Cheers, whistles, and applause mingled into a deafening roar.
Before the crowd's cheers had died down, a sonic boom sounded overhead.
A red-and-blue cape snapped in the wind as a pair of red boots landed on the wooden podium beside Neuman.
Neuman instinctively took a step back.
The seething square hit pause. The thousands of protesters fell utterly silent. Every gaze fixed on the man who had descended from the sky.
Homelander.
He wore his trademark smile as his gaze swept over the densely packed crowd below. In his eyes, this was just a slightly troublesome little crisis. If those useless idiots in public relations couldn't handle it, he would do it himself. All he had to do was smile and say a few pretty words, and these stupid people would cheer for him again.
He pulled the microphone from the frozen Neuman's hand.
"Hey, everyone." He adjusted his stance. "I understand that the video online of me subduing a terrorist has made you all very angry. I completely understand how you feel."
Boos began rising from the crowd.
The curve of Homelander's mouth stiffened for half a second before he forced it back into place.
"I'm upset about it myself." He put on an anguished expression and pressed a hand to his chest. "Nobody wants to see innocent civilians hurt. There's no question about that."
He paused, his gaze growing distant, as though recalling some horrific battlefield.
"But protecting our national security... if you've fought alongside brave soldiers, like I have, you'll understand that freedom comes at a price." He raised his voice, trying to stir the crowd with his passion. "Without sacrifice, there can be no peace. That man and the child in his arms were both heroes. Try looking at it that way."
"Fucking bullshit!"
An angry