Chapter Summaries

Kara introduced Superman to the DEO, where he reunited tensely with Hank Henshaw and met Lin Li. The group confirmed that the man from the escape pod was another Kryptonian, while Hank ordered Lin Li to stay in his hospital room.

• Kara introduced her cousin Superman to the DEO staff, and Superman greeted them before exchanging strained words with Hank Henshaw over their dispute about kryptonite.
• Superman met Lin Li, thanked him for saving Kara, and agreed they should have a drink together sometime.
• Hank Henshaw led the group to examine the man from the escape pod, and Kara found no control device inside his body.
• Winn decrypted the pod’s logs, which showed it had passed through the Well of Stars, where time did not pass.
• Hank tested the man with a kryptonite dagger and confirmed that he was a Kryptonian when his cells weakened and recovered with its removal.
• Hank sent Superman and Kara to investigate the Venture explosion and ordered Lin Li to return to his hospital room.

Lin Li befriended the dangerous Menak Belaz alien Boler over milk, then promised he would not harm humans. Hank Henshaw ordered Kara to take Lin Li home and supervise him, and she agreed to let him stay in her spare room.

• Hank Henshaw led agents to investigate the damaged surveillance in Boler's detention chamber.
• Hank Henshaw found Lin Li sharing milk and potato chips with Boler, who became furious when Hank yelled at Lin Li.
• Lin Li calmed Boler by telling him the agents were his friends, and Boler promised to wait for Lin Li to return with more milk.
• Lin Li passed through the superconductive glass wall and told Hank that Boler had promised not to attack or kill humans.
• Hank Henshaw ordered Kara to take Lin Li home and keep him under surveillance, and Kara offered him her spare room.

Lin Li left the DEO and moved into Kara’s apartment, where he decided Winn was better suited to support work than becoming a speedster. While Kara showed him around Nashino City, they arrived at Lena Luthor’s press conference, which was attacked by an explosion.

• Kara told Lin Li he would leave the DEO and move into her apartment under her supervision.
• Lin Li visited Boler in the detention area, then talked with Winn and decided not to grant him the Speed Force.
• Kara brought Lin Li clothes, showed him around Nashino City, and took him to her apartment, where he cooked her a Chinese meal.
• Kara explained that the DEO expected Lena Luthor’s company-renaming press conference to be attacked.
• Lena announced that Luthor Corporation would be renamed, and an explosion struck the press conference.

A bombing at Lena Luthor’s event nearly caused a high-rise to collapse, but Lin Li, Supergirl, Superman, and Alex helped save the civilians and stop the assassin. At dinner, Lin Li encouraged James to consider becoming a hero, leaving him pondering how an ordinary person could follow Batman’s example.

• Bombs struck Lena Luthor’s event, killing or scattering security personnel and damaging a nearby high-rise as Kara became Supergirl and flew to help.
• James shielded a fallen woman from a falling chunk of stone, and Lin Li rescued them both before the debris hit.
• Supergirl and Superman braced the collapsing building while Lin Li protected civilians and James directed them to safety.
• Alex fought Coburn, who had arranged the bombing and structural damage to distract Supergirl, and Lena shot him as he tried to escape with Alex hostage.
• Kara and Lin Li invited James to dinner, where Lin Li asked if he had considered becoming a hero and pointed to Batman as an ordinary person who did so.
• James finished dinner lost in thought about becoming a hero, while Kara ate most of the food.

Lillian Luthor prepared to turn Coburn into Metallo and planned to capture Supergirl so Cadmus could make the Lightning Rider its weapon. Meanwhile, Lin Li decided James had the qualities to become a hero and considered granting him the Speed Force after Shanshan found someone mentioning the Lightning Rider.

• Lillian Luthor watched kryptonite being implanted in Coburn and declared that Cadmus would turn him into Metallo.
• Cyborg Superman told Lillian Luthor that the Lightning Rider had appeared and gone to live with Supergirl, prompting her to plan his capture and use him as Cadmus's blade.
• Lin Li and Kara argued over Kara's negative view of Daxam and its prince, then Kara said the President would visit Nashino City in two days to sign the Alien Amnesty Act.
• Lin Li reviewed footage showing James training with special forces instructors and rushing to rescue people after Winn refused to make him equipment.
• Lin Li decided James had the qualities to become a hero and considered granting him the Speed Force.
• Shanshan 2.0 found someone in Nashino City surveillance footage mentioning the name Lightning Rider.

Shanshan 2.0 discovered that Cadmus planned to use Metallo against Lin Li and Supergirl, so Lin Li sent the DEO evidence without revealing his involvement. After the DEO moved to raid Cadmus, Kara left to join the mission while Lin Li went back to sleep.

• Shanshan 2.0 told Lin Li that a DEO mole had leaked his information to Cadmus, which intended to use him against aliens.
• Lin Li watched footage showing Cadmus modifying Coburn into Metallo and saw Lillian Luthor and the mechanical Hank Henshaw planning to target him and capture Supergirl.
• Shanshan 2.0 identified Cadmus personnel and sent the information to the DEO anonymously at Lin Li's request.
• The Martian Hunter confirmed the evidence, detained the mole, and assembled agents to raid Cadmus's base.
• Kara hurried to the DEO for its mission, while Lin Li closed the window and returned to bed.

After celebrating the DEO’s victory against Cadmus, Lin Li met James to advise him on becoming a superhero. He explained that an ordinary human hero needed extensive training, knowledge, equipment, and enormous wealth, leaving James stunned by how unprepared he was.

• Kara told Lin Li that the DEO had arrested over eighty Cadmus members, though Cyborg Superman and Lillian Luthor had escaped.
• Lin Li and Kara went to CatCo, where Kara began working on her Cadmus report while Lin Li met James.
• Lin Li learned that James had hired retired special forces instructors to prepare for becoming a superhero.
• Lin Li told James that a civilian superhero needed strong combat skills, broad expertise, tactical abilities, and hundreds of millions for equipment.
• James realized he lacked the wealth and other resources Lin Li described as necessary to operate safely as a civilian hero.

Lin Li explained to James the knowledge, resources, and support superheroes needed, leaving James discouraged about his chances. James resolved to start small and work toward protecting the city, and Lin Li promised to make him a superhero.

• James concluded that becoming a superhero required more intelligence and money than he possessed, and he felt unable to protect the city.
• Lin Li explained that superheroes relied on mutations or technology, as well as teams and bases, and described the support behind Superman, Batman, Kara, and himself.
• James admitted that Winn had refused to help him become a superhero because it was too dangerous for an ordinary person.
• Lin Li asked whether James still wanted to be a hero, and James vowed to learn, earn money, build a team, and begin by helping people in small ways.
• Lin Li praised James's determination and promised to make him a superhero.

James made his first public attack on the Parasitic Monster, which had absorbed energy from Martian Hunter and Supergirl, but discovered that his blows could not hurt it. Lin Li refused to intervene, leaving James and Winn to find a way to defeat it as the fight continued.

• The Parasitic Monster attacked Randall O'Reilly on Sixth Avenue, and Winn brought James and Lin Li to the scene in a small white truck.
• James charged the monster at superspeed, drove it away from Randall, and ordered him to flee.
• Winn celebrated James's debut while Lin Li watched from the truck, having helped James train and build his hero suit.
• The monster rose unharmed, and Winn explained that its body was as hard as diamond.
• James asked Lin Li how to defeat the monster, but Lin Li declined to interfere and reminded him that the alien countered the Speed Force.
• Winn directed James to use the Miraculous Arm Shield's sharp edge, boosted by his speed, against the monster.

James fought the Parasitic Monster with a shield but was overwhelmed when it drained his biological energy. A figure in Dark Armor rescued him and destroyed the monster in seconds, then asked if James could still run.

• James used his shield and combat instincts to withstand the Parasitic Monster’s attacks and cut its arm, but the wound healed quickly.
• James tried to injure the monster’s knees, but it kicked him away and battered him until he was badly hurt.
• Wen urged James to charge his shield, but the Parasitic Monster absorbed his energy and left him too weak to escape.
• A figure in Dark Armor kicked the monster away from James and launched it into the sky with a barrage of spinning kicks.
• The Dark Armor figure’s silver lightning made the energy-filled Parasitic Monster explode into dust, then the figure asked James if he could still run.

At Thanksgiving dinner, James, Winn, and Alex competed to make personal announcements before a wormhole appeared over the table. Lin Li explained it connected his world to theirs and said he would return to help, while Kara remained glum about his departure.

• James and Winn argued over who would reveal James’s Thunder Guardian identity to Kara, while Alex insisted she should announce her new relationship first.
• Eliza invited Lin Li to share what he was thankful for, and he thanked the Danvers family and his friends.
• Alex began to announce her relationship, but a silver wormhole appeared above the dinner table and vanished moments later.
• Shanshan 2.0 told Lin Li that Cisco was locating their world, and Lin Li decided to return after preparing new Speed Force research.
• Lin Li explained that the wormhole connected his world to theirs and that its people needed help, then Kara sat glumly as the others discussed his world.

Lin Li studied James's Guardian Speed Force and developed a powerful energy sword and force-field techniques. As Barry and Cisco arrived to take him back, Kara asked whether he would return, and Lin Li offered to arrange a way for her to visit.

• Shanshan 2.0 explained how James's Speed Force could manipulate objects, energy, and neural functions, and Lin Li recognized its potential as biological telekinesis.
• Lin Li used the Guardian Speed Force to form a weightless High-Frequency Wave Energy Sword and considered its ability to stabilize energy.
• Shanshan 2.0 named Lin Li's force-field mental attack Haki, and Lin Li joked that it should be called Conqueror's Haki.
• Lin Li finished researching James's Speed Force and waited for Cisco and Barry to arrive through a wormhole.
• Kara asked Lin Li whether he was leaving and would return, and he promised to have Cisco make a device connecting their worlds.
• Barry and Cisco emerged from a wormhole as Lin Li offered them seafood pizza.

Cisco asked Lin Li to help save his brother Dante, but Barry refused to travel through time again because of the catastrophic deaths he witnessed in Flashpoint. After Barry explained what happened, Lin Li proposed dealing with the alien invasion first and then helping Cisco, leaving the three friends reconciled as Kara walked in and misread their group hug.

• Cisco told Lin Li that his brother Dante had died and asked for help, while Barry objected to traveling through time again.
• Lin Li stopped Cisco and Barry from arguing and urged Barry to tell the team what had happened in Flashpoint.
• Barry recounted how his time travel had led to World War III, the deaths of two hundred million people, and further casualties after he traveled back three days.
• Cisco understood Barry's fear, and Lin Li offered to help save Dante after they dealt with the approaching alien invasion.
• Cisco and Barry reconciled with Lin Li and agreed to stop the aliens, then Kara entered and misinterpreted their embrace.

Team Arrow, Team Legends, and Team Flash gathered at STAR Labs as Barry introduced Kara Danvers and explained that the Dominators had invaded. The chapter ended with the teams examining an image of the aliens and Kara describing their history of experimentation and killing.

• Felicity welcomed Team Arrow and Team Legends to STAR Labs while Sara noted that Nate and Amaya had stayed aboard the Waverider.
• Lin Li, Kara, Cisco, and Barry arrived through a wormhole, and Felicity and Caitlin greeted Lin Li with hugs.
• Barry introduced Kara as Supergirl, and Kara demonstrated her powers by flying and burning an S-shaped crest into the floor with her Heat Vision.
• The heroes introduced themselves, and Felicity celebrated the assembled groups as the greatest team in history.
• Barry showed the teams an image of the Dominators, and Kara explained that they were powerful aliens who had experimented on and killed people on her planet.

The heroes debated how to prepare for the Dominators and chose Lin Li as their overall commander, but Martin and Jefferson objected because of an undisclosed concern. Martin led Lin Li, Barry, Oliver, and Jefferson to the control center and played a recording that began, “War is coming...”

• Kara said the heroes knew little about the Dominators beyond their strength and research into biological genes and control.
• Oliver proposed using Kara as a hypothetical enemy for training, and the group discussed choosing an overall commander.
• The gathered heroes voted for Lin Li to command them, with Barry, Oliver, Team Flash, and the others expressing their trust in him.
• Martin and Jefferson objected to Lin Li taking command, prompting Lin Li to ask what they were worried about.
• Martin led Lin Li, Barry, Oliver, and Jefferson to the control center and played a recording that began, “War is coming...”

Martin and Jefferson played a recording from a future Barry warning the team not to trust anyone, especially Lin Li, after Barry changed the timeline. Barry explained that his creation of Flashpoint had altered everyone’s lives, and the team feared its lingering effects could be behind the coming alien invasion and mass deaths.

• Martin played a recording from Barry forty years in the future, who warned the team not to trust anyone and to pay particular attention to Lin Li.
• Barry explained that he had saved his mother, creating Flashpoint, where World War III killed two hundred million people and Western Europe sank beneath the sea.
• Barry described changes to the present timeline, including Cisco’s brother dying, Caitlin gaining powers, and Diggle having a son instead of a daughter.
• Barry feared the timeline might be trying to restore Flashpoint’s deaths, and Lin Li said its lingering effects could bring mass deaths or alien enslavement.
• Jefferson proposed telling everyone the truth so they could prepare to fight the alien invasion.

Lin Li argued that Barry should reveal his role in Flashpoint before the heroes fought the aliens, despite Oliver’s concern that the truth would divide the teams. Barry agreed and left to tell everyone.

• Jefferson suggested revealing the truth about time travel, but Oliver argued that the teams needed to stay focused on the alien threat.
• Lin Li explained that telling everyone beforehand would let them understand Barry’s mistake and avoid feeling deceived later.
• Oliver proposed a vote, and Martin and Jefferson joined him in voting to keep the truth secret.
• Lin Li said the decision belonged to him and Barry because they had caused Flashpoint.
• Barry asked Lin Li whether he should tell the others, then decided they deserved to know and walked out to reveal the truth.

Barry revealed that he had created Flashpoint, changing the lives of several friends and possibly causing the Dominators’ invasion, while the team argued over trust and responsibility. When the Dominators kidnapped the President, Sara led the Legends to respond, leaving Lin Li, Barry, and Oliver behind after Oliver refused to go without them.

• Barry told the team that Future Barry had warned them not to trust him and to watch Lin Li, then admitted he had changed the timeline by creating Flashpoint.
• Barry explained that Flashpoint had changed Cisco, Caitlin, Wally, and Diggle’s lives, and Oliver told Diggle that he had originally had a daughter named Sara instead of John.
• Sara and Atom rebuked Barry for altering history, while Martin and Lin Li suggested Flashpoint might have caused the alien invasion; Barry accepted the blame and asked everyone to help stop it first.
• Felicity announced that the Dominators had kidnapped the President, and Sara refused to let Lin Li and Barry join the rescue team.
• Lin Li told Kara to follow the Legends and watch for the Dominators’ mind control, but Oliver insisted on staying if Lin Li and Barry were left behind, so the three remained at the hangar.

At the salt mine, Lyla’s team prepared to investigate the president’s disappearance while Lin Li discovered that alien technology was controlling the soldiers inside. When the others ignored his warning, Lin Li tried to infiltrate the cloaked spacecraft before they could be mind-controlled.

• Lyla told Diggle and the others that three teams of special operations soldiers had entered the salt mine and gone silent while searching for the president.
• Kara used her super vision to find the president, the thirty soldiers, and humanoid figures inside the mine, and Sara ordered Ray to investigate while Kara tracked the enemy.
• Lin Li warned Kara that the soldiers were already controlled, but Sara and the others rejected his warning and proceeded with their plan.
• Lin Li used Shanshan 2.0 to infiltrate the alien spacecraft and learned that completing the hack remotely would take nearly three hours.
• Lin Li decided to break into the spacecraft through a weak energy barrier near its thrusters, while Shanshan 2.0 suggested letting the team fall into danger so they would trust him afterward.

Lin Li infiltrated the alien spaceship above the Salt Mine, where Shanshan 2.0 began hacking its systems as he fought off the crew. At the same time, Kara, Firestorm, and Atom flew toward Central City while Sara, Diggle, and the others left in a jeep under alien control, and Lyla saw the spaceship appear above the Salt Mine.

• Lin Li phased through the spaceship’s concealment field and hull, then encountered and killed an alien carrying a powerful vaporizing weapon.
• The spaceship detected Lin Li as an unauthorized lifeform and sounded an alarm, while Shanshan 2.0 connected to a green crystal control panel and estimated that the hack would take fifteen minutes.
• Lin Li charged at approaching aliens, but their green-energy weapons vaporized his Tearing Crescents.
• Kara, Firestorm, and Atom flew away toward Central City without responding to Lyla at The Eye’s base.
• Heat Wave drove Sara, Diggle, Thea, and the others past the base with glowing red patterns on their foreheads, and Lyla saw the alien spaceship appear over the Salt Mine.