The Sandman - Issue 35- Beginning to See The Light - Part Four of A Game of You

After spending most of the previous issue with Thessaly and company, Part Four of A Game of You shifts the focus back to Barbie's adventures in the Dreaming. 'Beginning to See The Light' reads much like the journey taken by Tolkien's hobbits in Lord of the Rings. Like the hobbits, Barbie and her friends face hardships and perils as they journey to the Brightly Shining Sea carrying the Porpentine.

We open the issue with Barbie, Wilkinson, Luz and Prinaldo trekking through a blizzard on a steep mountain passage. They're travelling into this weather with the clothes on their back, and the harsh journey is taking its toll on all of them. As they cross Caradhras...oops, I mean the mountain, Wilkinson warns they will have little cover when they reach the plain and may be easily spotted by Black Guards. However, if they can get to the forest inhabited by the Huorns... uh, Tweeners, they'll be somewhat safe. The Tweeners, being sentient trees, have no love for the Cuckoo.

Barbie takes comfort in the fact that once they reach the forest, it will be warmer and they would be able to find food. None of them have eaten since the journey began, getting by on melted snow for water. They're cold and tired, but have little choice but to keep going. Wilkinson attempts to lighten the mood by breaking out into a marching song, "It's a Long Way to Tipperary", before being shut down by Luz, who fears the singing will give away their position.

Barbie interrupts the duo when she sees something in the distance and insists they check it out. On the way there, Wilkinson reveals once they're through the forest, they'll return to dangerous ground. The area between the forest and the sea is occupied by many people, some just ordinary folk who used to be subjects of the Hieromancer. Barbie recalls the Hieromancer as someone who reminded her of her grandfather and was a nice old man.

Wilkinson continues to explain their route, and how they have to pass the Cuckoo's Citadel to reach the Brightly Shining Sea. If they make it that far, they'll have to take the causeway to the Isle of Thorns, the Porpentine's final resting place. Barbie hopes they know what she needs to do with it once they get there. Before she gets her answer, the group stumbles across the remains of an elderly man partially skeletonized, clutching a scroll. It's the Tantobin. Wilkinson prays to Murphy for protection.

As Prinaldo takes the scroll, Barbie stands over the body, revisiting her memories of the Tantobin. She and Martin Tenbones had been pursued by 'white grub things' when they were aided by a strange group of people who carried a room with them. The room, though not large, was a portal of some kind. It transported them from danger and closer to their destination. When they emerged from it, they were greeted by the Tantobin, who fed them. His death saddens Barbie because she liked him.

Luz reveals that after the Cuckoo crushed the Room Patrol (I'm assuming these are the guys carrying the room), Tantobin became their courier, ferrying messages for the Resistance. Despite protests from Wilkinson, Barbie insists they bury the old man. She owes him that much. Once the deed is done, the group unfurls the scroll and discovers within it are polaroids of Barbie in New York. The pictures reveal Barbie's face painting, and she explains to the others that makeup allows her to be a different person every day. The contents of the scroll, however, are more puzzling.

It reveals the life cycle of the European cuckoo, which prefers to lay its eggs in the nests of other birds. Its owner may not even know she is roosting a cuckoo egg instead of her own, long since discarded from the nest. Once born, the cuckoo, though seemingly helpless, possesses a murderous instinct that prompts it to discard unhatched eggs or kill the other nestling. Only after this instinct passes will the cuckoo tolerate the nestlings it did not manage to kill. However, as a rule, the cuckoo becomes the sole owner of the nest because its voice has a commanding, hypnotic power.

Before any of them can ponder the relevance of this information, the group is forced to hide under a snow bank when a company of Black Guards walk past. Only after the last guard has gone do they emerge into the snow and resume their journey across the plain. As they cross it, Barbie discovers the polaroids have turned into playing cards, and the scroll is no longer readable.

At the heart of the Dreaming, Morpheus appears in the issue for the first time. With Lucien's help, he investigates the dying skerry and learns that it has existed for a long time. It so far in the past that even Morpheus forgot the circumstances of its creation. Nuala approaches Morpheus tentatively, explaining who she is and how she was under orders to watch over Barbie's dreams but not to interfere. When she discovers the Cuckoo's plan, Nuala admits her disobedience by warning Barbie of the danger. Morpheus simply absorbs this and walks away, leaving Nuala uncertain and worried about her actions. However, he turns back a moment later to tell Nuala she did the right thing, which pleases the little faerie.

Back in The Land, the weather has warmed up, and while Prinaldo is hunting for eggs and Luz is bartering with the locals for fire, Wilkinson and Barbie go mushroom picking. During their quest for breakfast, the two recount how lucky they are to evade the Black Guards, and Wilkinson confesses he doesn't know what the Heirogram is, but Martin Tenbones did. He's confident they'll figure it out when they reach the Isle of Thorns.

After breakfast, the group resumes their journey, and when Barbie compliments how good the food tastes even though she's in a dream, Prinaldo corrects her. While she comes here to dream, the Land existed before her and the Cuckoo. After all, the Land is occupied by races and places that Barbie did not imagine. Here, she is just the princess. Barbie takes this in and then explains how happy she is here. She hasn't felt this way since her earliest days with Ken or when she was a little girl.

Wilkinson reveals that he was one of seventeen children, all named Wilkinson. Am I the only fan of Babylon 5 who thinks that Zathras is JM Straczynski's homage to Wilkinson? He hilariously admits that once his parents found a name, they liked it, though it was hard on the girls. Barbie, on the other hand, is an only child. This fun conversation ends abruptly when Luz reveals they are being watched. While it's unlikely that their stalkers aren't the Black Guard who would have killed them by now, there's nothing to be done but to keep going.

They continue through the foreboding forest, feeling eyes on them, and even though there is enough food to eat, there's a sense of being watched as they travel. Barbie herself makes the association with Mirkwood and asks Wilkinson if they ought to worry about giant spiders. Wilkinson assures her there are not. The spiders live in a little forest to the west and are loyal to Barbie. Unfortunately, they're too small in numbers and are generally timid. Heh.

As Wilkinson leads them through the forest, Prinaldo scouts ahead through the trees until one day, Prinaldo doesn't come back. Everyone is disheartened by his absence, uncertain how to continue without him until Barbie suggests they follow the river and streams as they must all lead to the ocean. When Barbie asks if he thinks Prinaldo is all right, Wilkinson says no.

His worst suspicions are confirmed when they find Prinaldo's body hanging from a tree. Surrounding them are the tweeners, murderous trees that predate Barbie, and the Cuckoo, and are allies to no one. Fleeing, they are almost caught when, thanks to the Porpentine, they find one of Murphy's paths where the Tweeners cannot walk. Using the Porpentine's light, they follow the path in silence while mourning Prinaldo until they leave the forest and arrive at the sea.

Luz volunteers to find help from the village in the distance so they can cross the causeway safely. She promises to be back by nightfall.

In New York, George tries to cajole Wanda into conversation. Wanda finally bites. She asks why Thessaly left her behind. George explains it's because Wanda is still biologically male, and the spell was specific to biological women. Wanda understandably balks at this, having transitioned far enough to be considered female. None of this matters to the gods, who are as obtuse as most religious types about gender identity. Wanda replies with an epic and justifiable rebuke - she knows who she is, and that's all that matters.

George, however, is more concerned with what Thessaly did bringing down the moon. It's a reckless move that has consequences beyond violating supernatural laws. It also has real-world effects, particularly on the tides and weather. When Wanda asks why George was talking when Thessaly commanded otherwise, he reveals the command doesn't work now that Thessaly has left. This means Wanda is similarly freed from Thessaly's spell and can go when she wants.

Except that Wanda won't. Barbie is her friend, the only friend who doesn't treat her as anything but a person and Wanda won't abandon her even if what is happening terrifies her. She asks George if Thessaly, Hazel and Foxglove have reached Barbie yet. They are still walking the moon roads, according to George, but he's more concerned about Barbie's physical self and the weather.

Back at the Land, Wilkinson reminds Barbie that despite their difficulties and the loss of Prinaldo, something is looking out for them. They've made it this far, and their luck will hold when they get to the Heirogram with the Porpentine. At this point, Luz returns and Holy Double Cross, she's betrayed them to the Black Guards! Wilkinson makes a valiant but futile effort to protect Barbie, only to get his throat cut and stabbed for his trouble.

Luz orders Barbie to be bound by the hands and with two guards taking flanking positions beside Barbie. She's not about to let Barbie commit suicide. On the way through town, Barbie learns that Luz is a servant of the Cuckoo, and she is being led to the Cuckoo's Citadel

A Citadel that resembles her childhood home in Florida.

And that's it for this issue. Tune in next week when we finally meet the Cuckoo!

NEXT - Issue 36 - Over the Sky to Sea

PREVIOUS - Issue 34 - Bad Moon Rising.