Chapter 269

It is well known that many comic book editors share the same approach: when they don't know how to express an abstract concept, they personify it as a character, giving it a human form and human traits in their comics.

Conversely, if they don't know how to motivate an ordinary person to participate in something, they imbue that person with divinity—the so-called "savior's awakening."

"Human gods" and "divine humans" are two eternal themes in American comics, and Morpheus, the Sandman, is precisely one of the former.

To understand his origins, one must begin with the Endless family.

The Endless family consists of characters created when abstract concepts were given human form and human personality traits.

This family has seven members, each representing Dream, Death, Destiny, Despair, Desire, Delirium, and Destruction.

These concepts are invisible and intangible in real life, yet in comics they each have fixed appearances, distinct responsibilities, and unique personalities.

The Sandman, or Dream, is the very figure standing before Schiller: Morpheus.

It is also well known that any conceptual entity is generally immensely powerful; unlike superheroes whose strength is measured by battlefield achievements, these conceptual beings derive their power simply from their very nature.

Morpheus, the Sandman, governs all dreams. He was born when the first creature in the universe entered a dream, and he can create a thousand cat dreams to replace reality, or make people's lives mirror their own dreams.

Unlike Marvel, which emphasizes the power or domain distinctions of conceptual entities, DC comics prefer to highlight their unique personalities—for instance, Morpheus is, among the seven Endless, the most diligent one, aside from Destiny.

The comics have noted that he fulfills his duties with the utmost caution; despite his immense power, he has never allowed it to cause chaos. His personality is reclusive, he has few friends, and he often sinks into philosophical contemplation.

Because his domain has little connection to the domains of the other Endless, he has always appeared mysterious. He has countless external forms, yet he only ever reveals one or two; in most cases, he is a pale, gaunt man with deep blue hair, cloaked in a cloak woven from night.

The figure before Schiller is no different—though more likely, each person sees a different Morpheus; whoever encounters him perceives him as they believe him to be, and since Schiller remembers the comic version, Morpheus appears as such.

The original work once noted that the first Sandman Morpheus was moody—but clearly, he has now surpassed mere moodiness and appears outright irritable.

He fixed Schiller with his glowing eyes and said in a hoarse voice: "Why did you connect your dreams to my Realm of Dreams and then insert into it a..."

His expression was hard to describe—this was unusual, for even though conceptual beings have personalities, they rarely express emotions as overtly as ordinary humans, and Morpheus has always been withdrawn—but now, on his face, one could simultaneously see revulsion, disgust, confusion from being awakened, and fury at having his home ruined.

As for the Realm of Dreams, this is not hard to understand: each Endless has their own domain, where they are nearly omniscient and omnipotent. The Sandman's domain, the Realm of Dreams, sounds suitably dreamlike—but whether the current state of this realm, now defiled with shit, still fits that dreamlike aesthetic is questionable.

"Before you ask me that, I have many questions for you," Schiller said, looking at Morpheus. "I assume you're prepared to answer them?"

"Don't tell me you know nothing about my situation."

"First, get that madman out of my home," Morpheus repeated. "Do you have any idea what he did in my Realm of Dreams??"

"I can imagine. I am deeply sorry and truly sympathetic."

Morpheus stared at Schiller; Schiller stared back. Neither would yield—but fortunately, they were in a dream, and in dreams, time is never lacking.

Perhaps the Joker had truly done something unforgivable, or perhaps Morpheus himself found Schiller intriguing—ultimately, it was Morpheus who relented. "What do you want to ask?"

"I must tell you first that many things I know cannot be described to humans. Our perceptions of the world are different."

"Of course, of course—I understand," Schiller said, raising a hand in a calming gesture, then gesturing for Morpheus to sit on the sofa opposite him.

The globe on the table behind him continued to spin, but this time, he did not have a globe for a head—he appeared as a normal human, just as he did in real life.

"Before I ask my questions, I suspect you have some doubts yourself—like why I sought you out, and how I found you."

Schiller seemed relaxed, as if not facing a powerful enemy but an old friend. He explained to Morpheus: "You control all dreams, which means you can read all my memories—both surface and deep consciousness. As for my origins, I need not elaborate."

"Ever since I first began experiencing changes in my dreams, I suspected something was wrong—because I knew this world was utterly unlike the one I originally came from; here, all concepts are governed by you—by concepts, or rather, deities."

"It sounds incredible, but it actually aids my reasoning: if a domain has a problem, the one responsible for it must be found."