Low-level emergent systems into high-level emergent systems

The idea of all of humanity existing as an emergent system is extremely interesting, but the idea that we could be "robbed" of free will is frightening.

Is it possible that an emergent system could contain rules that would account for the creation of randomness?

I suppose the best example to explain what I'm saying is this:

Computer programs operate in binary - when you break it down, all the code is nothing more than little electrical impulses that indicate whether a certain switch is ON or OFF.  But this incredibly simple architecture allows for the creation of extremely complex programming languages and processes - imagine what the binary code output would look like for Windows XP or a video game like Halo.  Yet somehow, these things exist.

Programming languages differ from emergent systems in that they are architectures, and not inherently self-replicating or self-sufficient, but could it be possible that, given simple rules (like the game of life) we might get the code for a new computer game or word processing program?

 And if that's possible, isn't it also possible that, at the beginning of life, the simple rules that governed existence allowed for the creation of randomness?  And if randomness was created, could free will have also been created?  Could one emergent system give rise to an emergent SUBsystem that governs certain smaller aspects of the larger one, like organs to an organism?