Micky arrived at the salvage yard a little after dawn on the morning of the briefing. Despite the early hour, the compound was a hive of activity. Workmen carried crates from the warehouse to the covered wagons, while men in grease-stained coveralls tinkered with the propulsive crystal plate. Yan stood to the side of a wagon, clipboard in hand, as he observed proceedings. With a friendly wave, he beckoned Micky over to him.

“Morning Micky, you’re here bright and early,” Yan said, his milky white eyes alight with energy. “Fancy lifting a few crates then?”

“Morning mate, what is all this stuff? I thought we were only heading out for a week or two. It looks like you’ve got enough gear here to last six months.”

“Most of it is geological survey equipment. High gravity convergences tend to bring valuable mineral deposits. Part of what we’ll be doing is identifying and tagging the good stuff for later removal. That crate there”, he gestured to a long thin box being hoisted between two men, “is a core sampler. It digs up a column of soil so we can get a look at what’s down there.”

“Oh yeah, I’ve seen those before. People in my ‘verse used them to take ice core samples from thousands and thousands of years ago.”

“This is pretty much the same thing” Yan nodded in agreement. “Oh that reminds me,” he continued with a grin. “I’ve got some presents for you inside the compound.”

“Wicked” replied Micky, “how much did it all come to?

“Twelve and a half gold, I got a pretty good deal all things considered. You’re gonna love the spear” Yan enthused.

“To be honest, I’m more excited about the armored clothes mate. Staying stab-free is pretty much at the top of my priorities.”

“That’s more difficult than you would think with Zofia around,” Yan said with a smile. “Anyways, you’d better head in. The briefing is in the canteen. I’ll drop by after to set you up with your new gear.”

The canteen had been transformed overnight. Tables pushed together in the center of the room formed a long line. Seats along each side were filled, some with familiar faces like Gwilym and Piotr, while others held complete unknowns. Algernon sat at the head of the table, piles of paper scattered in front of him like leaves under an autumn tree.

“All right you lot, settle down,” Algernon said over the hubbub of conversation. “We’ve got a BLEEPload of work to get through, and I’d like to get this lot“, he gestured towards Gwilym and Zofia, “out of here sharpish. They’re making the place look messy.”

There was a smattering of laughter at this, but the conversations died away. The room was left in anticipatory silence.

“That’s more like it” Algernon continued. “You all know why we’re here. Gwilym and his lot are moving out tomorrow to investigate a cleared convergence. Xenophon Inc. did the clear an certified it safe.”

A cavalcade of dismissive snorts followed this pronouncement.

“We all know what that's worth byt” Gwilym interjected.

“Just right lad” Algernon nodded to Gwilym. "So we need to chat about the risk an rewards of this expedition. Ingunn, I reckon that’s your shout.”

Ingunn stood slowly to her feet, wings tucked tight to her back in the close confines of the crowded table. She held a sheath of papers before her almost like a shield.

“The biggest dangers on this expedition are likely to be environmental. High gravity convergences often leave behind unstable terrain and volatile compounds. We need to be aware of what we’re doing and how we’re interacting with the environment at all times. Getting us in and out safely is going to be on you, Zofia. In terms of environment, everything inside the cave system should be adjusted to Outremer normal by now. Yan has hard-weather gear in case the report was incomplete.”

Micky sat back in his chair in shock. That was an order of magnitude more words more than he had ever heard Ingunn speak before.

A whisper from his side drew his attention to Zofia, who had appeared in the chair next to him. “She totally got you with the whole silent, brooding weapons master thing right? She’s very clever is our Ingunn. She just doesn’t like being bothered by newbies.”

Before Micky could respond to Zofia, Ingunn continued speaking.

“In terms of organic threats, the Xenophon report notes a high density of arthropods and invertebrates, which matches up with other high gravity convergences. They claim to have sterilized all hives present, but we still need to be on our guard. Tavish, we’ll be looking at you for containment measures.”

“Aye. A've git mah leccie fence packed. It wull keep thaim awa” rumbled the daimh engineer.

“I believe that covers the salient points” Ingunn finished with a nod to Algernon.

“Solid work Ingunn,” said Algernon, returning her nod. “That’s the scary bollocks out of the way. What about the good stuff. Yan, you’re up lad.”

Pushing his way forward from where he had been standing by the door, Yan reached the table and picked up a small folder.

“So we all know the drill,” he began quickly, “we’re after the minerals. Job one is to identify and tag any deposits of convergence metals. We’re not setting up a full mining operation at the point, but we will bring in contractors if the deposits are rich enough. Any organic life will be assessed on a case-by-case basis. We’re not anticipating artifacts or tech, as nothing in the report suggests that the ‘verse of origin was inhabited by sentient beings. Anything else bossman?” He asked Algernon.

“Not on my end,” Algernon responded, “Gwilym got anything you’d like to add. You’re the one who’ll be on site.”

“Couple of notes yeah,” Said Gwilym as he stood to address the gathered scavengers. “We’re going in with minimal risk on this one. I want everything done by the book. That means no shenanigans.” This last was said with a heavy look directed at first Zofia, and the Yan.

“We’re taking a new team member out and I want us all coming back with pockets full of gold, not empty-handed and looking like numpties.”

There was a chorus of approval at this and the meeting began to break up. Algernon waved a hand in Micky's direction before he had a chance to head for the boy.

“Wait a minute lad, I want a word.”

Waiting several minutes for the room to empty, Micky waked over to Algernon and took a seat next to the gnome.

“Any questions lad? I bet this is all fair overwhelming at the minute” Algernon said before picking up a cup of coffee.

“This all seems pretty professional mate,” Micky replied. “Everything was a bit more chaotic up until this point.”

“It’s the job lad. We all love to BLEEP about when we’re back in the compound, safe as houses. Out in the field, it's a bit more serious. You’re going into new territory to bring back the goods. Planning like this means everyone comes back safe.”

“Yeah, I can appreciate that. I’m not gonna lie though, I’m still pretty excited.

“Good. Don’t lose that. It’s what makes this the best job in the world.”

“Cheers boss. I appreciate the pep talk. I’ve gotta go find Yan though, he’s got some new kit for me.”

“Good lad, look after your team and they’ll look after you.”

Micky found Yan back out by the wagons, supervising the final packing for the expedition.

“Over here Micky,” he called out with a wave. “I’ve got that kit for you.” With a gesture, he indicated the two packages at his feet. “Get a look at this spear first. It’s mega.”

“You’re a superstar Yan,” Micky said with a smile as he picked up the thin cotton wrapped parcel. Unwrapping it gingerly revealed a six-foot ebony shaft, straight-grained and dense. The leaf-shaped head of the spear was formed of a blue-white material that softly reflected the morning light. A fine filigree of silver wire was embedded in this material, giving the impression it was wrapped in barbed wire.

“Don’t just look at it Micky, Examine it properly” Yan said with obvious enthusiasm.

“Not gonna lie to you mate, I definitely forgot I could do that,” Micky admitted with a shrug of his shoulders. Looking back to the spear his focused his attention on it and activated Examine.

Item Name: Ethyne Cutter Spear (Journeyman Crafted)

Description: The Ironwood haft of this spear is mounted to an Ethyne-infused head. This head can be ignited at will by the wielder. The lugs set below the head are designed to stop the spear from penetrating too deeply and to keep anything impaled upon the blade from working its way down the shaft to injure the wielder.

Bonuses: When ignited the spear deals moderate to severe burning damage in addition to the piercing or slashing damage dealt by the weapon.

Looking back at Yan, Micky couldn’t suppress a grin.

“You were right mate, this thing is bloody brilliant.”

“I’m glad you like it, Micky. Zofia wanted a similar effect crafted into her knives, turns out you need to keep well away from the burning end,” Yan laughed at the memory. “Check out the armor as well."

Placing the spear carefully against the wagon Micky picked up the hefty twine-wrapped bundle. Withdrawing the first shirt Micky was surprised by its silky texture.

“Yan. I have a request. Feel free to say no, but if it’s possible I will one hundred percent pay for it. Micky was nearly bouncing from foot to foot with excitement at this point.

“Uh sure Micky,” replied hesitantly. “What do you have in mind?”

“This is easily the softest fabric I’ve seen in Outremer. That can mean only one thing! Armor-weave boxers!”

The only response from Yan was the sound of his palm slapping into his forehead.