On The Flash, Cisco has been having flashes to a timeline he never experienced. But how is that possible?

It was revealed in The Flash season 1, episode 18, “All Star Team Up,” that Cisco has been having dreams, both while sleeping and while awake, about the alternate timeline from “Out of Time” in which Wells revealed himself as Eobard Thawne, the Reverse Flash, and killed Cisco. It was these dreams that made Cisco more willing to team up with Barry and Joe to investigate Wells than Caitlin. However, Cisco explains that they don’t just feel like dreams; they feel real.

As viewers, we know those dreams are real because we witnessed the original timeline. This Cisco, however, did not.

So, how is this possible? How is Cisco from the current timeline remembering something that occurred in an alternate timeline?

Related: The Flash season 1, episode 18: What worked and what fell flat

It seems most likely that we’re seeing a manifestation of Cisco’s powers from the DC Comics.

A brief history

Francisco “Paco” Ramon first appeared in 1984’s Justice League of America Annual #2. Going by the alias Vibe, Paco was a metahuman leader of a Detroit street gang called Los Lobos. His powers, as his name suggests, were sonic shockwaves, or vibrations, that could shatter concrete and steel. This incarnation was also an accomplished breakdancer.

In 2013, Cisco was rebooted in Justice League of America’s Vibe. In this new run, Cisco/Vibe was “caught in the event horizon of a boom tube,” and “exposure to the interdimensional forces rewrote his DNA.” This DNA rewrite allowed him not only to create vibrations but to “sense beings from other dimensions, even as small as an insect.” His powers also kept photographic and digital devices from capturing his face.

If this version of Cisco sounds incredibly powerful, it’s because he was. His abilities even allowed him to also disrupt the Speed Force, from which speedsters like The Flash draw their powers, leaving them powerless.

Cisco’s dreams

With that history in mind, we return to The Flash. The dreams that Cisco is having of a timeline he didn’t experience seem like a twist on the portion of Vibe’s powers that can sense beings from other dimensions; he’s sensing events from a different timeline, in this case.

Either way, Cisco seems to be manifesting some metahuman abilities. Since he was present at ground zero of the particle accelerator malfunction, that shouldn’t be a major surprise. The bigger surprise would be that it has taken so long for his abilities to show themselves if they were born of the particle accelerator.

Interestingly, though, we learned that not all metahumans get their powers from the particle accelerator. Deathbolt, a metahuman who appeared on Arrow, was not in Central City when the particle accelerator malfunctioned. Could Cisco have powers independent of the malfunction?

So what?

If Cisco trusts his instincts and gets a complete picture of what happened the night Wells/Thawne killed him, it will help put the team’s investigation — and its findings of the actual Wells’ remains in “Who Is Harrison Wells?” — into perspective and create a clearer imagine of exactly what and who they are dealing with.

Based on the promo for next week’s episode, “The Trap,” Cisco appears to be in a similar situation as to the one from the alternate timeline:

Does this mean Wells/Thawne has some recollection of these events as well in order to recreate them? Will, perhaps, Cisco completely manifest his powers to save himself? We know Wells/Thawne has been struggling to connect to the Speed Force, leaving his powers sporadic, and Vibe’s abilities completely disrupt it, after all.

Only time will tell, but one thing is clear: There is a lot more of Cisco’s story to tell.

The Flash airs Tuesdays at 8:00 p.m. ET on The CW.