A/N - We're back. This time no one get's out unscathed.
Kaitlyn's home
The next day I got back home from school a little low. Not only had I gone swimming with the governor but I had failed to find the symbol of the maze. I also felt awful about Alexander. When I got home after school the next day I found Mom blankly on the sofa watching television. My heart immediately jumped up my throat with the thought she had discovered my-swimming-with-the-governor experience. I sat down next to her casually.
"What are you watching?" I asked.
Normally Mom and Even watched the fun-fun-fun channel. It basically involved videos of people falling over or cats doing weird things. It was basically America's Funniest Home Videos but as a channel and everyone loved watching it.
"Some man in the United Kingdom has won a referendum. The Brits have decided to leave the internet" said Mom.
"What?" I said turning the sound up.
The volume went up to see some chirpy news reported talking.
"...News. A huge upset for the survivors in the United Kingdom as a surprise majority vote for Independence from the internet. Nigel Von Trap nationalist and a leading campaigner for UK internet independence was delighted by overturning all the polls saying 'he had finally got his country back'. We go over to London where Mr Von Trap is mounting the stage to talk to cameras and supporters at the campaign headquarters."
"Von Trap" Mom said "doesn't sound like a Brit, sounds more German. Apparently, this so called nationalist has a French wife."
The TV switched to a picture at night in the United Kingdom. There was a man in an old grey suit.
"I cannot believe... I cannot believe that all those years ago when we founded this great party. I remember it now. It was just me sitting with Mark and John with an idea. Just one man and his billionaire friends talking ideas. The idea that I would one day see the result for the people of this great country seemed an impossible dream, but it happened. Now the common man can say we are no longer enslaved to pornographers and tax exiles..."
I looked at Mom. "Hang on what are they doing?"
"They had an election to see if they should cut the United Kingdom off from the rest of the internet." said Mom fascinated.
"That's like triply mad," I said.
Mr Von Trap continued on the television "no longer do we have to kowtow to unelected internet bureaucrats who tell us how to run our internet here in our own country. Well, the great British public has voted and they voice has spoken out loud. In a very clearer loud  voice 50.01% to 49.99% we have said, we want to have our lives back, we want to take back control, take back our borders, we are going to Believe in Britain for once."
My sister Eve came in and joined us on the couch watching the live video from the UK.
"What's going on?" she asked.
"The British are cutting themselves off from the Internet,, " Mom said.
Eve opened her eyes "wow I know I'm infected but even I know that's dumb". She said while she pulled at her long groomed hair.
Mr Von Trap continued to ta but then opened up for questions.
"What do you say to the Yes campaign that having no Amazon, No YouTube, No eBay, No Gmail, No Twitter, No Facebook, No WhatsApp, No email is going to bring this country to an economic halt?" said one reporter.
"Well that's just the kind of fake news the Yes campaign has been peddling for all these months. We are not anti-Internet we just want a British Internet for British people, we want our lives back. The overwhelming majority of British people have said 50.01% to 49.99%, yes Nigel we agree with you. The people have spoken and it's time all those re-moan-ers shut up and allow the democratic process which the over whelming majority of British people want to be enacted by parliament."
"What about the economic disruption?" said a reporter.
"All these lies are just nonsense. Without Amazon, YouTube eBay, Gmail, Hotmail, Twitter, Facebook this country is going to be freed from the economic shackles that all these invisible Internet bureaucrats impose. Without the ball and chain of the Internet dragging us down, I and many other forward thinking individuals think that this country will be able to be more agile than ever before. I am looking forward to a huge economic upturn when we finally cut off the rest of the world. Which should be after the Government triggers internet shut down."
I can hardly cope. Then I realized something was a bit odd.
"Mom, what are you doing back from work so early?" I said turning to her.
"What do you mean? "said mom "it is not even time for your school yet," she said looking up at the clock on the wall.
"No," I said "it is 4 o'clock in the afternoon not 4 o'clock in the morning. If it was the morning it would be still dark outside."
Mom looked to the window. "oh crap" she said "not again. No.. hang on it's OK I was sent home from work"
"What did you do wrong"? said Eve.
"Nothing, we are just trying out a new cure. " said Mom.
Rarely, they would test out one of their new cures on themselves. Last cure they had was eating 87 cookies. It didn't work but Mom did end up vomiting all over the attack cat.
"Are you feeling any less infected?" Ask Eve.
"I don't know, ask me a question I would normally give a dumb answer to," said Mom.
"Whats 134 multiplied by 8,930" said Eve.
"I don't know," said Mom.
"Shame it didn't work," said Eve.
The TV News had switched to interviewing people in the street, about the results of the referendum.
"Yes I voted to leave," said a middle-aged woman "I'll tell you why well I saw these pictures of poor migrants in boats off Australia. And I thought I as a mother cannot stand by and let this is kind of thing happen to them. I know the Internet brings us lots of advantages but as a mother, I cannot stand by and let that kind of suffering continue. So I had to vote Leave."
The reporter turned to an old woman.
"Yes I voted to leave as well," the cheery old curly grey-haired woman said "just the idea of all those foreigners coming as you please into our country down the Internet, they can be anybody. I didn't know until recently that they didn't need a passport to come into this country to shop on our Internet shops. All these bloody foreigners. I mean This country is not getting any bigger. Every foreigner who comes in even on the internet is making less room for the rest of us. We don't have enough room in our internet for all these foreigners. There is this new foreigner who has started working in my local Starbucks. I told him to his face, we don't need his kind round here, you can go back to Scotland where you came from. I'm just so proud at this moment to know I have my country back". By this point the old woman was almost most tearful.
"What does having my country back mean?" I said aloud.
"I think it means the country has had an argument and stormed off and come back. Now they are making up" said Eve helpfully.
It was too much. I couldn't cope with this. I have to switch channels in my mind.
"Do you want me to cook tonight?" I asked Mom.
"You have the big exam tomorrow. I thought I would give it ago" said Mom.
I was quite enjoying the moment. Since dad had gone, it wasn't often we all got together like this. I know we were sharing a disaster but we were sharing disaster together and I didn't quite want to make it stop.
"I voted to stay," said a cubby bald middle aged man on the TV "I drive a lot and I was convinced by the stay arguments that withdrawal from the Internet would mean everyone having to change from round to square steering wheels. The cost of that will be massive. "
"What about the 700 million rebate every week we would get by not paying the Internet. You saying 700 million wouldn't pay for all that dumbo? We've been carrying the rest of the world on our backs for to long." said someone behind him in the crowd.
The picture went back to the News studio.
The meticulously made up newsreader continued "there have all ready been reports in the British press of a number of attacks on people suspected of being possessed. The so-called Pi organization has released a press release condemning these reports and saying that cutting yourself off from the Internet is just another example an why infected population should not run their affairs. At the other end of the spectrum, White house spokes man Simon Tobopressh said this was another example of the anti democratic leanings of fundamentalist uninfected so called PI terrorist. "
This got me to wondering. Taking at the other end of town literally was the obvious thing for someone to do. What if the message meant not looking at something which was physically opposite but opposite in another way. I wonder where in town would the opposite of a graveyard be? I didn't know but I felt I would figure it out.