The Lost Life

The Lost Life

Michael Hidalgo

04/17/2023

The corruption, ignorance, and despair that has plagued humankind for millennia seemed to die down at the turn of the 20th century. Equal rights for all, affordable healthcare, universal education, safety, and prosperity were on the horizon. It was then, at that time, that humans felt finally free. As the status quo of the earth was tipping, an insidious threat was looming. The kindest of people turned bitter, politicians paranoid, and corporations reverted to their capitalist nature. The planet was on its edge.

Wars were sparked by tweets and ignited by the ever so increasing unpredictability and might of the weather and the scarcity of resources. The United States and Russia allied in a fight against China, guaranteeing access to rare earth minerals and factories waiting to be of use. Then, Russia proposed the annexation of China, leaving the Americans that funded and fought the war, offended. War hungry politicians gave in to the pressures and declared war on Russia. The real enemy was left unaddressed.

Coupled with the blatant ignorance, panic, and wars, the problem was only exacerbated. The seas continued swallowing the coastal regions until the 22nd century. By then, the consequences were irrevocable, hundreds of species became extinct, migrating patterns were altered, the weather became more unpredictable than ever before, and millions of war and climate refugees were displaced and left to live in poverty.

By the 23rd century, Americans in denial took control and unleashed their wrath on an unsuspecting population. Panic ensued in the most vulnerable areas but nowhere were tensions higher than in Miami whose young mayor Ariana Gomez, nicknamed Ari, worked tirelessly to stop the rise. The twenty-six-year-old was infamous for her past life. Her short height, slender figure, and long hair made her a household name. Last November, her big heart and dedication to Miami won over two and a half million of nearly five million registered voters in Miami-Dade County and catapulted her into the mayor’s office. The moment she stepped into that office she had her work cut out for her.

“Get Muller on the phone! Now!” The mayor voiced to her assistant.

Muller had been Ari’s primary opponent in the mayoral elections. He never took the election seriously or really cared about Miami, it was all about winning, no matter the cost.

“The lying sumbich is on the line.” Jean exclaimed as he leaned by the door.

“Nudes, really? Is this what we’ve come to? People will look past it, they’ll see the mayor they voted to represent them.”

Muller had done Mayor Gomez a favor. He resurfaced her past on his quest to tarnish her reputation and he put the spotlight on her, giving her the audience, she needed. She needed the support of the kids, the father, the delivery driver, everyone really, and nothing captured their attention faster than her naked figure. The attacks to discredit her continued firing. One after the other. Each attack only made her stronger.

Muller, a balding sixty-year-old man that sported tawdry rectangular sunglasses everywhere and had an ego that rivaled a retro diesel big Mack truck, was my predecessor. He can’t stand he lost reelection to a woman like me.

I wouldn’t have been in this problem if my predecessors had done their jobs, idiots. “Delivering Excellence Everyday,” mhm sure. They just sat on their asses watching the stack of files on their desk rise. They never bothered to go through it, and no one seemed to care.

“It’s normal.”

“We can’t control the weather.”

“We just need bigger pumps to push the water out.”

“Build the sea wall.”

It was the same ignorant rhetoric promulgated by every mayor up to now. It was the federal government that bailed us out thirty years ago. We reached the infamous net zero carbon target and every other country followed suit. In a couple of years, we were extracting more carbon from the atmosphere than we were putting in. Of course, the damage had already been done here in Miami. Canals became wider and the coastlines were fully submerged all the time, but people just moved a couple of miles inland along the new coasts. That presented its own challenge. Sewer systems became overwhelmed as high rises were developed and drinking water became more scarce. The days of an abundant supply of clean groundwater were over as the sea breached the aquifers and desalination plants had to bring salinity levels back to a safe number. Flooding, of course, was rampant since the sea level had risen 6 feet and it took longer for the rainwater to seep into the ground. And, despite all the money spent on upgrades to the pumps, they never really could keep up.

The car culture of the twenty-first century carried into the twenty-third; flooded and stranded synthetic gasoline and electric cars were too common of a sight. The water never stayed up long enough for jetski’s to catch on, and you could never really tell how deep the murky water was, but since houses and buildings were elevated after Hurricane Julian, it wasn’t all too uncommon for people to also have a canoe to go out during the rainy season and during high tides.

I emphasized the new coastline before because there was a romantic aspect to this mess. See, people thought this was actually normal and they enjoyed the insurance payouts (of course insurance was also astronomically expensive), and they loved having beachfront property even more. People grew tired of the economic cost of a problem they thought was fixed, and some even liked it. Few thought of how unnatural this normal was or the challenge it was to keep the city functioning like this.



My secretary Jean burst into my office yelling “C’mon! We’re due in court in 30 minutes!”

Challenging the courts was the only way I would have been able to fight the national deregulation of commerce that was allowing carbon levels to creep back up since I could only do so much to bring them down at the local level. I had to be a bit creative since there wasn’t much of a precedent and neither the old nor new constitution said anything about the environment. My entire case, while climate centered, was technically about the government’s obligation to preserve our right to property.

“Shit, Muller’s call really threw me off guard. Where’s my blazer, Jimmy Jean? You know I can’t leave without it. You know what they’ll say.”

“Here. Relax, the outcome of this case will only determine if you have a city to govern.”

I stared. “You’re no help, you know that, right?”

“Jeez, sorry ma’am. It’s just some of that Midwest humor.”

“It’s fine. Let’s go”



The mayor felt her heart racing. She knew the case was crucial not only for her legitimacy but also for the future of Miami-Dade. She stood elegantly as she passed through the large wooden doors into the courtroom. The noise of the protestors outside faded away and she was faced with the clamoring of a full courtroom. The judge, a slender black man with wrinkles on his face, was already seated. She let out a sigh, she thought, “Maybe he’ll remember how it was before we went green. How I read it was.”

As she walked towards the bench, she could hear whispers and murmurs from the audience. Some were cheering for her, while others were muttering about her supposed scandal. Ari tried to maintain her composure and focus on the issue she had control over. The lawyers shuffled around papers and prepared their arguments. The light from the overhead windows scattered over the back and illuminated dozens of citizens and reporters.

When the hearing began, the federal government presented their case. The defendants argued that there was no correlation between the reversal of green policies and the threat to the city's infrastructure. They cited half-baked studies and reports that showed the imminent danger posed by the rising sea levels had passed decades ago due to the climate policy. Furthermore, they emphasized it was not within the constitution to regulate “acts of god” like sea level rise.

Ariana listened diligently, but she knew they were lying, and they knew it. “People shouldn’t have to leave their homes because of their greed,” she thought. She believed that the city could be saved with the right approach from the government. She pressed her palms against the table, stood up, and took the stand to present her plan.

"Your honor, I believe that we can save our city," Ari said. "We need to invest in infrastructure and technology that can mitigate the effects of rising sea levels. We need to build seawalls, invest in renewable energy, and incentivize businesses to adopt sustainable practices like we used to. We cannot abandon our home, we need to fight for it.

That’s what they want us to think. They want us to believe it’s our fault the sea rose when it’s really a gross product of their negligence and greed to the conditions that have cultivated over the past few years. It is their responsibility to produce negative carbon emissions to prevent the destruction of our way of life, our homes, and our businesses."

With an apathetic face, the judge reluctantly listened. It wasn’t until after a recess that a man whispered into his ear, and he seemed to become more receptive to the mayor. He asked probing questions.

“What studies demonstrate there is a correlation between carbon emission levels and rising sea levels?”

The mayor presented research papers and called on experts to convey the urgency of action before the judge adjourned and headed to his chambers.

Ari left the courtroom feeling both relieved and anxious. She didn’t know what to think of the judge’s face, but she knew that the outcome of the case could determine the future of the city. She spent the few days leading up to the decision rallying support and reaching out to experts and organizations that could help the city.

On the day of the decision, Ari whispered to Jean “Did you do it?”

“Yes ma’am. He was open to the idea.”

She returned to the courthouse, accompanied by a diverse and large group of supporters. The slender black man entered the courtroom and inched to his seat to announce his decision.

"After careful consideration of the evidence and arguments presented, I have decided to side with the defendants and determined Mayor Gomez was unable to provide substantial evidence of imminent danger," the judge sternly voiced.

The audience roared and law enforcement raced to establish order. Ari let out a single tear as reporters snapped pictures. She turned to the judge and frowned in a way perceivable only to the judge and Jean. She gathered her tissues and headed outside to deliver a press conference.

“This is only the beginning. Today, the courts have failed us, but our work is not over yet. This case is my topmost priority, and I will work tirelessly until justice is served.”



Everything was going according to Ari’s plan. She won the public over. No one mentioned her past job. People saw a changed woman who was willing to fight until the end. Her approval ratings were at an all-time high. After the lower courts rejected her arguments, she kept going, appealing the case all the way to the Supreme Court.

She made strides on the case, Ari traveled to Washington D.C. to meet with various lawmakers and environmental groups, seeking support for her cause. Despite being dubbed the “swamp,” D.C. was relatively unaffected by sea level rise. She coaxed senators, representatives, and anyone that listened to her that Miami-Dade County needed urgent funding to improve its infrastructure but, more importantly, that the federal government had a responsibility to reinstitute the green climate policies that had the sea level stabilized.

The case attracted widespread attention, and people from all over the country rallied behind the mayor’s cause. Students organized protests and sit-ins, demanding action on climate change, and everyone from the average Joe to celebrities to politicians expressed their support in their Tweets.

As the date of the Supreme Court hearing approached, Ariana prepared to present her case before the conservative majority justices. Jean had gone back to finish his senior year at Georgetown, but he remained part of the case. Each night he visited Ari in her hotel room to hone out the legal arguments.




She navigated through the crowded broad steps of the Supreme Court and in she entered with a sense of honor and accomplishment. She relished the fact that she became mayor of Miami-Dade County and was now defending her home at the Supreme Court of the United States. She spoke eloquently about the devastating effects of climate change on her city, emphasizing the loss and destruction of property, the aquifers, and devastating flooding that would only worsen without urgent action.

The opposing side argued that the city's residents should bear the responsibility of protecting themselves and their homes from the effects of climate change and that the federal government had no obligation to regulate commerce for far-reaching environmental reasons or fund infrastructure improvements.

Mayor Gomez reiterated the ironclad argument she had rehearsed many times over each time she appealed; but now, it was strengthened by the testimony of the nation’s top scientists and engineers. She was confident in her ability to convince the justices to side with her. She exited the court with her shoulders and head held up high.

Months went by without any word from the courts until, finally, in a 6-3 decision, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the mayor's argument, citing Article I, Section 8, Clause 3 of the Constitution. The court interpreted that under the Commerce Clause, it is the federal government's responsibility to regulate business taking part in activities placing its citizens in environmental harm. The decision was a historic moment in the fight against climate change, and it set a precedent for overruling policies that increase carbon emissions.

“We did it Jean! We really did it” Ari cried over the phone.

With the ruling in her favor, over the course of the next few months, the country reverted to its greenways and terminated the use of fossil fuels. Carbon capture and storage plants went into overdrive to compensate for the amount of carbon that had been added into the atmosphere since they closed down.

Ari worked tirelessly to implement a comprehensive plan to protect her city from the effects of climate change since the period of stabilization. The county invested in infrastructure improvements, such as raising roads and building sea walls, and pushed for the fortification of the renewable energy grid.



In the twenty years following the Supreme Court decision, the sea level remained steady and inflation from the transition subsided. However, lobbyists and political action committees remained insistent on the Supreme Court’s ruling on climate change mitigation and their interpretation of the Commerce Clause was an overreach of the court’s power. The more time that went by, the larger number of followers they amassed. They grew angry and resentful that their way wasn’t working.

Ariana Gomez had amassed a large following for herself and she used the national attention she garnered to propel her political career. After her two terms as mayor, she went on to become governor and eventually Florida U.S. senator.

Muller had come to be the most prominent climate change denier. He spoke in opposition to the waves my case made hoping to make a splash and he never got over my success. He caught the traction of the front-runner presidential candidate in 2262 and was nominated to run alongside him as his Vice President. This was no coincidence as I was the opposing presidential candidate. They both proved to be victorious this time. Three years into their term, President Luis was caught in turbulent waters during a fishing trip and drowned, or that’s the official story at least. Muller became president and launched a campaign for the presidency entirely around the idea that he had to win to carry out the anti-climate policies of his “dear friend Luis.” I ran again and won.

No one bought that he was running in his honor, and that bastard lost the election. He stooped low, no one would have anticipated it would have been that low, but he clung to the ideas of election fraud and denounced the system as “rigged.” On the last day of his term, I received a call from him.

“This is all your fault you bitch!”

I wish I had known. I wish I could’ve done something, but he only slipped another sentence before hung up abruptly. Within, the next minute, I was whisked away, and emergency alert systems shattered eardrums across the globe. Every country’s nuclear arsenal was airborne. Those of us that survived the initial attacks and nuclear fallout wait for the nuclear winter, the drastic drop in global temperatures.

“It’s the only way” were his last words.

He was kicked out of the bunker beneath the White House when word reached I was inaugurated in the doomsday bunker. Obliterated, I can’t ever step foot in the office. Am I even the president? Now, I live a sheltered life watching, instead of solving the chaos above like the very politicians I once despised. I live out however many days we have left debating, crying, and writing about this pyrrhic victory with the few decrepit lives left on this planet until we run out of food.