My friends, as I believe we you must be a friend or family since you are still reading my journal (some suspense music on the background). As I was saying. My friends, it is with great gravity that I announce here today that my days might be counted. If that were the case, you might have to find another website were to kill time.
Speaking of killing, that is today's topic, as today is the beginning of the end, and since it is not lunch time yet, I do not have the knowledge that would allow me to inform you of whose end we are talking about. I do not know if I will still be these lines three days from today.
But do not be alarmed, and let me share with you what I know of what is about to happen. Please read the text that I received two days past:
Begin rules
THE MURDER GAME
This is a game of stealth. For maximum entertainment, all hands are encouraged to participate.
Every person who wants to play will select a playing card from me and be given two nuts. The nuts are to be kept with you at all times.
I will have these nuts as long as I am alive on the Palmer
The person who picks the Queen of Spades is the MURDERER.
The murderer then attempts to 'murder' everybody on board who is playing.
HOW THE MURDER TAKES PLACE
A murder can only happen when the victim is alone. The murderer 'kills' by showing the victim the Queen of Spades and demanding their nuts.
'Alone' means that the victim can be in the presence of nutless (already murdered) individuals, so is alone as far as the murderer is concerned. A person is also considered 'alone' if other players in the general area are sufficiently occupied that the murderer can discretely 'kill' that person.
Nutless (dead) people will be trusted not to reveal the identity of the murderer or give any details about where and when they were murdered. THE GAME REVOLVES AROUND THIS TRUST. The murderer must not LIE to potential victims to get them alone.
THE CHALLENGE SCENARIO
If the murderer is detected by a person who still has their nuts, he/she can be challenged by the nutty. This is the only time the murderer cannot take advantage of a nutty alone. The murderer must then give up the Queen of Spades, and the challenger becomes the new murderer, 'killing' the old murderer. All the nuts are taken from the previous murderer, along with the list of participants/victims.
If a challenge is incorrect, the challenger is considered to have committed suicide and should voluntarily give up their nuts to the person wrongly accused.
The game has a time limit of 4 days (if there are people still alive). The winner is the final murderer and any survivors.
OFF LIMITS AND MURDER ETIQUETTE
Off limits areas are cabins / state rooms (That would be too easy!), the gym and sauna, all restricted access areas of the engine and machinery rooms, the bridge, and all limited access working areas with only one door (winch cabs, deck vans, heads, salinity dungeon, etc.)
Participants are requested to not interfere with ongoing ship operations and science to minimize any disruption. Victims should be as discrete as possible in their 'deaths' and surrender of their nuts.
The game will commence on March 27th 12:30PM (ship time) and last for three days. The cards and nuts will be distributed during lunch that day. One person will be the referee who will serve as the judge for any disputes between players
End of rules
As you can see, dear friends, my destiny might be written on the cards. I figured that, since the goal of every game is to have as many winners as possible, and since I am a pacifist, that, according to the rules written above, if I were to be the lucky one to get the Queen of Spades, I shall not kill a soul and we are all winners!
My destiny is written on the cards
I will keep you posted as the game progresses. Back from lunch. We will not all be able to be winners. I will have to be stealth to survive. I guess you might know when the Queen of Spades finds me by these empty pages.
We will not all win the game