CHAPTER TWO
It must be assumed that we were picked up shortly after John’s final entry in his diary.
The last we saw of John Smith was at a refugee centre in Northumberland. Dad said that I would often ask what happened to him. Not knowing would often reduce me to tears. Then the days turned weeks and the weeks turned to months, and slowly he became a memory, and then a distant memory. After reading the final page, I looked up and embraced his writing that was contained within approximately forty pages of neat handwriting.
As soon as Joe came over it suddenly dawned on me why we were here. The diary was a bonus and would be the first of many. Then Helen came over with tears in her eyes. Nothing was said as she showed me to my mother’s grave. There amongst the long grass was the last resting place of my poor mum. It was marked with a simple cross - now covered in moss and positioned flat on the ground. According to the diary of John Smith, she died trying to find food and shelter for us both. I kneeled down beside her and for the first time in my life I felt terribly alone. Not sure if the others left me alone…
Writing this months later and I can’t remember how I felt that moment, nor what happened. I do remember we gathered a few flowers and placed them on her grave. Was it an hour or more before we decided to leave? We had succeeded in our quest. Joe clearly noted down the position on his map, while Helen took a few photographs. I stayed with mum for a few more minutes while the others headed off towards the direction from where we came. They stopped a discrete and respectable distance from me and my final moments with mum, and then it was time to leave.
I don’t remember my mum, and the thought of not remembering what she looked like reduced me to tears, and we had to stop as Helen tried to comforted me. We all promised ourselves that we would return if and when I needed to. We even talked about bringing dad if he was well enough. That was a promise our guides made to me as their gift for giving them hope.
Homeward bound
Our return to Scotland was uneventful but bad news awaited us. Dad had been rushed into hospital. He suffered a minor stroke. Luckily he was already on the mend, but he’s never going to fully recover, and we all know that.
Writing this and thoughts drift to those early days in Scotland. Plenty has been written and said about past events. Recommended is “Dark Days and Cold Nights” by Kathleen Mitchell. We have all suffered and many of our loved ones have died, but amongst us are those who made a difference and we all owe them a debt of gratitude. The following synopsis covers the basics, as taught in most schools.
It is calculated that approximately 1.8 million people died in Scotland as a direct result of the firestorm and EMP blast of 2014. Very few actually perished in the firestorm itself, but food shortages and the intense cold of successive winters have taken there toll. On that first day the majority killed in Scotland were those travelling by air. In an instant aircraft started to fall from the skies, and to this day the Scottish landscape is marked with the wreckage of some seventy airliners and light aeroplanes.
The EMP blast destroyed an estimated 99.92% of all electrical goods and devices, including the aforementioned aircraft. Even military EMP hardened communications were rendered inoperable, while cars and other modes of transport became scrap. What little transport that had survived was quickly requisitioned and used for official duties.
On the evening of the catastrophe a meeting was held in Edinburgh and that night plans were drawn up to save as many people as possible. The reason why so many survived was down to two men, Leslie Bishop and James McCann, who between them created a framework of salvation and recovery. By the second day plans had been drawn up to create emergency feeding centres in every community. This was when a myriad of voluntary organisations and government agencies came into their own. But establishing a 19th century society with 21st century mentality and mindset was problematic.
With no electricity most businesses collapsed, with millions becoming unemployed overnight. Businesses that were vital to the future survival of Scotland were given priority help, including water companies and those involved in food production. The plan was to provide every person with one hot meal per day (containing around 2400 calories), while those able to work were given vouchers for additional food and other essentials.
Despite cutting through red tape and working under difficult conditions food riots became endemic across Scotland, and an estimated 239 people were killed in that first week alone. Initially and until community feeding centres were established, biscuits, crisps and bottled water were issued. Items with a long shelf life was stored until more perishable supplies had been used or deemed unfit for human consumption.
Long term plans for food production were drawn up by a small team of farming experts and all available land was earmarked for cultivation. The problem is that surviving food manufacturers wanted to be paid for the food they processed. Farmers likewise wanted cash for crops, but the banks had ceased to function. No one was paid because the banks were unable to process financial transactions or knew who owned what - whether they be creditor or debtor or saver. This impossible situation resulted in the bold move to simply suspend the financial banking and monetary system, and money became superfluous overnight.
Surprisingly and virtually overnight the farmers, food manufacturers and the general public became as one - working together to survive. Nothing on God’s earth would prevent them from making sure that crops were grown and animals were fed and slaughtered to feed the masses. The army were brought in to guard against looting, while the starving were put to work to feed themselves and their neighbours. But it was during that first year when the person in front of you would simply drop dead of hunger. Your neighbour could also become your enemy and even your own family would betray you - sometimes just for a few biscuits or food vouchers.
The unemployed were tasked with a myriad of jobs that were designed to make life bearable, as well as to keep an otherwise volatile populous busy and proactive. Streets became impeccably clean. Vehicles that no longer worked were pushed through the streets and stored on disused airfields or multi-storey car parks. Live entertainment became a priority with theatre and music becoming extremely popular. Artists and venue staff were paid in food vouchers. Libraries flourished and new reading clubs were formed across Scotland. They offered escapism and warmth and light. Within six months of the disaster and schools started to reopen. In time and with few distractions, literacy improved beyond the dreams of most education authorities.
A list was drawn up of items (not already owned by private individuals) to be surrendered to the state, with food and bottled water being place at the top of the list. Other items included coal, seeds, clothing, medical supplies, paper and even manual typewriters. Anything that could help feed the masses and re-establish normality was requisitioned. No one questioned authority. Many elected to dig – not for victory, but for salvation. It was widely reported that most worked in the fields because they could secure additional food. Even me and my dad eventually ended up living and working on a farm.
But for everyone who helped others would steel. The police cracked down. There was talk of bringing back the death penalty, but the level of lawlessness was considered manageable, and if anything hanging someone for stealing food to feed a child was seen as being counterproductive.
The events of May 2014 brought out the best in people and the worst in nations. As news drifted across the Atlantic Ocean, the British ambassadors to both the United Nations (in New York) and the United States (in Washington DC), were placed under extreme pressure by those looking to make a quick buck. England, Wales and Northern Ireland had largely been destroyed, and most of its citizens were either dead or living abroad. In the USA over 600,000 British expats became stateless refugees and that change in status was to be exploited.
The deal was simple. England was lost, but she still retained much that could be salvaged. In return for signing over all salvage rights, those living in the USA would automatically be given land on which to build a new country. This plot of land measured roughly twelve miles by eight miles, and would be annexed from America. It was a done deal, but one which would be broken by double-crossing politicians and businessmen.
But while we fought to stay alive, many wanted to know what happened, and surprisingly the authorities were largely forthcoming with the answers. In the Spring of 2019, and on the fifth anniversary of the firestorm, Alistair Snowden SMP presented the final report of the official inquiry into the events of May 2014. Information from America and Australia painted a picture of alien visitors and an explosion that changed everything.
In 2017 a intelligence briefing document was distributed by the Australian government, and after twelve months a copy arrived in Scotland. It detailed a TV satellite news feed from Radiotelevisione Italiana. No recording exists and the footage wasn’t transmitted in Australia, but a TV news editor and two technicians at ABC News in Sydney watched a live feed from Italy. Although in Italian, footage clearly showed a number of UFOs over an unknown town or city. The footage then showed a much larger ship materialise which then exploded. Moments later and the news feed ended abruptly. Then the world simply shutdown!
Information from America added detail to the newsfeed from Italy. We now know that on the morning of 14th May 2014 several objects were spotted on radar over Northern Italy and Southern Spain. Both USAF and Italian jet fighters were scrambled to intercept. These flying objects were considered hostile and fired upon. What is conjecture or largely based on guesswork is that these flying objects were navigational beacons. They were sent ahead by a race of nomad aliens who travelled through space mining uninhabited planets and moons. This theory was later endorsed by eye witness accounts of aliens being amongst us (see below).
For reasons that have never been explained they materialised over Southern Europe, but there was a problem. Three or four of their navigational beacons had been disabled - possibly destroyed by fighter aircraft (though the Americans deny this). As a result a number of vessels materialised in the wrong place. At 11.13am local time two bulk carriers collided eight miles above the town of Pinerolo in northern Italy. The resulting explosion and fireball killed millions.
We survived, but did John Smith?
Waiting for us on our return from England were several letters from those who knew John Smith. What was interesting or unnerving was that some of these letters appear to have been opened then resealed, apart from two. These I’m told had been hand delivered. Throughout our research many individuals have expressed a wish to remain anonymous, and much that has been written cannot be reproduced here, but sometimes someone is brave enough to throw caution to the wind. One such person is Miranda Thomas. Her letter and John’s second diary carry on from where his first journal ended.
Me thinks "The Lost Diaries of John Smith" would make an excellent TV series! I'm just saying...
As with all my Steemit content, this post and my book "The Lost Diaries of John Smith" are the copyright of Phillip Rhodes (c) 2011-2017.
