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.)
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.
no subject
There were four nurses in front of them and Enis could tell that there were at least 4 more in the hall, one had called the police station. Things were spiraling. The bed next to hers had been empty but the other beds were full. Dividers that separated the bed hung lazily to the ground, some pulled back while others circling their patients. There was a window to their right but it was two beds away and the last one had a patient asleep within it's covers. The setting wasn't ideal and as Enis spoke her voice was a soft whisper, logical and precise.
"Push me forward then roll across the bed towards the window. Get it open, I'll handle it from there." Yes, they were going to go out the window. Enis didn't know what was at the bottom but they were at most on the third floor, possibly the second. From the view Enis knew they weren't so lucky to be on the first floor.
Clarissa would start her plan, with that push.
no subject
With blinding speed Clarissa withdraws the blade from around Enis' neck and lobs it in a directionless throw into the meddling crowd, some of which flinch out of the way of the spinning sharp. Not caring to see if or where or in whom in landed, she presses the flat of her hand to Enis' back and SHOVES her forward, before vaulting straight across the bed as directed. Her feet clear the covers as she propels herself to an unsteady stop at the foot of the window.
...It's locked, of course.
"Oh, fuckssake!" Clarissa growls, her hands scrabbling over the lock, around the pane... Yep, it's locked all right. Figures they wouldn't want any delirious or otherwise world-weary patients getting too adventurous. Through the glass, that drop looked like it would, logically, smash you up pretty good if you fell from it. Maybe not kill you, but...
It's not that high, really.
...You'd have to be crazy to attempt it, right? Not that it'll matter if this window keeps stuck. In a moment of frustration, Clarissa jams her fingers as deep beneath the ledge as possible, feet planted firmly against the floor and teeth grit so tight they might chip as she tries to pry the goddamn thing open. A loud metallic crack and the window slams upward into the top of the frame, the force splintering the glass into a web of cracks.
Huh. Must've been a pretty old lock. Clarissa snaps around to check where Enis is at. It's time to get the hell out of dodge, somehow. Two-storey drop be damned.
no subject
She then slipped through the crowd of people. Using the commotion to slide up next to the window shortly after Clarissa did. It was locked, she'd thought of a way around that but was surprised to see the girl force open the window. She felt the whirl in her head again as calculations began to run in the back of her mind.
How many pounds of force did it require for her to do that?
It didn't seem that important give their current situation. They were now looking at Enis with the same confused and worried look that they had directed at Clarissa. There was no turning back now.
A drop from a second story window was about twenty feet up. Plus an extra foot for the foundation that rises above the ground. There weren't any trees in their way. If they allowed the force to crumble through them like a shock wave. They're feet would hint the ground first and they'd fall into the force, rolling as the force was then directed harmlessly through them. They'd be able to run about 15 seconds after hitting the ground. Enis had no idea how she knew this but she trusted it and without looking back she grabbed the girl and jumped through the window. Her voice was carried by the rushing wind, low and calm. "Inhale and relax." It was the only way for them not to get hurt and if Clarissa needed it Enis would guide her through the fall.
As the ground rose beneath them Enis's eyes flashed yellow and she fell perfectly, rolling back up to her feet. It looked like she'd done it before though she was pretty sure that she hadn't.
no subject
What kind of smash-grab-shoot-run lifestyle she's been living up to the moment she woke up in her hospital bed is the bigger mystery, but the call of freedom just beyond the window frame says this line of questioning can wait. Clarissa's eyes damn near pop out of her head as Enis hits the ground. The ease of that roll made her look as though her weight were as inconsequential as that of a scrunched-up paper ball. The metal right angles of the window frame dig into Clarissa's bare soles as she crouches within the frame, swallowing the lump in her throat as she visualises her ankles splintering like twigs on impact.
What was that about never needing finesse to get her through?
The fingers grazing the back of her gown aren't willing to let her hesitate. As Clarissa springs from the frame, the flex of the muscles in her legs shoots a spark straight up her spine and kills her anxiety before it can stiffen her limbs. She doesn't roll when she hits the ground. Clarissa's feet strike flat against the curb, knees bending to cushion her weight before she straightens up easily. Broken ankles? Clarissa doesn't so much as wince.
What. The. Fuck...?
The yelling faces looking down upon them from above breaks her out of her surprise. Darting forward she grabs Enis' wrist once more, pulling her along as she breaks into a run, unable to resist flipping the bird over her shoulder at the stunned nurses who hadn't yet broken from the view to either chase or call for backup.
"So I have a hundred and one questions. But let's put this shithole behind us, first!"
no subject
Blinking curiously she fell in a run beside her, feeling her arm being pulled roughly forward. She didn't know where they should run too or what questions Enis might be able to answer given the current state of things but there was no harm in continuing forward.
When the hospital dropped out of sight Enis stopped, gently slipping her arm from Clarissa's hold.
"I think we're safe." Except that they stood out in the hospital gowns. "I heard some saying our things are at the police station. Let's head there before they get news from the hospital." The whirling continued in Enis's head.
Processing...
A map rose to mind and Enis turned, leading the way towards the hospital. She had no idea how she knew. Simply that this was the way.