Survivors of the global pandemic in The Stand are beset with dreams of one of two people, depending on the nature of their heart. Who are they?

In Stephen King’s The Stand, pandemic survivors dream of either Mother Abigail or Randall Flagg, depending on whether their character inclines toward good or evil.

Mother Abigail Freemantle is a 108-year-old woman living in Hemingford Home, Nebraska. She becomes a spiritual guide for survivors drawn toward cooperation, faith, and rebuilding society. Her followers eventually establish the Boulder Free Zone in Colorado.

Randall Flagg, also called the Dark Man or the Walking Man, attracts survivors who are drawn to power, violence, disorder, or authoritarian control. He establishes his base in Las Vegas and leads the opposing faction. The dreams turn the survivors’ journey into a supernatural choice between two moral camps.

A common mix-up is to answer “Light and Dark” or “Angel and Demon.” Those phrases describe the story’s symbolism, but the question asks for the two specific characters who appear in the dreams: Mother Abigail and Randall Flagg. The novel’s central conflict ultimately brings both groups toward a final confrontation in Las Vegas.