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 one - the edge of town]

When they finally deemed her healthy enough to leave the hospital - it must've been days - she took off, not really knowing where to go. Her attempts to escape the bed had been foiled by one nurse after the other. She was in pretty bad shape, and they simply couldn't let her walk around or risk her stitches coming undone.

She's still in pretty bad shape when she steps outside, but she pushes the discomfort to the back of her mind, picks a direction, and sticks with it. Eventually, she finds the edge of this strange town. It takes her some time to get there, thanks to all the limping, but she does her best, scowling and gritting her teeth through the pain along the way.

She follows the road, only stopping for a rest when she really needs it. It takes hours.

And then she winds up right back where she started, wandering into town.

She doesn't remember turning or anything. But - there she is. Back in this town. Someone mentioned this was Idaho? Mia has no idea how she wound up thousands of miles away...

She tries again, and again she fails.

It's distressing to say the least.

She yells with frustration, kicking the nearest tree trunk with her good foot.

Curtis is outfitted in ratty clothes he took from a donation bin. The jacket is a little bit big, but it fits. The left sleeve of the coat is rolled up and pinned in place where his stump starts. He looks dirty. Which is a feat considering he got out of the hospital a few days. He was freshly cleaned when he left. But he's been trying to find a way home. Dirt always finds it's way back onto Curtis Everett. Sticking to his skin. His hair. Under his nails. Beard growing less and less maintained.

The yell makes him jerk up. His ears listening to follow the sound as a thump echoes. He's been laying low among the trees for a while now. Away from people. Usually Curtis runs. Makes his way away from people when he hears them approaching, but she could need help. For as much as Curtis isn't sure he trusts people he doesn't like the idea of leaving someone out there that might need help. His own kindness betrays him more often than he cares to admit.

He reaches up with his hand to remove the knit hat from his head. Hand brushing over short hair. "You okay?"

Mia's only mildly startled by the interruption. There's the slightest jump of surprise when the stranger approaches her - but she quickly recovers, scowling and looking as unpleasant as ever. Normally, she'd be leery. But right now she's too frazzled to care. Being stuck here sucks, and she wants out.

"No I'm not fucking okay," she practically hisses. "I need to leave! I don't belong here!"

She's upset. Understandably so. Curtis felt the same when he went through the song and dance of trying to walk out of here. There's only so many times you can wind up back in town before you eventually abandon the pursuit. At least for the time being. He needs to explore other means of escape. He's never been one to just give up. Just switch gears. Find a new plan.

"I think everyone wants to leave." He tries to keep his voice low. Calm. No need for both of them to get upset. "I'm not sure people belong here either." He holds up his hand. "Do you know how you got here?"

"No," she grumbles with a frown. She might feel guilty for snapping. Maybe.

Her arms cross her front and she winds up hugging herself, idly rocking back and forth on her feet. "I have no idea. Probably some stupid magic shit. Everything's stupid magic shit..."

Curtis is a shoe. He's not sure where the thought comes from, but it's there. Curtis is a shoe. Everyone else is a hat. They belong on the head. Curtis belongs on the foot. Curtis does the grunt work. Hats are the one that get the good things. Aren't they? The breeze? The sky? The sunshine? He doesn't hold her anger against her. He was the same way days before.

"Stupid magic shit?" As far as Curtis is concerned magic isn't real. Science usually explains the unknown. A man made ice age for example. Fucking science. "I don't think pulling a rabbit out of a hat got us here."

There's an amused-sounding snort. "Rabbits have nothing to do with it," she says, shaking her head. "Monsters maybe. No rabbits."

That's Curtis' only knowledge of magic. Parlor games. Tricks for kids. Not actual magic that exists in the world. Certainly not the darker magic that Mia may actually be familiar with.

"Monsters? How do you mean?"

"I mean monsters. Real ones. They come up from the ground, move through the trees..."

Her gaze wanders, her body following her head as it turns to get a better look at the trees she had just walked through herself. She quiets considerably, just staring at nothing, her lip trembling.

Talking about it's triggered something. At least - she thinks it has? The details are a little fuzzy for her. But it's apparent enough that the gears are turning in her head.

"Hey, cool it with the violence against shrubbery shit! You're giving me a headache."

The voice comes from a tall dude with dark hair, who happens to be leaning against the other side of the tree Mia kicked.

Ash has already tried to force his way through and it didn't work out well for him, so he'd leaned up against it to think.

"Sorry not sorry."

The last word is punctuated with another swift kick right at the tree trunk the stranger's leaning against.

Then she lets out a rather defeated-sounding huff as she slumps to the ground, crouching on her knees and hugging herself around the middle.

"Damn it!"

The first physical sign that there's another human being on the other side of the trunk she kicked at comes in the form of a pointed fingertip, jutting forth with attempted authority.

"I..." He peeks around the corner and looks down at her.

Huh. Young and pouty was not what he expected.

"Look, there's no way out. No way up and no way out."

"I've noticed."

She mumbles this, not bothering to look up from where she's crouched. She just keeps awkwardly hugging herself on the spot, bouncing lightly on the heels of her boots.

When she finally springs up to her feet, she lets out a sigh and a rather defeated-sounding "Fuck..."

Ash eyeballs her, rubs his chin, stares at the fence before them.

"So. I take it entrapment fucks with your head too."

"I don't trust this place. I want to leave."

She hasn't been here long - at least, she doesn't think she's been. The feeling she gets, though... it's anything but comfortable. So yeah, some would say entrapment fucks with her head.

A moment later, she's quieter and less hostile than before: "...Are you sure?"

"Nobody seems to trust this place," Ash grumbles. "Y'think I do?"

Ash lifts a shoulder. "Yeah. But at this point I'll take anything that doesn't include getting my ass beaten by branches."

That's one of the few things he remembers from his past. The very few.

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