There was an accident. The details are hazy and obscure, but it's still the first thing you remember. Maybe a car wreck — metal and broken glass everywhere, and the sirens and the
screaming. Maybe your bike hit a rock and you careened uncontrollably off a mountain path. Maybe something less mundane, even impossible seems to have happened to you. You can't quite make out the details, not who was at fault or why. Try as you might, the chaos is all you can truly remember.
It's also the
last thing you remember from before waking up.
When you open your eyes, the accident is gone. Instead, you're in a hospital bed, and the nursing staff greet you with cheerful smiles.
Don't worry, they tell you. You'll make a full recovery here. Where is here? Why, home in Wayward Pines, of course!
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 | TRACK AND FIELD DAY |
With the current school semester coming to a close and summer vacation on the horizon, school administrators have elected to end the year on a high note with an invigorating Track and Field Day at the park, in order to better foster fitness and health in the children (outside of their government mandated physical education classes, anyway).
The event is, of course, open to the community at large, whether you have a current affiliation with the school or not. Because, well, everyone could stand to get up off their couches for an afternoon of running around in the sun. Or, in the case of residents with a particular sun allergy, under the shaded tarp canopies that dot the field here and there with healthy snacks, drinks, and some of the less expansive games available today (such as, oh, a nice sedate beanbag toss).
Wayward Pines thrives on the inclusion of all varieties of people, after all. Even those that aren't, strictly speaking, people at all.
All of the most recognizable games are available, of course: sack races, relay races, three-legged races, any sort of race you can think of, really; flag football and dodgeball with soft spongy balls to keep anyone from getting
too competitive (the school nurse is on hand just in case though); a massive tug-of-war rope that spans nearly the entire field; and water balloon and blanket tosses. If you're not too sure what the latter is you can ask Linda at the makeshift juice bar and she'll be all too glad to explain for you.
Actually, on second thought, don't ask Linda anything. Don't give her the satisfaction.
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), 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!
( a few notes )
Welcome to our fourth 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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bumfuckidaho2017-05-17 09:14 pm
TEST DRIVE MEME
FOREST'S EDGE.
Bit by bit her mind pieces things together only to pause and push away the darker thoughts that teased the edge of her rationality.
Her fingers began to tremble violently as she reaches for the medicine that had been give to her by the hospital. She slips a pill between her lips and swallows. She begins to count the seconds. 1- 2- 3- And soon she feels the darkness retreat.
Justine exhales and opens her eyes to see the enterance to the woods in front of her. She hadn't been paying attention to where she'd been going. Her head turns at the sound of an unfamiliar voice, a man standing just at the tree line.
Her heels sink into the grass as she steps forward. Justine is wearing the clothing she'd picked up from the police station, a red skirt that brushes her knees and a thin white blouse.] Are you hurt? [Her voice is sweet and uncertain. Her thin fingers still clasping the prescription container to her own medicine.]
no subject
What gave you that idea?
[He says it more jokingly than anything, with a little crooked smile.
It's cool, it's cool, everything's good.]
I'm just, uh. Admiring the Bob Ross scenery.
no subject
She steps forward, discretely slipping the container of her pills into the small pocket of her skirt. It's hard to see that it's even there which suits Justine's needs well.]
A little bird told me. [Her voice is sweet and light. A strange desire urges Justine want to reach out towards him and run her fingers over the lines of his face but she holds herself back, unsure where the desire came from.]
I always thought of lakes when I hear his name. [A tightness returns to her voice but she tries her best to chase it away.] Do you often stare at the woods and think of men? [She jokes lightly, her voice sounding elegant and her words a bit out of place given the sweetness of her features.]
no subject
What, me? No way. Sorry to all the guys out there, but I'm all for the ladies. Good ol' — well, uh. [Good ol' who? This would be so much easier if he could remember a name. Martin? No, that's lame. Mick? Aaaah, like he'd even know hearing it. He looks up and shrugs, one arm still gravitating to wrap around his torso protectively; still hurts, even with the painkillers. S'that normal?] Good ol' me, I mean. I think if I stayed in the hospital any longer, the nurses would forget to treat their patients.
[A dopey smile follows; good one, M. Good one.]
no subject
Lucky for me. [Her voice is light though there are thin threads of worry that have laced through her tone. Flirting is easier than worrying and yet she can't help but feel uneasy at his state.]
I don't doubt the nurses at the hospital but there is something lacking in there attentiveness. [Dislike creeps into her tone but it's lightly veiled as if clumsily hidden.] Perhaps I can help you? I know a little first aid.
no subject
Aaaahmmmm...
I think I'm okay. I mean, I've got pills. A messed up guy's BFF, you know?
[... He is pretty tired, actually. And everything feels kind of disconnected, like this isn't his body. Like he shouldn't be here, couldn't be here. Is he even alive?] I — totally got this all under control.
no subject
I might. [She agrees in her usual soft and sweet tone. Justine knows exactly what he means but she's hesitant to dive into herself when there were so many blanks there.] Is that why you're staring at the woods? [Her question isn't unkind but patient.
Justine moves so that she's standing next to him. Her shoulder lightly brushes against him as she examines the fores the way he had. She doesn't see what he'd seen but tall thick trees creating a rather menacing feel tot the woods.]