Dead Man Walking: Living By Day, Dead By Night
Chapter 251: Government Infighting

The battle between the Remnant Forces and the Elysian crusaders, while bloody for both sides, was short-lived. Ultimately, the objective of the Marines was successful. Eliminate Elysian means of production via precise artillery strikes. And cause chaos among the population.

If they had wanted to completely obliterate Elysium, then they would have brought an actual brigade worth of troops. Such a thing was unnecessary for the time being. Still, the Elysian Crusaders caught up to them quicker than anticipated.

And the losses sustained in combat were far greater than anyone in the Remnant had calculated. Of the roughly 500 Marines sent to Elysium, less than a hundred of them successfully withdrew from the Elysian Pursuit. All others were either killed in action, or were captured by the Cultists.

Their fates, no doubt, were worse than death. Fortunately, the Marines were given cyanide capsules in their teeth, to be broken upon the event of being captured by the enemy. And thus the Remnant was quite certain nothing would be leaked about their business.

Unfortunately for them, Valeria was a healer, and she could indeed heal poison. Just not disease. Because of this, the men who committed suicide upon being captured by the enemy were quickly restored to full health, and were indeed prisoners to be interrogated.

Not by Elysium like the Remnant had expected, instead they were transported to Necropolis, where Lilith would personally see fit that they spilled their guts. Figuratively and literally. Because once they had revealed everything they knew, they were eaten as a delicacy by the powerful Horde King.

But the Remnant knew none of this. Instead, the Governor of the Oregon Remnant facilities was on a conference call with the other Governors, such as himself. And the current President of the United States.

The President couldn't help but address the failures of the mission, even if it had ultimately been an operational success.

"While the Prometheus Power Armor units were thoroughly tested against the undead and their capabilities. It is clear to us now that the corrupted outlaws of the wasteland possess greater means than previously expected.

Our 30mm shells, while effective against individual targets, have proven ineffective against the enemy's numerical superiority. As well as their more elite forces. I'm afraid to say that the existence of such individuals has reached a superhuman level.

A more thorough investigation of this matter is required before we continue with our efforts to bring order to the wasteland, and the outlaws who currently dwell with in it. Does everyone else agree with this sentiment?"

Naturally, the Governor of Oregon, as he was currently known as, was far from pleased with his assets being used as guinea pigs to field test the new equipment. Why couldn't the forces under the command of the Governors of Texas or Montana be used instead?

And it was this resentment that forced him to voice his disagreement over the matter proposed.

"Let me guess, this investigation is to be carried out by the State of Oregon and its forces, am I correct?"

The President nodded his head in agreement, before confirming this would be the case. A sentiment which was shared by all other of the so called "Governors" who were taking part in the meeting.

"That is correct. Since the corrupted within your zone of responsibility appears to be the most advanced that our forces have come across so far. It naturally falls to you and your assets to determine the correct level of threat which they pose to the United States, and how to best deal with them.

I know you feel aggrieved by such an overwhelming burden Victor, but you can rest assure knowing that we all have faith in your abilities…"

The Governor of Oregon, or Victor as was his first name, was an elderly man of a military and political background. He had endured more than his fair share of government incompetence and shirking of responsibility in his time.

But to think that such behavior would continue even at the end of times, and so unashamedly at that. It truly was infuriating. Because of this, he could no longer keep his tongue, and instead began to speak up about the losses he had suffered, and had not yet replenished.

"Need I remind you that it was my men who were at the forefront of the discovery which revealed the existence of spectral undead? How many marines did I lose to such an enemy before it was my scientists who discovered a way to keep them at bay?

Now I have lost a few hundred more Marines, and this is after outfitting them with the Prometheus Class Power Armor which you all swore was superior to the corrupted and their capabilities. Well, we are now replaceing out the contrary, aren't we?

How many more of my men are supposed to die before I am approved of their replacements? If I keep throwing men at the problems we face without anyone else sharing the responsibility, I will soon no longer be able to maintain this facility, let alone all the territory which he has fought tooth and nail to reclaim from the undead!"

It was only natural that the President, and the other governors who were safely hidden in their holes, and not contributing much to the reclamation of America, would take offense to Victor's objections. And it was because of this that a fight quickly broke out between Victor and his peers.

The argument quickly got heated, with Victor accusing several of the other governors of failing to uphold their responsibilities. In the end the President shouted at them all, as if they were all a bunch of bickering children, and thus compelling the call to remain silent for him to speak.

"Enough, all of you!"

After everyone begrudgingly silenced themselves, the President took a sip from his coffee before addressing Victor's concerns.

"I understand your impatience for reinforcements, Victor. And I know you have suffered many losses in the pursuit of restoring law and order to America. But you know as well as any of us do that the human race was nearly wiped out in the aftermath of the apocalypse.

For now, the men we have in our ranks are the only men capable of doing the job. You will have to wait another eighteen years for your reinforcements to be born and raised… That is simply the nature of our situation.

So, do keep that in mind the next time you decide to accuse the rest of us of not doing our jobs… The decision is unanimous, Oregon will take responsibility for this matter and that is the end of discussion. Now we all have things we must do, so until our next scheduled meeting I will bid you all farewell…"

After saying this, the call ended, leaving Victor in a fuming state. The decision was unanimous? That's funny, because he specifically remembered voicing his disagreement. But he supposed that his opinion ultimately meant nothing at the end of the day.

Fine, he would do what was ordered of him. He would just deliberately delay the results of his investigation being transmitted to the other facilities until they learned their lesson.

---

Lilith sat in her personal penthouse. A thin gold chain was wrapped around her graceful neck, at the end of which was a small red gemstone. This gemstone, however, was not a ruby or a red diamond. Rather, it was Zane's own blood. Blood, which Lilith had personally manipulated into a crystal for the sake of becoming a memento of their first encounter.

The elegant and terrifying beauty wiped the blood from her lips, blood which was not her own, rather fresh from the bite she had taken out of the human arm she was currently eating. The information provided to her during her interrogation of the Remnant's marines was incredibly invaluable.

And yes, she had already conveyed that information to her siblings. All that was left was to enjoy her meal. Of course, Valeria was present to witness the horrifying sight. After all, she had dropped the ball. It was Lilith's job to secure the perimeter around Elysium.

Yet, the sudden arrival of the Remnant's marines, and their attack on Elysium was a disaster for Lilith. Not only because it gave Zane the opening, he needed to escape from her. But also because it left over 7,000 livestock dead.

Which was something Lilith could not easily forgive. But the truth of the matter was, she was still pissed off over what Zane had told her, and because of this, she needed to vent her frustrations. And the best way to do so was on her little pet.

Because of this, Valeria was forced to watch, with tears in her frightened eyes. As Lilith butchered and ate, the Marines who were in her custody. One by one, Lilith devoured their flesh and blood until only the bone remained.

And even then, she did it with the utmost civility. Using a fork and a knife, all while wiping the fresh blood which dripped down her luscious lips every time she bit into the raw meat. At the end of the meal, she set her silver ware aside, which was carried off by her handmaidens to be properly cleaned.

With a satisfied smile on her wickedly beautiful face, Lilith expressed her delight over the meal which Valeria had prepared for her.

Simply delicious…."

This was Valeria's punishment. To bear witness to the grotesque act of a monster, and to understand that should she fail to appease her master, then her fate would be the same as these poor souls.