I would be amiss as a writer if I did not share where the adventure of The Divided Man Book One begins. The Ghost Dance, a religious movement that ended in The Wounded Knee Massacre, is the last great tragedy of the white man’s drive to remove Native American tribes from any position of power in the United States.
In this universe, a young boy sings a prayer as people all around him are killed by bullets, cannons, and the sharp sabers of horse soldiers. His prayer is heard by his ancestors who live in the spirit realm and the wheels of life turn. A hundred years later, his prayer is answered in apocalyptic fury.
In my mind, this is how that young boy looked and this is what he saw in the moments before he was cut down.
To create this image I had to composite different thoughts and images the AI responded with. It could not grasp the concept of the Wounded Knee Massacre or the Ghost Dance and the AI is programmed to not recognize words such as bloody and massacre. I generated hundreds of images before I found sets I could work with. I will post more variations after I am finished with the rest of The Divided Man Book One cast of characters.
I am happy with this image, but it also makes me sad. I post it as a reminder of all who have perished in the drive to conquer, and of the hope we see in many Native American tribes today as they find ways to teach their culture to their children along with the tools to thrive in both worlds.