From the introduction: Wesley Dodds, formerly the superhero known as Sandman, was a man with a powerful gift for prophecy. His dreams would tell him of crimes committed, and then he would run off to go stop them. His gift never faded as he grew older, even if his body aged too harshly for him to keep crime fighting. But his mind still left him. He spends his final days muttering quotes from the Book of Revelations in his bed and speaking of a terrifying future. Tragically, very few believe the severity of the events of which he speaks, believing him to be just a senile old man as no one knew of his true identity. He makes a friend shortly before age takes him, a regular human preacher named Norman McCay. Norman does not disrespect him, and treats him with kindness.