Mythic Moonlight Radio

A mini-game from Mythic Magazine Volume 58

Moonlight Radio is a minigame created by Tana Pigeon in Mythic Magazine Volume 58. The gist is that you run a radio station in a small town that airs from midnight to 2am. You have listeners that call in with strange or weird tales. Each call is scored based on its “weirdness” and is assigned a length in minutes. If your score exceeds a certain value by 2am, you get a chance to have a “Revelation” that is itself some bizarre event.

Prompt: You started Moonlight Radio when...because...The thing is... The answers to these 3 parts of the prompt can be determined by the player or rolled upon a table. 

“I started Moonlight Radio during the pandemic a few years ago. I had been working as a paranormal researcher, and the ‘shutdown’ pretty much brought that to a halt. Having hit a dead end, I decided to create this radio show to continue to hear other people’s paranormal experiences. Since that time, and hearing all of these strange tales in such a small town, I feel like something strange is going on here. I can’t quite put my finger on it just yet, but I just have a feeling.”

12:00 Midnight

“Welcome once again to Midnight Radio! I’m your host DV, and together we will explore the strange and weird happenings in our sleepy little town! As always, we run from midnight to 2am. So pick up that phone and give me a call with your weird stories! 555-867-5309”

First Event Prompt - Scheduled Segment ; 5 mins ; 2 Revelation points; Message from The Chief

12-12:05

“But First! I have a message here from Police Chief Gibbons.” I muted and cleared my throat, then read the message. “Although it was strange, Mayor Smith has decided to step down from his leadership role. The town will be having a special election to fill that void. Be sure to get out and vote! In the interim, Police Chief Gibbons will handle all mayoral duties.”

Second Event Prompt - Question; 10 mins; 1 Revelation point (3 pts total); Older person voice; Conversation Topic: Confusion

12:05-12:15

“Ah, we have our first caller of the night! Hello, you’re on the air. Tell me something weird!” An old woman’s voice comes on the line. She sounds very hesitant and slightly confused.

“Uhh...hello? Johnny, is that you?”

“No ma’am, you are live on Moonlight Radio. Did you have a strange story for us tonight?”

“Johnny!” she exclaimed suddenly. “I’m so happy to finally reach you. Why, I haven’t seen you in ages. You were still a little boy the last time you were here!”

“Ma’am, I’m sorry, but I’m not Johnny.” I was suddenly overcome with compassion for this confused elderly woman, and I changed my tack. “I mean...yeah, its me Johnny.”

“Oh Johnny, you always were a little ham. When are you coming to see your granny?”

“I’ll be coming by soon, Granny. Real soon. I have to get going though, gotta get back to work. I’ll see you later.” I felt bad for ending the call, but also felt kind of bad for lying. Also, this Johnny fella really needs to spend some quality time with his poor Granny.

“Oh, Ok. I know you are really busy Johnny. Granny loves you. Bye now.” and she hung up the phone. I sat for a moment in silence, sad for this lonely woman. But, you can’t have dead air on the radio.

“Ok, thanks a lot Granny for calling in! Let’s get to our next caller on the line. Hello, you are on Moonlight Radio!”

Third Event Prompt - Crank Call; 0 mins; 0 points (3 pts total); Tired Man voice;  Conversation Topic: Emotional 

12:15

A tired man’s voice comes on the line. “Your time is almost up.” He breathed heavily into the phone. “I’ll be seeing you soon.” he barked a harsh laugh, then hung up.

“Ok, rude.” I laughed. But inside, I was a little unnerved. Was someone threatening me? As far as I knew, nobody knew where I was broadcasting from. My homemade antenna was not very powerful, and so it was easily disguised amongst the boughs of a pine tree on my property. Since my broadcasting range was very short...the station could only be heard a few miles outside of town. I could not get up to check my locked doors, the show had to go on, but it was in the back of my mind as I proceeded.

Fourth Event Prompt - Scheduled Segment; 5 mins; 2 points (5 pts total); Madame Claire Cares segment (Madame Claire is a local psychic and spirit medium. Though we haven’t met her in person, she occasionally pays for a spot on the show to portray her predicitions or messages from spirits.) 

12:15-12:20

“While we wait on another call to come in, let’s roll into a segment of Madam Claire Cares. As you all know, Madam Claire is a talented local psychic. Tonight, she has this special message for us: Don’t trust the bankers. They only will take your money and speculate it away. Save it all in jars and store it under your front porch, where it will be safe.” I gave a small chuckle. “Ok, thank you for that very unsound financial advice, Madame Claire.” I looked at my switchboard and saw a call was on hold, waiting. “Ok, let’s get this next call going!”

Fifth Event Prompt - Frequent Caller; 10 mins; 3 points (8 points total); Deep baritone voice;  Conversation Topic: Problem they are dealing with; Conversation Tables: Warm + Awkward; Conversation Tables: Flee + Bureaucracy 

12:20-12:30

“Hey there, you are live on Midnight Radio. Who am I speaking with?”

A warm, deep voice answers on the line. They clear their throat when the words initially come out in a croak. “Hi DV, ahem It’s me Perry. I’d like to discuss a bit of a situation I have found myself in.”

I instantly recognize the voice, even without Perry saying his name. Perry was a long time listener and called in to chat several times per week. He had also started donating to my Patreon, to help keep the station solvent. “Sure, Perry. Glad to listen and help if I can. Go ahead.”

Mythic fate check, does this have something to do with the Police Chief Gibbons? 46 vs 50, Yes. 

Perry cleared his throat again, and started in his deep rumble of a voice. “Well, you see. I was traveling down Seabiscuit Street last night on my way home from dinner. My wife and I have been trying out this new place, Mario’s Italian Tacos. Have you been there?”

“Nope, sounds disgusting.” I laughed. Perry laughed along with me.

“Well, so I thought as well, but Maggie wanted to give a try so we did. Wasn’t too bad, and we’ve been back a few times, trying new menu items. Anyway, we were on our way home and I saw police lights behind me. I wasn’t speeding or anything, but I pulled over to the side of the road to make way, and was surprised when they pulled over behind me. Police Chief Gibbons himself got out of the cruiser and walked up to my window, asking for my ID. Now...you know that Paul Gibbons and I were on the same football team in high school. He was a year older, but we know each other very well.”

I furrowed my brow at this part. Everyone knew everybody in our small town of a couple thousand people. It was ludicrous that Gibbons would not recognize Perry. “Very strange, what did you say?”

Perry paused a moment before continuing, “Well, I said Are you joking? Paul, it’s me Perry. I’ll be damned if he just stood there looking at me like I was out of MY mind. He mechanically repeated that I should hand him my id, so I finally did so. He took it back to his cruiser and returned a few minutes later. He let us go without another word as to why he pulled us over or any recognition at all. Weird, huh?”

“Yes very weird.” I wrote down some notes about the situation. I would follow up with the chief tomorrow. “What happened then?”

“Well, nothing. He just drove off and me and Maggie went home. She was shook up from the situation, so I did not even get my Wednesday nookie.” He laughed, but I could tell he was unnerved by the occurrence.

“Yeah, if you miss a week...next thing you know it’s been several months.” I joked back. “Thanks for calling in Perry. I’ll see what if I can find out what is going on. First the Mayor stepping down suddenly, now this? Very weird.”

“Alright, take care, DV. G’night” and he hung up the call. I scratched at my chin a bit, mulling over the situation.

“Ok, folks. Perry set the bar high, lets get some more weird tales in here tonight!” I continued with my blasé persona, but I was deeply troubled.

Sixth Event Prompt - “I have to tell you this thing”; 15 min; 2 points (10 points total); Child voice; No Context: Conversation Tables: Loud + Ideas 

12:30-12:45

My switchboard lit up again with another call. “Hello, you are on with DV on Midnight Radio.”

“Hello-ello-ello-ello” a child’s voice answered, and there was a tremendous amount of looped feedback. I muted the phone’s input.

“Hello there! Please turn down your radio, then come back and talk to me.” I gave a little sigh, why in the world is a kid calling me at this hour? In my headset, I could hear him put down the phone onto a hard surface. Then a moment later he picked up again. It seemed to be a little boy, preteen years.

“Hello, can you hear me? Is this the radio?” he asked.

“Hello there! Yes, I can hear you. You are on a radio show called Midnight Radio. Shouldn’t you be in bed? This is a school night!” I amusedly scolded him.

“I was in bed, then I had a dream that I was supposed to call you. So I woke up and dialed the number.” he was messing with something and it made a loud clattering noise.

I was a little puzzled. “Wait, you dreamed of this phone number?”

“Uh-huh.” he responded. It sounded like maybe he had a toy car or something, driving it on a tabletop.

“What else did you dream?” I prompted. The toy car was silent, I could hear his breath as he sat for a moment before answering.

“It was scary.” he said in a little voice.

“Oh, I hate that you had a scary dream. Do you want to tell me about it?” I got out my pen and pad.

I rolled on the Cryptic Message table in Mythic and got Fight + Deceive 

“I was on the playground at school. And two boys got in a fight. One of them hit the other and he crumbled into dust. The other boy smiled at me and started chasing me.” The small boy continued, breathlessly. “I ran and ran. I knew if he caught me, I would be dust too. A large chicken flapped his wings and a piece of paper fell into my hand. It had your phone number on it. So I woke up and called.”

I sat stunned for a moment, indeed, what a strange dream. I wrote down the details onto my pad. “And did you recognize the boy?”

“Yeah.” he paused. “His name is Johnny, he’s at my school.” Johnny? Wasn’t that older woman trying to reach a Johnny? Had to be a coincidence.

“Do you know his last name?” I probed.

“Yeah. Gibbons.”

Did the police chief have a son named Johnny? “Is Johnny’s dad a police officer?” I was really into this kid’s tale at this point.

“Yeah. My Mom is awake and is mad at me. I have to hang up now, bye.” and without another word, the phone clicked.

So, Police Chief Gibbons has a strange encounter with Perry, and this kid is dreaming about the chief’s son. What a weird night indeed. “Ok, Midnight Radio fans, how about that for a tale? A chicken told the kid to call me about the police chief’s son turning people into dust. Give me a call and tell me how that makes you feel!” I picked up my thermos and took a swig of my lukewarm coffee. This was going to be a long night.

Seventh Event Prompt - Scheduled Segment (dang I get a lot of these); 5 mins; 2 points (12 points total); And Now the News; Action tables: Harm + Agreement 

12:45-12:50

“While we wait on another call, let’s take a look at our local news.” I pulled out a newspaper story I had from our local paper, purposefully rustling it loudly so the mic would pick it up. “Stanley’s General store, which has been in business here in town for 3 generations, has announced that they will be closing the doors on their store permanently at the end of the month. Apparently, since Dollar General opened up in town, people have stopped shopping at Stanley’s, and they can no longer afford to stay open. According to the current owner, Jeff Stanley, they have really struggled the last few years, and now it is just time to call it quits. Well, I for one am really sad to hear that. I hate Dollar General, there is always only one employee there, and they are buried in aisles full of items that need to be stocked. Everything is incredibly cheaply made, and really isn’t even a good deal. It just seems like it is, because it is so cheap. Well, Jeff, I suppose you probably don’t listen to Midnight Radio, but I wish you the best, and we’ll miss you.” I tossed the paper down with a splat on the table top.

Eighth Event Prompt - Problem; 15 mins; 2 points (14 points total); Bright cheerful voice;  Conversation Topic: Sketchy; Conversation Tables: Mundane + Repeat

12:50-1:05

“Hello, you are on the air with DV on Moonlight Radio. What’s your story tonight?” I let loose my standard spiel.

“Hi DV, long time listener, first time caller.” It was a woman with a bright voice, she sounded very pleasant. “I uh, have a situation similar to Perry, who called earlier.”

“Oh really? Pray, tell.” I got my writing utensils ready.

Mythic fate check, is it about the police chief as well, very likely? 27 vs 75 yes 

“Yeah, so. Here’s the deal.” She paused, then started telling her tale. It sounded oddly like she was reading it, rather than just telling it. “Every night, around 11pm, I see Police Chief Gibbons driving up and down my street. He...he drives down the street, turns around in the cul de sac and drives back down the street. He does this around 10-15 times. Then, when your show is about to start at 12, he speeds away.” Her voice returns to her normal bright cadence. “Isn’t that odd?”

“Well, it is odd. Maybe he’s looking for someone or something?” I tried to give the beleaguered chief the benefit of the doubt.

“I know, but EVERY night?! Who could he possibly be looking for? There are only 4 houses on our street...besides mine, every house has lights out around 10pm. It gives me the creeps.”

“Oh I agree, that is very strange. And as you heard from Perry, the Chief is acting strange in other ways. In a way, kind of...juvenile.” I made a note on my pad...juvenile, I liked that.

“Let me tell you something else that makes it even MORE strange. Sometimes he has his young son in the car with him!” she exclaimed.

“What!? Now...what about a chicken?” I joked. She sat on the phone silently for a moment, before she recalled the child’s call earlier. Then she burst out laughing.

“Oh DV, you have such a way to make things feel less tense. I love your show. Thanks for taking my call.”

“Thanks a lot for calling in, you’ll be directed to a message at the end of the call if you want to leave your name or any other information. Have great night!” And I ended the call. Well, more juicy information concerning the police chief. What is going on in this little town?!

Ninth Event Prompt - Question; 10 mins; 2 points (16 points total); Scared voice;  Conversation Topic: Confusion; Conversation Tables: Betray + Reassuring 

1:05-1:15

“Ok, next caller. Hello, you are on Moonlight Radio. Who am I speaking with?”

“Oh, do I have to give my name?” a man’s voice came on the line, very hesitantly. He spoke in a whisper, as if afraid someone around him might hear.

“You don’t have to give me a name, or you can give yourself a fake name. I could call you Niner, since you are my ninth segment tonight.” I gave a chuckle.

“Niner, sure.” he hesitated again, then said in hushed tones. “So...do you have a problem with Chief Gibbons?”

“What?! No, not at all. At least, I don’t personally. Sounds like some other people in town might have.”

He pitched his voice even lower, “I would be careful if I were you. Someone might tell the Chief about what has been discussed here tonight. Why would you bring that on yourself?” Who was this guy, another cop on the force?

Mythic fate check, is the caller a police officer, 57 vs 50 No

“Again, I’m not saying anything about Chief Gibbons. Some callers have had strange encounters with him. He acted normally toward me when he gave me the notice about the Mayor earlier today.” I tried to reassure the guy that I was not the one with the problem.

“Well, you had best be careful. Things have a way of getting around town.” there was a muffled sound as if he was covering the receiver of his phone. Then he came back on in a breathy whisper. “I’ve gotta go, be careful.” Click. The call was ended. I looked at the switchboard, he didn’t wait for the machine to pick up and take any of his details. The point of Moonlight Radio was to get weird tales, but this was beyond the weird stuff we normally heard.

Tenth Event Prompt - Weird Call; 10 mins; 3 points (19 points total); Buzzy voice;  Conversation Topic: Crime; Conversation tables: Support + Business 

1:15-1:25

“Ok, well, that was certainly weird. Thank you for your call. Oh, look we have another one already. Hello, you are on with DV on Moonlight Radio.” I tried to keep my voice chipper, but the stress of all of these strange happenings was beginning to become a strain.

“Hi DV. An interesting night tonight for many of us it seems.” The voice buzzed and popped, as if there was a lot of interference on the line...or perhaps the caller was trying to disguise their voice. But it sounded like a feminine presenting voice.

“Indeed it has been. Tell me how your night was interesting.”
Even the silence on the line generated buzzes and pops. Finally she spoke again.

“Well...I killed the owner of Dollar General.” And she gave a nervous laugh. I didn’t know what to say, so I made a joke.

“Well, I guess Jeff Stanley will be happy to hear that! No seriously, what is happening with you tonight.” She laughed along with me.

“No seriously, he’s dead in a pool of his own blood. I used a pair of shears I bought from his store. I hope this well help out the Stanley family. I did it for them.” To say I was shocked at this point was an understatement.

“I hope this is a sick joke.” I said. I glanced at the caller ID on the switchboard.

Mythic fate check, did the caller try to obscure their number, almost certain. 91 vs 85 NO!! I rolled a d10 to see if it was a person from a previous call. I rolled 5 

The ID showed the caller as the number of my regular caller Perry. Surely this wasn’t Maggie...I had never met her..but...it couldn’t be. “It’s no joke, DV. I had the courage to remove what everyone else in town just moaned about.” Click, and with that, she hung up the phone.

I had to call the police, this was nuts. “Ok...well...folks, we’ll take a short break and I’ll be right back.” I desperately tried to dial the police, this had to be reported. There was no answer. The town was so small, there wasn’t a 911 dispatcher, just one of the 4 officers was always on duty at the police station reception. The phone was never not manned though. Supposedly.

I went back to the microphone, “And we’re back. I was unable to reach the police...which is odd. For any of my listeners out there, I encourage you all try to call in this crime and have someone check on the owner of Dollar General.”

Eleventh Event Prompt - Question; 10 minutes; 2 points (21 points total. This is enough for a revelation);Buzzy voice;  Conversation Topic: Confusion; Conversation Tables: Creepy + Combative 

1:25-1:35

“Oh, I guess I should take another call...please everyone, try to call the police. Hello, you are on the radio.” I was very flustered.

“Hi DV.” The voice was buzzy again, maybe it was MY line that was the source of the sound. It was a woman’s voice that cracked through the buzzing. “That was a really disturbing call. I can’t believe you would encourage people to take such crazy murderous actions!”

“What?! I did no such thing! I was just reading a news article about Dollar General.” She cut in over my defense.

“After I hang up here, I’m calling the police and reporting your involvement. You should be ashamed of yourself. You bear some responsibility for the actions of your audience.” the longer she spoke, the more the line buzzed and popped. Almost to the point that the sounds were indecipherable.

“I was NOT involved any more than you were! But yes, please do call the police, I couldn’t seem to get through to them. Goodbye.”

I hung up the phone, pressing the end call button far more forcefully than strictly necessary. A cold sweat formed on my brow. What in the world was happening tonight?!

Mythic fate check, do I end the show early, almost certain, 35 vs 85 Yes 

“Due to the strange circumstances, I am going to end the show early tonight. I’m sure you will all understand. I will continue to try to reach the police, and I encourage you to do the same.” I shut down the show and sat back in my chair, suddenly exhausted.

Since my score exceeded 20, I will get a revelation tonight. Now I’ll roll a D12 to find the 3 key segments from tonight.

10th Segment - The Killer 
9th Segment - Whispered Problem with Gibbons 
11th Segment - Accuser of me conspiring to commit murder 
Revelation Focus: “I think it all means something” 

I sat there in my chair, looking over my call notes and trying to figure out what was going on. First the strangeness with the Police Chief, then someone threatening me, then someone else, someone from Perry’s number, admitted to murder. A sudden hard knock from my front door upstairs startled me from my reverie. I hesitated, then grabbed a large pipe wrench from my tool shelf. I walked upstairs carefully, someone now banging continually on my door. I peeked out one of windows and saw a police car out front. I put down the wrench and opened the door. There stood Police Chief Gibbons. In his car in my driveway, presumably his son Johnny sat in the passenger seat, looking down at his lap.

“Darius Vaughn? I need to take you down to the station for questioning in the murder of Bill Wallace.” He looked like his normal self, but something was...off. His eyes were glassy and distant. There appeared to be something smeared on the side of his neck.

“Sure Chief, let me grab my jacket. Oh, you got some food or something on your neck there.” I pointed to the smear on his neck. He reached up his hand and wiped it away. In the light of my porch...it looked like blood.

“You won’t need your jacket, just get in the car,” he stated with zero emotion. I went to close the door to my house and he escorted me to his vehicle.

I slid into the back seat. There in the floorboard of the cruiser was the mangled remains of what had to be more than one body. A scream that felt unreal to me was ripped from my throat. The boy, Johnny, turned in his seat and smiled.

THE END

I wasn’t sure how to wrap it all up, so I decided I just wouldn’t. Sometimes the horror untold is more frightening than one explained.

I have it vaguely in my mind that the chief and his son were body-snatched or otherwise overcome by some other entity. The woman/person, presumably Perry’s wife, who admitted to murder was somehow “corrputed” by her interaction with the chief during the traffic stop. The rest is up to you and your imagination!

Regardless, I enjoyed the game and will probably do it again some time. This is DV, signing off!