Sandman #15 (1990)

After spending days watching over her younger brother in the hospital, Rose Walker returns to her shared house in Florida. Her housemates welcome her back, but her mental and physical exhaustion are obvious, and they send her to bed as each of them retires as well. That night, Ken dreams of money, sex and power while his girlfriend Barbie dreams of living in a fantastical world with an animal companion; a world that is better than her real life could ever be. Chantal dreams circular dreams of being in love with words and sentences. Zelda dreams of being a child again, and knows that her romantic relationship with Chantal would be frowned upon by her family. She has not yet dealt with her childhood emotions. Hal dreams of his quest for love as a gay man. He hopes to meet the standards set by his idols, the glamorous Hollywood actresses of the golden age. Rose on the other hand is unable to dream. She is too worried about her newly found grandmother, Unity Kincaid and her long lost brother Jed. Rose can't help but wonder what happened to her friend Gilbert. As it happens, Gilbert is in the hospital, watching over Jed as he sleeps. In the Dreaming, Dream and Matthew the Raven discuss the fact that Rose is a 'vortex'. Though Matthew asks what it means to have a vortex in the Dreaming, Dream brushes it off, sending Matthew to Jed's side at the hospital, and promising to deal with the vortex as he always has in the past. Back in Florida, each of the housemates' dreams intensifies. Rose, meanwhile finally begins her dream - but it is unusual. The dream is vivid, and she has a strong feeling of lucidity. Extending her perceptions, she begins to sense the dreams of the other housemates, and comes to understand that what separates each person's dream is a very fragile wall. She gives those walls a nudge. The housemates find themselves sharing a dream experience in the Dreaming, steps away from the growing vortex. In the centre of the vortex lies Rose. Unaware of the repercussions, Rose reaches out, and begins trying to bring down the walls between dreams of everyone else in the city. Eventually Dream makes a stand, and draws Rose's attention to him. He warns her that her activities must end, as they have caused great damage to the Dreaming, though not so much that he cannot repair it. Each of the housemates wakes in the night. Ken wakes aroused, and turning to Barbie, he finds her crying. She doesn't explain why, and he says something hurtful in response. Chantal and Zelda embrace as sisters for the rest of the night. Hal wakes with a feeling of dread inside, and decides to check on Rose. When he checks her room, he finds it empty. In England, Unity Kincaid regains consciousness long enough to suggest to her daughter Miranda that the old doll house she maintained from her younger days be given to Rose. With her mother and son potentially dying, Miranda hopes that at least Rose is doing alright. Dream takes Rose out into a deserted region of the Dreaming, landing atop a Mesa. He states that something is beginning. Meanwhile, Matthew makes his way to the hospital, and is surprised to find Gilbert there. Gilbert is somewhat unhappy to see the Raven, knowing that he must soon return to the Dreaming and give up his life as a human. Gilbert is surprised to discover that Rose is a vortex, and realizes that the only way to stop her from destroying the Dreaming is to have her physical presence on the earth destroyed itself. The only time Dream is empowered to take a human life is when there is a vortex in the Dreaming. Resigned, Gilbert allows Matthew to perch on his arm, and they both return to the Dream world.