. “I find it hard to believe.”

Many people underestimated the uses of my toys. With enough creativity, jacks could be a trap to intruding Naokis trying to ninja his way into my bouncy balls. Those bouncy balls could then be thrown out to catch him off guard. From there, a well-placed doll could trip him, ending his heist for good. Then again, dolls had a lot of other uses—that gave me an idea.

He looked me in the eye. “So I want you to prove it.”

Immediately, my mind went blank. I’d summoned a lot of toys in my time, but I hadn’t really looked into what they all did. I found the gamble to be fun. Like maybe someone would try to mug me and I’d bust out the toy dinos. I imagined the little guy latching onto the robber and staring into the man’s soul. Nothing like dinosaurs to make you question everything.

But I didn’t know if they would actually do that. I needed something I had at least a little experience with. My mind recalled the dolls again, and I remembered one particular one. It was worth a try. If nothing else, I’d get to show off one of my toys. That was good enough for me.

I focused on my right hand. Honestly, if it weren’t for Kit, I wouldn’t have known about this gem at all. When we’d scrolled through old toys together, she’d been absolutely obsessed with seeing this one. I remembered the fabric as it rolled across my hand. I vividly recalled the edges of his shoes and the smoothness of his hair. Looking down, I saw the iconic Ben doll, its dull eyes staring straight into my soul.

It began to squirm in my hand, but I held him tight as I addressed the commander.

“In my hand is the Benevolent Ballerina Ben,” I started. “A vintage piece, this little guy dazzled the hearts of many. With my powers, Ben dances his heart out.”

The little guy smacked my hand, but I wasn’t letting him up that easily. “Imagine this: the battle is long, the soldiers tired. Everything is a blur until suddenly they see him! Ben spins his way right to the enemy. Not only does he distract them with his dazzling display, but he also manages to get right under them. Entranced as they are, they hardly notice when he swipes their balance faster than the kids used to take him off the shelves! This gives the time for our allies to gain the upper hand.”

I grinned as I raised the flailing doll higher, my eyes saying See? Pretty cool, right?

“My girls loved dolls when they were younger,” Commander Doubtful pointed out. “So why haven’t I heard of this one”

“Well, yeah. It was pulled off the shelves.” I shook my head. “And for good reason, too.”

It was then that Ben made his escape. Leaping from my arms, he careened his tiny body into the commander’s desk. I was frozen between horror and awe as the tiny dancer twirled his way to a pile of papers. It was amazing how one man’s tutu could flow so easily. But it held no candle to the roller blades as they glided across the sheets of paper. And then the terror soared as flames ignited the pages.

I grabbed the arsonist-to-be as the commander leapt out of his chair. He curled his hands together like a guy trying to hold a ball. Except instead of bouncy fun, water gushed out towards the fire. I watched as it snuffed the flames, gently caressing the paperwork with a lover’s touch. Meanwhile, Ben was trying to leave for his second act. I wasn’t going to make the same mistake twice, so I held tighter as the commander turned to me.

“What caused this?”

I tensed, keeping my eyes solidly on Ben. “These roller skates were an absolute hit with the kids, but hitting them too hard made them spark. They were pulled from stores for starting fires.”

He leaned forward. “So these things are walking matches, then?”

I blinked. I’d never thought of it that way. “I guess so.”

Splash!

I sputtered, blinking the water out of my eyes.

“Why the hell didn’t you lead with that?!” he yelled.

I was still coughing up liquid as I answered. “I didn’t think of it, sir. I mean, Fyrementals take care of that sort of thing already, so I figured a distraction would be a better sell.”

Sighing like my father after a day of work, he sat back down. “I don’t get paid enough for this shit. . .”

“Clearly, there is a lot to learn about this. I suggest you find someone to help you look into this,” he continued. “There is one person who comes to mind when I say this.”

“One who definitely needs a lesson in stealth,” he said under his breath. He spoke louder. “Come in, cadet.”

It shouldn’t have surprised me that a Researcher walked in. If anyone was qualified to help me experiment, it was one of them. What did surprise me was how fast he zeroed in on Ben. Ignoring the commander—a bold move, on his part—the man was inches away from my doll’s face before I could even move. Even the dancer’s swiping hands couldn’t deter the guy. In fact, they seemed to make him more excited.

“Forces, what is that?!” he shrieked. “In all my years, I’ve never seen a conjure this lively! And the symbols on this guy! What did you do to make him move like that?!”

“What methods do you use when you conjure? How often do your toys fight you? Is it toys you summon? What exactly did you ask the Forces for? What was your first summon?” He paused for breath, frowning at me. “Why are you wet?”

“You two can talk on the way,” Commander Buzzkill said. “Cadet, give him a tour of the main areas.”

“Yes, sir!” The man wasted no time leaving. What I wouldn’t have done to be able to move that fast.

I took a second to get my bearings. At most, I’d expected to train for the day, learn when I was needed, and go home. But it sounded like they were interested in my toys, so I was happy with that. Bidding goodbye to Ben, I let him vanish as I followed the Researcher outside.