Aleutian Blue Midnight

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Somewhere deep beneath the earth's crust bubbles molten magma. It is the core of our world. It stirs and churns, it swirls and turns. The earth's mantle is forced into this boiling cauldron. Everything is heated and melted. Rock and soil, through pressure and heat, is melded in our planet's core.
These violent forces of nature can create things of value that we consider precious today. Diamonds are one example or one product that is produced under extreme heat and pressure. Diamonds are not the only element that owes its existence to geologic forces.
It's 1964 and nuclear power is seen as an inexpensive way to provide abundant energy for growing populations around the world. To this end, governments are racing to find and exploit convenient and abundant supplies of uranium to facilitate this task.
Now let's meet the others who will lead us through this tale:
Christine Cooper is an attractive American woman with medium length curly brown hair. She grew up on a small ranch in Wyoming. As she grew her curiosity for the world was fed by her parents. She's most at home outside exploring her surroundings. Her proudest accomplishment is her graduate degree in science. She specializes in rocks or geology.
Francis Talbot is a tall British Science Professor with sandy brown hair. He has a keen interest in people and culture as well as the study of rocks and soils. Typically if he has an interest in something he studies it thoroughly. He likes fast cars and attractive women.
Dan Colomb is like an uncle to Christine. He is a friend of her father's. Dan is a mining engineer. He is a short broad-shouldered, dark-haired man. He was a miner and worked his way up the ranks. He considers himself a curious country boy who loves country music.
Werner Schliesman is a West German national, amateur geologist and adventurer and or mountain climber. Werner is tall with a baldhead and wire-rim glasses. He prefers a conservative white shirt, sleeves rolled up, and gray pants. He strives for a plain appearance that is unobtrusive but easily augmented. He thinks of himself as a rational intellectual. He often pulls out his slide ruler to pass the time doing calculations.
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The Aleutian Islands stretch out into the Bering Sea, West of Alaska. The Bering Sea is a cold unforgiving place at the best of times. Somewhere among them is a dot; a small island almost invisible on a map. We flutter out of the afternoon sky toward it. We are drawn to a flickering light on the ground. As we get closer we see it is a campfire with people around it.
Christine, Francis, Dan, and Werner are gathered around the fire near their camp. They are bundled up against the cold night air. Dan is playing a country song on his harmonica while Christine hums along and sings the words she can remember. Francis gets up and does a jig or dance or something similar. Christine jumps up and joins him. They swing each other as they skip doing their own personal square dance. Werner stares into the fire, thinking about the next days' activities, and taps his feet to the beat of the music.
Dan finishes the song with a long "waaa waaa" on the harmonica. Francis, out breath, announces, "Well...that was...wonderful!"
Christine addresses Dan, "I knew I brought you along for a reason." The three of them laugh. Werner smiles distractedly.
Francis says, "Our hard work is paying off. Looking at the rock and soil samples we've collected so far we're finding indications that we're on the right track. Now our work gets more difficult as we have to climb this mountain in search of a cave or crevasse that has the stones we're looking for. Werner, here, has a lot of experience as a climber and so will be our guide."
Francis and Werner lay out their plan for ascending the mountain. Werner shows them the climbing gear they will use. They wrap up the discussion and everyone begins drifting toward their own tent. Francis and Christine walk together. Francis says to Christine, "Join me for a nightcap?"
"Sure, why not?"

They enter Francis' tent. Christine sits on his cot. Francis pours them both a drink. He hands a small glass to her. She sips it saying, "MMM this is good. What is it?"
"It's Grand Marnier. An after-dinner liqeuer."

Francis finishes his in a gulp. He pours more into his glass and tops off Christine's glass. He sits on the cot beside her and says, "Isn't this exciting? We are on the trail of a legendary find. One that could turn the scientific community on its head."