It is 1980. The influential and affluent Águila family celebrate the 88th birthday of their missing and long-presumed dead patriarch, Daniel Águila (Fernando Poe Jr.). It truly becomes a celebration of Daniel's life when his son, Mari (Christopher de Leon), receives news that Daniel is alive, living somewhere in the provinces. Mari, a business tycoon and former Senator, combs the countryside in search of his father. In the course of his search, the Águila family history is unravelled. Spanning a period of 80 years, it covers the 1896 Philippine Revolution, the American occupation, the Japanese era, Post-War reconstruction and the student militant activities of the late 1960s to early 1970s.