At the same time.
The big screens in Times Square, the LEDs on Washington streets, televisions in countless homes across America and around the world, mobile livestreaming apps... every feed broadcasting Homelander's speech abruptly switched to no signal at that very second.
A crisis PR operation that was about to ignite a global public-opinion disaster had been strangled in the cradle.
"What happened?" John turned his head and stared at the broadcast crew behind the cameras.
There was a chilling calm in his voice.
The director and technicians on site were scared out of their wits.
The director stammered as he pressed his earpiece.
"P-President... the signal is gone. We don't know why, but every major signal tower around Washington went offline within two seconds!"
John stared at the director without moving, his smile not reaching his eyes.
"I was just about to deliver the greatest speech of this century. And you're telling me the signal is gone?"
"It wasn't our fault!" The director collapsed onto the floor in terror and desperately scrambled backward.
"Fix it immediately." Red light flashed in John's eyes.
"We're working on it! We're working on it!" The technical supervisor rushed over, his face deathly pale. "We're rerouting the signal through Vought's satellites! We'll establish a direct satellite link and bypass the ground stations!"
"How long?" John asked coldly.
"O-One minute! Just one minute!"
Hearing that, John's expression eased slightly.
The red glow in his eyes gradually faded as he leaned back in his chair.
"One minute. If the signal isn't restored in one minute..." John smiled at the technical supervisor. "I'll rip out that bird brain of yours and shove it up your ass."
The technical supervisor nodded frantically, his fingers flying over the controls.
Seconds ticked by.
Watching the progress bar crawl across the