The Sandman Omnibus Vol. 1

In the dreamworld, four unseen beings converse about a lost princess. One, Martin Tenbones, promises to go find her. In the waking world, Barbie—a woman previously seen as one of Rose Walker’s housemates in Issue 11—is woken by her transgender neighbor Wanda. Wanda asks what Barbie was dreaming about, but Barbie tells her she does not dream. As Wanda passes through the building looking to borrow some cream for Barbie’s coffee, she meets the others who live there—Thessaly, Hazel, Foxglove, and George.

Dream and Matthew are in a strange place waiting for something. They both feel a disturbance that indicates a being has moved from one state to another. Dream notes that one of the minor islands of the Dreaming is dying, but he doesn’t feel it is something he needs to do anything about.

Wanda and Barbie take the underground into the city. Nearby, Martin Tenbones appears in the waking world. Meanwhile, Barbie and Wanda stop for breakfast and talk about their dreams. Barbie says she used to dream of adventures is the same world every night, but that was before she and Ken broke up, a lot of bad things happened to her, and she stopped dreaming. Barbie hasn’t dreamed in two years.