Checkmate
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The group known as Checkmate or The Agency is a clandestine organisation within the United States government, primarily as part of the United States Secret Service. It was established in the wake of the Vigilante Regulation Act by those who felt that the government was making a mistake by turning its back on the Justice Society of America, and exists to protect the United States from extreme threats, preferably without the American people ever being aware - of the threat, or of Checkmate's existence. Over time that mandate has expanded to strive towards the general betterment of the United States, acting through proxies and manipulation to guide America towards a better future. Much of the cult mythology regarding the Men in Black derives from the actions of Checkmate.
History
Following World War II, a culture of costumed crime fighters emerged in the United States. Concerned about the abundance of these vigilantes, but unwilling to tempt the public backlash that might result from attempting to oppose them directly, the US government created the Justice Society of America: an organisation affiliated with the Department of Justice, which allowed select vigilantes to gain legitimacy and endorsement from the government. While some members of the Justice Society were government assets, the JSA was largely allowed to police itself, relying on a community of heroes to keep each other in check.
Unfortunately, the Golden Age of the Justice Society didn't last, and when a Crisis brought the JSA crashing down, the government was quick to pounce on the opportunity to condemn the superhero population, drafting the Vigilante Regulation Act that formally condemned all costumed heroics as unlawful. The Department of Extranormal Operations was established to enforce the VRA, and America's superhero population was forced either into retirement, or underground.
Some of those underground individuals banded together. They felt that Congress was being naive in their condemnation of the Justice Society, and with the support of the incumbent President, established Checkmate as an undocumented branch of the Secret Service. Initially, the idea was to ensure that the President would be protected in the event that foreign nations saw the VRA as an indication of America's vulnerability; one of the first Checkmate agents in the Secret Service was Jay Garrick, a speedster who contributed his abilities to the President's personal detail.
Over time, Checkmate's mandate expanded. The leadership saw how the likes of ARGUS and the DEO were arranging America's protection from foreign and domestic dangers, and felt that there were gaps in that protection that they were uniquely positioned to (secretly) fill. Checkmate began to reach out, forging alliances with prominent figures in politics, the military, and business, trading favours and influence to promote the development of useful technologies, or the investment in important initiatives. Though still technically a government organisation, and technically still subservient to the whims of the President of the United States, Checkmate began to start making its own decisions, and acting towards its own goals and objectives. At this time, Checkmate began to embrace a more morally grey set of ethics, leading to the advent of initiatives like the Suicide Squad, which made use of convicted meta-criminals on covert missions.
Over the last decade, Checkmate has engaged in its most ambitious plan. Following the deaths of Robert and Moira Queen, individuals loyal to Checkmate gained control of Queen Industries, allowing it to become the centerpiece of Checkmate's plans. Through acquisitions and mergers it became Queen Consolidated, and migrated to Gotham City, where it grew into a titan of industry that quietly exploited the lax regulations and lawlessness prevalent in the city. Those ambitions further expanded with the creation of Intergang, an organisation that sought to reduce crime through control, rather than direct opposition. Working through Queen Consolidated and Intergang, Checkmate set out to gain control of Gotham City, using it as a proving ground for new technologies, pathogens, and techniques for pacification that could, through Checkmate's network of influence, eventually be rolled out to other agencies. To Checkmate, the objective was clear and simple: sacrifice Gotham, and use the lessons learned from its slow decline to help save the rest of America.
Hierarchy
Over time, Checkmate's hierarchy has grown broad and amorphous, making it difficult to be sure of true extent of the organisation - even among the organisation's agents themselves.
For the most part, Checkmate uses chess terminology, different pieces representing different positions and tiers. The title of White King (♔) identifies the President of the United States, who functions as the organisation's official leader - despite being part of the Secret Service, Checkmate is considered to answer directly to the President - and more broadly to the United States Government and to Washington, DC. Typically, the President appoints a cabinet or council to oversee Checkmate's operations, with the King's Bishop (♗) acting as the chairperson for that group, and as the direct political oversight for Checkmate. The King's Rook (♖) meanwhile is the Director of Operations at Checkmate's secret headquarters, located in the United States Bullion Depository at Fort Knox, and codenamed The Castle: they function as the de facto leader of Checkmate on a day-to-day basis, with subordinate Rooks functioning as specialists and support officers in various capacities. The King's Knight (♘) is considered the Special Agent in Charge, and functions as Agent Zero, overseeing and coordinating Checkmate's numerically-identified field agents. The pawn (♙) is used to represent low-level operatives and support staff, though because of the connotations of the term, such individuals are usually addressed officially as Officer, or informally (and collectively) as "Kingspawn". Other informal nicknames for certain positions exist, such as the adjutant to Agent Zero, who is known as KNP in internal memos - short for the King's Knight's Pawn. Collectively, these aspects of Checkmate operations is referred to as "Kingside".
The "Queenside" aspect of Checkmate operations represents those embedded in the corporate leadership of Queen Consolidated, which functions as a front company, research and development branch, and revenue stream for the organisation. It is overseen by the White Queen (♕), a position thus far only ever filled by William Glenmorgan, the President of Queen Consolidated. The positions of Queen's Knight and Queen's Rook exist as subordinates to White Queen, though given the nature of Queen Consolidated operations, such terms are reserved mostly for internal Checkmate use. In addition, many Queenside operations are unofficial and illegal, such as the activities of Intergang, with many of the participants unaware that they work for a government-sanctioned organisation. These individuals are represented (internally) by black chess pieces rather than white, to emphasise the unofficial nature of their associaiton.
Allegedly, an entirely separate facet of Checkmate exists, overseen by an individual codenamed Black King (♚). Supposedly, Black King oversees Checkmate's black sites and black ops missions, and may have access to operatives and "Black Knights" to facilitate this.
Membership
- ♔ White King - President of the United States
- ♗ King's Bishop - Maxwell Lord (Attorney General)
- ♖ King's Rook -
- ♘ King's Knight - Jason Garrick (Special Agent in Charge)
- ▶ ♘ Agent 37 - Richard Grayson
- ♕ White Queen - William Glenmorgan (President of Queen Consolidated)
- ♖ Queen's Rook -
- ▶ ♜ Intergang - Morgan Edge (Galaxy Communications)
- ▶ ♜ Intergang - Oswald Cobblepot
- ▶ ♜ Intergang - Bruno Mannheim
- ▶ ♟ Intergang - Bane
- ♚ Black King - (Director of (Black) Operations)
