Gotham's Time Traveller

My dream started out in a strange living room. I was with two supposed friends, whom I do not recognize. We were watching a TV advertisement in a big screen in what seemed to be a living room in an old concrete house. The commercial was about a place where you can go to buy new, yet very affordable cars. The place featured in the commercial was rather strange. Cars were driven over a vast piece of land where the grass stood taller than the cars yet they were as soft as cotton. The grass lay down flat as the card rolled over them. In the middle of the land was a large mansion. The featured cars bore the emblem of Mazda. The surroundings were damp, very damp, an indicator that there was a strong rain prior. While watching this strange TV ad, my friends and I were suddenly transported to the place. It was as if we walked right into the TV screen. Once there, I saw three people riding a white Mazda SUV. They stopped in front of us and they were talking about taking a bath in the rain. This time, the rain was really pouring down. Oddly, my friends and I didn't get wet. I soon realized that we were under a shed of some sort beside a dirt road that was now muddy because of the heavy rain. The driver of the SUV stepped out to catch the rain. He was the one who wanted to take a bath while the other two were trying to convince him that it’s not a good idea to do so.

A strange vehicle parked beside the white SUV. It was rather large and old. It looked like an old train car. All the gauges were analog. I couldn't see who was in it. Then in some surrealistic way, the scene changed again. I was transported to the house of billionaire philanthropist, Bruce Wayne. He was throwing a party on his front yard, but he was nowhere to be seen. My two friends were not with me this time. It seems I was the only one transported to Gotham City. It was dark; leading me to conclude it was evening.

I was surrounded by rich people just chatting and eating. They were being served by waiters in black and white tuxedos, but none of them was Alfred Pennyworth, Bruce Wayne’s butler. I was wearing a trench coat which meant I was either a cop for the Gotham PD or I was a politician. Either way, at the back of my mind, I knew Bruce was a close friend. Close enough to know his secret identity. I was standing at the bottom of the mansion's rather large front stairs where the party was being held. To my left was a small black, very ornate, steel gate. I didn’t have time to look to my right because at that time, something crashed through the gate. It was the strange looking train car I saw before I got transported to Gotham.

An old man stepped out of the car. He had short, cropped, grey hair. It looked like he didn’t shave for the past 2 days or so because he also sported a short beard. He had a leather vest over his white long sleeves with the cuffs folder up twice on each arm. He approached me and demanded that he see Bruce Wayne right away. I don’t know if it was his tone of voice or that I knew he was a villain, but as soon as he spoke, I was rushing up the stairs to warn Bruce about his strange and imposing visitor.

The front door of the mansion was large and heavy. I looked as though it was made from a single piece of wood. I opened the door to find a beautiful lady who was also looking for Bruce Wayne. She was a brunette in black high heels and she was wearing a trench coat just like me. She just stood there on the receiving area as though she was waiting for someone. She smiled as I approached her. She introduced herself as Amanda, but I don’t remember giving her my name. I don’t know if she was his date or if she had official business with Bruce. What struck me as strange was her trench coat. It was an indicator that she was either a cop or a government agent, possibly FBI or CIA. One of the doors in the receiving area opened and out came a woman and a boy holding pistols. They moved much like puppets, clumsy and somewhat slower than a normal human. Amanda and I rushed out the front door and oddly enough we were able to subdue the woman and the boy. We got their guns and we started to interrogate them.

While we were interrogating the woman and the boy, it was apparent that they were under some sort of mind control. I also found out that they were mother and son. We tied them to a chair at one of the tables in the party, but for some reason, the people at the party didn't even bother. It was as though we were not even there. No one panicked and no one seemed to have the slightest idea that they were in some sort of danger. The old man, who found himself a comfortable seat at one of the tables, was looking at us with a grin on his face. It was then I knew that the mother and son we apprehended were his henchmen.

The boy broke free from his restraints and gazed at the crowd with killing intent. I was quick to point the gun I was holding at the boy's head and I immediately popped a bullet in his head, but he didn't go down. The mother, screamed as though she was trying to break free from whatever was controlling her. She screamed at me saying, "He already has a bullet in his head. If you want to stop us, shoot us in the heart." I soon realized that they were corpses that were reanimated. I shot the boy in the heart instantly bringing him down. Then I pointed my gun at the woman's heart. She was crying, but I can see the relief on her face. It was as though she was thanking me with her eyes. Amanda was now sobbing like a child with her hands covering her face. I pulled the trigger. The bullet went through the woman's heart. I tried to comfort Amanda by giving her my handkerchief. She accepted it gladly, wiped her tears with it, then she smiled at me.

Amanda and I rushed into the mansion. We knew Bruce was in danger. I was careful not to lead Amanda to the secret entrance of the Batcave. We searched the house for Bruce. All the while I was pretending to follow Amanda's lead. We entered the room where the entrance of the Batcave was. Amanda then proceeded to tell me that she knew Bruce’s secret identity and that she was there to protect him. I also openly admitted that I knew Bruce was the batman. Amanda seemed to know as well, but it was clear that Amanda didn't know where the Batcave entrance was. I assured her that if we ever got out of this mess alive, I would show it to her. She looked me in the eye and just like the movies; we knew were falling for each other.

Alfred emerged from one of the rooms with batman. It was apparent that batman was injured. Batman looked at Amanda then at me. Amanda and I told Alfred that we will keep the enemies occupied while he and Bruce escaped. Alfred and Batman disappeared into another room. Amanda and I, pistols in hand, went out to face the enemy.

We were eventually captured and held under guard. It looked like a government operation to invade Bruce Wayne’s home because the government had a hunch that he was the batman. We watched as investigators combed the house looking for clues. I knew they will never find the Batcave’s entrance. Sadly, Amanda will never know its location too, now that we were captured by the enemy. As we sat there in the mansion’s living room, guarded by two unflinching, mind controlled guards, she held the handkerchief I gave her moments ago. She gestured that she would keep it because it was important to her. Her smile was filled with sadness, I can tell. Her words meant we would soon part ways and will never see each other again.

In a strange twist of fate, my father, my real father, suddenly stepped in the room. I knew he came from the province because he was carrying a lot of stuff that was supposedly for me. This was a scene that repeated itself time and again when I was away for college. He sat next to me in the living room. He looked young, much younger than he is now. I introduced Amanda to him and they shook hands. He told me he was sleepy so I led him to one of the rooms in the mansion. As my father lay down to sleep, the scenery changed once again. I was now in our ancestral house in the province and it seems as though I had just woken up from a dream.

I stepped out of our old room thinking about Amanda. I hurried to the living room hoping she would still be there, but I realized she was only a dream. Walking into the kitchen I saw my mamang (grandmother) cooking breakfast like she used to when I was a kid. I looked around and noticed the furniture was the same as when I was a child. I went to my parent’s bedroom and found my mom. She looked way younger than she really is today. She was with Mama, her twin sister. They were talking about something. Mama suddenly told me to go check on Daddy (my grandfather). I was surprised since I knew Daddy had already passed away years ago. I hurried to his room and lo and behold I saw him there as healthy as I can remember him. He got up from bed as soon as he saw me. He said, "Oh you are here! It’s so good to see you my boy." He told me to peel a weird looking pastry for him. It was pink with paper wrapping. I removed the paper wrap and handed it to him. He ate it with gusto. Then he proceeded to explain to me how the Native Americans had different tools for different purposes. It was reminiscent of the conversations we had when I was a curious little boy asking him about the sciences.

As the conversation went on, I soon realized I travelled back in time, but with that came the realization that I was still in a dream. I was almost tempted to tell Daddy that I am Mike from 2014 and tell him all the things he missed, but I couldn’t get the words out. The rush of emotions I got just being able to see him again prevented me from saying anything. I just smiled as he kept on talking about the Native Americans.

To avoid appearing crazy I frantically searched for a calendar in order for me to know what year I was transported to. I found an old 1931 calendar on the wall and concluded that it was an old calendar because the numbers have almost faded into unreadable blobs of ink. I asked my family members what year it was and all of them just smiled and said, "You don’t know what year it is?" I got a bit frustrated. Why didn't they just tell me what year it was?

There I was looking at my family and seeing younger versions of them like the family portraits we had when I was still a child. By my estimates, the year was somewhere between 1985 and 1986. I didn't see my little sister anywhere in the house so I guess that means she wasn't born yet.

I heard someone yell, "twelve, twelve, twelve..." over and over again. I also remember seeing a 5 peso bill, and again hearing someone counting, "one, two... one, two". That was when I finally woke up. My head was throbbing and my breathing was heavy. My dream was so vivid. Seeing a younger and healthier Daddy; Mamang cooking in the kitchen as I usually witness when I was a just a little boy; my parents looking like they were just in their mid thirties. It was surreal and quite weird. I guess that’s what happens when one watches too many movies.

All in all, it was a great experience. It makes me appreciate life more. I guess I'll give my parents a call after writing about this dream of mine. It could mean I miss home.