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libraryofcirclaria · 2 months

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1231

Library of Circlaria

Cabotton University Timeline

Westerhill Mines

In 1204, construction was completed for an airstrip near the Westerhill Mines and workers' town in order to facilitate the importation of new workers. This airstrip would become Gentry County Airfield in the years to come.

Starting between 1205 and 1206, however, a boom in ebony mining from nearby Ebony Valley lowered ebony prices. Dave Morriston, the owner of Westerhill Mines, committed to preserving Westerhill profit margins by freezing pay raises as well as forcing workers to work longer hours for the same pay. In 1211, the mine workers, led by Merlin Kent Ogden, united and carried out a strike. Not wishing to negotiate, Dave Morriston resigned from his position and was replaced by George Cabot, a close in-law and family friend to Ogden. Thus, negotiations succeeded in improving pay, hours, and working conditions for the miners. Furthermore, housing in the town was refurbished to facilitate middle-class living standards; and Ogden was rewarded for his efforts with an especially large residence that would become the address: 124 West Mason Street.

In 1217, the dominance of Ebony Valley over the industry forced the Westerhill Mines to close. This led the economy in the former miners' town to shift to that of trading shops, predominantly those of the spellcrafter trade. While this provided stability, Combrian leadership in Hasphitat desired for more of a purpose to be served by this town. They were soon approached by Robert Barrington, who proposed to purchase the preserved lands owned by the Emoran Heritage Foundation and build a special academy to provide a second chance to those Combrians who failed out of the Combrian education system.

Combrian law required all Combrian citizens to attend school through the level of a University bachelor degree. Any person in the University system receiving failing grades would be expelled from said University system and made to take a civil service job with the option of going through military service first in order to be considered for better promotions and pay raises. The issue here was that beginning around the 1210s and 1220s, a growing number of Combrian citizens believed this doctrine to be unfair and furthermore believed that Combrian students should be given second chances.

And thus Barrington rose to the occasion by proposing a new alternative curriculum vested in the construction of the Westerhill Institute of Academic Rehabilitation.

Westerhill Institute for Academic Rehabilitation

A few groups of collective youth working as spellcrafter traders in the former miner town attempted to speak on behalf of the Emorans against the idea of converting the preserved consecrated land to the miner town's immediate South into property developed for this new Institute. However, the Combrian government utterly ignored them and approved Barrington's proposal. Construction began in 1228 and would be completed in the spring of 1231.

The Westerhill Institute of Academic Rehabilitation was "simple-oriented" in its structure, consisting of a vast grid of criss-crossing sidewalks over vast lawns. In each corner square, and in the center square, stood a large structure with a square base. Each structure had a center pillar-wing of rooms, and a pillar-wing in each of its five corners. And each structure was five floors tall. These structures were the Five Schools of the Institute, with the one in the Northwest Corner named the William Peck School of Grammar, the one in the Northeast Corner named the John Arthur School of Science and Spellfire, the one in the Southeast Corner named the John Cracker School of Mathematics, the one in the Southwest Corner named the Michael Kelvin School of History and Law, and the one in the Center Square named the Mack Schrader School of Citizenship. Each School consisted of classrooms on its First Floor and student dormitories on the remaining Floors. The overall design of the Schools and the grounds was designed to be cut-and-dry, as well as large and intimidating in order to incentivize student focus and discipline.

Every student enrolled in the Westerhill Institute was subject to the same basic curriculum: to present what one did to cause academic failure, to receive feedback from the assigned Schoolmaster (mostly shaming), and to complete an assignment schedule given by the said Schoolmaster, with said schedule involving "fundamentals" courses on the affected subject, courses that imposed intense lecture-and-drill. The assignment schedule also required each student to complete a sophisticated project which also involved writing long essays explaining how the student thought to complete each step. This would also be subject to harsh feedback from the Schoolmaster.

Robert Barrington served as the Headmaster of Westerhill Institute from 2 through 23 May 1231, after which he resigned and was replaced by Arnold Stone.

John Fleming, University Establishment

John Fleming was born in December 1208 and grew up in Bridgetown in the District of Ereautea, and pursued a career agenda to become a trade accountant. In 1227, Fleming graduated high school with good grades and enrolled in the local branch of the University of Ereautea. Fleming completed his college freshman year in 1228 with academic distinction, and was recommended to enroll into Bridgetown College, a school independent of the University system and reserved for honors students. Fleming excelled in Bridgetown College for his sophomore year, at the end of which he was accepted into their Upper Division program and assigned a field internship for his junior year. However, Fleming had a political falling-out with one of his peers during this internship, and was made to look as if he was academically incompetent. Fleming as a result was expelled from Bridgetown College and would later have his re-application rejected by the University of Ereautea.

Fleming would work a year as a groundskeeper for the Bridge but then accepted an opportunity he received by letter to enroll in the Westerhill Institute.

Martin Cross was born in 1211, and grew up in Jestopole, where he would pursue a career agenda to be a contract scriptfire planecrafter for the Edoran Kingdom. Cross graduated high school in 1229 and, like Fleming, did so with good grades. That year, Cross enrolled in the University of Combria where he, like Fleming, passed with distinction and was moreover recommended for Upper Division that same school year. For his sophomore year, Cross was tasked with completing a dymensional plane project and presenting it as a proposition to enter the Terredon Royal College in the neighboring Kingdom of the Great North. The project involved creating an imitation of the land and territory of the Duchy of Daylram set in the tenth century. And though it was deemed impressive by Cross' peers, it was utterly rejected by the Royal College, who wrote a scathing complaint to the University of Combria on this. Though the University of Combria did not discipline him over the complaint, Cross had a mental break from the outcome and largely stopped attending classes. The University of Combria would expel him for his resulting attendance issues.

Cross then received a letter to enroll in the Westerhill Institute.

Thomas Snow was born in 1212 and grew up in Ebony Valley in the District of Ereautea to pursue a career as an engineer in ebony and related hardware construction. Like Cross and Fleming, Snow graduated high school in 1230 with good grades, but decided to work one year for one of the Ebony Valley construction companies. In the summer of 1230, before he started his job, Snow trained for and attained his Spellcaster License, an achievement which he made known to his co-workers later that year. This led to abrasion with some of them, including the high manager's son, who set him up to take on an assignment that appeared to simply involve surveying territory to the immediate Northwest for ebony deposits. This turned out to be a set-up, a discovery that Snow and his fellow surveyors only made when they, during the trip out into the wilderness, encountered dangerous wysps kept and then released by the manager's son. One of Snow's surveying crew people ran off and went missing, while Snow saved the other two, discharging spells and killing two wysps in the process. They and the person that ran off were rescued, but the incident did not pass without consequence for Snow. He would later be charged with endangerment for not realizing the area surveyed was prone to wysps, and also be penalized for the killing of the wysps themselves as they were considered by the Remikran Union to be an endangered species. Snow had a lawyer who managed to reduce the sentence for the incident to simply a fine, but this would also result in academic implications later on.

Snow received good grades during his freshman year, 1230-31. However, the University of Ereautea received documentation regarding the wysp incident and the legal proceedings. Though they did not consider this a criminal disqualification, the University leadership cited Snow's apparent lack of knowledge for biology and geography to be grounds for requiring a "remedial exam" in those subjects. Though Snow knew the material, the wording of this exam led him to failing it. Snow was then made to reconsider his career path through an "aptitude exam." And while this exam was open-ended, it was possible for a student to fail it if they did not demonstrate measurable strength for any particular career path. Like the first exam, the wording of this second exam led Snow to receiving a failing score; and so as a consequence, Snow was destined to be expelled from the University system.

Westerhill Institute enrollment was selective in nature and was done by invitation. However, Snow, in the course of working in the ebony mining industry, had befriended Merlin Kent Ogden, who worked closely with the Institute and leveraged them into enrolling Snow.

And so in the summer of 1231, John Fleming, Martin Cross, and Thomas Snow became acquainted with one another.

Such a mutual acquaintance began with Cross and Snow, who were assigned roommates and were quarreling with one another over menial logistical matters. Fleming overheard the arguments and summoned Cross and Snow to his room, where the three of them shared their backgrounds and their common hatred toward the oppressive Combrian education system. Fleming was inspired by Cross' dymensional plane project and suggested that he and Snow build one here at Westerhill. Cross initially dismissed the idea as unfeasible, but Snow voiced disagreement, stating that Merlin Kent Ogden had the hardware and venue to build such an apparatus. Cross surrendered to the idea; and several days later, they met with Ogden, who agreed to the arrangement.

On 13 June 1231, Arnold Stone arrived at the Westerhill Institute to start his tenure as the new Headmaster. The next evening, he was visited by Cross and Snow, who were sent to him by the Master of the Kelvin School for poor academic performance; both students had failed an exam due to not being able to form words for answers quickly enough due to lack of sleep. Upon further investigation, Stone learned that the two students had stayed up late into the night working on the dymensional plane with Merlin Kent Ogden. In response, Stone asked to travel to 124 West Mason Street to see this dymensional plane project.

On 19 June, Stone made the visit to the venue, where instead of moving to shut down the project, Stone was impressed with it and requested to have it moved to the Library located in the Mack Schrader School. The next day, this move was made. And on 21 June, Cross and Snow presented this dymensional plane to the other Westerhill students, who took great interest. The following day, Headmaster Stone made an announcement to all Westerhill students and faculty that this dymensional plane project, now known as simply the Project, would serve as a central part of a new curriculum. Stone furthermore declared that all students and faculty would be termed equally as "Scholars" and that faculty were required to pose research questions and provide resourceful information. Stone also banned the oppressive grading system for academic performance and declared the Library open to all Scholars.

However, George Kormell, Master of the Mack Schrader School, reported Stone to the Combria Department of Education for "significant and detrimental educational curriculum deviations." The Education Department accepted the request to press this charge, and subsequently sent a letter to Stone on 13 September, dismissing him from the Headmaster position. Kormell was assigned as the next Headmaster, prompting waves of protests from the students.

As the new Headmaster, on 17 September 1231, Kormell announced his intent to re-instill the old lecture-and-drill curriculum. However, the students staged a mass-walkout and began forming human chains around each of the Five Schools, chanting "Bring back Stone!"

On 18 September, protests escalated, as students began throwing rocks and destroying property. The Masters of the John Arthur, Michael Kelvin, and William Peck Schools resigned, as Headmaster Kormell called in martial law, who, on that day, shot dead John Fleming during a heated confrontation in front of the Mack Schrader School.

This further enraged the student protestors, who, that evening, stormed the Schools under the Masters who resigned. They overtook the John Arthur School and renamed it the House of Thomas Adams, one of their still-living protest leaders. They also seized the Michael Kelvin School, renaming it the House of Alexander Norris, and the William Peck School, renaming it the House of James Randall.

On 19 September, the student protestors were joined by the former-miner town shopkeepers and the former-miners, both of whom held sympathy for the students and a common hatred toward the old Combrian system. The protestors that day stormed the John Cracker School and beat its Master to death; they would later rename this building the House of Karl Deering. In response, Kormell barricaded himself in his Office and refused calls to leave, and on 21 September, called in more reinforcements. This was countered with even more protestors, consisting of students and a growing number of allies. On 22 September, Kormell sent a ticker-text message to the Combrian government for a significant boost in money and resources to deal with this crisis, to which the government responded with a promise to do so.

Nevertheless, gridlock continued between both sides of the crisis, until 2 October, when Kormell was approached by George Cabot with a proposition to purchase the Institute as private property for a large sum of money. Kormell relented and signed a joint proposition with Cabot for approval from the Combrian government on this. The Combrian government approved the transaction, and, on 12 October, sent Kormell a letter granting him an honorable dismissal from the Headmaster position and a rewarding retirement.

George Cabot, on 13 October, transferred ownership of the Institute to Arnold Stone, who waived ownership to the Scholars. That day, they voted to rename the Institute to Cabotton University and also to rename Mack Schrader School as John Fleming House. On 2 November, the Cabotton University student body voted in a University Constitution, which mandated the University to be run democratically according to its administrative structure, as cited in a corresponding blog entry. And on 6 June 1232, Cabotton University began classes with its first Summer Semester.

Cabotton University would then begin its first official school year with a Fall Semester commencing on 2 September 1232.

<- 1203 <- || -> 1233 ->

#LOC-CabottonUniversityTimeline

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typingtess · 6 months

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NCIS: Los Angeles Season 14 Rewatch: “Body Stitchers”

The basics: Alleged artists and confirmed killers the Body Stitchers are back.

Written by: Adam G. Key & Frank Military

Adam George Key co-wrote "Monster" with Frank Military, "Searching" with Kyle Harimoto and “Land of Wolves” with Justin Kohlas. Key also played LAPD Officer Harrison in four episodes in seasons 11 and 12.

Military wrote or co-wrote "Little Angels", "Deliverance", "Lockup", "The Job", "Greed", "Betrayal", "Crimeleon", "Vengeance", "Out of the Past" Part One, "Rude Awakenings" Part Two, season four’s finale "Descent", season five’s premiere "Ascension", "Allegiance", "Spoils of War", "Black Budget", "SEAL Hunter", "Rage", "Unspoken", "Unlocked Mind", "Revenge Deferred", "The Seventh Child", "Crazy Train", "Uncaged", "The Silo", "Monster", "Line in the Sand", season ten opener "To Live and Die in Mexico", "The Patton Project", "Better Angels", "False Flag", "A Bloody Brilliant Plan", "Code of Conduct" "Raising the Dead", "Through the Looking Glass", "Indentured" and “Down the Rabbit Hole”.

He also appeared as Donald Kessler in "Raising the Dead" and several other episodes in photos.

Directed by: Suzanne Saltz directed "Outside the Lines", "Murder of Crows", "Sundown" and “MWD”.

Guest stars of note: Alicia Coppola as FBI Senior Special Agent Lisa Rand, Rob Nagle as Albert “Al” Barrington/Plague Doctor, Tobias Jelinek as Bobby Griffin/Wolf, Matt Kelly as Justin Tucker/Clown are all back from “Monster” - that delightful Easter Sunday season nine episode. Teya Patt as Cindy Ferguson/Faceless Mask replaces Kerrie Blaisdell who played this role in “Monster”. Richard Gant as Raymond Hanna is back from “Game of Drones”. JD Cullum as FBI Forensic Psychologist Mark Collins, Derrick A. King as Michael Jeffries, Adrian Elizondo as Philip Guerrero and Antony Del Rio as Alexander Hughes.

Our heroes: Try, try, try again.

What important things did we learn about:

Callen: Away on assignment – he always misses these wacky Body Stitchers. Sam: Pulled away from the case for a terrorist threat in San Pedro. Kensi: Not thrilled to be dealing with Cindy Ferguson again. Deeks: Not thrilled by any of this. Fatima: Working late. Rountree: Heard about the Body Stitchers case in the Academy. Kilbride: Wants the team to stop whining about losing the bad guys the first time and get them this time.

What not so important things did we learn about:

Callen: Absent. Sam: Cleaning up after Arkady in Sam’s own backyard. Kensi: Working with Agent Rand for a lot of the episode. Deeks: Working with Sam for a lot of the episode. Fatima: In charge of freeing the Body Stitchers almost victim. Rountree: Catches a Body Stitcher on his own. Kilbride: Warns the team that they can help on this case as long as NCIS doesn’t need them.

Where in the world is Henrietta Lange? No mention today.

Who's down with OTP: Not a lot of OTP time today.

Who's down with BrOTP: Not a BrOTP episode either.

Fashion review: Black, long-sleeve tee for Sam. Kensi has on a wine-colored long-sleeve v-neck tee. Deeks wears a very pale blue/nearly grey henley. Fatima is wearing a purple turtleneck. Rountree has on a charcoal grey pullover sweater under a denim jacket with a leather collar. Admiral Kilbride is in his usual three-piece suit with a pale blue dress shirt and a blue tie with a darker blue paisley tie.

Music: “Gravy Train” by Lettuce is playing while Raymond is having breakfast.

Any notable cut scene: None today.

Quote: Sam: “I'm just a government employee. Explain it to me.” Ferguson: “He's a great master, like Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Renoir. These humans who changed the world with their imagination and a pencil.” Sam: “So Vincent is a master artist?” Ferguson: “Yeah, Vincent, like Vincent van Gogh. Uh... You know?” (mimics cutting her ear) Sam: “Yeah.” Ferguson: “He's the great master behind the bodies. It's his vision. We're just his apprentices, learning the art.” Sam: “The art of sewing bodies together?” Ferguson: “God. Isn't it beautiful?”

Anything else: Lots of previously-s from “Monster”. And the weirdos are back doing weirdo things. This time with extra self-importance.

Raymond is having breakfast, listening to tunes when Sam walks in with a cigar butt. Raymond feigns ignorance but there are four others in the backyard. Raymond starts to call Callen – obviously an investigation must be started. When told Callen is out of town, Raymond suggests bumping it up to the SecNav. Seems the cigars don’t belong to Raymond – he doesn’t smoke. But Arkady does. Raymond made a friend not to Sam’s liking. The family fun is interrupted by a call – Sam’s being called to the office. Leaving, Sam bars Arkady from the house.

Rountree is waiting as Kensi walks into the office. Agent Rand from the FBI called. Kensi speaks highly of Rand and asks why Rand called. Rountree tells her about the “legendary” case while he was in the Academy about killers who make Frankenstein monsters out of their victims. There was scuttlebutt Rountree heard about another agency being involved in the case. Kensi said they were all in a dark place after the case.

Up in Ops, Kensi and Rountree join Deeks and Fatima. Agent Rand is on the big screen. In a different Zoom box is Special Agent Zachary Collins from the BAU. The FBI heard the group is back in LA. Rand sends Fatima some pictures from a the “Body Stitchers” last crime scene. It freaks Fatima out a little and Rand apologizes.

Rountree asks for a motive. Collins explains the killers think they are creating some kind of art and make money selling the event as art on the dark web. The money gives the killers the freedom to move around largely undetected. Collins thinks the motive is also sexual – the killers meshed violence and sex together as young people and are acting on it.

The Body Stitchers have been seen in the US, Central and South America. The FBI has gotten close several times but just missed. Deeks asks why. Collins tells the group – including an arriving Admiral Kilbride that the killers aren’t stupid. They set up, do their thing and move on. They avoid common ports of entry and regularly purchase new identities on the dark web.

The Admiral puts his foot down – this is not a military related action, the OSP’s involvement will be limited. If NCIS needs the team or a team member, they’re out of the case. Rand is fine with that – the OSP is the only agency ever to interact with the killers. As advisors or part of the task force, the FBI wants NCIS to offer whatever they can. Kensi tells the Admiral the case is unfinished business for the team. No, it is unfinished business for the FBI, he replies. Deeks brings up Lt. Commander Weir but Lt. Commander Weir was a random crime victim and not killed because of his service. Kensi brings up how he was killed and the Admiral relents – NCIS will be mildly involved. Rand is grateful.

Sam, Kensi and Deeks arrive at the crime scene. Rand is there with the dead guy and Collins from BAU. Collins introduces himself as Mark Collins which is weird since he was Zachary Collins about five minutes ago. Sam asks when did the FBI figure out the killers were back in LA. Rand explains a woman named Staci Campbell was murdered. Suspect Michael Jeffries got a text with photo of all the body parts used to sew the “art” together. Sam notices freezer burn on the dead people’s shoulder. That makes sense to Collins – if they don’t have enough parts to sew together, the killers have to preserve the parts they do have.

Kensi asks about Jeffries, who is in custody but there isn’t much to hold him. He’ll likely be cut lose in a few hours since a judge turned down their warrant request to search Jeffries’s apartment. He was only seen with the dead woman a few hours before her death – that’s not enough. Sam, Deeks and Collins are off to interview Jeffries, Kensi and Rand are teaming up.

Just after the men leave, a young female FBI agent has something to show Kensi and Rand. There was a locked room, now opened. Inside are a lot of dead bodies.

While Collins is interviewing Jeffries in interrogation, Sam is in the main room of the boatshed talking about how the four people in the case lied right to his face. They killed people and sewed them back together. “And we had them.” The Admiral arrives and wants Sam to stop “wallowing in the fact that you missed something” and tell him what Sam learned.

Sam said the killers knew exactly how to manipulate the investigation. Deeks chimes in that the killings themselves, the planning, the execution – “the intelligence was off the charts.” They did not present themselves as smart. Collins joins the group. Jeffries knows the FBI and NCIS have nothing so he’s going to be released soon. Sam asks about Jeffries, who doesn’t really work, just short-sells stock online. He has no connection to the killers, just lives in the same building as murder victim Staci Campbell.

Fatima pops up on the plasma to connect Kensi and Rand. The only person to see Campbell and Jeffries together is the super in their share apartment building. They are going over to interview the super now.

The Admiral tells Sam and Deeks to remember who they are, put the past in the past and “get this thing done.”

In interview, Deeks just stares across the table at Jeffries while Sam sits near the door. Jeffries is about to speak when Sam tells him to “hold that thought.” Deeks talks about the smell of the sea around them, the ocean breeze and how these things hide a cold, hard truth. Jeffries tells them he did not kill Campbell. They were neighbors but he never touched her.

That’s not the truth, Sam tells Jeffries. Deeks explains that Jeffries is surrounded by frustrated and angry agents from several government agencies. “We’re hungry and you’re the only thing on the menu,” Sam says. Jeffries is keeping up – the kitchen is closed, he didn’t kill Campbell. Deeks brings up his connection to the killers, killers who executed a member of the US Navy. That’s federal lock-up.

Sam pushes the idea that they have proof that Jeffries has provided financial assistance to the killers. Jeffries admits he’s a fan – “people love true crime and serial killers.” He though the body parts came from grave robberies or morgues. He didn’t think they were being killed for the art.

Outside Jeffries’s apartment building, Kensi and Rand approach Phillip Guerrero, the super. He’s trimming some hedges in the building’s courtyard. He liked Campbell, “good tenant, nice girl.” Guerrero saw Campbell and Jeffries walk into the courtyard. They were chatting about food delivery people leaving too many menus by the mailbox area. As the conversation goes on, Guerrero brings up “Mrs. Jeffries”. Rand thinks wife but it actually Jeffries’s mother. She’s in bad health – an invalid after a partial stroke a month ago. Guerrero drops off food deliveries from time to time – he likes her.

There is no response from Mrs. Jeffries after they knock on the door. Guerrero lets himself in to see if she’s OK. While he’s looking around, Kensi checks in with Rountree. He’s trying to chase the killer’s money but it all leads to offshore accounts which are dead ends. As Rountree finishes, Guerrero runs from the apartment, horrified and unable to breathe. Kensi and Rand enter the apartment. They find Mrs. Jeffries in the bathtub. Kensi and Rand flee the premises when they get a whiff of sulfuric acid fumes.

Outside, Kensi provides the team an update. The building has been evacuated due to the health concerns around sulfuric acid. Guerrero breathed in too much and is getting treated. Kensi assures everyone she and Rand ran out as soon as they understood what was in the air. Collins notes that sulfuric acid is easy to find so tracing its purchase will be tough. This fact annoys Sam.

A titanium knee pretty much identifies the woman in the bathtub as Mrs. Jeffries. Collins offers the idea that Jeffries killed her because she had incriminating info on her son. This doesn’t work for Rand. Based on the lack of damage to the bathtub, Mrs. Jeffries is likely dead only 12-hours. Jeffries has been in custody for over a day.

Sam, Deeks and Collins ask Jeffries about his mother, why he didn’t mention an older, sick woman alone in his apartment while he was in custody. Sam tells Jeffries his mother is dead and he seems genuinely surprised.

Jeffries blames Collins for his mother’s death. The killers would know the Feds were in town while they were planning their show. He had a ticket to go but couldn’t because he was in custody. The killer thought he was selling them out and since they couldn’t kill him, they killed his mother as a message. Collins thinks Jeffries’s mother knew he killed Campbell and he paid someone to kill his mother. Jeffries is willing to trade info on the dark web he has about the show for witness protection.

Rountree gets to the Body Stitchers’s website on the dark web. It’s been cleaned out but they access to the e-mail server and will be able to track the killers to their next website. Kensi calls in with Rand. Mrs. Jeffries right hand was sawed off before she was put in the acid bath.

Fatima found the new website with a new live video going out shortly. Everything is password protected but she’s working her way in. In the live stream, everything is set up but nobody is there. The stream is coming from an abandoned movie theater in Woodland Hills.

As the team is about to leave, a terrorist warning come in based on an OSP case in San Pedro. The Admiral has to send something to deal with San Pedro since it is an NCIS priority. Sam goes. Deeks and Collins are off to Woodland Hills.

Kensi, Deeks, Rountree and Fatima pull up with Rand and Collins leading the FBI. SWAT is on their way but not expected for 30-minutes. The teams can’t wait and enter the theater. There are 16-theaters. Everyone breaks off to clear their own theaters. Fatima and Rountree are in five, Kensi is in theater six. Deeks enters a theater on his own. He’s worried the place is too big – too many places to hide. He starts looking around as one of the FBI agents notes the comms in the theater barely work.

Outside of theater seven, Rand find the group at theater eight. Kensi and Collins are on their way. A shot is fired during the “art” event, dropping one of the killers on the stage. Rand is as surprised as the killers. She yells FBI and seems stunned that everyone runs. One of the killers, Barrington, is chased by the young FBI agent who showed the team the dead bodies earlier in the episode. Barrington drops his knife in his right hand but has a really small boxcutter in his left palm. When the FBI agent tries to cuff the killer, he stabs her in the throat just as Collins arrives. As Barrington flees, Collins calls for an EMT.

The young agent claims she’s fine so Collins goes after Barrington. In a hallway, he runs into Deeks. The two startle the hell out of each other. They search as a team for Barrington.

In the theater, Fatima is having the planned victim released from the board he is strapped to with the help of the FBI. Another FBI agent removes the mask of the dead killer – it is Bobby Griffin. Everyone wonders who shot him.

Kensi finds Cindy Ferguson trying to escape and quickly cuffs her. “You’re not getting away, again,” Kensi tells her.

Justin Tucker, the fourth killer, runs right to where Rountree is searching. Tucker pulls out a big knife, which Rountree insists he drop. An elevator ping and opens, giving Tucker a way to escape. Rountree tries to get to the elevator before the door closes but doesn’t make it. On comms, he warns everyone that Tucker taking the elevator down. Collins says he’s nearby but the elevator barely moves before Tucker shuts it down.

Outside the elevator, Rountree and Rand try to talk Tucker into surrendering. Rand demands a cellphone. He wants to speak to Vincent, the last living master. Rountree and Rand have no idea what he’s talking about.

Deeks is in a projection room when he hears Collins call “Agent down.” Deeks finds Collins, who says Barrington stabbed him in the neck. With the comms are failing, Deeks goes after Barrington when Collins says he’s alright. Deeks finds a fire exit and starts making his way down.

In the theater where all the killing was going to go on, Fatima with Kensi and Deeks are talking to Alexander, the man who nearly was killed. She has photos on her phone of the Body Stitchers and Alexander recognizes a few of them but wonders why they don’t have a photo of the main guy – “Master”.

Cutting a deal, Tucker will come back to the NCIS/FBI floor and turn himself in if he can speak to Vincent. He does go to the NCIS/FBI floor where he cuts his own throat in front of the NCIS and FBI teams.

Kensi has a very tough talk with Ferguson, who the FBI dropped off at the boat shed. Ferguson doesn’t know Michael Jeffries but she’s not interested in talking to Kensi. Talking to Kensi takes time away from the beautiful places like the Taj Mahal and not the prison cell she will call home for the rest of her life.

Out in the main room of the boatshed, Sam is back with Deeks, Rand and Collins. The reason to call Sam away was a paperwork issue. Collins doesn’t think Ferguson will offer up anything – she’s too committed. While they have to cut Jeffries loose – no real reason to hold him – Jeffries lawyered up and the lawyer wants him in witness protection. Deeks thinks that’s the next best thing to having him in custody. Sam wants a chance to speak to Ferguson.

Ferguson remembers Sam. He asks to speak to her without Kensi and Kensi is happy to leave. Reintroducing himself, Sam tells Ferguson she’s being turned over to the FBI. Ferguson doesn’t care and Sam knows that – because she’s “stupid.” Ferguson doesn’t like that. She really doesn’t like when Sam tells her Vincent is in custody and spilling everything he knows. He gets time off any sentence for every crime he helps the FBI solve – crimes that will put her in prison for decades. Ferguson doesn’t believe him but Sam says it is a done deal.

Sam would like to Ferguson explain the whole idea of Vincent being her master. He isn’t her master, Ferguson explains, they aren’t a “cheesy cult.” Vincent is a great master like DaVinci or Michelangelo – a great artist like Vincent Van Gogh. Ferguson shows off her ear and pretends to cut it off. She is an apprentice to a great master learning their art. It is “affecting” and Sam agrees – he’ll never forget what they did. Ferguson goes on about their art making them immortal, gods and how they’d die for Vincent.

At home, Sam is enjoying a nice dinner with his father. Raymond jokes that he’s cooking great meals hoping it will keep him in Sam’s house. There’s a WBA middleweight fight that night – Sam thinks the two of them should watch together but Raymond has other plans. A honking horn outside the house is Arkady, who knows he isn’t allowed to come inside. Raymond is off to play poker and drink some fine whiskey. Sam isn’t happy about this. Raymond is annoyed – he’s happy, he has a friend and someplace fun to go. He plans to live whatever days he has left as full a life as he can have. Raymond hits up Sam for a few hundred dollars – he’s joking.

Just after Raymond leaves, Rand calls. She’s sure they missed something. Jeffries’s mother was dead for at least 48-hours based on the blood lividity tests. He killed her – Jeffries wasn’t in custody at that time. And if he removed his mother’s hand, he’s part of the Body Stitchers. Sam wants another crack at Jeffries, who is being taken to an FBI safehouse in San Diego by Collins. Sam calls with an apology to Fatima but he needs her help. She has Kaleidoscope searching the cameras around the theater. They are looking for video of Barrington leaving.

Saying “Dementia can eat my shorts,” Raymond returns home with a large wad of cash. He throws it to Sam, who was snoozing in the living room. When Raymond leaves for bed, Fatima texts Sam – “You need to see this.”

There is video of Barrington leaving the theater through a back door. There is someone wearing a dress shirt holding the door open for Barrington. A flashback shows a wounded Collins getting up and letting Barrington out of the theater.

In a car, Collins is joined with Barrington, who is sure the entire state of California is looking for him. Collins tells Barrington he updated the killer’s profile saying Barrington is likely to return to his home in Orlando. Collins plans to have him on a beach half-way around the world.

Sam contacts Rand with questions about Collins. Rand met Collins during the Body Stitchers case. He’s profiled many serial killers, a logical addition to the team.

In Collins’s car, Jeffries joins Barrington and Collins with a “gift from his mother, I thought she could give us a hand” – it’s a cooler. Collins is relieved they got rid of the amateurs – Griffin, Tucker and Ferguson – who were only going to get them caught. Another flashback shows Collins killing Griffin from the theater’s projection room.

The plan is for Barrington and Jeffries to lay low for a good long time. Collins gives them envelopes with new identities and $10,000. There will be more cash when needed. Down the road, they will reunite and change their art. Make a body with three arms, five legs and a head growing out of its stomach. “What would Picasso or Dali do?”

Rand tells Sam that Collins and Jeffries never made it to the safe house in San Diego – they were due hours ago. She’s worried something happened to Collins. Reviewing Collins’s interrogation of Jefferies, Sam sees Collins run his hand through his hair and showing Jeffries his ear. Sam flashes back to Ferguson and her Vincent Van Gogh remarks. Sam tells Rand that Collins is Vincent.

What head canon can be formed from here: “Monster” was a really well done episode that was also a one and done hour. No need to stop on USA or ION when you see it is rerunning there. It was clever (if disgusting) and rarely does the team get beaten by the bad guys at the end. There was also the introduction of Spencer Williams and all that would unfold in the Mosley storyline.

This wasn’t that. A little lighter on the gore, though only a little, a lot more muddled in the storytelling. Hated the idea that what we thought were these clever psychopaths were actually just lemmings following a serial killer who was working for the FBI. It takes away the accomplishment of the “Monster” episode.

Always happy to see Rand but Collins (with three names here – Zachary, Mark and eventually Vincent) was going to be one of two things – the red-shirted member of the team or one of the killers.

Did like the Sam and Raymond storyline bracketing the episode. Raymond putting his foot down about living his life the best he can as long as he can was good to see. Sam has his father’s best interests at heart but Raymond lived a long life and planned to enjoy what he had.

Also liked that Rountree learned about the case in the FBI Academy. A reminder how much younger he is than the rest of the team that participated in the case.

Kudos to Callen who missed both of these episodes with the Body Stitchers.

Episode number: The third episode of season 14. Episode 305 overall.

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