Jakob had headed into town to check things out. He hadn’t gotten out much since moving here – mainly stayed home reading or on the computer. Today though he was looking to head to the music store and see what they had to offer. He’d regularly cycle though instruments, keeping some here, or auctioning off others there, or just plain leaving them behind at previous residencies. he was just a few blocks away when he noticed a large crowd. It took him a moment to realize that he must be near the site of the rally – he’d forgotten it was supposed to take place that afternoon.
Jakob didn’t know how popular the politician was or wasn’t, and really didn’t care. He had no use for politicians, though understanding them was sometimes paramount. He parked a safe distance away, curiosity getting the better of him in that moment. As he grew closer, he could head voices yelling their protests. He stayed in the crowd, out of the way as things began to get going. The politician, a Republican running for Senate, was taking the podium. The speech was boring and rather typical of a new candidate – letting the crowd know about him and his values (what Jakob found interesting was the man’s ties to the church, having been a former reverend), what he stood for, what he wouldn’t stand for, and false promises to the people.
The protesters were loud, stating their opinions back – security was doing a good job keeping the two parties separated for the moment. Something was wrong. Jakob didn’t know how he knew it, but he went off instinct, heading back through the crowd to the nearest vehicle, which he immediately climbed and stood on it’s roof to get a good look around. Things were heated; tense…but you could feel the tension in the air, and something was bound to snap sooner rather than later. It wasn’t long before the first punch was thrown – over what, he didn’t know – but then he noticed it. It was just a little thing, at first. Someone on the side of the candidate seemed a little more off. He’d gotten a makeshift weapon from somewhere – he couldn’t tell exactly what it was, but it looked heavy, and he swung it around with ease.
He wasn’t the only one hitting hard. Jakob did a couple of quick scans with Auspex, and, sure enough, there was something off about those two, and they didn’t seem to be the only ones. The protesters were taking a savage beating – and there, not too far away, a child was about to be crushed by a falling adult. Quickly, he jumped off the car and scooped up the child, then moved them and the relieved father out of harm’s way. But that wasn’t the only child, and that wasn’t the only parent. They were getting beaten badly, and it would take who knew how long for police to be able to calm down the mess. Moreover, he wasn’t sure what he could do to help.
It took longer than he would have liked to remember that there was something he could do. Even if he couldn’t stop the fight altogether, it would at least put people on an even keel. He pushed his way through the crown until he got to somebody with a bullhorn, snatched it from them, and climbed onto the roof of the nearest car. He tested it to make sure it worked, and once he was sure, he did what he did best – he talked.
Using his considerable charisma, he got the attention of the protesters specifically, and began to give a speech, encouraging them to fight back – to show that they would not be oppressed by tyranny, and similar. Once he had their attention, he enacted a discipline he had learned long ago; Esprit de Corps. He watched as they began to fight back, stronger now with a little bit of Potence to help them along. His plan worked – they fought back, pushing the supporters away.
Jakob wouldn’t know until later about the count of injuries, but he felt fairly sure there would be no deaths. Still though, he kept his eye on the crowd for any anomalies and made notes, filing the information away for the sake of the city.