Our phrase "carrion bird" refers to many species of birds that quite effectively help to clean-up the environment. It occurred to me though that the same phrase would refer to a bird that IS carrion; a sort of soaring un-dead, riding heat currents in graceful, slow circles until it spots -- what? -- something alive? Something NON-carrion? This kind of carrion bird might be an inverse to turkey vultures, constantly scanning the ground for movement instead of stillness, using dark rune-magic to sharpen lifeless eyes, runes given by some post-apocalyptic scavenger-shaman. To avoid their attention you would freeze in place, mimic death instead of life, hoping it will move along to your more animated friends and neighbors. I grew up in Tennessee and we called turkey vultures "buzzards" until I learned better. Still I have to confess I briefly considered the title "Buzzombie" (sorry…)