bumfuckidaho | TEST DRIVE MEME, APRIL 2017.

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TEST DRIVE MEME, APRIL 2017.

TEST DRIVE MEME

There was an accident. That's basically the only thing you know for certain. Maybe a car wreck - metal and broken glass everywhere, and the sirens and the screaming. Or maybe there was an explosion. Maybe your bike hit a rock and you careened uncontrollably off a mountain path. You can't can't quite make out the details, not who was at fault or why. Try as you might, the chaos is all you can remember.

It's also the last thing you remember from before you wake up here.

When you open your eyes, the accident is gone. Instead, you're in a hospital bed – the nursing staff greets you with a cheerful smile.

Welcome to Wayward Pines, they tell you. You'll make a full recovery here.

option one
WELCOME TO WAYWARD PINES

The hospital staff had seemed very friendly, but ultimately unhelpful when it came to answering your questions, insisting you shouldn't worry about such things, and that it was smarter to just rest until you'd fully recovered.

That was some time ago. You've since managed to leave the hospital – either via escape, or simply by waiting patiently and filling out paperwork until they finally agreed to release you. Now you've found yourself in the small but hearty town of Wayward Pines, Idaho. It's a charming little place, and the people there are all friendly enough, more than willing to greet you on the street, or give you directions if you need them.

Unless you're asking for directions out of town, of course.

Some will simply smile and give you a hearty pat on the shoulder and ask why you'd ever want to do a thing like that? Others will get quiet for a moment, and direct you to the nearest sign posted near the doorway of every building.

Don't bother taking the road, either. Whether you walk or get your hands on a vehicle, you won't get anywhere. The road simply takes you away from town for a short while before looping around and bringing you right back in.

There's no use questioning things, and it seems pretty useless to try to leave. So really, why not stay a while? Everyone's convinced that you'll find something to love in Wayward Pines.

(For the purposes of this test drive, you're welcome to handwave the existence of basically any local business or activity.)

option two
INTO THE WOODS

You've just heard a scream from the woods.

I mean, it could've been an animal. There's bound to be some kind of wildlife amongst the trees, right? But then again, it did sound awfully... human.

Though all of the locals nearby conceal a flinch at the sound, they'll assure you it's nothing, if you ask them. Why, you're probably just hearing things! (But with an anxious undertone of stop asking questions.) If you're curious, though, and brave enough to go see, they won't make any move to stop you from going into the wooded area surrounding the town.

The trees are tall, and their branches are thick enough to block out a significant amount of sunlight from breaking through the canopy, leaving the forest floor a little dimmer and cooler than the streets of town.

Whatever the source of the scream was, you won't be able to find it out here. An experienced hunter might notice some signs of a struggle, and a few faint boot prints, but they don't really seem to lead anywhere in particular.

What you will find, if you walk far enough, is a fence. A big one - at least 30 feet tall, made of metal and concrete. It goes on quite a ways in either direction as well; follow the wall far enough, and you'll see that it connects with the steep, sheer cliffs that surround the rest of Wayward Pines, effectively boxing the town in.

In actuality, you'll probably feel it before you see it. A full 500 yards from the wall, when it's hardly a shadowy smudge through the trees, you start to feel a little bit tired, a little bit weak. Trouble is, the closer you get, the weaker you feel - like the wall itself is sapping the strength out of you, and the closer you get, the worse it feels. Any powers you may have had grow weaker in kind as you make your way to the fence, but even ordinary humans will find their strength sapping away. By the time you're close enough to read the signs and to feel the crackle of electricity radiating from the thick wires criss-crossing the wall's metal surface, you're too weak to stand.

Do you crawl closer still and risk electrocution, or do you crawl away and assess the situation once you're far enough from the fence to be able to stand?

option three
PTA BAKE SALE

It's that time of year again. The time when everyone digs into their wallet, ignores their diet, and spends a little time supporting the local school bake fair. You know, for the good of the children. And it doesn't hurt that Linda's Blondie recipe is honestly to die for. The school PTA has pulled out all the stops this year in the hopes of encouraging a good community turn out, posters advertising the sale plastering every street corner and stuffed into every mailbox for a solid week leading up to the event, and today is finally the day.

There's at least two dozen different tables set up with all manner of delectable treats, even one or two offering vegan alternatives for those inclined, not to mention a few others catering to some of the townspeople's more... unique palates.

Maybe you've got your own table set up with your wares, or maybe you were simply lured to the park today by the appetizing scents wafting through the air. Either way it seems like the whole town has come out to show their support today and why wouldn't they? Children are our future, aren't they? Or maybe it's just Linda's Blondie recipe.

Yeah, that's probably it.

option four
ON THE NETWORK

Though it's not as high-tech as you might be used to (or hell, maybe you're ren faire and it's centuries beyond anything you've seen), but Wayward Pines does in fact have a network to accommodate its citizens.

Go ahead, post a network post! Just note that the network currently has two basic functions. The first is audio-only and can be accessed from the telephones in each character's home. If an audio-based medium doesn't suit your needs (or aesthetics), be sure to take advantage of the Wayward Pines Message Board from your brand new laptop for the chance to communicate with your fellow townspeople in a text-based format instead!

( a few notes )

Welcome to our third test drive here in The Pines! Just one important thing to note:

Upon arrival in Wayward Pines, characters find themselves struggling to remember entirely who they were or where they came from. Memories return progressively over the next two weeks. You're welcome to play with this mechanic in any of these prompts, but it's definitely not mandatory! For more details on this temporary memory loss, see our FAQ.

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Option Two: Into the Woods

Kaulder can't convince any of the nearby locals that he heard what he did, and honestly, he isn't the sort of man to waste time trying. That sounded like a scream to him, and so he thunders off into the woods without a glance back to see if anyone has decided to follow him.

There's no one. The woods are eerily silent around him now, and that sets him on edge for reasons he can't quite remember. Neither can he remember why he's able to pick out broken branches, scuff marks in the dirt that no animal made; he was never a hunter, was he?

(Hunter. That resonates with him, someplace deep.)

No, never a hunter. One can tell by the way he turns a full circle and calls out a booming, "Hello?!" His voice echoes back to him, but it isn't chased by evidence of the sound that drew him here in the first place. There's nothing but the sound of his own breathing - and maybe the snap of a twig as someone approaches. He turns.

Option Three: Bake Sale

[You might think Kalder doesn't indulge in double chocolate chunk cookies, but you'd be wrong. They're not even a dirty secret: people know exactly who will buy one (or four) if they're waved under the right nose.

It doesn't hurt that proceeds go to the school. In some memory-muddled and deeply subconscious part of his brain, he knows Elizabeth would have gone here if she had lived. Doling out somewhat generously to fundraisers like this one is a private way of honoring her. Thus, he's all smiles with the soccer moms, gentle teasing with the students, and politely curious about anything he might not recognize.

Like gluten- and dairy-free brownies.]

So how do you make brownies without any of the ingredients?

Option Four: Network

[On the Wayward Pines Message Board]

Just looking for a little conversation on a slow Saturday evening. Never thought you'd see me admit to that, did you? - K

what kind of "conversation"??? is it one that starts with A/S/L?

You can start with that if you really want to, but I wasn't looking for acronyms. And we're all in Wayward Pines. The "L" isn't necessary.

A/S/S then!

[ WOW, CHASE IS SO FUCKING WITTY. ]

the second 's' is for sexuality

You're gonna jump right to sexuality, huh? Not "sign"? What about "g" for gender or "o" for occupation?

ok ok fine age/sex/sign

18/m/cancer

(i'm in hs what do i care about occupations?)

I think you're a little too young and a little too male for the conversation between us to be an Age/Sex/Anything one. At 18, you should be thinking about an occupation. High school's almost over.

you should still tell me what you are anyway. it's only fair!

future occupation: getting the fuck out of this town. i'll figure the rest out later

Edited 2017-04-18 00:48 (UTC)

46/Male/Cancer So you're going to leave town with no money and no plan? Smart move, kid. Wish I'd thought of that when I was your age.

(no subject)

bastardofipswich - 2017-04-18 01:58 (UTC) - Expand

(no subject)

byironandfire - 2017-04-21 19:41 (UTC) - Expand

I don't think you do.

[She laughs softly before shaking her hair, her blond hair falling in silky waves over her pale shoulder.]

Mind giving me a statement?

[Elena is here for work though that doesn't stop her from having a partially eaten bearclaw pinched between the fingers in her left hand. Her right hand has a pencil and a pad of paper that's currently useless while she's eating.]

It's for the local paper.

[People are usually excited to their words printed in ink.]

[A scrutinizing and wry look crosses his face as he notes that she is currently eating a bearclaw and thus in position to take down whatever statement he might have to make.]

Must be a slow news day if you want my opinion about cupcakes.

[He smiles at her, knowing better than to flirt but completely unable to help himself.]

But since I always try to read your articles, I should be a good sport, right?

[Elena took a bite of the snack pinched between her fingers, her tongue dragging over her upper lip before flashing him a smile.]

Very slow but then I am covering a bake sale so there is only so much I can cover.

[She doesn't know exactly what she's going to write yet but it'd turn out paper-worthy, it always does.]

Do you really read them all? Some are rather dull.

We live in a quiet town. You can't expect to be dazzled all the time.

[Kaulder tears his gaze away from her and turns to have a look at the people around them: teenagers, parents, young children. It's not a picnic or a big social outing, but it is a community coming together to show support for the education of the next generation. It's sweet.]

You could turn it into a think-piece on millennials. I really don't think they're all that different from any other generation of kids.

[Truth be told, he's seen a lot of generations of kids. They've all been different from the ones that came before - some wanted peace, some wanted war, some were stupid and cruel, some were smart, some brought change in great waves and others...well. Others liked the status quo.

Generally, though, kids were kids. They liked to do little things to break the rules, prove themselves to their peers, and - yes - eat junk food.

With a smile, he turned back to her.]

Maybe you'd even get it syndicated. That the right word?

[As he turned to look around them Elena quickly finished her sticky sweet bear claw. It's delicious but she can't write with it and she's a quick eater when she wants to be. When he turns back to her she's licking her pointer finger before wiping her hand on a napkin that she folds and hides in her pocket. She'd throw it away later, she isn't very big on littering.]

Yes.

[She flashes him a warm smile.]

I'd like to think that I can make anything interesting. [It really depends on the topic.] That isn't a bad idea though. How do you think these events builds the future? What does it teach the next generation.

[Talking about children hits an odd cord in Elena. Something in the back of her mind reminds her that she isn't able to have children. The doctor had said that there had been a 5% chance of her ever getting pregnant. The memory sounds only half right as she thinks about it so Elena pushes it away, deciding she'll pursue the train of thought more later.]

[She's adorable, and politely enough he tries to prevent a laugh from escaping at how quickly she demolished that bear claw while he wasn't looking. Meanwhile, he's trying to keep out of the small lunch bag containing his own purchases; his future self will appreciate that he didn't immediately inhale an entire bag of baked goods.]

Oh, you know, the basic small town building blocks: community, economics. Builds self-esteem, too. These kids see that their education is important to adults, that they've got the support of a whole town, so it becomes important to them, too.

[It's not something you see in big cities much anymore. People are busier and busier as time goes on, and schools become education factories. There's a quaintness to Wayward Pines in that community actually exists here.]

[She is a master at eating and doing so discreetly if she needs to. She'd say it's part of the job but it feels like a talent when she makes something like a bear claw disappear.

Elena turns his words over in her head a few time while jotting down a few quick notes. She misses the city, maybe because the small town mentality never sat well with her. They ban together easily for both the good reasons and the bad. In this case, she's happy to shed a warm light on the day. It isn't as if the paper would let her write more than a fluff piece anyway.]

Quoted. [She punctuates the paper with a smile.] The town is lucky to have people with your point of view.

Can I have a name to go with your quote?

Kaulder.

[He holds out the hand that isn't occupied with a bag of baked goods; it's a massive thing. The hand, not the bag. At only six feet, he somehow still manages to take up a lot of space.]

Smith, if you need a last name.

[That isn't to say that's actually his surname, but it's the one he gets here in Wayward Pines. Going by "Kaulder the Witch Hunter" is intimidating and a little questionable, and going by "Kaulder, son of Bjorn" is right out, as there are many Bjorns in the world and his particular Bjorn has been dead a very long time - and is not within easily accessible memory for Kaulder, anyway.

Kaulder Smith, it is.]

(no subject)

defenderofmen - 2017-04-23 14:14 (UTC) - Expand

I suppose it is a novel thing to admit to, darling.

It depends who you are. If you're married and have four kids, I guess doing nothing on a Saturday night is living the dream. And I'm going to guess I'm speaking with Ana*, seeing as you went to all the trouble of calling me "darling" in text.[*Assuming she goes by "Ana" in WP, substitute in-game name as necessary, pretty please? Cmon, you love me.]

Of course, who else would it be? It's certainly better than a signature, don't you think?

the kind of conversation that goes with a strong drink?

I never turn down a strong drink, but if people need it just to have a conversation with me, I'm a little worried.

can't a girl want both?

It's the 21st century. Girls can want a lot of things now. A drink and a conversation definitely isn't too much to ask.

glad you see it that way
so, where at?

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