Robodad

We lived in our old house, and somehow, one of our children nearly died in a flood, and we had to move out west.  I mean, out west as in dry dusty streets, floating tumbleweeds.  That kind of “out west”.

While living there, we lost a child.  I am not sure what happened, but I think the child got lost, and we and the townspeople could not find the child.

Heartbroken, we moved back to our old house.

As we entered our old house, my wife and I fanned out to evaluate the condition of the place.  I took the basement.

As I descended the steps, memory washed over me, and I clearly remembered the accident that happened before we left:  a nearby river flooded, and one of our basement walls partially collapsed.  Water entered the basement, washing my toddler out.  I swam out and saved him.

It was that event which caused us to move west.

But as I stood there in the basement, I was surprised by the intensity of the memory.  It was as if the mental image was forced on me from something or someone.  It was as if someone was trying to tell me something.

Almost immediately, I knew:  the river wanted my son.  Not only that, but I knew it wanted me to be the one to bring him. It wanted my son, and it had to be me who threw him to the river.

I was anguished, but obviously, my dream self would never be persuaded to do such a horrible thing.

Sometime later, I looked outside, and we saw local municipal workers doing something on the banks of the river.  What they were doing was not important, but I recall that one of the workers slipped on the riverbank in a small mudslide, and fell in and drowned.  As the other workers scrambled to gain firm footing, I saw the ground around them popping with puffs of mud, as if bubbles were erupting from the mud.  The men struggled to find firm earth and avoid the popping ground.

It was not until I saw the blood that I knew that the local townspeople were shooting at the workers.  Somehow, the townspeople had become crazed.

Horrified, I knew it was the river.  It could do terrible things, and it would not rest until I brought it my son.  People would die… hundreds, maybe entire towns, unless I did something.

I awoke terrified.  I awoke feeling guilty because my last thoughts before waking were

how many more people will die if I don’t do it?