The rain hasn’t stopped since The Machines took control. While such a statement seems like something out of a sci-fi story, it's far more real and far more daunting truth was something no one could have foreseen. The Machines, a political party, rose to power on the strength of being a breath of fresh air and common sense. In what they considered to be stark contrast to trickle down economics, dubbed ‘The Rain’, the plan was heavily taxing the rich to flood the economy with new dollars to adjust the forlorn doom that seemed ever pending in the wake of a would-be dictator.

At first the 99% stood in the proverbial rain and let it wash over every facet of their lives. Universal healthcare, student loans paid off, free tuition to any college you qualified for, even a universal monthly stipend. People still had to work but the promise of that coming to an end soon led to a landslide win of a second term.

‘The Rain’ washed away jobs as AI robots strategically named Human Experience Load Preparation Extension Replacements or H.E.L.P.E.Rs  filled the spaces human workers once occupied. The monthly stipend went up. The citizens were ensured life would be much better and easier and soon a stipend wouldn’t be necessary. The country, for the briefest moment in history, was the envy of the planet. 

The efficiency of  The Machine’s H.E.L.P.E.R.s brought down death rates during pregnancy, operations, and healthcare in general was vastly improved including the wait times for obtaining care. The  H.E.L.P.E.Rs were also able to mine and process the necessary materials to create more of themselves, enough, in fact, for each household to have at a minimum of three.

The Machine party repurposed unused buildings and land to build more housing. Unused land in remote terrain less accessible by humans was repurposed and cultivated for farming. With a plan for rotating crops homelessness and food deserts became a projected thing of the past. Eventually the promise of money becoming obsolete came into fruition and the need for human interaction within the private sector became purely on a voluntary basis. H.E.L.P.E.Rs were assigned to international trade, logistics, stores, supply chains and the many facets of everyday life were all run by H.E.L.P.E.Rs.

Crime was down to less than a fraction of a percent as everyone’s needs were met. With the exception of mental consumers who were stricken by mental illness and those who chose to directly take care of them without the assistance of H.E.L.P.E.Rs one’s daily life was without blemish. Even the 1%ers who took great ire with The Machines eventually quieted their dissent. Class systems fell away across the country. The ability to acquire things luxury or otherwise and go on trips to exotic destinations became based solely on availability and the ability to plan ahead.

No doubt many citizens would welcome a mechanical overlord over what’s transpired in the past two months. We often complained the two party system was failing us. When a third party rose through the ranks that seemed to align with the majority after the last two parties failed us miserably hope sprang anew.

Where hope once stood, outrage, disgust, and sorrow filled the void. To align our ideals with the new way of things the constitution as our founders had laid it out was heavily amended. With the understanding that the well being of the citizens of the nation would be at the forefront of the amendments, no one contemplated what had been stirring behind closed doors.

The rain hadn’t stopped since the machines took over but a drought was forming.  The Machines sullied the ideologies the masses placed in them as they enacted the second unspoken phase of their plan. The rain that had become a downpour in one sweeping motion transitioned into a global tsunami. The government run by a party over inflated on self worth having ushered in the brightest of golden ages for the nation decided its tactics could better serve all of humanity whether the other nations agreed or not. 

A select group of H.E.L.P.E.Rs were militarized and updated with new code for global conquest. In the sci-fi books it's written that the artificial intelligence becomes sentient or logically deduces that humanity could be best served by being dominated by them in some way or form. Reality of humanity is that we tend to write as we project. 

In truth, not AI, but humans sent highly sophisticated tools of destruction across borders without prejudice to subjugate civilizations spanning millennia in the name of a better way for a greater good. H.E.L.P.E.R manned drones, tanks, gun ships, foot soldiers infiltrated strategic locations simultaneously across the globe effectively eradicating 10’s of thousands of elected officials and military leaders across the globe while simultaneously taking over media outlets proclaiming a new dawn for every developed nation.

Streets ran red with blood while airwaves rang red, white, and blue with propaganda. After the initial shock the second wave of H.E.L.P.E.Rs air dropped supplies and more H.E.L.P.E.Rs across the globe with leaflets in every language explaining the new normal. While many nations' media had spread their own propaganda about how the US had been run after the implementation of H.E.L.P.E.Rs many had no working knowledge of the new normal many Americans now held dear. They only knew that many traveled with robotic companions who eagerly helped anyone around them without incident.

A world war waged in a matter of days ended with a win for one nation and a loss of individuality for humanity. Freedom fighters rebelled for decades against The Machines until the last ember of fight was snuffed out.