- "I hooked up with a chick, and I'm not saying that to make you jealous. I'm saying it because she was a metahuman freak that threw me around the room like an angry kid with his little sister's Cabbage Patch Doll!"
- ―Peacemaker to Emilia Harcourt[src]
The Attack on Peacemaker was an attempt by Annie Sturphausen to kill Christopher Smith after reading the A.R.G.U.S. file about his target, Royland Goff.
Background[]
Butterfly Investigation[]
- "I already knew he had way more Butterfly knowledge than what was possible from our current investigations. I confronted him. He came clean."
- ―Emilia Harcourt to Leota Adebayo[src]
To determine the threat level posed by the alien creatures known as Butterflies, Amanda Waller, the director of A.R.G.U.S., assigned Ik Nobe Llok,[1] secretly inhabiting the body of mercenary Clemson Murn,[2] to lead an iteration of Task Force X dubbed "Project Butterfly," which included agents Emilia Harcourt, John Economos, and her daughter Leota Adebayo.[1]
In the process, "Murn" provided the team with valuable advanced knowledge of the Butterflies, which would help them stop their plot to take control of high-ranking politicians, such as Senator Royland Goff, who had been infected by the Eek Stack Ik Ik Butterfly Queen.[1]
Peacemaker Recruitment[]
Peacemaker with the team at Fennel Fields.
- "You're a born killer with expertise in every weapon known to humankind, and you've had experience in black ops around the globe, so I'm giving you the chance to stay out of prison and work for me."
- ―Clemson Murn to Peacemaker[src]
Having been released from Mount Rouge Health Center following a clavicle replacement, Peacemaker returned to his trailer, where he was suddenly visited by "Clemson Murn" and his team, offering him the chance to stay out of prison if he joined them on "Project Butterfly." Reluctantly, Smith accepted the offer and met with the group at Fennel Fields, receiving a document about their next assassination target, Senator Royland Goff.
Peacemaker tries to flirt with Emilia Harcourt.
When the meeting ended, Smith tracked Emilia Harcourt to a secret bar, intending to approach and woo her for sex, claiming he needed to relieve the stress of his time in prison. Noticing Smith's advances, Harcourt left the bar in a huff, just as Smith noticed a reclusive woman named Annie Sturphausen. The two quickly had a one-night stand in Sturphausen's apartment.[1]
Ambush[]
Peacemaker singing rock records.
- "Hey, I gotta thank you for tonight. I was having a crazy, fucked-up day, but when I was in your pussy back there, I felt, I don't know, fucking hope!"
- ―Peacemaker to Annie Sturphausen[src]
While Peacemaker was brushing his teeth, Annie Sturphausen took the opportunity to grab the folder provided by A.R.G.U.S., uncovering the details of the covert operation. Although Smith ignored it, Sturphausen went to the bathroom[3] while he discovered several rock records in the apartment, including those by The Quireboys. Smith began listening to the records while singing, while Sturphausen entered the kitchen to grab a knife. Suddenly, Sturphausen interrupted Smith and began furiously attacking him with the knife, as he tried to defend himself, Smith received multiple cuts on his back, arms, shoulders, face, and legs.
Annie Sturphausen attacks Peacemaker.
With her enhanced Butterfly strength, Sturphausen pushed Smith and proceeded to lunge at him, only for Smith to stop her with his hands, drive the knife into the floor, and slam her against a lamp. Surprised by the sudden attack, Smith tried to confront Sturphausen, who again used her strength to throw him against a table, shattering it. Sturphausen then landed a kick that sent Smith crashing into a wooden wall, only for Smith to try to counterattack and Sturphausen to use her fingernails to cut part of his chest. Smith, who had been lying on the floor, then stood up and proceeded to push Sturphausen into the room, beginning to throw various objects at him.
Furious, Sturphausen grabbed Smith by the head and began to crush his skull, only for Smith to take some perfume and spray it in her eyes before hitting her and trying to escape. About to grab the knife from the floor, Smith was dragged across the floor by Sturphausen, who struggled with him inside the room and then proceeded to throw him against another wall. Horrified by Sturphausen's superhuman power, Smith was forced to jump out of the apartment window, falling several stories to the ground and injuring several bones.
Peacemaker after using Sonic Blast Helmet to blow up Annie Sturphausen.
Wounded, Smith hurriedly crawled to his Ford Comet after seeing an out-of-control Sturphausen about to jump out of the apartment. On the ground, Sturphausen walked slowly and frighteningly through the building's parking lot in search of Smith. Eagly made a noise that gave Smith away, so Sturphausen quickly dived to attack him. However, at that moment, Smith managed to find the Sonic Boom helmet, which he put on just as Sturphausen was in midair. When he activated it, the helmet generated a shock wave that disintegrated Sturphausen and destroyed part of the building.[1]
Aftermath[]
Sophie Song and Larry Fitzgibbon arrive at the Wild Estates Apartment Complex.
- "You change the car registration into someone else's name?"
"Not only that, I changed the fingerprints out to the same person, which they'll discover when they get the lab results back in a couple days."
"That's possible?"
"Yeah, for this guy with two thumbs it is." - ―Clemson Murn and John Economos[src]
The destruction caused by the exploding Sonic Boom hull attracted the attention of the Evergreen Police Department, who arrived on the scene moments after the incident. While attempting to flee from the officers, Christopher Smith contacted Emilia Harcourt, informing her of Annie Sturphausen's attack. Discovering that it was actually a Butterfly, Harcourt went to the scene with Leota Adebayo to help Smith flee the apartment building, which she successfully accomplished.
To prevent the police department from issuing an arrest warrant for Smith in Sturphausen's death, John Economos used his computer skills to hack into the police database, swapping the registration of Smith's Ford Comet to his father's name, as well as swapping his fingerprints from the database.[3]