It was a voice - human, weak, and heavily labored, as if drawing each breath required a monumental effort. The woman tending to Jacob dropped her bandage, her eyes wide with terror. Black Star and I glanced at each other, a silent understanding passing between us. The voice sent a shiver down my spine, the tone desperate, begging. But the memory of the creature that had hunted us in the emergency shelter remained etched into our minds. The faceless creature we'd encountered could mimic a human with horrifying precision.

"Let... me... in... please..." the voice echoed again. This time, it was followed by a cough, weak and raspy. The room was filled with a deafening silence, broken only by the muffled pleas outside the door.

Black Star was the first to break the silence. "Who is it?" he called out, his voice steady as he walked toward the door despite the tension gripping the room.

There was a pause, then a weak response. "Magical Knight... se...severely injured. Need... help. Water. Treatment."

Danny's grip tightened on his assault rifle. The battered and weary firefighters moved to his side, ready to defend their sanctuary. The other survivors shrunk back in fear, their eyes darting between us and the barricaded door. Despite their ordeal, their instinct to help a fellow human being was battling with the fear of the unknown.

I swallowed, trying to steady my racing heart. The voice outside sounded human enough, but Black Star and I knew too well that it could be deceiving. My mind immediately returned to the faceless creature we'd battled at the shelter.

Black Star was watching me closely, an unspoken question in his eyes. He spoke, "Remember the creature at the bunker, Sienna."

"Creature?" Jacob gasped, interrupting Black Star. His eyes were wide with alarm. "What do you mean 'creature'? Is this some sort of animal?"

"It's worse," I replied, my voice barely above a whisper. "It can take on the appearance of its victims and mimic them. We've seen it in action, and it's..." I trailed off, shuddering at the memory.

The survivors exchanged uneasy glances, their fear heightened by my grim description.

"So you're saying," Danny started, his voice shaky, "That this injured Magical Girl outside... could be one of those creatures?"

Black Star nodded, his face grave. "It's a possibility. A grim one, but still a possibility."

Another weak plea echoed through the door, sending chills down my spine. It was an eerie mix of desperation and hope. But was it genuine or a lure of the beast outside?

Suddenly, the room erupted into whispered discussions, each person torn between the instinct of self-preservation and the desire to help someone in need. The air was thick with tension, and I could tell that Black Star and I were thinking the same thing.

"We can't just leave her outside," a young woman argued, her face flushed with emotion. "She could be one of us. We need to help her!"

"But what if it's a trap?" an older man retorted. "We could be letting that creature inside, endangering all of us!"

The room descended into chaos, the atmosphere charged with panic and uncertainty. Black Star and I exchanged a glance, an unspoken understanding passing between us. We had to make a decision, and we had to take it fast. The banging on the door continued each strike like a hammer on our collective conscience.

"Do we open the door?" I asked Black Star, my voice barely audible over the arguments and pleas.

Black Star gave me a deadpan stare, "Really? You know my answer already. No stupid heroics, Sienna."

His words were harsh, but I saw a glint of concern in his eyes. I knew he was right, but it was hard to ignore the pleas from the other side of the door. We were all struggling, surviving, and in pain. How could we deny help if there was even the slightest chance that the person outside was genuine?

I turned my gaze to the door, my heart pounding in my chest. A part of me hoped the knocking would stop, that the decision would be taken out of our hands. But the relentless pounding continued each thump, a stark reminder of our predicament. My [Aura Sight] had been extremely faint since we escaped the antelope monster, and I checked my status to see my MP was down to a meager 11 points. Taking the illusion skill had consumed all of my remaining skill points. I felt that my ability to see auras was tied to my general fatigue.

"Alright!" I said, finally finding my voice amidst the panic. I addressed the crowd, my gaze unwavering. "Let's consider all our options before making a decision. We don't have any surefire way of knowing who or what is outside that door. Our fear is justifiable, but we can't let it control our decisions."

The room fell silent, the eyes of everyone turning towards me.

Black Star gave me a scowl, but his eyes betrayed a quiet admiration. The woman tending to Jacob moved closer, her eyes glistening with hope.

Danny spoke up, his voice clear and steady. "We can't ignore a call for help, especially not from a Magical Knight. But we also can't risk our lives, not when we've come this far. We have children with us, as you can see."

I nodded, appreciating his input. "We need a plan, one that accounts for both possibilities. We need to be ready to help if it's a genuine plea, and we need to be prepared to fight if it's a trap. If those things are intelligent, we're going to end up dealing with more of them if it brings friends. Let's huddle for a second."

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Everyone gathered in close, lowering their voices.

"But how can we prepare for something we know so little about?" an elderly woman asked, her voice trembling. Her question echoed in the room, her fear mirrored in the faces of many others. It was a valid concern that I had been mulling over myself.

"We don't know much about the creatures," Black Star began, confident and steady. "But we know the one we encountered is deceptive, capable of mimicking humans. To what extent, we have zero fucking idea."

"Then how can we possibly tell if it's genuine or not?" the woman retorted, her voice filled with desperation. "We'll be opening our doors to the unknown."

"Yes, but we have one advantage," I chimed in, meeting her gaze.

"What's that?" Danny asked.

I puffed up my chest and looked him in the eye. "Me."

I summoned my little energy, wreathing my hand with amber light. It was a bluff — I had almost nothing left in my gas tank, but it revealed my identity as a Magical Girl. Well, a girl on her first day, at least. A 'cadet' who didn't know how to transform.

The room gasped collectively, staring at my glowing hand as if it held the solution to all our problems. Black Star gave me a questioning look, and I merely shrugged, trying my best to appear confident. The glow from my hand dimmed, and I let my arm drop to my side.

"Danny, let's get some strong people over by that door. If anything goes wrong, close it immediately." I said, my gaze sweeping the room. "Prepare for a fight. I'll check if it's a human or not."

"But... how?" a young woman asked, her voice trembling with fear.

I turned to face her, forcing a reassuring smile as I bluffed. "I can tell. Trust me."

I was making the assumption that if it was one of those faceless creatures, it'd try to spike me with its needle-like claws like it did the soldier back at the bunker. If it was one of those creatures, I had my abilities to fall back upon to prevent myself from turning into one of those zombies, at the very least.

With a firm nod, Danny barked out orders, pulling a group of people towards the barricaded door. Everyone began moving in a hushed frenzy. Some started to arm themselves with anything they could find: pipes, fire axes, broken metal shards, and even a few firearms. Others huddled together, holding on to each other while waiting for what would come.

Meanwhile, the pleading voice outside continued to echo. "Please..."

As the tension built into the room, I closed my eyes and focused, drawing a deep breath. The whispers and shuffling around me became a distant hum. I needed to focus, to channel whatever energy I had left.

A moment later, I felt a hand on my shoulder. "Are you sure about this, Sienna?" Black Star asked, concern edging his voice.

"No, not really," I admitted, cracking a weak smile. "But I believe it's the right thing to do."

Black Star didn't respond — he just stared at me. I looked up at him, meeting his gaze. His eyes were hard and focused, but I could see the fear beneath the surface. We were stepping into the unknown, gambling with not just our lives but the lives of all the survivors in the room. The pressure was immense.

"Alright, open the door," I instructed my voice steady despite the fear gnawing at my heart.

The room fell silent as Danny, and a few others began to cautiously remove the barricade. The scratching noise from the other side ceased, replaced by the raspy, uneven breathing of whoever — or whatever — was waiting outside.

As the last piece of the barricade was removed, the heavy metal door creaked open a crack. Immediately, a hand slipped through the gap. It was slender, pale, and heavily stained with blood. It twitched, reaching out as if begging for help.

From where I stood, I could see a faint purple and blue light emanating from the hand. It was barely visible but undeniably present. My heart pounded in my chest as I stepped forward, ignoring the shouts of warning from the others. I couldn't afford to be wrong.

"Sienna, wait!" Black Star called out, but I didn't stop.

The aura was growing stronger, pulsating in rhythm with the faint, struggling breaths from the other side of the door. My breath hitched as I extended my hand, the amber light flickering weakly as I touched the outstretched fingers. I instinctively understood that it was an effect of my [Luminary Conversion] skill.

A surge of energy shot through me, and I gasped, pulling my hand back. = The girl's aura flared up, then dimmed again. It was like nothing I'd felt before — a whirlwind of emotions and memories that weren't mine. There was pain, fear, and desperation, but also fierce determination and courage.

I turned around to face the crowd, all eyes on me. "She's human," I declared, the relief evident in my voice.

The room held its breath, their wide eyes flicking between me and the hand still sticking out of the gap in the door. A collective sigh of relief passed through the room. Still, the tension lingered, the memory of my earlier warning about the faceless monster fresh in their minds.

Black Star was at my side in an instant, his expression hard. "Are you sure?" he asked, his gaze darting back and forth between me and the door.

I nodded, certain. "Yes. I felt her aura. It's unmistakable. And, it's... strong, despite her injury. She's a Magical Girl, just like she said."

Black Star held my gaze for a moment longer before stepping away, his fingers brushing against mine in a fleeting moment of comfort. Then he turned to face the crowd, his voice booming through the fire station. "You heard her. Let's get her in and close the door."

The group near the door jumped into action. Two burly men, a firefighter, and another survivor, carefully pulled the door open while others braced themselves, ready to slam it shut at the first sign of danger.

What we saw on the other side of the door made me gasp. A girl, no older than eighteen, lay on the ground, her body bruised and bloodied. She wore a tattered costume reminiscent of a magical knight, her lengthy hair a startling shade of violet that was matted with blood and grime. But what caught my attention the most was the gleaming staff she clutched in her hand, making a scratching noise as it dragged along the floor. It pulsed faintly with the same purple and blue light I'd felt in her aura. She was battered beyond belief, and she'd be out of commission even with her incredible magical powers.

The girl was dragged into the fire station, the door slamming shut behind her with a resounding bang. The room descended into a nervous silence, the only sound being the girl's labored breathing and the soft hum of her staff.

Danny stepped forward, crouching beside the girl with a gentle hand on her shoulder. "We got you, kid. You're safe now."

The girl's eyes fluttered open, revealing a striking pair of violet eyes that sparkled with relief. She tried to smile, but her face contorted in pain instead. She raised her staff with trembling hands, pointing it towards the barricaded door.

"Barricade... stronger. Water... please," she wheezed out before her eyes fluttered shut, and her body went limp.

As Danny and the others jumped into action, tending to the injured girl and reinforcing the barricade, I couldn't help but feel a sense of dread settling in. Yes, we'd managed to save a Magical Girl, but at what cost?

How many more of these creatures were out there, waiting for their chance to strike?

A chill ran down my spine, and I shivered. Even with the girl here, safe and sound in our barricaded fire station, I couldn't help but dread the future.

Our fight for survival had only begun, and I just hoped we could make it through the night.