After grilling them about the bones, Cameron moved on to ask questions about another feature of Rekes geology - the mountains. Sunlight continued to show them pictures of them, of the peaks rising into the sky.

Underground, Cameron had had tunnels and caverns, but the thought of peaks soaring thousands of feet into the sky to scrape the clouds was… something else.

"Snickerdoodle says it makes the air currents difficult to manage sometimes," Rocky commented thoughtfully, flicking a few bugs off of his fur as Pepper soaked in a nearby puddle, trying to escape the oppressive warmth.

Having dried out enough, or well, as dry as one could get in the ever-present humidity, Crevasse had moved into a cap in the shade.

"Something about the thermals," Crevasse agreed, coiling up so xe could rest xir beak on xir body. "I don't fly so I don't know."

"Hm," Cameron said thoughtfully. "That would be interesting to explore…"

"We also have cleaner water," Rocky supplied, poking at a stagnant pool regretfully.

"And less bugs!" Pepper called from her puddle, avoiding the mosquitoes.

"Less bugs would definitely be a plus," Cameron agreed, absently scratching at a bite. "Sometimes I feel I'm more bite than not."

"You don't have to tell me," Sunlight agreed, smacking at the insects grumpily.

"They just ignore the bug spray," Rocky moaned unhappily. "Count me out the next time you want to go here."

Pepper just snorted at him, and the two devolved into bickering about who convinced who to come along. Small creatures rustled in the fungi bushes around them, disturbed by their sharp words, while dragonflies flashed through the air, unconcerned. They wove through the slanting sunbeams, shiny carapaces glinting like sparks of light.

Crevasse rolled xir eyes and tilted xir head at Cameron. "If you want a place to stay when you're exploring, we've got plenty of room. We're still expanding, but we live in some of the caves in one of the mountains. Not a lot of bugs, fresh water, nice views."

Sunlight, who was wilting in the heat, added mournfully, "Less humidity."

"Less humidity," Crevasse agreed. "Meet more people, that sort of thing."

Cameron tilted their head, but made a slight distasteful noise. "I don't like crowds, to be completely honest."

"Feel you," Pepper grumbled, her argument with Rocky coming to a standstill. "Some people-" a pointed look that Rocky made a rude gesture to in reply "- are too much to deal with."

Rocky rolled his eyes in the background, and Crevasse snorted out a laugh.

"Well, you could always set something up by yourself," Sunlight said thoughtfully. "I know we've got some spare tents."

"Be prepared for it to get cold at night, though," Crevasse pointed out, yawning widely. "Very cold."

"And year-round snow in some areas," Rocky agreed.

"And thunderstorms," Pepper added. "So many thunderstorms."

"Killjoys," Sunlight sighed while Cameron eyed them all in mild horror.

"Just setting expectations," Pepper said smoothly, her eyes glinting in amusement.

Cameron snorted out an amused laugh, looking like they half doubted the group's words. "Well, I'll just have to see for myself, won't I? It'll be a nice break from the bugs…"