03x23 - Deus Ex Machina

[bunniefuu]

(Male newscaster) Two hours have passed since the city of New York plunged into darkness.

(Female newscaster) Authorities have not yet ruled out the possibility of a t*rror1st att*ck.

(Newscaster) A press conference has been scheduled...

Welcome to your trial, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to the trial of the United States government.

Court is now in session.

Anyone else want to sh**t this guy?

Little bit.

That's an old courthouse?

Where is that?

Someone'll recognize it.

Half the city is out in the streets.

[Metallic clank]

[g*nshots]

[Decima operatives grunting]

What?

Well, I guess we're not gonna question them.

They're Decima.

They'll go out a window before they'll talk.

Let's get out of here before anymore of 'em show up.

We got to stop that trial.

You stand accused of betraying your fellow citizens, of trading in our democracy for a police state, and we've taken great pains to give you a fair trial.

To honor your right to counsel, we've brought in the best defense attorney in town.

To ensure an equitable verdict...

Right here.

...we've selected a jury of your peers...

...and since a free press is vital in every democracy, we've invited the media...

[Door creaking]

Keep moving.

Come on, sit down.

...and opened up these proceedings to observers around the world.

How's that signal down there?

Satellite uplink is good.

We're streaming live all over the world,

12 million viewers and counting.

Now, the charges against you are grave... 313 million counts of illegal wiretapping, plus conspiracy, espionage, and treason.

The last two are punishable by death.

Some of you, we have dead to rights; others, the facts are less clear.

So anyone who's willing to confess their crimes and testify against their co-conspirators will be granted leniency.

The choice is yours.

The prosecution calls Manuel Rivera.

[All murmuring]

As your attorney, I--

Don't worry, Harold, your secret's safe with me.

Not so sure about her.

(Hersh) Must have shown the photo to a dozen people.

Nobody seems to recognize the courthouse.

Well, we need a lead fast.

With Vigilance playing judge and jury, executioner won't be far behind.

[Phone rings]

(Root)

Be at the intersection of 5th and 23rd in 15 minutes.

Good-bye, Shaw.

Wait, Root, is that all? Where are you?

Right where I'm supposed to be.

(Shaw)

You found it, didn't you.

Samaritan.

(Root)

Maybe.

Did you find Harold?

She's worried about him.

So am I.

(Shaw)

We're working on it, but seriously, are you about to kamikaze into a Decima fortress with a bunch of nerds?

Didn't know you cared, Shaw, and it's just me now.

(Shaw) But the machine has your back, right?

Right?

23rd and 5th.

12 minutes. Tick-tock.

So we're going to 23rd and 5th because?

It's complicated.

It's complicated.

Root's gonna get herself k*lled.

Go, we'll find Harold.

Go how?

[g*nshots]

[Yelps]

Gonna need to borrow this.

Fine, just-- just take it.

You know how to ride one of these things?

You got a way about you, Hersh.

Be good, Shaw.

Ten minutes, let's move.

Mr. Rivera, what is Northern Lights?

I had nothing to do with that.

Really?

The Intelligence Advisor to the President had nothing to do with a secret intelligence program?

People would like to submit exhibits A1 through A46, classified documents detailing the secret operations of Northern Lights.

Care to guess how many of these documents bear your signature?

Who do you think you are?

Are you or are you not part of a vast sustained criminal conspiracy...

Who the hell are you?

...to spy on every woman, man, and child in the US...

(Madison) Order! Order! Order!

You have no power, and the only criminal here is you...

...since 2005!

Order!

...and your t*rror1st organization!

[g*nsh*t]

[Onlookers scream]

[Dramatic music]

♪ ♪

So who's ready to tell the truth and nothing but the truth?

My brother wasn't a t*rror1st.

We had evidence...

You had nothing!

Locked him up under some loophole until it destroyed him!

[Cell phone vibrating] _

[Tires squeal]

Hey, man, what are you--

Stop! Help!

[Tense music]

♪♪

Come on...

Hello?

What is this?

Where am I?

What?

What do you know about me?

Oh, what are you, government?

FBI, CIA?

Action against...

People, huh?

Who are you?

Vigilance?

What do you want from me?

Collier.

You Peter Collier?

Yes.

Yes, I am.

These are the times that try men's souls.

All we need is a name.

Who among you is most directly responsible for Northern Lights?

Whoever offers up that name will live.

What about you, sir?

Who can tell me about Harold here?

Objection.

Is this a trial, or just a long-winded execution?

(Collier) Well, it looks like we have another legal practitioner among us.

You don't get to cherry-pick the law, Counselor.

The Sixth Amendment guarantees people like Harold the right to know the specific charges against them.

I am acutely aware of the bill of rights.

You want the appearance of a fair trial?

Bottle the histrionics.

Present your case.

People call Senator Ross Garrison.

That's 23rd and 5th up ahead.

Root sent us here for bikes?

[Siren warbling]

(Man)

NYPD. Drop your weapons.

Hands where I can see them.

[Dog barking]

Get off, Bear.

What the hell are you doing?

Some nutjob just jacked a kid on a bike.

I thought you were looters.

Nice ride, Lionel.

You know this guy?

I haven't seen you since the blackout.

How'd you find us?

Dog showed up at the precinct with a message from Cuckoo Clock to meet at this intersection.

Didn't know she meant you and this guy.

Vigilance caused the blackout.

They set up a kangaroo court to go after anyone tied to the machine.

What machine?

We got to go find Harold.

They're streaming the trial.

NYPD know where from?

What trial?

We're kind of busy with the blackout.

We got a bunch of guys smashing up 5th Avenue, looting.

What guys?

Bunch of jackasses running around in masks.

Diversion tactic, Vigilance.

Why don't you take a lap around the block, Lionel?

What, why?

'Cause we're gonna need some gear from that sporting goods store up the street.

It'd probably be best if the NYPD isn't around when we smash in the front door.

Got seven more servers for you.

Let's get them scanned.

[Scanner whirring, beeps]

This shipment's two days late.

Where the hell have you been?

Honestly?

Planning this.

[Dart g*n pings]

Hey!

[Both grunting]

Looks like someone crawled in under the fence.

Admit it, you were worried about me.

I'm worried about the mission.

Reese and Hersh are trying to save Finch, but that won't matter if Samaritan kills us all.

Then let's get to work.

[Razor blade clicking]

Oh, it's gonna be that kind of party, huh?

Decima tags its people.

Anyone who doesn't have an RFID chip will stick out like a sore thumb.

Ready for your sh*t?

Senator, you've denied any knowledge of Northern Lights, yet your name appears in these documents some 37 times.

Now, how do you explain that?

Maybe you shouldn't believe everything you read on the internet.

Exhibit D7.

(Garrison) They find out we're spying on the American people, we all go to jail.

Deny, shred, burn anything related to Northern Lights.

It doesn't exist.

You care to rephrase your answer, Senator?

(Garrison) Those comments were taken out of context.

Thank you for protecting me, although I'm baffled as to why.

The same reason I've done everything, Harold, for my country.

And you can't help me if you're dead.

(Garrison) I told you, I had nothing to do with the development of Northern Lights.

Damn thing was up and running when I was read in.

I just got stuck with cleaning up the mess.

Hardly seems fair that your life should be in danger for someone else's misdeeds.

So if you're not the guy, who is?

[Tense music]

♪ ♪

It never was a guy that was in control, was it?

You may step down, Senator.

You care to join us, ma'am?

Well, this should be fun.

(Adams) One street view cam.

Well, it's not viewing streets anymore.

[Laughs]

The look on that driver's face was priceless.

Got to be 100 grand worth of hardware in this thing.

It's getting to be you can't tell a search engine from the NSA.

Don't be evil, my ass.

[Laughs]

[Cell phone vibrates]

Take it apart.

(Adams) Yeah!

- I have a family! - [Laughs]

[Cell phone vibrates]

(Adams) Hey, toss me one.

(Madison) You don't think he saw our faces, do you?

(Adams) Let's do something.

(Madison) We could dox someone. I brought my laptop.

Tonight, we got one off the streets.

Tomorrow, they build 100 more.

It's not enough.

We got the hard drive.

Could write a virus, infect the whole fleet.

No, they'll just look for a patch.

Doesn't put a dent in data mining, domain awareness.

We need to adjust our sights.

Our sights?

This is an information w*r.

We need to go after the people who control it, abuse it, destroy people's lives, and answer to no one.

Now you're talking.

What do you have in mind?

A statement.

Someone who represents everything that's wrong with an unchecked Orwellian state.

And we put them in the crosshairs, and we teach them a lesson no one will forget.

Can you identify these documents for the court?

Well, let's start with something simpler.

What is Research?

I have here more than 300 pages documenting illegal wiretaps, interrogations, and assassinations carried out by Northern Lights all using information from something called Research, and all from one two-week period.

Now, no bureaucracy moves that fast, so let me rephrase the question.

Is Research an automated system?

Is it a machine?

As a sworn officer of the US government, I can neither confirm nor deny anything pertaining to this matter, and I will say the same damn thing to every other question until the moment you put that g*n to my head and pull the trigger.

As soon as this is over, I'm cutting this stupid chip out of my arm.

I'll do yours if you do mine.

Ready for the moment of truth-- or lies really?

[Scanner beeps]

[Scanner buzzes]

Damn it.

[Scanner buzzes]

[Approaching footsteps]

[Scanner beeps]

Computers can bite me.

[Glass shattering]

Whoo-hoo-hoo-hoo!

[Dog barking]

[Screaming]

I think he likes you.

[Groaning]

[In Dutch]

Sit.

What are you doing?

What's with the friendly fire, yo?

You're off the map, dumbass.

Collier sent us here to rein you in before you screw up the plan.

Courthouse is here.

You're supposed to be here drawing the cops away from the trial.

No, man, courthouse is there.

I just delivered the gennies this morning, so I'd know, wouldn't I?

Guess you would.

Thanks.

Been looking for this little bastard all night.

He's all yours. We're due in court.

You have seen the proof that the woman before you was the ringleader of a criminal organization called Northern Lights.

We've implicated her in the summary execution of 17 American citizens, and those are just the ones we know about.

And through it all, she shows no remorse, and I think her silence speaks volumes.

(Madison) Since we don't have time for deliberation, we'll put it to a vote.

The defendant is presumed innocent.

Who among you find her guilty?

[Tense music]

♪ ♪

Jury finds the defendant guilty.

Sentence to be carried out immediately.

[Gavel bangs]

Come on, let's go.

Where were you when Flight 77 hit the Pentagon?

Because I was inside it.

I carried out the wounded.

I covered up bodies.

And I have spent every day since putting b*ll*ts in the people responsible and in anyone else who even thinks that they can do that to our country again.

You want to sh**t me because I had to tap a few phone calls, read a few e-mails, then you go right ahead.

But you better turn that g*n on yourself next, Mr. Collier, because you have broken just as many laws, and the only difference is, I didn't wrap myself up in the American flag and try to convince people that I was a hero.

I believe you love your country.

I believe that when you started, people thought what you were doing made a lot of sense.

But it's gone too far, and it has to stop.

Please, who built the machine?

How does it work?

Where is it located?

Honestly?

I don't know.

You don't know?

The woman in charge of it all doesn't know.

Well, if you don't know, who does?

The people have spoken.

[Tense music]

♪ ♪

[g*n cocks]

Stop.

♪ ♪

I can help you.

The questions you're asking, I know the answers.

Really?

How do you know?

Because I built it.

Everyone needs to turn in their phone.

We're switching up communication.

It's no longer safe for us to meet here as a group.

What's going on, Peter?

Security measure.

From now on, storage units will only be used as message centers.

(Adams) Wait a second.

I thought this was a democracy.

Why don't we--

Want to put it to a vote, Adams?

I want to know what the hell we're doing, instead of just doxing another politician, another DDoS att*ck on some intel site.

Well, what do you suggest?

Blow something up, take someone out.

You wanted to make a statement?

Well, let's do it.

v*olence.

We are not t*rrorists.

We target specific violators, no collateral damage.

Who do you suggest we go after?

People who destroy lives, like they did to your brother.

All right, let's put it to a vote.

Wait a minute.

But I say we name the target, and I have an idea.

The kind of person who went after my brother.

It's recording.

Knew you wouldn't be dumb enough to wear a wire.

What is going on here?

(Collier) It's all in the file.

Or why don't you just tell her, Adams?

My God, it's you. You're FBI.

First he went after my brother, now they're after me.

I guess I don't need to wear the mask anymore, huh?

Where did you get this? This is a bunch of nonsense.

Tyranny like hell is not easily conquered.

The harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph.

What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly.

It is dearness only that gives everything value.

[g*nsh*t]

Especially life.

How's that for a statement?

Anybody else want to put it to a vote?

Phones in the bucket, and take out this garbage.

We've got a lot of work to do.

(Man) It's the largest blackout the United States has seen since the Northeast blackout of 2003.

(Woman) Department is doing everything in its power to assure the safety of our citizens and their property.

(Collier) You built it?

One man is responsible for the most invasive surveillance technology in the world?

I'm good with computers.

I had a feeling there was something special about you, Harold.

I'm willing to tell you whatever you want to know, but only if you agree to spare the lives of everyone else in this courtroom.

[Tense music]

♪ ♪

Well, before we release anybody, we need to hear your testimony first.

♪ ♪

On September the 12th, 2001, I began coding in a complex surveillance system that would be known by many code names over the years, although I always just called it the machine.

(Shaw)

So this is Samaritan's brain?

Part of it.

So what's the deal, you just plug 'em in, then it's lights out, Samaritan?

Something like that.

These two rows didn't light up.

It didn't work?

Those lights staying dark is a good thing.

Samaritan's AI won't get switched on until Greer gets the government feeds.

Those lights turn blue...

We're screwed.

We're inside a sleeping giant, Shaw.

Try not to wake it up.

That van's some type of guard post.

Looks like we're getting warm.

Vigilance, all six dead.

Guess we're not the only ones these guys have pissed off.

(Collier)

How does it work?

Who do you think b*at us to the punch?

(Finch)

February of 2005, the machine's information was provided...

(Hersh) They were watching the trial.

(Finch) ...although the servers remained at IFT.

Oh, no, Finch.

By the time we turned it over to the government in 2009, the machine had helped stop 54 t*rror1st att*cks, saving an estimated 4,000 lives.

I don't know how many it's saved since.

So even though Northern Lights was shut down, your machine was still operational.

Where is it now?

I'm afraid not even I know that.

Do you have access to it? Can we turn it off?

You have nothing to fear from my system, Mr. Collier, I assure you.

You'll forgive me if I don't take you at your word.

The machine's only output is a number.

That's all the government ever gets, just a nudge to say, there's something you should look at here, and that's up to us to figure that out.

So it brands people as suspects, guilty until proven innocent.

No, not my intention.

That's what happened.

It had to be a closed system.

It was the only way to protect people's rights.

You expect us to believe you gave one thought about people's rights as you were building the government a w*apon of mass surveillance?

Not a w*apon.

What else would you call it?

I would call it the best I could do.

And it never occurred to you the damage this thing could do, the lives it could destroy?

It occurred to me on day one, Mr. Collier, and every day since.

If you're asking me if I feel at ease with what I've created, or whether it was the right or the wrong thing to do, I honestly don't know.

But I designed the machine in part because I was worried, and I remain worried, about what someone else might build... someone who wasn't worried.

Nothing wrong with a dictatorship, so long as you're the dictator.

I rest my case.

Shall we put it to a vote?

(Man)

Command, one of our guard posts has been hit.

No survivors, repeat, no survivors.

Looks like we'll need a change of venue.

Defendants to the backup location.

The rest stay here.

Hold them off as long as you can, and one way or another, justice will be served.

[g*n cocks]

Let's go.

[Tense music]

♪ ♪

Easy.

All right, stop right here.

Line 'em up, facing the courthouse.

Abandoned post office, this must be it.

♪ ♪

Big place.

Spread out, sweeping clear.

Give me a call if you get in over your head.

Next time I see you, I'll probably have to k*ll you.

Well, you're welcome to try.

(Collier) Since we appear to be out of time, we'll have to forego the jury verdict and issue a summary judgment.

[g*n cocks]

I've upheld my end of our bargain, Mr. Collier.

I confessed, guilty as charged.

If your revolution requires blood, take mine.

Just please let everyone else go.

[g*nshots]

(Man) Take cover!

Decima! Return fire!

[g*nf*re]

[g*nshots]

[Grunts]

[Grunts]

[Grunts]

We're clearing an extraction route, sir.

We should move quickly.

Noble attempt at self-sacrifice, Harold, but experience has taught me never to negotiate with t*rrorists.

My private forces will see you safely back to Washington.

Let's go.

You two, I'm afraid, will be here for the brief remainder of your lives.

(Finch) He's no longer a thr*at.

Please, he doesn't have to die.

Oh, but I'm afraid he does.

Why?

Because of you, Harold.

Because of what you built.

[Tense music]

Looks like somebody already took out these Vigilance guys.

♪ ♪

Oh, dear.

I think I might be in over my head.

[g*nshots]

I'm a little busy myself.

[Grunts]

Unless you're looking at a big-ass b*mb wired to blow when the power comes back on, I think I win.

What a piece of work is your machine, Harold.

In action, how like an angel.

In apprehension, how like a god. in 20 years time, life on Earth will come to resemble the myths of the Ancient Greeks.

A pantheon of super intelligent beings will watch over us using human agents to meddle in our affairs.

Or they may simply destroy us all.

One could argue we've done a fair job of that ourselves.

Besides, someone has to be in charge, but as you well know, gods are not easily born.

In order to bring mine into being, I needed a devil.

Vigilance.

Go ahead and k*ll me.

Damage is already done.

Everyone in the world heard the testimony in that courtroom tonight.

Mr. Collier, who do you think makes the equipment that you used to transmit?

Your trial was broadcast to a single office on the other side of town where a handful of computers led you to believe that the whole world was watching.

It's high time you and I had a talk about the true nature of Vigilance.

You don't know anything about us.

Oh, I know a great deal more than you think.

After all, tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered.

You didn't really believe this was a democracy, did you?

Your grassroots movement has been meticulously planned from the beginning.

In fact, I recruited you myself.

Decima created Vigilance? Why?

Your machine did its job too well.

I had remind Senator Garrison and his ilk of just how bad things could be.

And what better way to remind them than a fresh atrocity on American soil?

(Collier) What atrocity?

In all our dealings, we never k*lled one innocent person.

Not until now.

[g*nshots]

[Grunts]

All right, Hersh, I'm on my way.

(Reese)

What's your 20?

Never mind.

Just get your boss and get out.

Hersh?

[g*nsh*t]

[Grunting]

You're too late.

[Grunts]

[Grunts]

[Tense music]

[g*nshots]

(Greer) Here come the policemen.

Their poor families.

What a loss.

Whatever you're planning, please.

It's not me.

It's Mr. Collier, isn't it?

In a last desperate act, your young misguided lot decided to go out with a bang, along with a whole host of police, reporters, and innocent civilians.

Or at least that's how history will remember it.

NYPD. Down on the ground.

[g*nshots]

[Crowd yelling]

[Both grunting]

(Reese)

Power's coming back on.

I can get it.

(Reese)

Hersh, get out of there now.

I can get it.

[expl*si*n booming]

Sooner or later, the truth will come out.

To quote Benjamin Franklin...

We may keep a secret, as long as two of them are dead.

[g*nshots]

I'm glad that you've lived long enough to see the dawn of the new world you created, Harold, but the time has come for your god and mine to do battle, and regrettably, our paths diverge here.

[g*nshots]

[Grunts]

[Dog barking, growling]

We'll retrieve them at once.

No need.

We'll find them all soon enough.

[Phone rings]

I'm sorry we were unable to prevent Vigilance from this terrible act.

If only we'd had more warning, perhaps we could have been there in time.

How quickly can you bring Samaritan online?

Immediately.

The government feeds are all we require.

You'll have them within the hour.

[Dramatic music]

♪ ♪

Last one.

Want to get out of here?

Not without an insurance policy in case your way doesn't work.

Just tell me where to put this thing--

This facility is 1 of 100 just like it all over the world.

It would take years to destroy them all, and Decima would only rebuild them.

Well, then your magic boxes better shut this thing down.

Shaw, this was never about turning it off.

Well, then what the hell have we been doing?

I hear you. We need to go.

She says we're in danger.

Receiving the government feeds now, sir.

Then by all means, let there be life.

That's good enough for now.

Have Shaw take a look at it when she gets back.

First time's the worst, huh?

Why would you ever choose a career where this was an occupational hazard?

Well, I tried to quit, but some jackass told me I needed a purpose.

[Phone rings]

(Root)

Get out of the library, now.

It isn't safe there anymore, Harold.

Miss Groves?

Are you and Miss Shaw--

Card catalog by the window, top drawer on the right.

(Root)

Hurry.

(Finch) What's going on?

(Root)

Your new identities are inside.

Destroy everything else.

I take it your plan to stop Samaritan was unsuccessful.

Any chance we had of stopping it ended when we didn't k*ll the Congressman.

This was never about winning.

It's just about surviving.

[Radiohead's Exit Music (For A Film) playing]

♪ ♪

Higher functions online, sir.

Searching for targets now.

Good.

Eliminate them all.

Yes, sir.

(Root) The machine and I couldn't save the world.

We had to settle for protecting the seven people who might be able to take it back, so we gave Samaritan a blind spot.

Seven key servers that hard-codes it to ignore seven carefully crafted new identities.

♪ today we escape ♪

♪ we escape ♪

♪ ♪

♪ pack and get dressed ♪

(Root)

When the whole world is watched, filed, indexed, numbered, the only way to disappear is to appear, hiding our true identities inside a seemingly ordinary life.

♪ before ♪
♪ all hell ♪
♪ breaks loose ♪

You're not a free man anymore, Harold.

You're just a number.

♪ breathe ♪

(Root) We have to become these people now, and if we don't, they'll find us, and they'll k*ll us.

I'm sorry, Harold.

I know it's not enough.

♪ breathe ♪

A lot of people are going to die.

♪ keep breathing ♪
♪ I can't do this ♪
♪ alone ♪

(Root) People who might have been able to help.

♪ ♪

Everything is changing.

I don't know if it will ever get better... but it's going to get worse.

♪ a song to keep us warm ♪

But the machine asked me to tell you something before we part.

You once told John the whole point of Pandora's Box is that once you've opened it, you can't close it again.

♪ ♪

♪ and you can laugh ♪

(Root) She wanted me to remind you of how the story ends.

When everything is over, and the worst has happened, there's still one thing left in Pandora's Box... hope.

♪ wisdom choke you ♪
♪ now ♪
♪ we are one ♪
♪ in everlasting peace ♪

Good morning.

I assure you, it's quite the other way around.

The question is, what, my dear Samaritan, are your commands for us?

♪ we hope ♪
♪ that you choke ♪
♪ that you choke ♪