Redhawk Caldera Take what you can, give nothin' back.

Talking was usually his go-to when there was silence to fill, awkward or otherwise. Reyes found that the more he traveled along the corridors of the caldera's terrain, the less he could breathe. He felt dizzy when they went to higher sections, and glad when they descended together to the lower parts. As they approached the edge of a sprawling lake he lagged behind - in part because he was sore and tired from the work, and also because the smell of water was off-putting for him.

Then there came the nauseating wave of something foul to blot that out. His nose crumpled. Had they crossed back to the start, he wondered? Or had something crawled in to a hollow tree and died out here? He was halfway between investigative mode and utter repulsion mode when Towhee looked over his way, grinning like a fool.

That's when he saw the soupy mess among the leaves, and just about swallowed his tongue. Oh man! That's you? That smell -- oh my god Towhee -- he sputtered for effect, which he need not emphasize in the coming moments, as the fumes rolling off the steaming pile stung his eyes and trachea as he breathed. The hell did you eat --?