Project Freelancer

"Project Freelancer is a state of the art scientific endeavor, with one goal in mind: to ensure the security of humanity in a harsh and violent galaxy."

- F.I.L.S.S. describing Project Freelancer in Perusing the Archive

Project Freelancer was a research program set up to study skilled agents with experimental A.I. and is central to the Red vs. Blue universe.

Overview
Project Freelancer is a Special Operations program created to study soldiers with A.I. implants during the war with the Covenant. The main mission of Project Freelancer, as said by F.I.L.S.S., is to ensure the survival of humanity in a hostile galaxy. While the Red and Blue armies are fighting each other, in what is a massive experimental simulation, Freelancers are competent enough for actual conflict with the Covenant. Their designation as Freelancer would appear to be only a ploy to further fool the Red and Blue soldiers, as every Freelancer to appear in Red vs. Blue either still abides by the objective of, or still takes orders from a superior of, subsidiary of, or directly from those who trained them, with the exception of Agent Maine (The Meta) and to an extent Agent Wyoming, a bounty hunter. It is unknown if the Meta is acting on its own volition or if its actions are driven by its numerous implants. As a result of the Meta's actions, the program was shut down after the events of Reconstruction.

Freelancer Agents
Based on all given Freelancers to date, all members of the program share one similar trait; they are codenamed after the 50 states of the United States of America.
 * Agent /NAME (Status) - Assigned A.I. - Assigned Ability

Other

 * Alabama - KIA
 * Alaska - KIA
 * Arizona - KIA
 * Arkansas - MIA
 * California
 * Colorado - MIA
 * Delaware - KIA
 * Hawaii - MIA
 * Indiana - MIA
 * Kansas - MIA
 * Kentucky - MIA
 * Louisiana - MIA
 * Maryland - KIA
 * Massachusetts - MIA
 * Michigan - MIA
 * Minnesota - MIA


 * Mississippi - MIA
 * Missouri - MIA
 * Montana - MIA
 * Nebraska - MIA
 * Nevada - MIA
 * New Hampshire - MIA
 * New Jersey - MIA
 * New Mexico - MIA
 * Oklahoma - MIA
 * Oregon - MIA
 * Pennsylvania - MIA
 * Rhode Island - MIA
 * Tennessee - MIA
 * Vermont - MIA
 * Virginia - MIA
 * West Virginia - MIA
 * Wisconsin - MIA

Red Army

 * Colonel Sarge
 * Colonel Surge - KIA
 * Colonel Turf - KIA
 * Major Santos - KIA
 * Captain Dick Simmons
 * Captain Dexter Grif
 * Captain Morgan - KIA
 * Lieutenant Max Gain - KIA
 * Lieutenant Drag - KIA
 * Drill Sergeant Hammer - KIA
 * Corporal Clint Buckshot - KIA
 * Private Franklin Donut
 * Private Peake - KIA
 * Private Sue - KIA
 * Private Walter Henderson - MIA
 * Red Mutineer
 * Burke - KIA
 * Dellario - KIA
 * Phil - KIA
 * Tubbs - KIA
 * Red Zealot - KIA
 * Hank Daggerknife - KIA
 * Johnson MacGruff - KIA
 * Cobb - KIA
 * Regina - KIA
 * Hutch - KIA
 * Marlowe - KIA
 * Gene - MIA
 * Cronut
 * Biff - KIA
 * Red Zealots

Blue Army

 * Captain Lavernius Tucker
 * Captain Michael Caboose
 * Lieutenant Miller - KIA
 * Private Leonard Church - KIA
 * Private Kaikaina Grif
 * Private Jimmy - KIA
 * Private Jones - KIA
 * Squatch - KIA
 * Wynn - KIA
 * Deuce - KIA
 * Mark Temple
 * Buckey
 * Loco - KIA
 * Blue Zealots

Program History
Freelancers are set apart from their Red and Blue counterparts by their armor enhancements, artificial intelligence programs (for those who have them), and their proficiency in actual combat. As far as members of the Red and Blue armies are concerned, Freelancers are merely guns for the highest bidder - as described by Tucker.

In the seemingly pointless war between Red and Blue, Freelancers were allowed the use of only one artificial construct, the "smart" A.I. Alpha. However, to gain more information on how AIs work with the soldiers they were implanted in, Alpha was copied several times, resulting in the creation of the other Freelancer A.I., such as Gamma, Delta, Sigma, Theta, Epsilon and Omega. The copies seem to have become obsessed with Alpha; Washington comments that they could spend entire debriefings talking about Alpha, while other Freelancers attempted to break into its storage facility and steal it. Its current whereabouts are unknown; it may be possible that it might not even exist anymore.

However, this is not the case. In Reconstruction: Chapter 16, it is revealed that Church is not a ghost, but the Alpha A.I., explaining why he agrees with Delta (his logic), why he didn't feel different when Omega (his rage) entered his head, and why he can jump from person to person like Omega. Furthermore, the other A.I. were never copied from Alpha; Instead, Alpha was tortured repeatedly by the Director. Each time the Director tortured it, Alpha would forcibly eject an aspect of it's persona to save itself. Epsilon was created when the Director lied to Alpha, implying that Alpha's failure to complete a certain task quickly lead to the 'deaths' of Agent Washington and, more painfully to Alpha, Agent Texas. Thus, Alpha ejected it's memory in response to the overpowering mental strain, thereby creating Epsilon.

Following an investigation by the UNSC, Project Freelancer was forcibly shut down and its Director was arrested for unethical conduct (his torture of Alpha). However, it is revealed at the end of Reconstruction, that the Alpha is copied off the mind of the Director, whose real name is Leonard Church.

In The Mother of Destruction, it is revealed that all remaining Freelancer agents have gone missing around the same time as a group of imposters impersonating the Reds and Blues began committing crimes.

In Battlescars, it is revealed that Temple of the Blues and Reds has been going around capturing Freelancer agents by tracking their recovery beacons and leaving them to die in his basement trapped in armor lock. Agents Alaska, Arizona, Illinois and Maryland, along with six more agents were killed by Temple in this manner.

Freelancer Leaderboard
The Freelancer Leaderboard is a ranking system table that displays the stats of the top eight (previously six) ranking Freelancers. It plays a major role in Seasons 9 and 10 of Red vs. Blue, having a lasting effect on the Freelancers and their views towards the Project and the Director.

The Twins

 * 1) Carolina
 * 2) York
 * 3) Wyoming
 * 4) South Dakota
 * 5) North Dakota
 * 6) Washington

Realignment

 * 1) Carolina
 * 2) York
 * 3) Wyoming
 * 4) North Dakota
 * 5) South Dakota
 * 6) Washington

Planning the Heist

 * 1) Carolina
 * 2) Wyoming
 * 3) Maine
 * 4) North Dakota
 * 5) Washington
 * 6) York

Whole Lot of Shaking

 * 1) Texas
 * 2) Carolina
 * 3) York
 * 4) Maine
 * 5) Washington
 * 6) North Dakota

The New Kid

 * 1) Texas
 * 2) Carolina
 * 3) York
 * 4) Wyoming
 * 5) North Dakota
 * 6) Washington
 * 7) Maine
 * 8) South Dakota

Known A.I.

 * Alpha: Never assigned to an agent, later implanted into Pvt. Jimmy as a host body.
 * Attribute: None; Full A.I.
 * Status: Destroyed, as a result of the EMP explosion.
 * Beta: Never assigned to an agent, but later salvaged by the Meta
 * Attribute: Failure
 * Status: Destroyed as a result of the EMP explosion.
 * Gamma: Assigned to Freelancer Wyoming, but later salvaged by the Meta
 * Attribute: Deceit
 * Status: Destroyed as a result of the EMP explosion. Lives on as a memory through Epsilon.
 * Delta: Assigned to Freelancer York but later acquired by Freelancer South Dakota, then Caboose, and finally captured by the Meta
 * Attribute: Logic
 * Status: Destroyed as a result of the EMP explosion. Lives on as a memory through Epsilon.
 * Epsilon: Assigned to Freelancer Washington however it was never used by the same. Later used by Freelancer Carolina and later Tucker before its destruction.
 * Attribute: Memory
 * Status: Destroyed, lived on in the form of Epsilon-Church prior self-deconstruction.
 * Theta: Assigned to Freelancer North Dakota, but later salvaged by the Meta
 * Attribute: Trust
 * Status: Destroyed as a result of the EMP explosion. Lives on as a memory through Epsilon.
 * Eta: Originally assigned for either Freelancers Washington or South Dakota, but later given to Freelancer Carolina, and finally salvaged by the Meta
 * Attribute: Fear
 * Status: Destroyed as a result of the EMP explosion. Lives on as a memory through Epsilon.
 * Iota: Originally assigned for either Freelancers Washington or South Dakota, but later given to Freelancer Carolina, and finally salvaged by the Meta
 * Attribute: Happiness
 * Status: Destroyed as a result of the EMP explosion. Lives on as a memory through Epsilon.
 * Sigma: Originally assigned to Freelancer Carolina, soon given to Freelancer Maine to assist his speaking after his vocal cords were damaged
 * Attribute: Ambition/Creativity
 * Status: Destroyed in EMP explosion. Lives on as a memory through Epsilon.
 * Omega: Assigned to Freelancer Texas. Possessed everyone at Blood Gulch except Tucker and Sister, then returned to Tex. After crash landing in Valhalla, salvaged by the Meta.
 * Attribute: Rage
 * Status: Destroyed, as a result of the EMP explosion. Lives on as a memory through Epsilon.

Trivia

 * It is implied that Project Freelancer is similar to the Spartan II Program seen in the Halo franchise, novels and Halo Legends, given that all Freelancers and Spartans were stripped of their real names and given codenames; although the Spartans' first names were retained and given service tags along with them. (e.g John-117)
 * Another point that Project Freelancer is similar to the Spartan II Program is that both Freelancers and Spartans are given special abilities. While the Freelancers received armor enhancements (e.g York's Healing Unit and North's Domed Energy Shield) and A.I.s, the Spartans received Augmentation enhancements/Procedures and the MJOLNIR Armor to improve their reflexes, speed, strength, durability and agility.
 * It is revealed in the episode Restraining Orders that Freelancers don't get paid overtime, as Doc reveals that he does, much to Washington's surprise.
 * On the Freelancer Leaderboard, next to each agent's name, is a symbol that corresponds with their specialty. For example, York's symbol is a lock because he is an infiltration specialist; Tex, North, and South's symbol is for stealth; Wyoming's is a crosshair as he is the sniper, Washington's is a battle rifle hence his signature weapon, Maine's symbol is a fist, due to his raw power and Carolina's is a rank insignia due to her role as team leader.
 * Not including Epsilon-doubles, Project Freelancer has the second highest (known) member count out of all the RvB factions, with a total of nineteen, coming in behind of Charon Industries' twenty-five and just ahead of the Reds and Blues' eighteen.
 * Project Freelancer contains references to the United States of America, such as:
 * All of the agents' codenames are based on the states of the country (as mentioned before).
 * The colors used for the symbols & factions (red, blue, white) also relate to the colors of the American flag.
 * The Director's title (Dr. Church) make the initials D.C., which relates to the capital of the United States: Washington D.C. This, ironically, also references his position as head of the project. Alternatively, the Director and Councelor's initials also make D.C.
 * 'Freelancer' means a person or group who are under self-employment of a company and are not committed to a long term career in it. Fittingly, every known agent eventually betrays or leaves Project Freelancer at some point.
 * The Blues seem to have a more positive relationship with the Freelancers they encounter than the Reds, as Florida was their commanding officer, Washington eventually joins the team, Tex has (for the most part) worked with the Blue team, and Carolina appears to show more respect towards the Blues than the Reds.
 * It's revealed that groups of individuals have stolen several of Project Freelancer's equipment after it was shut down, even though the remaining equipment was given to the UNSC and Chairman. It's also revealed that some of the armor enhancements from the faction have become accessible throughout the galaxy.
 * Freelancers seem to have a celebrity-like status with the other soldiers of Project Freelancer. In the season 10 episode Party Crasher, the two grunts that assist Wyoming are very enthusiastic to work with him, saying that it's "awesome!"