Author Games: Town of Mayhem

Task Four | Past Mayhem

THE GHOSTS

A veteran, with the war of his past shining within his eyes, falls to the mutts' teeth.

The Ghosts feel rift, her presence, her magic, lingers within the air.

The Ghosts are anxious, afraid; they are fearful for those below, those in danger of a fate similar to their own.

They must warn them.

The Task: Past Mayhem

With the fourth night and fifth day in the past, Night Five begins.

The chaos of the night before has begun to settle down; the beasts that savaged a single unfortunate soul have quietly, though mysteriously, vanished. Tonight, the moon shines in the sky once more. The townspeople are uneasy, but they will carry out their ordinary night routines, sneaking about the darkness and shadows.

Your tribute is required to, as stated, execute whatever their night ability is. The blackmailer may place the threat of revealing another's deepest secrets if they spoke, silencing them for the next day. An arsonist would go about dousing their chosen targets, or perhaps have chosen to ignite. A veteran may choose to stay alert throughout the night, keeping a watchful eye on any who approach them; they might even, perhaps, shoot a town member. It's all in a night's work, and we want emotions as well. The clock for the night is ticking down. Is your tribute paranoid about their possible death? Is your tribute sweating over the thought of exposure of murder or such as they stand over their newest kill?

However, such simplicity might make it a bit too lacking in terms of excitement, wouldn't it?

At any time during the night—whether it be the moment dusk morphs to black, hurrying through dark corridors, or perhaps after safely returning home—your tribute will have an encounter with a Ghost. Whether your tribute can see them or is simply able to sense their presence is for your imagination to decide. Though it isn't required, it is recommended that evil roles would meet evil Ghosts, good roles would meet good Ghosts, and so. However, if you'd like a challenge, go for the opposite; a phenomenal score doesn't come without a gamble. We are especially looking for the correct characterization of the Ghosts, and we expect it to be somewhat close to what we have given you of them so far.

The Ghost your tribute meets will inform them about the Evil Witch in however way they wish. They will tell your tribute the ways the Evil Witch tortured their town ages ago. How does your tribute react? Do they begin to look about the night, wondering if the Evil Witch's magic remains? Do the wild ones standing over dead bodies tremble? While the interactions with the Ghost is the most important aspect of this task, night abilities are still required. They may be skimmed over if not explained in detail for the sake of words, but they must be present within the writing.

As your chosen Ghost departs, they will leave your tribute with a single cryptic sentence which your character may decipher in any way they wish:

She has left, but she may still not be gone...

BALLOTS & DEATHS

You will all receive a maximum of two regular ballots for this task, to be placed at the end of your email below your entry. As for deaths within your entry, you will be required to have a maximum of three, and a minimum of one.

Please remember to PM this account by 9:00pm [EST] on Wednesday (the 21st) with your TARGET BALLOT if your role requires one. If you want a refresher over what to do, go back to the "The Town's Secrets" chapter for further details on the procedure.

BALLOT CHALLENGES

Agathina Bride (3) - You continue to stay at the top of the leaderboard, and Giles Corey has always liked consistency. Because he was the one who sponsored you, he believes you should stay with him, and therefore, you are required to speak with him for your choice.

Ada Wilson (2) and Ean Adkins (2) - A jailor and a witch, a deathly combination perhaps with an evil role and a good role, both powerful enough. Ada Wilson, you are required to interact with a good Ghost while Ean Adkins is required to interact with an evil Ghost. Switch it up, shall we?

Elissa "Elsa" Ackley (1) and Teresa Robyn (1) - The both of you have managed to find yourself marked as somewhat a threat, but not far enough. It's high time we give you something challenging enough to prove yourself - whether you're truly a threat or not. Your deadline has been shortened by 24 hours.

WORD COUNT

2,750; we don't expect nearly any of you to get as far as 2750 words, but we do want to give you some room in case you want to expand on your night ability as an addition to the Ghost interaction. Write your entry with balance and how you see fit.

DEADLINE

Deadline: Wednesday, December 28th, 2016 at 5:00pm, EST [Eastern Standard Timezone]

NOTE

From the nine of you that remain, two of you will be eliminated. Seven will move on to the Quarterfinals, and perhaps, another addition from the Retributionist. However, that will come after this task is complete {for those fallen, it's in your best interest to wish the Retributionist luck}. Additionally, we have decided to extend all abilities {from "The Town's Secrets"} to the Quarterfinals.

We wish you the best of luck in living to see tomorrow's lynching.