The Masters

Previously — In episode 13, we learn the backstory of John Spillers, as told by Sergeant Zayas during his final moments following the attack on the Grass Cutting Area. Spillers was an immigrant from Holland who joined the crew of the Santa Maria as a cooper, and was later left behind in Haiti with 39 other men in 1492. He’s not only managed to survive 450 years, he’s doing whatever he wants. With...

Previously — In episode 12, Vandyck reveals her misgivings about Area J operator procedures — specifically, the over reliance on aperture screen technology. She mockingly compares this to Santiago’s no-frills demonstration from earlier, when he took control of a recorded session to directly address a room full of operators from his stone dungeon in Puerto Rico. Privately, she admires the old man,...

Previously — In episode 11, we meet the three-man chalk of JTF Alpha—a motley collection of military oddballs hand-picked by John Spillers. There’s Delaloza, who spends most of his time napping, not saying a word. And Chaulette, a full bird colonel recently transferred from an all black airborne unit known as the Triple Nickels. And Dawkins—a disgraced Navy UDT diver who is, in the words of Ramler...

Previously —In episode 10, Sepulveda walks with Spillers in the Grass Cutting Area compound, only to wake up below the canopy of the enormous ceiba tree. Unable to speak or move his legs, things quickly take a turn for the bizarre when Garcia shows up. This is the Spaniard Santiago’s father killed over 400 years earlier while protecting his family. During the melee, Spillers disappears from view a...

Previously —In episode 9, Captain Sepulveda and FBI station chief John Spillers go for a short walk. Their conversation is cordial—mostly smalltalk about the new Sikorski helicopters recently shipped to Ramey Air Force base. But deeper into their walk, Spillers suggests moving over to a tall tree in the distance. When this happens, Sepulveda catches a glimpse of something he can’t explain—Spillers...

Previously —In episode 8, FBI station chief John Spillers arrives at building one of the Grass Cutting Area, and quickly makes it clear to Captain Sepulveda that he and Ramler are there only to interrogate Jesus Santiago. Sepulveda, who’s meeting Spillers for the first time, instantly feels there’s something off about him—he just can’t quite put it into words. After some awkward introductions, Spi...

In Episode 8 —Spillers arrives at building one of the Grass Cutting Area, a secret interrogation facility nestled in the middle of Ramey Air Force Base. Spillers, who earlier killed Ramler, then reanimated him, seems unsure about whether or not he can count on the man’s loyalty. Sepulveda, having just found out from Ramler the unbelievable story of an indestructible uterus being kept in a jar… doe...

In Episode 7 —Captain Sepulveda explains what happened recently to his men at New York Presbyterian hospital. Ramler, who’s being held at gunpoint, has to decide—is it time for an on-the-spot-correction… or something else? He shares some backstory about what’s in the crate, and how its contents overlap with classified Los Alamos research being done in Puerto Rico. Previously —In episode 6, the Cer...

In episode 6 —We find out about one of Spillers additional capabilities, alluded to by Dr. Vandyck in the previous episode. We also watch as Captain Sepulveda greets a visitor to building one—an FBI interrogator sent by station chief John Spillers. On the face of things, the purpose of this man’s visit is to demonstrate interrogation techniques, but Sepulveda doesn’t quite trust him. For good reas...

Previously—In episode 4, The Calabozos of la Princesa, we learned about Jesus Santiago, a jibaro who is dropped off at the old colonial prison. Right away, he meets the warden, who suspects the old man of having some connection to the wooden crate recovered by the FBI, now in the hands of John Spillers. Santiago, it turns out has history with Spillers, going all the way back to 1518. In episode 5—...

Previously, in episode 3, we peeked into the top secret interrogation facility at Ramey Air Force Base, and learned about two of its occupants: a 460 year old ceiba tree and Captain Cristian Monserrate Sepulveda. In episode 4, we're introduced to Jesus Santiago, an old jibaro who's dropped off at the Spanish colonial prison named la Princesa. Right away, he meets the warden, who suspects the old m...

Previously, in episode 2, Dr. Esteberger of Area J explains point clouds, FOJIP polyhedrons, and type 2 simulations, then draws our attention to the fact that John Spillers was one of the 39 men left behind at La Navidad in 1492 by Christopher Columbus—that Spillers stopped aging in 1518 as a side effect of the deformation of his human luminescence. He also suggests that Spillers has become unclam...

Previously, in episode 1, we got a glimpse of 1950 Puerto Rico, as seen from the eyes of special agent Anton Ramler of the FBI. We learned that his boss, station chief John Spillers is not at all what he appears to be. In fact, after killing Ramler's partner with his bare hands, Spillers makes the shocking admission that he's been alive for hundreds of years. Then he grabs Ramler by the head and s...

In this first episode, we jump into the world of 1950 Puerto Rico. There's been a recent break-in at a lab inside of New York Presbyterian hospital in San Juan. As soon as the FBI station chief, John Spillers finds out, he takes an unusual interest in the case. He sends special agent Anton Ramler to recover the stolen items—stashed in a wooden crate. The world that Ramler and Spillers find themsel...

In this episode, I describe what The Masters is about and why I'm writing it. Also, why people see Jesus in pancakes, how autobiographical reasoning and historical memory are related (in my opinion), I throw in a story about a Roman emperor killed by his own brother, a childhood anecdote about the KKK, a comb and an afro pick, and recap why the Haitian revolution was such an important event. https...