They're Everywhere/Plot

A guide in a museum tells of the legend of the Akashic Records, an account of all past and future events. He shows the tour group a tablet believed to be a map leading to the Akashic Records. A young man, Eric Bragg, realizes that he has translated part of the map and trots out of the museum. He goes to visit his father, Ben, in a convalescent hospital; the father has translated the other part of the map, but now lies comatose. Phoebe is volunteering in the hospital and brings in flowers. Dr. Stone enters and wants to move the father. Eric refuses, and leaves, then Dr. Stone blinks away. Eric bumps into Phoebe, and Phoebe gets a premonition of someone extending a needle from his finger into Eric's brain.

Prue, at the manor, tells Piper that Jack Sheridan might be a warlock. She had been in front of Jack waiting for coffee and stepped away to go to the news stand and seemingly found Jack right there waiting for her. She thinks he couldn't have gotten there that fast without blinking. She asks Piper if there's any way to detect a warlock. Piper is packing a suitcase to go to Lake Tahoe with Dan. Dan appears at the door, wanting to get an early start. Just as Piper is about to head out, Kit yowls at Dan. Piper shoos Dan away.

Prue and Piper flip through the Book of Shadows, looking for a warlock test, and find none. They do find a spell to hear private thoughts, and cast it. They end up hearing each others thoughts, as well as Phoebe's. Phoebe says that warlocks don't bleed.

Jack--or so it appears--comes into Prue's office in a garish shirt, sunglasses and shorts. Prue is astonished at his attire. Prue asks him about a collection he auction. Jack thinks, "Be careful, she suspects". Prue asks who validated a collection Buckland's recently handled and Jack doesn't know what she's talking about. Prue asks if Jack has collections validated, and Jack thinks, "Mostly I put people in graves and incinerate them". Prue is horrified.

Dan comes back to the manor. Piper freezes him and pricks his hand. He doesn't bleed, but Phoebe points out that his blood is frozen along with the rest of him. Phoebe goes back upstairs and Piper unfreezes Dan, who starts bleeding. As Dan leaves, Kit yowls again -- at a hornet's nest above the door.

Phoebe looks in the Book of Shadows for the people she saw in her premonition. She finds the Collectors--warlocks who drain the knowledge from people's brains. Phoebe and Piper enter Eric's apartment, and find the Collectors attacking Eric. Piper freezes them and Phoebe recognizes one of them as Dr. Stone. Phoebe kicks the Collectors off of Eric, who pulls a gun out of a drawer and shoots both Collectors. The Collectors get back up, and Eric flees with Phoebe and Piper.

At the manor, Eric says the Collectors are some kind of government agents who are after the Akashic Records. They're the ones who put his father in the hospital. Phoebe thinks the Akashic Records are just a legend. Eric tries to leave and go after his father, but Phoebe flips him onto the floor. Prue comes in as Phoebe struggles with Eric, and at last Piper freezes him. Prue suddenly knows about the Akashic Records, and finally Prue confesses to the hearing-thoughts spell. She produces a knife that once belonged to Brendan Rowe (When Bad Warlocks Turn Good) and asks Piper to come with her to Buckland's.

The Collectors meet at the museum. They plan to use Phoebe to get to Eric.

Jack enters Prue's office, this time in reasonably proper attire. Piper comes from behind and freezes him. Prue pricks his hand with the knife, and is initially alarmed that he isn't bleeding. Piper reminds Prue that Jack is frozen. As Piper prepares to unfreeze him, "Jack" appears in the garish shirt. Piper panics and freezes them both, then unfreezes them. Jack begins to bleed. Garish-shirt Jack turns out to be Jack's twin brother Jeff, who owns a chain of mortuaries. They pulled a stunt they pulled back when they were younger; since Jack was taking an interest in Prue, he sent Jeff to check her out. Prue slaps them both.

Phoebe offers tea to Eric, who wonders how she knew the Collectors were after him. Phoebe mentions she has a "gift" for knowing something's wrong. Eric mentions that his father was in the midst of translating the map to the Akashic Records, when someone incapacitated him. Eric completed the translation, in hopes of finding out who hurt Ben. Phoebe is a bit envious; she admits she isn't nearly as close to her father.

The sisters and Eric go to the hospital to fetch Ben. They find the receptionist collapsed. Eric runs into his father's room. The sisters follow and the Collectors blink in. Prue flings the Collectors into the wall. The Collectors blink out. Just as the sisters and Eric are about to leave with Ben, Dr. Stone blinks in with the knife, then blinks behind Piper and grabs her. The other Collector blinks in and grabs Eric, just as Prue comes back in with a wheelchair. Phoebe smashes a flowerpot over Dr. Stone's head, knocking him out. Prue telekinetically pulls Eric out of the other Collector's grip. Dr. Stone blinks to the other side of Ben's bed. Before Prue can throw the knife at Dr. Stone, the Collectors blink away with Ben. Eric runs out of the hospital. The sisters explain that the Collectors are warlocks, and they are witches. The sisters want to take Eric back to the manor, believing they may come after him next and offer to trade his knowledge for his father's freedom. Eric isn't willing to listen, and runs off. Phoebe goes after him, while Prue and Piper head back to the manor.

Phoebe finds Eric at the museum with a fire extinguisher. Convinced that the Akashic Records are a curse, he smashes the display case open, then slams the map to the ground. With the map destroyed, he's the only one who knows where the records are located.

Prue and Piper check out the Book. Prue thinks she can understand how powerless Eric feels. Piper doesn't understand, and wonders if she's the only one who misses their father. Prue admits she misses what she hoped Victor would be. She finds that the only way to keep the Collectors away from Eric is to take away the information about the Akashic Records with a spell. Piper is reluctant; she fears the Collectors will kill Ben in revenge. Prue, however, thinks they may have to sacrifice Ben to save the rest of the world. Dan comes to the manor, wanting to go to Tahoe, but Piper says she can be ready on time. Dan says his car is leaving the driveway at six--and hopes that Piper is with him.

Prue and Piper want Phoebe to tell Eric that they may have to sacrifice his father to keep the Akashic Records out of the Collectors' hands. Phoebe is horrified, since she promised to save Ben. She does, however, agree to break the news to Eric.

The Collectors contact Eric and briefly restores his father's mind to let him talk before draining it again. The Collectors have Ben at Golden Gate Park, and promise to restore him, if Eric gives up the location of the Akashic Records. Phoebe walks in, but Eric stalls her by asking for more tea. He runs into Prue and Piper, and says he's only getting some air. However, Prue and Piper hear his thoughts on where he's really going. The sisters go after him. Eric finds his father with the Collectors. Dr. Stone demands the location of the Akashic Records, but Eric wants his father's mind restored first. He pulls his pistol, and threatens to shoot himself in the head if his father's mind isn't restored. The other Collector restores the father's mind. Eric is distracted and Dr. Stone blinks behind him, knocks the gun from his hand and drains his mind.

At that moment, Phoebe arrives and kicks Dr. Stone down. However, his partner creeps up behind her and drains her mind. Prue rushes in and flings the Collector to the ground. Piper arrives just as Dr. Stone blinks away. The other Collector taunts Prue and Piper with his needle finger still engaged, but Prue hears his thoughts and knows that Dr. Stone plans to take them from behind. Dr. Stone blinks back in behind Prue. Piper freezes both Collectors as they raise their needle fingers. Prue moves the two Collectors so that they vanquish each other. Phoebe, Eric and the father are all restored to health. Phoebe and Eric have lost their recent memories and don't recognize each other. Eric and Ben have an emotional reunion.

The hearing-thoughts spell wears off, much to Prue and Piper's relief. Piper hurries after Dan. Phoebe comes in with a huge bouquet; somebody left it for Prue. The bouquet starts ringing; there's a cell phone in it. Piper sees Dan leaving without her, and freezes his car and runs to him. Prue answers the phone; it's Jack. He wants to apologize, but Prue and Phoebe aren't willing to let him off just yet; Phoebe makes static noises and Prue hangs up. Phoebe decides to run up Jack's bill with a call to Tokyo.

Phoebe runs into Eric at the hospital.