WMG / Day of the Choosing

The Lottery takes place in the same world.

The titular event is yet another way that All the Rest Chooses victims. The unlucky loser who picks the black ticket is stoned, but just enough to keep them alive to be dragged and fed to All the Rest. The reason the lottery is hinted to be done- to ensure a good harvest- is not (solely) based on superstition, but because All the Rest uses the crystals to control the weather, holding a good harvest hostage in exchange for sacrifices (and probably posing as whatever god the villagers believe in). Poor Tessie, who's fate was cut away from, became among those fed to the beast. As for why a lottery rather than the Crystal Choosing, perhaps All the Rest wanted some variety.