Establishment of Salvation

Establishment of Salvation
Previous	Boravian-Jarhanpurian War
Beginning:	June 2025
End:	June 2025
Result:	Rick Flag, Sr. gains access to the Quantum Unfolding Chamber and located Salvation, gaining permission from the government to use it as a prison for Metahumans. Chris Smith becomes the first prisoner of Salvation.
Major Events
Battles:	Infiltration into Chris Smith's House Attack on Chris Smith's House Capture of Peacemaker Attack on Eagly Arrest of Peacemaker Attack on the A.R.G.U.S. Exploration Team Kidnapping of Chris Smith
Combatants
11th Street Kids
A.R.G.U.S. Red St. Wild
Imps Zombies
Commanders
Peacemaker
Rick Flag, Sr.
-
Casualties
One bald eagle
Kline Multiple A.R.G.U.S. agents
Multiple Imps One Zombie

"I don't care about punishment, Mr. Secretary! I don't. What I care about is removing dangerous individuals from our fucking planet forever! Keeping American people safe. Arkham and Belle Reve, they're not capable of holding individuals who have extraordinary abilities. They're not. Every single month, someone else escapes. No one... no one... will escape Salvation, I promise."

―Rick Flag, Sr. to Stephen Mori^[src]

The Establishment of Salvation was a series of events by Rick Flag, Sr. to avenge Rick Flag, Jr. and gain access to the Quantum Unfolding Chamber in order to find a new dimension that could be a prison. The operation resulted in A.R.G.U.S. finding a dimension Flag named Salvation, which they planned to use as a prison for Metahumans and Chris Smith.

Background

"I'm glad you're not concerned about the metahumans, Rick. Because now, they're the ones making the rules."

―Stephen Mori to Rick Flag, Sr.^[src]

In 2022, A.R.G.U.S. Director Amanda Waller ordered a covert group of Task Force X operatives to the island nation of Corto Maltese to prevent the possible revelation of the United States' involvement in Project Starfish. During the mission, the squad's leader, Colonel Rick Flag, Jr., attempted to steal classified documents from Jotunheim which would expose the government's experiments, but he was killed by his teammate, a vigilante known as Peacemaker, in an attempt to prevent an international incident.

Upon learning of his son's death, Rick Flag, Sr. fell into a deep depression, mired in a lingering lasting hatred and grudge against his son's killer. Distressed at this revelation, Flag became desperate to uncover his son's murderer, but he was constantly prevented from reading the files by A.R.G.U.S. due to their classified nature. Upon being appointed the new director of A.R.G.U.S., Flag finally managed to obtain the files, discovering that Peacemaker killed his son. In revenge, Flag ordered the agency to keep an eye on Smith, waiting for him to commit an offence to justify his arrest. In January 2025, an interdimensional anomaly was detected coming from Smith's house after he opened the Quantum Unfolding Chamber, further alerting A.R.G.U.S.

Later in 2025, relations between the general public and Metahumans started to sour after Superman's illegal intervention in the Boravian-Jarhanpurian War and several breakouts from Arkham Asylum and Belle Reve that spring. As part of a plan to assassinate Superman and destroy his public image, Lex Luthor opened a dimensional rift in Metropolis which almost destroyed the planet, until he was stopped by Superman and turned in to the authorities, later being sentenced to 265 years in Belle Reve.

Establishment

Infiltration into Chris Smith's House

A.R.G.U.S. agents enter Chris Smith's House

"He told me duck. What kind of man takes advantage of another man's bird blindness?"

―Langston Fleury to Sasha Bordeaux^[src]

Seeking revenge for his son's death, A.R.G.U.S. Director Rick Flag, Sr. assigned Agent John Economos to secretly monitor Peacemaker. In June 2025, upon detecting interdimensional energy spikes related to the use of the Quantum Unfolding Chamber, Flag, suspicious of Economos, sent Agent Langston Fleury to assist with the surveillance. When another alert was triggered, Sasha Bordeaux ordered Fleury to lead a team of agents to infiltrate Chris Smith's House, taking advantage of the fact that he would be out with friends. Once Smith left, Fleury and the team infiltrated the house while Agents Angler and Tillerson remained outside, scouting the perimeter.

Langston Fleury and Angler attacked by Eagly

Vega used a specialized device to scan for any trace of extraterrestrial energy, leading the team to the entrance of the Quantum Unfolding Chamber. However, Eagly, Peacemaker's pet bald eagle, launched a sudden attack on the agents, destroying Vega's device and repeatedly biting their faces, before doing the same to Tillerson and Angler. Due to his bird blindness, Langston Fleury was unable to determine the size of what he believed to be a "duck," calling for backup from outside agents before they were attacked. A battered Kline managed to rouse Fleury so they could retreat and be treated at the hospital.

Attack on Chris Smith's House

A.R.G.U.S. mobilizes against Chris Smith

"What the hell bro"
"You screwed the world once I wouldn’t let you do it again"

―Chris Smith and Judomaster^[src]

During the A.R.G.U.S. agents' recovery, Langston Fleury met with Sasha Bordeaux to tell her what had happened, and she then called John Economos to ask why he hadn't informed them about Peacemaker's pet "duck," and had him accompany them to the hospital. Having confirmed the presence of an interdimensional portal within Chris Smith's House, the A.R.G.U.S. leaders intensified their operation, planning a full-scale assault on the residence the following day. The attack on the federal agents also included recruiting the eagle hunter Red St. Wild to track down and eliminate Eagly. When the A.R.G.U.S. patrol arrived at the house, John Economos texted Smith to warn him. Smith quickly retrieved the Quantum Unfolding Chamber Access Device and made Eagly leave just as the A.R.G.U.S. agents managed to enter the house in the backyard, but was confronted by Judomaster, whom he ultimately defeated to escape, and while running, Smith texted Leota Adebayo to come get him.

Peacemaker activates the interdimensional portal

Meanwhile, Red St. Wild found Eagly and prepared to shoot, but Economos hit him over the head with a rock to prvent it. When Wild got up from the blow, he claimed that an eagle had taken him out, leading him to realize that Eagly was the Prime Eagle and had to be eliminated. Upon finding the interdimensional cabinet, Economos was called in to hack the panel, so he went to get his equipment and called Smith. In Adebayo's car, Smith asked Economos to distract the agents while he relocated the portal. Economos tried to stall while Smith arrived at Settlers' Hills to relocate the QUC entrance, succeeding and causing the agents to find only an empty closet.

Capture of Peacemaker

Judomaster takes aim at Peacemaker

"I can't even trust you to stay away when I warn you. Your ego is so fucking big, you somehow think that you can get out of this, but you can't. You can't. You are fucked. You are so fucked!"

―Emilia Harcourt to Chris Smith^[src]

Given the lack of success in extracting the device, Rick Flag, Sr. went to Emilia Harcourt's apartment and confessed to her that Amanda Waller had been responsible for her inability to get a job in intelligence, offering her the opportunity to get her job back in exchange for helping them arrest Peacemaker, which she agreed to, agreeing to meet Smith at Kupperberg Park where A.R.G.U.S. would assault him, but using a code word to warn him of the danger. Smith ignored the code word and decided to go anyway. As Emilia Harcourt sat on a bench to wait for Smith, Judomaster set up a tranquilizer rifle. When Smith arrived, he stayed out of Judomaster's sight and hid behind dogs to get to Harcourt, taking the microphone from him and trading places to disrupt Judomaster's line.

Emilia Harcourt tackles Chris Smith

Harcourt however scolded him for not following the signs she gave him, to which Smith insisted if the date they had meant anything to her, which she denied. The agents of A.R.G.U.S. then assaulted Smith to make him surrender, but he knocked Kline down and threatened the officers while Flag ordered Judomaster not to shoot again for Kline's safety. However, Sasha Bordeaux calculated Smith's pattern and devised the perfect fatal shot, which Flag ordered her to execute, so to save Smith's life, Harcourt kicked him to the ground, rendering him unconscious, allowing A.R.G.U.S. arrest him. Inside the headquarters, Flag brutally hit Smith in revenge for his son, until John Economos booked him to prevent him from killing him. Smith was freed, although Flag ordered Judomaster to follow him.

Attack on Eagly

A group of bald eagles attack Red St. Wild

"The prime eagle! Eagly? I didn't mean to- I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"

―Red St. Wild to Eagly^[src]

While A.R.G.U.S. pursued Peacemaker, Red St. Wild was convinced to hunt Eagly at all costs, separating from his team to perform a ritual to invoke a mystical power, with which he was able to track Eagly through the air, locating him near a cabin in the Settlers' Hills. To hunt the eagle, Wild infected a rat with a toxic poison and threw it towards the cabin, hoping that Eagly would eat it, but to his misfortune, a coyote caught the infected rat and ran away after being chased after Eagly. In desperation, the coyote swallowed the rat and died from the poison. Wild then took his shotgun, walking cautiously with his rifle in search of Eagly, and seeing an eagle in the air, Wild shot it down, only to realize it wasn't Eagly. With the hunter distracted, Eagly gathered a flock of bald eagles and abruptly ambush Wild, knocking him to the ground. Eagly then ordered the eagles to annihilate his enemy, who disarmed him and flew towards him to slaughter him.

Arrest of Peacemaker

Rick Flag, Sr. visits Lex Luthor

"That's what you're looking for. The rest of them, all of them... came and got me and convinced me to give it to you."

―Peacemaker to Rick Flag, Sr.^[src]

When Peacemaker returned to Settlers' Hills, he traveled through the Quantum Unfolding Chamber to Earth-2, determined to live there since he was no longer willing to live in his own world because of Emilia Harcourt's comments. Smith left a letter for Leota Adebayo to read to the 11th Street Kids. Judomaster followed Peacemaker through the portal just before it closed. Unwilling to abandon their friend, the 11th Street Kids decided to travel to convince him to return, taking the Quantum Unfolding Chamber Access Device to Adrian Chase's house to place the QUC portal and travel to Earth-2. Meanwhile, Flag sought Lex Luthor's help at Belle Reve Correctional Center, who, in exchange for a transfer to Van Kull Maximum Security Prison, offered to help Flag track Peacemaker's portal.

A.R.G.U.S. agents assault the 11th Street Kids

Luthor directed Flag to Sydney Happersen, who managed to locate the portal at Chase's house. Meanwhile, the 11th Street Kids managed to retrieve Peacemaker from Earth-2, allying themselves with Judomaster to escape the pursuing Captain Triumph and the Evergreen Police Department. With the portal's location found, Rick Flag, Sr., led a team of A.R.G.U.S. agents to Adrian Chase's house just as the 11th Street Kids and Judomaster were returning. Peacemaker then threw the Quantum Unfolding Chamber Access Device to Flag, telling him that the others had come to convince him to turn it in. Peacemaker was apprehended by an agent, while his allies were freed.

Peacemaker is comforted by his friends

During Smith's incarceration, Eagly was placed under the care of John Economos. Due to his experience with the deaths of everyone around him, Chris Smith accepted arrest because it allowed him to stay away from everyone. Leota Adebayo convinced Adrian Chase to use drug money to get Smith out of jail. After his release, Smith went to John Economos's house with the sole purpose of retrieving Eagly, leaving Evergreen without a trace. However, Smith was intercepted by the 11th Street Kids, who cornered him and forced him to talk. Smith claimed to be cursed, as everyone around him died, but Leota Adebayo helped him understand that each time someone around him died, it was because he wasn't listening to himself, helping him overcome his trauma.

Attack on the A.R.G.U.S. Exploration Team

A.R.G.U.S. agents are attacked by zombies

"When has anything we've ever done actually been for the good of the people?"

―John Economos to Emilia Harcourt^[src]

Following Peacemaker's arrest and the confiscation of the Quantum Unfolding Chamber Access Device, A.R.G.U.S. partnered with LuthorCorp technicians to launch a campaign to find an uninhabited dimension capable of supporting Earth-like life. Under Rick Flag's command, A.R.G.U.S. agents were sent to investigate through the Quantum Unfolding Chamber, using protective suits to explore the unknown conditions of different universes. Upon entering Candyland, Langston Fleury, Emilia Harcourt, and Kline were suddenly attacked by Imps, who managed to penetrate Kline's suit helmet and kill him. Despite the gruesome murder, the agents continued to be sent to explore other universes, entering a dimension containing a black hole that began pulling them in until they managed to close the door. The agents were then sent through a portal to a universe inhabited by zombies, where one of them turned into a zombie, forcing the others to shoot him.

Harcourt, Bordeaux, and Angler discover and explore planet Salvation

Finally, Sasha Bordeaux, Emilia Harcourt, and Angler stepped through a portal to Salvation, relieved to have found a planet that offered the conditions they sought. Harcourt compiled a report on her findings and delivered it to Director Rick Flag, Sr. and the LuthorCorp technicians. Upon reviewing the report, Flag enthusiastically announced that Salvation was exactly what he had been looking for and called a meeting with Secretary of Defense General Stephen Mori at the Pentagon to propose his plan for Salvation, which would be used as a prison for metahumans. Although General Mori hesitated, he ultimately gave his approval to proceed with the project.

The foundation of Checkmate

Realizing she was being used, Sasha Bordeaux arranged a meeting with Emilia Harcourt to consider founding their own covert operations agency, and Harcourt proposed that Leota Adebayo lead the initiative, as she already had ideas about starting an agent business. By convincing Adrian Chase to use the drug money stored in his warehouse for a good purpose, and convincing Chris Smith to overcome his traumas and join them, 11th Street Kids and former A.R.G.U.S. agents, including Judomaster and Langston Fleury, founded Checkmate, with the vision of improving the world in the face of A.R.G.U.S. corruption, establishing their headquarters in Evergreen.

Kidnapping of Chris Smith

A.R.G.U.S. agents escort Peacemaker to Salvation

"Before we move all the metahuman prisoners here, I thought a little due diligence was required, see what effects this dimension has on the human body. I wanna thank you for volunteering."

―Rick Flag, Sr. to Chris Smith^[src]

Still resentful of Peacemaker, Rick Flag, Sr. forged a document from Smith stating that he had volunteered to test Salvation Prison and observe its effects on humans before he began sending metahumans there, as planned. With the document, Flag ordered his A.R.G.U.S. agents to kidnap Smith, who, attempting to return to his apartment, was taken by surprise. A bag was placed over his face, and he was forced into a van, handcuffed and bewildered, until they arrived at the old LuthorCorp base, where the interdimensional portal was guarded. The agents then removed Smith from the van, took the bag off, and escorted him to the gate to Salvation, where Angler and Vega removed the handcuffs.

Aftermath

Immediately after Rick Flag, Sr. revealed his vengeful intentions by locking Smith up in Salvation, Peacemaker tried to run towards the door, but it evaporated before him, leaving him stranded on an unknown planet. Due to Chris Smith's forced disappearance, Eagly moved in with John Economos at his home.