Chapter 136: Survivors and the Delicious Ant-Cattle Cans

"Help us!"

"Help... us!"

The voice of the Chaos creature became hoarse and horrifying as it flailed its tentacles wildly, attempting another attack.

However, the tentacles struck nothing but air.

Unwilling to accept defeat, the monster lunged directly at Eden.

What greeted it, however, was a golden iron fist.

"Damned Chaos creature!"

Eden smashed the Chaos monster to the ground with a powerful punch, then stomped on it to keep it pinned.

Looking at the struggling monster underfoot, he felt only pity.

The cries for help earlier had come from this deceptive Chaos creature.

It was likely that no living person remained in this starport.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The golden bolter roared.

Eden emptied the clip, ending the creature's life.

Afterward, following his orders, the Mechanicus arrived under the escort of the Defense Forces and began repairing the communications equipment in the control hall.

Once the equipment was operational, Eden addressed the survivors of the starport through the transmitter.

"To the survivors of Starspire Port, this is your Governor, Eden Grant.

If you are still alive, stay in a safe place and wait for our rescue.

Please note, if you see xenos with the Aquila insignia, do not panic or attack. They will not harm you.

If it is safe to do so, you may attempt to send a distress signal to help the rescue team locate you more quickly..."

Eden paused to add, "Survivors, the worst is behind us. Hold on, and we will bring you home!"

After the broadcast, Eden led the Imperial Guards to other critical areas, continuing their search for survivors.

This starport resembled a small city, its overlapping areas and labyrinthine structure making the search a time-consuming task.

He could only hope someone had survived.

Starport Food Storage Warehouse

Knock, knock, knock.

Someone lightly knocked on the steel door.

A man's voice, slightly anxious, called out:

"Open the door, I'm here to save you!"

"Hurry up! The monsters are coming!"

But no one responded.

After several attempts, the man grew agitated, his voice turning hoarse and menacing.

"Open the door!"

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The steel door shuddered violently.

Something outside was pounding on it with great force.

Inside the storage warehouse, the survivors held their breath, covering their mouths in fear of alerting the Chaos creature outside.

The creature pounded on the door for a while but failed to budge it.

After several futile attempts, it seemed to give up and walked away with heavy footsteps.

Once the noise outside subsided, the survivors finally exhaled in relief.

"Phew, that damned monster is finally gone," sighed the bearded Saylor, looking at Tis.

"Do you think the people on the surface will come to save us?"

"Of course, they'll come to save us!"

Tis, her skin dark and her repair suit stained with grease, exuded a muscular and battle-hardened demeanor.

As a senior mechanic of the starport, her mechanical arm, equipped with tools like a circular saw and a flamethrower, had proven invaluable during the chaos. She had saved many lives and become the leader of the survivors.

However, she was now heavily bandaged, clearly nursing serious injuries.

Before she could say more, someone retorted:

"You said that last time, too. We waited a whole month, and no one came!"

"Yeah, our food is gone! We're all going to starve to death here."

"And your last plan got several people killed!"

The survivors grumbled incessantly.

Inside the storage warehouse, there was no food left.

Starving and desperate, many had stopped listening to Tis.

Those who could still complain were the lucky ones.

Most were too weak from hunger to even speak, lying on the ground in silence.

Hearing their complaints, Tis remained silent.

She wasn't confident the surface dwellers would come to their rescue either.

But she had sent out a distress signal.

Not long ago, she had organized a suicide squad to sneak into the communications hall during a brief lull in the Chaos creatures' activity.

Fortunately, they had managed to activate the equipment and contact the surface.

Unfortunately, the creatures attacked just as they made contact.

Tis had only enough time to shout one phrase to the surface:

"Help us!"

Then the connection was severed.

Under the monsters' onslaught, her team had scattered, and only half of them made it back.

Half a month had passed since then, and the survivors were now completely out of supplies.

Technically, there was still one batch of food in the warehouse.

Tis glanced at the pile of ant-cattle canned meat in the corner.

This batch of cans, meant for the Defense Forces, had inexplicably been left behind in the warehouse.

But the cans were long expired and deemed inedible.

The warning labels on the boxes made that clear:

"Happy Ant-Cattle Meat

— Nothing says victory over xenos like a delicious meal!"

WARNING!!!

Feeding ant-cattle meat to canines is strictly prohibited.

Violators will face immediate execution for 'assaulting a superior officer.

'Ensure the meat is deboned, marinated, inspected for burrow larvae, and cooked for no less than four days.

Use a bayonet to check for signs of reactivation before marinating again.

Caution: The surprises in ant-cattle meat cans can be fatal.

If activated, you will not be posthumously honored for being killed by xenos.

Due to the Warp's temporal anomalies, the expiration date may be off by up to ten years.

Tis sighed. Cooking ant-cattle meat was an arduous task requiring long cooking times and ample fuel.

Without proper preparation, the parasites in the meat could be deadly.

And the survivors had long since run out of fuel.

Suddenly, Tis noticed someone sneaking a can of ant-cattle meat and attempting to open it.

"Stop!"

She rushed to intervene but was too late.

"Get lost! I want meat!"

The man's eyes were bloodshot, clearly driven mad by hunger.

He tore open the can.

Tis halted, her mechanical arm deploying a blade in readiness.

The man hesitated, but the can seemed normal.

He sneered and laughed mockingly:

"See? Nothing happened. You've been lying to us!"

Encouraged, the others turned on Tis, blaming her.

They rushed toward the cans, eager to grab the ant-cattle meat.

"Don't touch them! It's dangerous! Are you all insane?"

Bearded Saylor stepped in front of the pile, trying to reason with the crowd:

"The boss said this meat is dangerous and can't be eaten!"

Tis, aware of the true danger, acted decisively.

Grabbing a survivor, she pressed her blade to their neck, her gaze cold:

"Anyone who dares touch the cans will die!"

The survivors froze, fear evident in their eyes.

"You damned bitch! You just want us to starve while hoarding the food for yourself!"

A woman glared at Tis with venomous hatred, her words igniting the crowd.

Overcome by hunger, the survivors disregarded Tis and began looting the cans in frenzy.

They couldn't wait to savor the supposedly delicious ant-cattle meat.

(End of Chapter)

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