/Operation Phoenix Down

1900 Hours

SSgt. Douglas McKain's Audio Log

/Opening File Record…

Playback? [Yes] No

/Beginning playback

"It's not just you, Kath." The words came out in one swoop, the man's voice a dull whisper. A moment of silence followed, and then a female voice. "It's all of us. I know Douglas, but we need to weigh our options at this point," she said quietly. Between their speaking, gunfire was heard quietly in the background. "There are people here that don't deserve this! They deserve to go home to their families," the man now known as Douglas said. A long sigh was made audible, followed by the sound of something hitting metal. "Ah… shit. We're out of time Kath. Get the Trooper and the Marines ready. Something's here. I'll try holding them off," McKain whispered. "On it," she responded. "Good luck." Suddenly, the voice became quite clear and loud enough so it didn't sound like a whisper. "This is Staff Sergeant Douglas McKain of the 37th MEU. If anyone is listening to this, send help to the-" He was cut off by the sound of an explosion and metal slamming on metal. A loud roar was heard and a crushing sound became clear. After that, the recording had cut to static.

End Record? [Yes] No

/Shutting down

/User logged out: LANGLEY. R

The Lieutenant ended the file on-screen in front of the five well-dressed men. "Gentlemen, I have let you listen to this six times now. If you still cannot believe that this operation must cease, then I have no further comment." He spoke with a soft tone, but his meaning was clear. One of the men, a Major, rubbed the bridge of his nose and spoke. "Lieutenant Langley, if you feel the need to shut this down, then by all means go ahead. But if you do, you'll be guaranteeing the death of more than a thousand people." Langley looked thoughtful, then shook his head. "Get out of my office." The Major stood but did not take any steps. "What are you waiting for? I said get out," Langley said. "Too late Lieutenant." He had put emphasis on the last word. Langley reached into his desk, wrapping his hand around an M6G Magnum. All the men that had previously been sitting quietly now stood, producing suppressed M7 SMGs from their jackets. "What is this?" Langley said. The 'Major' now ripped his dress coat off, revealing a dark colored leather vest. "A revolution, Lieutenant." Ryan Langley was dead before he hit the ground. Fortunately, he had hit the silent alarm right as the first caseless round hit him. It had also been captured on Samual Wittek's PDA camera. The Insurrectionist patted down the deceased Lieutenant's corpse, finding nothing of interest. They shed their formal clothes and ran out of the dark building under the cover of nightfall. As they exited, alarms blared and spotlights shone around them. "Sammy, it's time to go!" one of the men said. Wittek nodded, taking two explosive C-12 charges from his pack and placing them on the building. "Run! To the LZ!" he yelled. Squads of UNSC MPs were already driving towards them in M12 Warthogs, armed with M45Ds and MA5Ds. The unmarked Pelican that was their evacuation was thirty seconds out. What was fifteen of those felt like a lifetime to Wittek. Bullets flew through the air past him, hitting two of his partners. They fell motionless. "Keep running! I see the bird!" he yelled to the remaining terrorists. The Pelican flew overhead and the rear gunner fired out of the back troop bay. The MPs each fell simultaneously to the gun's 7.62x51mm Saboted Light Armor Penetrator rounds. It touched down, the gunner continuing to cover the men as they boarded. An older looking man sat inside, his eyes set on Wittek. "Do you have the files?" he asked. "Yes sir. Everything you asked for," Samual replied. The old man nodded happily as they flew away from the small FOB. "You're sure you killed the Lieutenant?" Wittek was taken aback by this. "Sir, you know my work is always done by the letter, to the letter. I made sure," he responded. "Good," the man stated. That was the cue to keep quiet for the rest of the ride.