[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/LKcsd6y.png[/img][/center]
[hr][hr]

[i]"Selma is really strong,"[/i] Chie thought to herself. Not just strong, either. Kind too, with all her reassurances. It felt strange. As if that twang of guilt and doubt never left Chie, but instead got overwritten by the other girl's unwavering optimism. She still knew the danger of the situation, of course, but as she clung to Selma, somehow, she figured everything would turn out okay.

Captain Wei, quick to act in their time of need, shepherded the girls up the subway's staircase. Chie heard the gunshots of the various riflemen-and-women echo behind her, but was too scared to look back even if she could. It was only by Selma's attitude that she could keep calm at all, at least up until the cool night breeze brushed her skin. The subway wasn't particularly warm by any stretch of the imagination, but the flow of air tickling her skin made everything just that little bit colder. Made everything feel like they were outside, at last.

An armored vehicle pulled up in front of them and the four girls were helped inside. Chie had forgotten to thank Selma for letting her down, though given the situation, it'd have been a surprising if the other girl had held it against her. Chatter quickly filled the somewhat claustrophobic environment. It had sunk in to the girls around Chie that all their luggage was left behind, with some taking it harder than others. Chie herself paid it no mind- neither her luggage nor the chatter. Her mind was on something else as the vehicle drove through the night.

"Captain Wei," she shakily addressed the officer. It felt like a lump was caught in Chie's throat, but she still managed to share her question: "Those... masked people that attacked us. Do you... does the military know anything about them?" she asked.

There was so much more she wanted to add. 'Are they terrorists?' 'Were they coming for us?' 'Did one of them use magic?' and so forth. For now, however, she kept it simple, if only because Chie was still shaking like a leaf and couldn't muster much more.