Storm clouds began to hover over the land. They grew thicker with each passing day and soon the world, as far as the eye could see, was enshrouded in darkness. But while the sun and the stars had disappeared from the sky, the clouds brought with them no life-sustaining rain. Soon the land began to become parched and what had once been green fields began to turn a dry, rust color.
With so little water available for the livestock, many of the animals humans used for food began to die off. And with nothing left for irrigation, most of the crops began to fail. Faced with starvation, the people became desperate. In their need to find sustenance where little existed, they turned to violence. The darkness was slowly replacing civilized society with lawlessness.
And then a man stepped into the breach. He preached that he, alone, could fix things; that only he could restore law and order to an out-of-control society. He said he was going to clear the clouds and make our lands and our lives great again. He took on god-like qualities as he promised to bring about a new beginning for everyone. And the people believed him. They cheered and embraced him. They allowed him to do his bidding virtually unchecked, believing that he was the answer to all of their prayers.
But he was the answers to the prayers of only the wealthy, of his friends and his family, and of those who needed the least, rather than of those who needed the most. By the time the people realized what he was doing, it was too late. Those with the most had enslaved those with the least.
Until the uprising.
Written for Sue Vincent’s Thursday Photo Prompt. Photo credit: Sue Vincent.