Ben (or Benedict) is a character in The Dreaming: Waking Hours. A promising seminary student possessed of a brilliant mind according to Father Paul. Despite the praise, Ben is at a crossroads. One night he dreams of Joan of Arc being burnt upon a stake as punishment for being pronounced guilty of heresy. The lucid dream is interrupted when Ben notices and is transfixed by the figure of “a beautiful, frightened boy”. That boy is Ruin, the newest creation of Lord Dream, and Ruin was tasked with turning Ben’s dream into a nightmare. Ruin fails his task because he too is captivated by Ben and will risk his very existence to find this man.
It’s a love at first sight meet cute in the Dreaming which means there will be faeries, Puck, monsters, and Morpheus in the way on one side with Ruin, a cheribum cast out of heaven, and a sorcerer opposing them. Writer G Willow Wilson constructed a serendipitous trail for an obsessed Ben to follow in order to be at the right place at the right time just after Ruin’s return to earth. Drawing upon all the passion in his heart, Ben confronts Morpheus to plead for Ruin’s life.
Theirs is a beautiful love story that allows for a happy beginning.
You can read profiles for Ruin and Heather After.
Created by G Willow Wilson and Nick Robles and M K Perker. Art by Nick Robles and Matheus Lopes from The Dreaming: Waking Hours #12.
Ben first appears in a dream sequence in The Dreaming: Waking Hours #2 and then appears in issues #6, 8, 11, and 12.
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