Absalom West receives an unexpected message from Maxine Vasser asking him to meet her on Vulcan on the tenth day of Tasmeen. It's an invitation he can't refuse, so he spends his last credits on fuel and sets off. West arrives on Vulcan a little early, so decides to go sightseeing to the "lowest spot" on Vulcan, which is in Vulcan's Forge. He is appalled that the tour bus only takes him to the edge of the Forge and not to the actual lowest spot. He is further appalled when the Vulcan tour guide tells him that the lowest spot is only 1 meter lower than where the bus is parked.