Pierce Through! Plasma Bullet!

Finally. The grievances had gone away. The stage was all set. After all, the spotlight could only be cast on one person. The most important person. And who else could be more deserving of it than the queen herself? Nothing could stop her from performing the task befitting her status.

The queen of what, one might ask? Why, the queen of the whole world, of course! Future queen. It was a work in progress.

Usano’s ambitious fantasies raged on as she watched Hiro and Haruka zoom toward the ship. Grunt work belonged to simpler beings like them. She, on the other hand, had a much more vital task at hand. The entire mission sat on her shoulders. Most would succumb to the great weight and pressure this entailed, but not her. This was all light work.

She sat on the Duck’s driver’s seat—the moment she’d been waiting for. Yes, a queen wouldn’t drive her own carriage, but she couldn’t resist a vehicle crafted by the genius Big Sis Maki herself. Her countless observations of Maki at the steering wheel weren’t in vain. She drove the Duck back underwater.

“Left for drill, middle for tunnel, and right for suck.” Usano repeated these words as she hovered her hand over the levers. In fact, she’d repeated them so much until she no longer felt sure if they were right. Alas, the magnificence of her own electromagnetic field prevented her from contacting Maki.

The Duck soon came face to face with the ship’s bottom deck. A sea of valuable ores lay behind the ironclad walls. With momentary reluctance, Usano pulled the left lever, and the Duck’s beak spun rapidly.

A sigh of relief escaped her lips. The hardest part was knowing which buttons did what. She felt certain Hiro and Haruka had already done their duty alerting all the guards, meaning all that was left was to step on the gas.

“Heck yeah! Let’s go!”

The beak easily drilled through until its entire head was inside the ship. When she pulled the second lever, the beak opened wide. Clinks and clanks sounded from beneath the floorboard. Her seat pulled back, revealing a passageway just big enough for a single person. It led all the way out through the beak.

“Wee!” Usano slid through the passageway and was immediately met with stacks upon stacks of containers chained together. They were welded shut. To pry open each and every one would be nigh impossible—for a commoner, that is. Pink sparks danced around her fingertips. A single blast of lightning tore open a large hole in one of the containers. Just as she expertly calculated, it was filled with the same sacks of ores seen from Leo’s footage.

She lifted up one of the sacks with tremendous effort. This physical feat barely lasted two seconds before she dropped it. The sack ripped open, and pieces of vivid, lustrous ores scattered on the ground.

“Ugh! This is so stupid!” Usano stomped her foot. Lightning sparked from the impact. “Knowing how to do magnetism would be sooo useful right now! But no! ‘Excessive drugs can mess up your braiiin.’ Says the quack doctor with a cigarette addiction! Maybe he can’t handle it, but I can! Maybe I should just go up and help them fight.”

She looked around. The ores weren’t going to collect themselves. This monumental task was entrusted to her and her alone. If she couldn’t do it, then who could?

Crestfallen, she picked up the pieces of ore and placed them in front of the Duck’s beak. She then dragged the fallen sack to the pile and pulled the right lever, which activated the vacuum. The ores were swiftly sucked in. One down, and…

“...A bajillion more to go.” She sighed.

Suddenly footsteps echoed above her. “Faster! Check the goods!” she heard a man shout.

Usano’s eyes widened. Her mouth opened into a broad smile.

Finally, some action.

A tall man in a white trench coat and bowler hat stormed down the stairs. He wore a single black glove that covered his whole right arm. It had a control panel on the back of his hand. Two guards armed with rifles followed behind him. The man in the trench coat held a finger over his earpiece. “Hm. Still just static. How about you, boys? Any luck?”

The two guards checked their receivers. “Nothing, Captain,” one of them said. The other shook his head.

Their captain clicked his tongue. “I told those backward-thinking Huasheng goons not to bring every guard to the upper deck! Quick! Check the perimeter! If you notice something, yell right away.”

They saluted him. “Yes sir!”

“That won’t be necessary!” Usano stood atop a container across from them. Right hand on waist! Left leg slightly slouched! Left hand loose and relaxed, facing its palm at her opponents! And to top it all off, a cocky grin as she stared down at them condescendingly. Absolutely nailed the pose, she affirmed herself.

The captain pointed at her. “There she is! Shoot!”

Before they could aim their guns, she shot a lightning bolt at the ground. Thunder echoed from the steel walls.

“Wh-what the hell?!” The captain pressed a button on his glove, which deployed three nanobarriers in front of him and his men.

Usano cleared her throat. Her eyebrow twitched. How dare they pay no heed to her words? “It would do you well to listen before rushing to act. Such foolishness would only burn you to a crisp.”

They fell silent.

Excellent! A true success! She had instilled the fear of the queen in their hearts!

She nodded proudly. “Good, good. You men ought to know how to listen to a lady when she speaks.”

“Who are you? What did you come here for?” the captain asked.

“Oh? Straight to business, I see. Very well. Look around you!” Usano spread her arms wide. “What do you think I want?”

He took out his pistol. “Do you have any idea who you’re messing with? This isn’t some playground!”

Usano shot another bolt on the ground with her finger. “Nu-uh-uh! Keep that gun down. I don’t think YOU have any idea who you’re talking to at all! For I, Yo—”

She quickly stopped herself. That was close. Revealing their names was a strict no-no. A queen must aptly choose her time to shine.

“You’re insane,” the captain said. “Do you want the wrath of both Orin and Huaseng to fall on you?! ‘Cause I don’t! If you leave now, we can both be spared and blame this all on a terrible storm.”

“A terrible storm, huh?” She scratched her chin. “I like the way you think! If you three help me unload all these ores, we can just say a storm washed them all away!”

The captain paused for a moment before turning to his men. “You two, head up and call for backup. I’ll stay and distract this… thing.”

“What did you call me?!”

“S-Sir,” one of his men said, “are you sure about—”

The captain cocked his gun. “JUST GO!”

“Yes sir!” They sprinted toward the stairs.

“Oh no!” Lightning sparked from Usano’s feet. She leaped into the air with great speed. One of the nanobarriers flew up and blocked her path. She slammed head-first into it.

As Usano fell, the captain aimed his gun. Before the bullet even fired, she zipped away. Lightning formed into the shape of a javelin in her hand. The three nanobarriers flew in front of her as a barricade. She tossed the javelin above them, completely missing the two fleeing guards. It sliced through the metal staircase. One of the guards pushed the other away as the staircase collapsed on top of him.

The other guard rushed to his aid. “Captain! Help! What now?!”

Usano descended elegantly on the ground. On the spur of the moment, just when her prey almost went loose, her ingenuity destroyed their only means of escape. She exhaled as she reveled in her own wisdom. Now, for certain, they had no other choice but to listen to her demands.

A nanobarrier protected the two guards. The other two flew back to the captain’s side. He turned to his men. “Is he alright? Can he stand?”

The guard felt his comrade’s neck. He then shook him violently and slapped his cheeks repeatedly. “I… I think he’s dead.”

The captain grit his teeth and glared at Usano.

Tears poured from the guard’s eyes. “Captain? Captain, what do we do? This girl’s a monster!”

Disgust painted Usano’s face. “Ugh! Rude! Do you want me to kill you?! I am by no means a monster! If anything, I am a graceful and sophisticated lady. I’m actually perfectly okay with letting you go, but only if you help me transfer all the ores. Manpower’s all you’re good for, anyway. So, what’s the verdict?”

The captain breathed heavily. His eyes darted back and forth between Usano and his comrades.

She tapped her foot rapidly. “Tick tock! You’re testing my patience.”

“S-Sir!” the guard cried. “What’re your orders?”

“GET UP!” The captain’s voice thundered. “It’s either we die here, or she gets away and we get killed anyway! Open fire!”

“YES SIR!” The guard staggered to his feet and unloaded his magazine. His captain did the same with his pistol.

Usano zoomed through the air back and forth. Pink afterimages were left behind at her wake. “Grr! This is futile, you know! I reallllly don’t wanna kill you! We can work together! Share the loot!”

The captain reloaded his gun. “Don’t stop shooting! We’ll tire her out eventually!”

A war of attrition? What a disgrace to her majesty’s battlefield!

“Are you hearing yourself? That’s so lame!” Usano leaped past the flying bullets and landed behind the guard. Electricity coated her hand as she thrust her fist into his back.

The man dropped his rifle with an agonizing scream. His hands reached for his back in vain. He fell on his knees.

Usano shook her bloodstained hand. “Ow. Ow. Okay. Not doing that again.” She aimed her finger at the guard like a gun. “So? Do you give up n—”

A nanobarrier crashed into her. It rammed her into a nearby container. The other nanobarriers sped toward her. Usano pushed against it, but its strength crushed her. From her feet, high-voltage lightning shot into the container behind her. It exploded into bits. Singed sacks of ore scattered all around. With the momentum of the explosion, she leaped over the nanobarriers.

Usano steadied her palm as she aimed at the captain. Sparks of lightning gathered together into one spot. The captain hurriedly called for the nanobarriers to return, but they were too slow.

She laughed hysterically. “Eat this, mongrel!”

BANG!

With trembling hands, the guard shot at her. The bullet grazed her arm. A bright beam of lightning shot from her hand and struck the ship’s wall. Water streamed inside steadily from the hole that formed.

The guard scrambled to his feet, but when he poised for another shot, Usano had vanished. Frantically, he searched for her.

“Above you!” the captain yelled, but it was too late.

A bolt of lightning struck the guard. Electricity coursed through him. He convulsed violently. Usano landed on his back. She stood on top of him as though he were her podium. Smoke rose from his body. The smell that permeated the air was akin to burnt barbecue.

Searing pain afflicted her arm. Blood trickled down her charred wound. It grew more difficult to breathe. If she drained much more energy, the electromagnetic field around the ship would shut down. Still, the show must go on. Any show of weakness must be eradicated. Usano composed herself and forced a smirk.

She stepped on the guard’s head. “This guy’s still breathing. Whether or not it stays that way is up to you, Mr. Captain. Start picking up the sacks and place them in front of the Duck. And make it snappy. The floor’s getting wet.”

The captain stood still. He stared at the ground and exhaled. “...Sorry.”

“Hm? What was that? Raise your voice, plebeian.”

“I’M SORRY!” He raised his gun and fired. Three bullets ripped through the air.

Boosted with lightning, Usano jumped high. Her fatigue had caught up with her. One of the shots scraped her thigh. With both hands charged, she fired a surge of electricity, but the nanobarriers blocked it. Sparks flew; pink light flashed. The captain, however, remained unharmed.

“Ugh! I hate those things! Who made those!” Enraged, Usano slammed back down to the floor. Her foot crackled with lightning as it flattened the guard’s head. Blood splattered, and bits of scorched skull and brain clung to her shoes.

The frantic captain stepped back, but his legs gave way. He stumbled on his behind.

“Y-You…!” A visceral groan erupted from her mouth. She labored with every hitched breath as she furiously shook the gore off her leg. “This is so… so… DISGUSTING! This is all your fault! You are dead, you hear me?! DEAD!”

The captain pulled his pistol’s trigger, but he had run out of bullets. In futile desperation, he clicked and clicked and clicked. “P-Please! Let me go! I’ll do it! I’ll help you!”

It was far too late. All she saw was red.

Usano lifted her finger. A subtle sizzle gradually intensified. Electricity coalesced into a vibrant pink ball. It pulsed with every passing second and expanded in size to a rhythmic beat.

With a blood-curdling shriek, the captain rushed to the ship’s wall and cowered. The nanobarries encircled him closely.

“Are you ready, insolent lout?! PIERCE THROUGH! PLASMA BULLET!” She pointed her finger at him. The colossal ball of energy hurtled toward him. The nanobarriers melted upon contact. Not a single speck remained of the captain. It tore through the ship’s wall and evaporated the water around it, splitting the ocean in two. Rain began to pour, and the electromagnetic field that engulfed the ship dissipated.

Usano blinked rapidly as she gawked at the destruction before her. A small blunder. It could happen to the most cautious of queens. So long as she dealt with her opponents, who cared? The end always justified the means.

Water came crashing back down. A torrent swiftly flooded the ship.

“Uh oh.” Usano zipped away before seawater flooded the room.