Down Time is a Rarity

Truth be told Morpheus liked the little purple color of the trog before him. It reminded him of his family, of Canterlot and the Crystal Empire. Hell the mark on his head even resembled a cutie mark! He smiled warmly and let in a breath. He wouldn't let anyone in the Guard know he was nervous about his position.

"We're gonna rest first," Morpheus said, standing from the throne and wincing at the pain in his backside. He grimaced at it before turning back to him.

"We need a plan first, Blaze," he said, "We can't just go barreling out there to fight those things."

Cirrus had been reclining a short distance above a pillar that was still standing, half-dozing as she gazed at the wall that provided safety for everyone here. But as she heard voices below, she stretched, and drifted down towards the small gathering. As usual, she stopped several inches off of the ground, curling up in midair.

"Well, that could have been worse," she commented, looking at the injury on Prince Morpheus's flank. The white dog thought it was strange that the zombies would be able to wield any kind of weapon, but far better to be stabbed with something, than grabbed and bitten. "Do we even have the beginnings of a plan yet?"

"So, you went out without much back-up again?"

Morpheus' eyes narrowed as his head turned towards the human. He'd have to grow used to these creatures soon enough but they still irked him. This youth was blunt and Morpheus didn't much like that way of speaking. He was about to reply when Jace continued. "Y'know we have to form a set schedule for these things or we're going to have to find a new leader. And I don't mean you're kicked out or retired..."

"Is that a challenge? Or a threat?" Morpheus' anger was showing as his coat flushed. "Because I don't take kindly to either." His ears folded back and he let out a snort. He acknowledged the dog's comment about his flank. "S'just a flesh wound," he mumbled, "It'll heal. As far as a plan we'll have to wait until we get more members. More ponies willing to fight for what's right."

Cirrus frowned slightly, disturbed by the tensions evident between Jace and Morpheus. The last thing they needed was to start fighting amongst themselves. She sighed as she listened to their leader's plan. It sounded good, but there was a flaw to it that couldn't be ignored.

"But what if no one else comes? What if we're all that there is?" she asked. For all they knew, nobody else would care to fight back against the zombies besieging them here. After all, the wall was defense enough for some people here.

The thick hyena was sitting off by his lonesome.  He was holding his head up and his ears were pointed and listening intently.  Any upstanding do-gooder knew to listen to his superior when he was speaking.  His expression faltered a little as it appeared a disagreement was mounting.  Gabbro's slight scowl ebbed as it appeared the young man at least had the maturity not to dwell on it.  His grey pads scuffed over the stone ground as he got to his paws.  His posture was strong, even melodramatically so.  The hyena posed with his chin pointed up and his broad chest out.

"I don't believe the young human is entirely wrong.  Is there a ranking system figured out yet?  If you or one of us were to fall, we would need to know who was to replace them.  Something should be established, or we might fall apart," Gabbro announced.

It seemed like the proper thing to do.  He'd come from a hyena clan where the ranking system was very important.  Being a male, he was immediately the low man on to totem pole.  But he hoped that he might be able to get a more influential role in the Crystal Guard.  Gabbro pointed his broad nose at the female human creature.  His head absent-minded nodded as he heard her out.  Mind you, Gabbro wasn't the sharpest knife in the drawer, but he wanted to help out if he could.

The hyena threw a few ideas out there, "Do you suppose these creatures ever starve?  I assumed that their reason for hunting us was because they were hungry.  And if they are..."

Gabbro made a skeptical, uncertain face.

"'undead', then maybe there is something that eats the bodies, like vultures.  Or maybe something dries them up, like the sun."

As soon as Morpheus howled, Cirrus shot ten feet straight up into the air, and stayed there, wincing as she rubbed her ears with her paws.

"Well, you didn't have to yell," she huffed. Still suspended in midair, she gazed down at their leader reproachfully. "My name's Cirrus, not 'dog'. And for the record, I do trust you. I just want to know what's going on so I can help."

Out of curiosity, she hovered above the human girl as she tinkered with...something. Flipping upside down, her body sank closer to the floor, until her head was almost right beside the woman's.

"We can't worry about trying to kill those things without a proper plan," she said, looking at the strange contraption. "What is that thing?"