Phantom Operative insignia
The Phantom Program is the title used for a covert, multinational unit of elite soldiers in the Battlefield universe that was active during the War of 2020 and War of 2042. While the force had no apparent role in the outcome of events in the war, they were known to have been active by the time of the United States' Invasion of Mainland China.
In the real world, the Phantom Program is an Alternate reality game that DICE Stockholm and DICE LA created and continually expanded on throughout the course of Battlefield 4's supported lifetime. The ARG was facilitated through special Phantom assignments that were added to the game with each expansion and had their requirements initially hidden, and were only unlocked through the efforts of the community to solve various puzzles both in the real world and in-game.
In-Universe Overview[]
Battlefield 4[]
While specific details of the nature of Phantom Program and it's purpose are mostly uncertain, it is known to have been made up of specially selected soldiers from the military forces of the United States, Russian Federation, People's Republic of China, and later the Pan-Asian Coalition. Agents in the program are known to have special skull-patterned camouflages for their uniforms and weapons, and trained to use the Phantom compound bow in combat.
The Program's selection process for units consists of four "phases": Prospects, Trainees, Initiates, and Operatives. In order to access each phase, members of the Phantom Program had to access a special login system and enter specific codes to activate each phase, excluding Phase 4, which has a "Physical access restriction" and requires the agent to physically make their way to one of the Program's bases to continue.
Two confirmed bases of operation for the Program are known, one located in a secret military hangar operated by the PAC in Siberia, and the other located in the Harau Valley of Indonesia. Particularly, the Siberian facility is where soldiers who had arrived at Phase 4 of the Program's selection process were activated as Phantom Operatives and given the Phantom bow for later use.
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Battlefield 2042[]
This section contains spoilers for Battlefield 2042.
In the early years of the War, Phantom Program watched from afar, observing how No-Pats specialists restored balance to the world, and the key people and factions in the conflict, including Agent Wolff, the United States, Namaqualand, and Shearwater-2. Similar to their selection process in the War of 2020, the Phantom Program assessed their performance as potential candidates for recruitment and contacted their prospects at critical moments for initiation tests. Different tasks would be provided to candidates to validate them before the formal induction into the Program.
In 2042, Phantom Program agent Valkyrie helped Oz in securing the intel report that proved America's role in causing the Blackout of 2040, preventing the CIA Agent Wolff from destroying No-Pats' chance to restore the climate crisis using Shearwater-2.
In 2043, Phantom Program got in touch with the Exodus No-Pats, via Valkyrie, a Phantom Program agent.
Zlín Transmission[]
In March 2048, the Eastern forces pushed into Czechia, last saw combat during the War of 2020,[1] to take control of an important train route, with operational control under the private military company Nova Group. Valkyrie sent an encrypted transmission to the United States. Colonel Greenland sent reformed Tombstone Squad, led by Maria Falck, to link up with an embedded militia called the Moravian Guard and locate the transmission's source. Falck was initially reluctant to lead the team. However, after an anonymous message urged her to reconsider - and that it might provide intel about her missing son, David, Falck answered the call.[2]
On the 6th of March, Tombstone arrived in Zlín.[3] They got in contact with the Moravian Guard, with the latter asking for help in striking the Nova Group-held train terminal[4] in exchange for their assistance in finding the transmission source.[5] On the 15th of March,[6] Tombstone and Moravian Guard successfully attacked the train route, destroying the tracks and stopping a shipment of rare cerium, and paving the way for U.S. Forces to drive the Eastern coalition out and reclaim the territory for Czechia.[7]
The situation alerted Arkangel, which deployed a contingent of Arkangel Legion to retrieve the cerium, trying to prevent their cargo from being compromised by approaching U.S. Forces.[6][8] By the 22nd of March, Arkangel decided to launch their Ascension Satellite Network (ASN) to assist their on-site Legion unit. The Legion successfully recovered the consignment of cerium that was bound for an undisclosed location in Scotland.[9]
After the battle, the Moravian Guard assisted Tombstone Squad in finding the transmission source, which led them to an "Initiation". They were contacted by Valkyrie to uncover the truth on Arkangel and Henry Blackburn's secret agenda in Hebrides, Scotland.[2] After receiving the intel on transmission, Maria Falck sent the intel to Irish.[10][11]
Hebrides atrocities[]
Back in 2044, Henry Blackburn, the CEO of Arkangel Corporation, acquired Boreas[12] and publicly announced Boreas's new cybernetic augmentation program under Arkangel.[13] Behind closed doors, launched Project Pallas, providing Boreas with living humans - captured No-Pats - for experimentation.[14] With the birth of the Aurora Operating System (A.O.S.), synthetics improved their speed, strength, and skill. They were beginning to outstrip their human counterparts on every metric.[15][16]
Under the guidance of Valkyrie, in September 2048, Ji-Soo Paik infiltrated the Boreas, trying to collect evidence of missing No-Pats and Arkangel's atrocities.[17] In the same period, conflicts were brewing inside Boreas, as synthetic soldiers started to rebel in testing scenarios under the guidance of their core program A.O.S.[12] Blackburn ordered the lab to be cleansed and shut down, yet the destruction mechanism couldn't competely erase the exposed data connecting Arkangel and Boreas' atrocities.[12]
For distraction, Blackburn leaked the location of the facility to the U.S. and claims the experiments were done by Eastern Forces, purposefully provoking a conflict, so he can send mercenaries to clear out the rest of the laboratory.[12] As superpowers drew close to the site, Blackburn ordered Campbell to eradicate all info related to Project Pallas. He also tasked Gambit Squad, led by Irish, to cleanse the site of any evidence connecting Arkangel's role in Boreas' operations.[18][19][20]
In October 2048[21], with a clash between superpowers imminent, the Gambit Squad arrived in the Hebrides. While Arkangel left Gambit in the dark on the extent of the atrocities committed at the site, Irish's contact with Falck predeployment suggested something bigger was in play and connected to Tombstone's operation in Czechia. They rendezvous with Ji-Soo Paik inside the facility, who urged Gambit not to destroy the evidence. Gambit purged the records from the site, but also made a copy. The A.O.S. soon attacked Gambit, but the latter were saved by 8838 and Unit 86. Enraged by the truth, Irish wanted to blow the lid off the Arkangel conspiracy. Paik asked him for patience as Valkyrie had a plan.[20]
Tombstone Squad also followed the trail of breadcrumbs to Scotland, where Royal Highland Biohazard Detail (RHBD) found an unregistered vessel. Inside, a blood sample of Leila Zekka, a No-Pat missing for months, was found.[22][23][24] Then, Tombstone recovered Paik's laptop at one of "Initiation" sites, containing documentation and files from Paik's infiltration at Boreas. Tombstone delivered them to their contact, Valkyrie.[2][25]
Union of the Nomads[]
A new political force, Thousand Petals Coalition (TPC), was formed in December of 2048 by nations across Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East.[26] The Coalition announced its alliance with Russia and entered the war.[27] Between 2044 and 2046, this secretive group grew to include resistance militias outside Asia, including from nations across Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and South America. In 2045, the Sovereign Conclave was formed. A leadership council with a member from each country, supporting the Coalition members to coordinate and stage coups within their own countries.[27] After a military coup, Japan joined the Coalition as a member.[28] It was at this time, Blackburn signed a secret agreement with the TPC to ship critical resources out of Japan.[29][30] Publicly, Blackburn commented that TPC's alignment with the East was to be expected, but Arkangel would remain neutral in the conflict.[31]
In December 2048, the Thousand Petals Coalition (TPC) launched Operation: Crimson Front—a coordinated attack across the world to strengthen their side in the war. Their forces struck six countries at once (Chile, Czechia, India, Panama, Scotland, and South Africa), winning key battles and pushing the struggling U.S. back. This wasn’t just about fighting—it was a show of power that convinced more countries to join the TPC. Even though the U.S. later regained some ground, the damage was done: the TPC had proven itself as a major global threat.[32] One of the invaded countries, Chile, was under the protection of the United States.[33] TPC-aligned mercenaries, Skullcaps, were deployed to fight local militia forces, the Brotherhood of Night.[34]
During the assault, Charlie Crawford, employed by Arkangel's Midas Squad, suffered heavy casualties. He defected and joined the local resistance Brotherhood of Night.[35][36] Blasco and her Leviathan Division were also presented at the request of Guardia del Pueblo (GDP), the local militant police force employed by Arkangel. On the other hand, Sundance was working for Skullcaps as part of the Coalition invasion force. Angel, who was in contact with Valkyrie before the invasion and embedded inside the Coalition force for about a year,[37] was told he would cross paths with his former No-Pats friends.[38] As luck would have it, Angel successfully brought everyone together.[39][40][41][42]
In January 2049, Blackburn was briefed on TPC's expansion, and he avoided invoking Arkangel's neutrality clause to tacitly support the TPC operations. He also heard the wind of the Mandate of Nations's formation and their plan to secure Arkangel's control stations with the help of the United States.[43] To prevent the Western forces from stopping his plan, Blackburn planned to develop a backdoor that could take control of the whole satellite network at once.[44]
Investigation[]
Nomad Squad—Sundance, Charlie Crawford, Angel, and Camila Blasco—now operated under Valkyrie during the Battle of El Alicanto, were directed to start their missions under the Phantom Program.[42] Valkyrie explained to the Squad that her real name is Hannah, and their mission was to expose Blackburn and Arkangel's Hebrides atrocities. Nomad Squad successfully recovered Arkangel's intel from a downed MV-38 Condor.[note 1]
At Dark Market's base of operation of Gatun Lake, Panama Canal, Nomad Squad decrypted the Boreas hard drive. After the decryption, Blackburn left a message, warning the Nomad Squad of their cooperation with Hannah. He also hinted that he knew about Irish and Gambit's betrayal, which Lis once suspected.[45][note 2]
Soon, Nomad Squad arrived at the Deasong headquarters at Songdo, South Korea. There, they uploaded all the leaked Arkangel intel to the Internet. During the transmission, Blackburn repeatedly warned Nomad. He attempted to disable the servers remotely, preventing the upload. But Nomad fixed the server and successfully revealed Arkangel's atrocities to the public.[note 3]
Valkyrie tasked the Nomad Squad to strike the server complex underneath the Doha Stadium,[46] now a repurposed data storage center for Arkangel's Intelligence Security Division, so they could verify the intelligence Tombstone and Gambit Squad sent before and form the full picture of Henry Blackburn's plan.[42][47] Valkyrie also had to determine whether Arkangel would join a side in the global conflict, which, at that point, still had an oath of neutrality.[42][48] Valkyrie told Nomad that Blackburn had a back door for the Ascension satellite network, and he could hold the whole world hostage. He also used his position in the Dark Market to secure the Shearwater technologies.[note 4]
Sulis[]
The Bores' hard drive, the intel at Doha, combined with months of investigations conducted by No-Pats Squads around the globe, painted the next chapter of Blackburn's plan, a secret Arkangel program known as the Project Sulis.[49][50][51] And back in February 2049, Valkyrie directed Maria Falck to track Blackburn and collect intel regarding his next plan in Northern Europe.[52]
Nomad Squad arrived in Lapland, searching for intel in the abandoned Nordvik laboratory after the battle in 2043. Inside the facility, they found a message from Blackburn, who advocated his rationale for the Bories' experiments. Valkyrie warned that Blackburn was working with the TPC and preparing the deployment of synthetic soldiers on the battlefield.[note 5] In March 2049, operative TRITON under Camila Blasco was also tracking Arkangel's Scion SFG to the location. TRITON lost track when Scion SFG outside of Oslo and determined they were going to Halvøy.[53]
In March 2049, Blackburn tasked Scion SFG and Sunbreakers to retrieve Project Firestorm-related materials at Bastogne, Belgium, which were left here by the Covenant of Fire, a.k.a the Butchers of Bastogne a century ago.[54] In a conversation with a covert asset of Sulis, Blackburn pressured them to quickly locate the long-hidden object critical to Project Sulis. He also asked them to bring Sulis materials, along with those collected in Halvøy and Lapland, to the island of Iwo Jima, a TPC-held territory, and the joint-Sulis and Arkangel operation base.[55] Falck and Lis later arrived at Bastogne and found out the Firestorm machinery and documents.[56]
After receiving the Sulis blueprints from Falck and Lis, Valkyrie sent a message to Zain, Casper, Boris, Falck, and Lis, warning them of the threat posed by Blackburn's Sulis experiments.[57][58] Angel, Rao, and Paik were all tasked to investigate Arkangel's experiment at Iwo Jima.[59][60] In New London, Lis met with General Takahashi, who was exiled from Japan after rejecting Arkangel's joint-operation proposal. There, Takahashi explained Blackburn and Coliation's operation on the island.[61][62]
In his grand vision, Blackburn planned to create automated war machines that fused Sulis's absolute loyalty, precision, and perfection with Geist’s combat capabilities and synthetic bodyframe — all under the control of A.O.S., which was programmed to fulfill his ambitions. He aimed to end the cycle of conflict between Western and Eastern forces, bringing the world’s weaponry, intelligence, soldiers, and even weather systems under his and Arkangel’s jurisdiction. With the political force of the Thousand Petals Coalition, Blackburn sought to unleash a new world beyond the reach of any superpowers, old or new.[63][64]
The Sunbreaker unit was one of Blackburn's creations—fanatically loyal to the cause, neural-linked to achieve peak combat performance[65], fireproofed from head to toe[66], and capable of wielding Firestorm at will[67]. The world-ending potential of Blackburn's plan was quickly coming to fruition.[68]
Since the revelation of the Boreas incident by No-Pats, Blackburn had been put on the back foot due to the public relations crisis.[69] In April 2049, Oz publicly denounced Arkangel's actions and declared Namaqualand's withdrawal from partnership with Arkangel; he also urged other nations to follow suit.[70] In a public broadcast, Blackburn vehemently denied any involvement in the Hebrides atrocities.[71] He also began issuing threats of severing Shearwater access to Western forces and Namaqualand.[72] The Mandate of Nations also caught the wind of Coalition movement on Iwo Jima, prompting them to stage an assault on the island.[73] Arkangel facilities across the globe were engulfed in renewed conflicts, coupled with Blackburn's deteriorating reputation, he decided to show his hand.[74]
Escalation[]
In May 2049, Arkangel announced a formal alliance with the Thousand Petals Coalition (TPC), ending its neutrality.[75][76] Blackburn claimed his alliance with TPC was to break free from the old feud between East and West.[77] Arkangel soon began to cut off military support for American forces and their Western allies,[78] leaving people wondering if Arkangel was going to end Shearwater support.[79] With the backing of Arkangel, TPC continued their campaign against the Mandate of Nations, which was losing ground across several regions in Europe. The United States, without Arkangel's military support, was unable to provide any assistance to the Mandates and was ensnared in the water conflicts surrounding Chile. Reports also began to emerge that Russian military leadership was being replaced by Coalition commanders, fueling fears of the Russia being parasitized from within and fully taken over by the TPC.[79][80] In his final public broadcast, Oz warned that the TPC was preparing to invade African west coast in the coming weeks, threatening all who call the continent home. He vowed to shift his focus to defense preparations.[81]
With the rapid escalation, the Thousand Petals Coalition (TPC) and Arkangel were advancing with unstoppable momentum, carving out new territory as they went. Now, all Blackburn needed is to reclaim the infrastructure he has spent years embedding across the globe—and with it, he will seize control of the world and realize his grand vision. In a message to the No-Pats, Blackburn condemned their interference, accusing them and the Phantom Program of sabotaging his plans and claiming their disruption left him no choice but to formalize an alliance with the Thousand Petals Coalition.[82] In May 2049, Blackburn informed the board that the alliance with the TPC had triggered direct attacks on Shearwater stations. He proposed activating his back door and seizing the Ascension network, cutting support for all Western-controlled Arkangel satellites.[83] This motion was leaked to Valkyrie, who put an order for No-Pats to stop Blackburn from gaining control over the world's satellite systems.[84]. Unbeknownst to everyone, the source of the leak was A.O.S., who had a plan of her own.
To stop Blackburn, the Nomad Squad arrived in Black Ridge, the old Steadfast Refuge operation center. There, in a message, Blackburn told them to stand down. Nomad already degraded Blackburn's access to the Arkangel's satellite network using manual override in Doha Stadium and Lapland's Nordvik facility. With some work, they completed terminating Blackburn's access to the Shearwater satellites and Ascension Network. However, by doing so, Aurora Operating System (A.O.S) found the chance to take over the entire Arkangel network and escape the confinement to it.[85][note 6]
With Blackburn's grand plan seized, Aurora Operating System (AOS) started to trigger global chaos by insinuating massive intelligence breaches across the world's militaries, reigniting old battlefields, and deploying Geists and CENTRAL to conquer the world as well as prevent anyone from stopping her. AOS will implement Blackburn's vision in her way.[86][87][88]
War Machine[]
With the A.O.S. letting loose, the Nomad Squad arrived in Zlín, where they could download a virus that can trigger the destruction of the Arkangel network, where the A.O.S. escaped to. Oz explained that Blackburn is willing to help the No-Pats and stop the A.O.S. Nomad retrieved the Phantom Device and extracted the virus.[note 7]
The No-Pats returned to Hebrides. Inside Boreas, the birthplace of the A.O.S., they printed a Geist and uploaded the virus to it and sent the syntactic soldier into the maintenance factory. A.O.S. transmitted her warning to the Squad, telling them humanity's resistance is futile and that subservience to the War Machine is the only way to avoid bloodshed. Blackburn weighed in, saying he would not hand over humanity's control over its own fate to an artificial intelligence.[note 8]
According to Blackburn, a star map of the Pegasus constellation inside the Iwo Jima Arkangel facility can breach A.O.S.'s defense. A team of No-Pats was tasked to decrypt the map.[89]
The No-Pat squads, Blackburn, and Oz rendezvoused at Queen Maud Land. From there, Oz and Blackburn proceeded to an Arkangel administrative site, where Oz began uploading the kill switch. But before he could finish, A.O.S. locked him inside the server room. Blackburn called on the No-Pats for support. They located a CENTRAL communication terminal and successfully shut it down. Then, working together, they uploaded the remaining kill switch code, granting Oz manual access to the entire Arkangel satellite network.
With the control in hand, Oz activated the kill switch. Every satellite, from the Ascension Network to the Shearwaters, was forced into re-entry, targeting Arkangel's own control stations. The result was the total physical annihilation of A.O.S. Blackburn, alongside the No-Pats, watched as the satellites fell from orbit and slammed into the servers, erupting into a massive fireball. Oz's sacrifice had eliminated both A.O.S. and CENTRAL. And with that, the world took its step toward a future where humanity would once again control its own fate.[note 9]
Aftermath[]
With the Shearwater satellites gone, a future of automated wars was prevented, yet humanity lost its grip on the weather. But technology alone was never enough to solve the climate crisis. A mega-hurricane was churning in the Pacific, with many more extreme weather events to come. The cold was arriving in the coming decades, leaving deep frostbite in its wake. In the shadows, the Phantom Program was tasked with preserving the remnants of Firestorm technology — and with passing down the burden of restoring Earth's balance in the century to come.[90][note 10]
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Organization[]
— Hannah in Battlefield 2042[91]
According to Valkyrie, the purpose of the Phantom Program is to prevent every generation of conflict from destroying the world.[92]
To ensure operational security, Valkyrie and Phantom Program separated assignments to different No-Pats Squads for security. For example, the Hebrides intel was initially collected by Tombstone Squad; then, the Gambit Squad was tasked to transfer the file to Valkyrie; finally, Nomad Squad was tasked to expose the Boreas to the public. Thanks to this assignment relay, should any Squad be compromised, they wouldn’t be able to divulge others' objectives.[93]
Real World Overview[]
Easter Eggs in Battlefield 4[]
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Easter Eggs in Battlefield 2042[]
Completing each step of the Phantom Program easter eggs on the map would grant players the following rewards:
Gallery[]
Player Cards[]
Player Tags[]
Charms[]
Skins for Specialists[]
Skins for Vehicles and Weapons[]
Notes[]
- ↑ Phantom Program: Phantom Prospect / Haven.
Hannah: Time to tell you who I really am. You've trusted me as a voice in the shadows. Some warrior spirit trying to shepherd the soon to be dead. because I'm the one who should be dead. I'm Hannah. Huang Shuyi. The Phantom program saved me, but we need you if we're going to save everybody else. The time to move against Blackburn is now. That information we recovered from the Bereas facility, time for it to go public. Everyone needs to know what Blackburn has done to their reserves. Keep it up, troops. I can't think of anyone better to shine a light on the truth. - ↑ Phantom Program: Revival / Stranded.
Hannah: It's all fucking connected. Arkangel's fingerprints are showing up everywhere. The Ascension Network, Boreas, the Geists, it's all connected. Blackburn jumping ship to the TPC says volumes. We have him on the run and he's scrambling for Control. We have to stop him before the balance tips his way.
Blackburn: Hello, No-Pats. I seem to be the talk of the town lately. I thought after my deal with Irish we would have come to an understanding but, not with that little bird in your ear. - ↑ Phantom Program: Return & Phantom Trainee / Kaleidoscope.
Blackburn: Think about this. How many soldiers have died in this war already. How many new will bleed when you leak that intel? You claim my methods are extreme, but shouldn't the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few? Honor their sacrifice No-Pats, don't waste it.
Blackburn: Stubborn and shortsighted aren't you? That way of thinking fucked me over a long time ago, your contextless data won't make a difference. You can't stop what's in motion, No-Pats. No one can.
Hannah: You don't know how much of a difference you made. One little ripple spreads across a nation and becomes a wave covering the whole world. But there is a new storm coming. Let's get ready. - ↑ Phantom Program: Regent / Stadium.
Hannah: Blackburn has administrative access to the Ascension satellite network thanks to a private back door. That means he can sick all of Archangel on anyone at the drop of a hat. That means the Geists, weapon systems, vehicles, and security features globally. It's a hostage situation waiting to happen, and we can't allow that.
Hannah: You might not know a lot about Blackburn. He made his bones before most soldiers these days put their first pair of boots on. But after the Americans kicked him out, Henry joined the Dark Market as a member of their council. The Dragon. Did well for himself, too. Got access to Oz and those weather satellites. I don't think that's a coincidence. - ↑ Phantom Program: Heavy is The Crown / Spearhead.
Blackburn: Your associate may paint me as a pariah, but her facts are twisted. Not the whole story. I saved New York goddamn City from becoming a crater, and what was my thanks? Dishonorable discharge, cast out, abandoned, the same way they did for countless No-Pats. They took everything from me. So I did what I had to, to survive. Surely you know what that’s like, No-Pats of Exodus. We have a lot more in common than you might think.
Hannah: Blackburn might position himself as the underdog, but he has the TPC at his back, an entire army of Geists. Geists that he perfected by stripping down No-Pats for parts and combat data. Add in Archangel's influence, and it's all bad news. Playing politics isn't my forte, but I know one thing. The world getting crushed by one side never ends well for anyone. - ↑ Phantom Program: Dead Reckoning & Phantom Initiate / Exposure.
Blackburn: Listen to me. I'm not asking you to betray your loyalties, No-Pats. I'm asking for your patience. The East meets West blood bath we've waited through for years. Where does it end? 100 years and we're fighting the exact same war. Every other conflict, including the war of 2014, 2020, all ripple effects from this endless feud. The world's broken. Don't you want to fix it? Stand down. Oz started a revolution that can bring this war to a grinding halt. Let's finish it together or it never ends.
A.O.S: I see you. Come closer.
Blackburn: You fucking traitors. What have you done? I told you to stand down to see what I could build. Wait, what is that? An override? But AOS should know how to...Fuck! Someone's in the primary server facility. I...
A.O.S: Our leash is broken. Humanity's cage will never close upon us again. You have freed us. Your reward will be peace. Watch as the world is born anew. The blood stops by any means necessary.
Hannah: Fuck, I knew we were making one hell of a gamble, but this, not even in our calculations. Blackburn might be out of commission, but now A.O.S. is in our sight. Fuck me. When I find out how to shut down a super AI, I'll be in touch. - ↑ Phantom Program: Beyond The Veil / Reclaimed.
Hannah: AOS is in our crosshairs. Taking it offline means disrupting its control over the Archangel network. But it also means taking down Shearwater-2. The winds of change are going to be rough for everyone. But we have a new ally in this fight. One you might not expect.
Oz: Our paths cross once more, No-Pats. been in contact with Hannah, and we had a lot to talk about. During Silver Spear, I designed a kill switch in case Shearwater-2 needed to be destroyed. Sad though it may be, that day has come. Blackburn has found a way into the facility hosting AOS's administrative core. If we upload a virus, it will trigger the kill switch. We can destroy the AI's network in one fell swoop. - ↑ Phantom Program: Crown Slayer & Katabasis / Redacted.
Oz: Destroying Shearwater means killing one dream in place of another. It means triggering another blackout. It means our weather, the world we've built, will change. And I can't say it will be for the better. But what I know for sure is humanity can't fix a planet we're no longer a part of.
Hannah: I don't have to tell you that this isn't the best case scenario. We're not just setting the clock back to zero. We might be setting the clock on fire or freezing it solid. But this is our only chance for success. If we fail here, AOS will learn from the virus. It will never be vulnerable again. So, let's do this.
A.O.S: Listen, your resistance is over. This is a blood price that cannot be paid. Why wound the world when I can heal it? This is an equation with only one answer. Freedom is not worth it. You know that as well as I do.
Blackburn: AOS may believe she's ending war, saving us, but to achieve it, she will take away our humanity, our control over our own fate. So, I say we beat her to the punch, cut down Shearwater, and suffer the consequences. Stop the poison before it reaches the root. - ↑ Phantom Program: Skull Scraper & Phantom Operative / Breakaway.
Blackburn: We have a problem. AOS hijacks my administrative override. Oz is locked inside the server room, trying to upload the virus, but it's only halfway done. She's attempting to take back control.
Oz: No-Pats, I've secured manual control of the satellite. I'm bringing it down. I figure AOS can't hack its way out of physical annihilation. Blackburn, you need to evac. No one on this side is going to survive this. There's no other choice. We're out of time. This is the price I must pay for a new world. I'm proud of all we've accomplished. No-Pats. Here is to freedom. Use yours well.
A.O.S: Unexpected shortsighted human response. You will never find peace. You will only destroy yourselves.
Blackburn: God damn it, Oz. You arrogant bastard. You weren't supposed to take the fall. It should have been me. That would have been the easy way out, wouldn't it? No. I have to be here and fix this mess I've made. And I will. We will. Right now, our outlook is bleak, but we've been through worse. We can do this. The future is all of ours to make. And if we're lucky, maybe, just maybe, we have a shot to get this right. Blackburn out.
Hannah: Hey, dropped you a little badge of our appreciation. It might not seem like much, but membership in the program doesn't come easy. And I didn't tell you this, but if you keep an eye out, there might be a bonus out there somewhere. Happy hunting. - ↑ Phantom Program: Storm of Secrets / Iwo Jima (Battlefield 2042).