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
yells about nico!!!11
[ asks the boy who absolutely could not scream like a girl, even if he wanted to.
But no, really, Percy shakes his head in response, a little too concerned with the possibility of someone needing his help to worry about the possible jab implied at his manliness. ]
I think it came from up there.
[ He turns to give his newfound companion a better look. First impressions demonstrate that he doesn't fit in to the cookie-cutter shapes made for the local townies; for one thing, he's a little too gaunt, too sallow, too haunted. But there's something else, something Percy can't put his finger on - there's a strange tugging in his stomach that veers close to the edge of uncomfortable. He's not sure what it is. It's probably not important. ]
I was about to check it out. Someone might be in trouble.
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[He also takes a moment to study this guy, his frown deepening as he looks him over. It feels almost the same as walking in the woods felt... like he should remember something but can't, a sense of some sort of familiarity there.] Do I... know you?
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[ The people being a little too nonchalant about the whole thing. The reassurances that nothing strange was happening, that the scream was probably just the wind of all things, or in some cases, 'What scream?'
The whole thing makes him feel like he's gone a little crazy, but something tells him that this isn't the first time he's followed his instincts like this - and then turned out to be right. And the same seems to go for this kid, too. ]
I don't think so.
[ Percy's response is automatic, said without a moment's hesitation like the line's been practiced, like he's just one of the town's regular folk. It makes him stop short, at least internally, mouth pressed into a thin line.
Why does it feel like a lie?
He glances at the kid again but there's no instant familiarity, no a-ha! moment, just a nagging feeling like something burrowing in the back of his skull.
Anyway. ]
Two guys taking on a potential threat is probably better than one.
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Right. If there even is one. [Better to make sure there isn't one than to just walk away though, so he treks on to continue investigating.]
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[ There was definitely a creepy factor to that scream. It was a 'Help me!' scream. It was the kind of scream that had Percy dashing into the woods, weaponless, alone, and on some kind of hero's mission.
He picks up his own pace to match the new kid's. ]
I'm Percy, by the way.
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Nico. You... been here long? [He knows people don't like that kind of talk in this place, but they're in the forest, so he figures what the hell.]
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[ Percy extends a hand to offer to Nico, the name suddenly ringing the faintest of bells. It happens pretty much out of nowhere, and it happens so fast that it makes his head hurt a little, as if the ground was being pulled out from under him and he happened to land on it.
Nico. Nico.
Why can't he remember anything? ]
Huh? Oh. Uh, yeah. I've been here all my life. [ At least he's pretty sure of that. ] My parents moved here, had me, and then ... [ He shrugs. Talking about his parents always bums him out, so ... yeah. Let's not. ] What about you? I feel like I would've seen you at school.
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Maybe. I can't really remember. They said I got in some sort of accident. Can't remember that either... [He looks around to make sure nobody obvious is nearby listening, speaking more quietly because he knows they don't like you talking about your past here.] I'm pretty sure I was living at some sort of camp though so I don't think I've been here for very long. [He definitely isn't going to bring up some of the other things he remembers because that would probably freak anyone out.]
whoops i def made a mistake with my metaphor there lmfa
Wait. Did you just say 'camp'?
[ Why does he even care about a camp? Kids go to camp all the time.
No. No, it's something. It's something he can feel at the very edge of his memory, annoying like an itch he can't find to scratch. ]
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