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.
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bumfuckidaho2017-04-17 06:22 am
TEST DRIVE MEME
bREATHES deeply
It's more than that, though. It's who the voice belongs to - that tone, the way she (she) says his name ... it's a memory that reaches into his chest and wraps tightly around his heart, belonging just to him.
Annabeth Chase.
Of course it could be a trick. He's been through enough scrapes and near-death experiences - he remembers that much - to consider that someone could be using that voice, that voice calling his name, in order to trap him.
But gods, at this second, he doesn't think he cares. For even a second's worth of time to see her face, he'll take it.
He whirls around. ]
You're Annabeth?
[ Please be Annabeth. ]
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she turns, because that's her name and when she sees his face she knows she was right. that's him, and for all she doesn't know (and it's killing her), she knows at least that much.
you're annabeth.
there's an odd sense of deja vu. ]
How do you know my name?
[ she doesn't step towards him, despite how every inch of her is screaming to do just that. despite how her entire body seems to gravitate in his direction, the louder part - the logical part - tells her to wait. ]
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So this is Annabeth. He knew it. He's not even sure how, but he knew it, and just like that, something small clicks into place. It's one less thing to feel hopeless and lost about even if it doesn't seem like much in the bigger picture of this place. ]
It's the only name I remember really clearly. [ His confession is quiet and he frowns while he considers how to explain the whirring confusion in his head. ] It's this feeling I get, like whatever happened before I got here, she's - you're - really, really important.
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that, and that her own name was annabeth. and that whoever this boy was in front of her, she was supposed to be here. right by his side. ]
And you don't remember anything else? [ there seems to be a bit of easing of tension in her shoulders the more she thinks about it. the more that she stands here, just near him at all. like she feels stronger, more confident. ]
Just...my name?
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It's weird to be staring at someone you know you should remember because your heart has a much better memory than your brain but have very little recollection at all. ]
Just your name. [ He repeats, sounding disappointed in himself.
He rubs his face. ]
Well, and my name, which you know. [ Somehow. ] It's like - it's like there's this wall and I know if I can just get over it ... I'll remember everything I'm supposed to.
Do you ... remember anything?
[ There's an unsaid 'about me?' implied in his question but he can't quite bring himself to add the words aloud. ]
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she doesn't understand why, or why it's so strong, but she steps closer to him anyway, needing to help in some way. ]
But the top is just out of reach? [ aka, yes. she knows exactly what he's talking about. but even still, she finds herself frowning, crossing her arms over her chest. ]
You mean other than your name? [ her eyebrow arches at him at the question, before she purses her lips, thinking. she remembers feelings, remembers warmth and water and the urge to smile. feeling like she had somewhere to go, something to do, someone to see.
annabeth looks back up at him from where her eyes had fallen away in thought, noticing his eyes. a scar. the way he looks at her like she knew everything in the universe. again, the tension falls away, something about him making her think that maybe...maybe it'll all work out. ]
You like... [ her mouth starts moving before she has completely control over the words, and it feels a little like falling. but her gut tells her to keep going, that this isn't wrong. ] Blue.
[ a beat, and then: ]
Food.
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[ It's like she can see into his brain, read his thoughts, or that whatever they think, their minds work together - just a natural ebb and flow. It's so easy to stand here talking to her because there's a familiarity that no amount of memory-loss could possibly take away.
Percy aches to step closer to this girl but the logical side of him knows he should stay where he is. He doesn't want to scare her off; he doesn't want to run away either.
But then, just like that, what she says next makes his heart stop for a beat, like her saying the words is a confirmation of something he'd always known all along but could never really put a finger on. ]
I do. Yeah. That's like, a weirdly specific fact that you know about me.
[ He studies her. ]
My mom - she started doing this thing where ... any food she could turn blue, she would. I loved it.
[ He pauses. ]
Annabeth. [ His voice is soft. Even the way he says her name is important. It feels important on his tongue. ] Gods, why don't I remember anything?
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but in that same thought, there's this feeling that she doesn't have to. he says exactly, almost like he's surprised she knew, and annabeth can't help the small smile that pulls at her lips.
of course she knew what he was thinking.
( why 'of course'? ) ]
Yeah, well- [ she almost says 'it wasn't hard to pick up on', but she stops herself, not sure where that thought came from. after a second, annabeth just shrugs. ] It just kind of came to me.
[ mentions of his mother have her pausing, feeling some weird mix of familiarity and also a bit...sad. she can't figure out why, so she tries not to think about it too much. ]
That sounds like her. [ why she would know that, she doesn't know, but the smile is still there - still gentle. even more so when he says her name like that, curling around in her chest.
but then she stops, something he said catching her attention. ]
You said Gods. [ objectively, she catches on to that, even if her first reaction is to believe that's the correct use. ] Isn't that... [ incorrect? she ends up biting her lower lip, her forehead creasing with the thought. ]
Gods. [ she said it too. ] I can't figure it out.
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[ He rubs his face again, breathing out through his nose. ]
This place, it's doing something to us, isn't it? [ With their memories, with their feelings for other people, there's some kind of ... block. It feels like something Hera would do.
But.
What does that even mean? ] This is going to sound crazy but I know we know each other somehow. [ The words come out automatically, just like so much of their conversation right now. ] Now would be a good time for one of your plans.