bumfuckidaho | test drive meme, may 2017

Skip to Main Content

Entry tags:

!tdm

test drive meme, may 2017

TEST DRIVE MEME

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.)

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
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.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Maybe her being here, sitting with Derek instead of joining in and having any fun, is an effect of the accident? It's hard to actually tell, even being in her own head. Dondgeball, though, is a stupid game. Particularly when you're playing with the balls that don't give the same satisfying sound as the rubber ones. That could just be some...strange aggression that Cora has going on inside right now.

Forgetting crap does suck, after all.

Nodding a little bit, Cora shifts so that she can put her arms on her knees. She understands. Kind of. Things here, some of the people even, feel foreign to her too. People who know her name definitely seem like strangers. At least she's not got one she's stuck sleeping with, though? It's really too bad that Derek forgot all of this instead of stuff further back--the stuff that both of them would rather forget.] You are for now. [Cora's not one to mince words, so she means what she says there.] Until you remember or whatever.

[Cora shrugs and offers a small and somewhat hopeful look, which is a change from the frown from before. She's heard him in the night; her hearing is just as good as Derek's after all, so maybe that's why she feels the need to offer something, she does remember being a supportive sister. Even if she's not sure this is helpful, really.] That's something, anyway. You tell bad jokes to. [She manages to look a bit amused at that comment.] So, you've both got that going for you, anyway. It's one place you could start. Or you could pick another.

[Cora pauses, looking around at everything going on, taking in the sounds for a moment. She is sure that she doesn't look at her brother as she tacks this on, though.] I like him too, for the record, if it matters.

We aren't? [ They're not. He knows deep down this is his sister. She didn't die in the fire their family died in. Neither did he. He knows he's responsible and that guilt pervades underneath to this day. He doesn't know why it works this way, only what people tell him. That he'll only know so much for a short amount of time. He's been told two weeks and he's been told longer. He doesn't know what to believe.

He looks over to her. He even smiles. ]

It does, Cora. [ And, in truth he likes Matt, too. He may not know what to believe, there may be something fake about everything here, but he feels familiar, and Derek doesn't have familiarity, not familiarity he likes thinking about. ] Do you remember anything about him?

No, we're not. [She confirms, confidently. With the two of them it's just...different. She remembers bugging him when she was little, the fire, doing homework together after the fire...when they had to get back to it. They have a shared history that she hasn't forgotten, that didn't go anaywhere. And maybe that's a blessing.

Might be why she smiles back at him too.]

Good to know my opinion matters. [And look at that...Cora Hale managing to say that without any touch of sarcasm to it. Shrugging at her brother's question, Cora looks upward, considering her answer.] Some. I remember that he made you happy. He talked this place up when we made the big move, he's from here, and mostly dumb little shit. [Cora shrugs again, not sure what to say; you're probably lucky you got this much from the teenager, Derek. But it is something.]

Plus he's...easygoing...easy to get along with, I guess. A good guy. For me, anyway. Can't speak for everyone. [There's that dry tone.]

[ A normal big brother might chastise her for language. But something tells him they've been through their fair share. ]

You don't have to. You just have to speak for yourself. [ His arm goes around her neck, knowing she doesn't like affection, but he pulls her in, briefly, before letting go. ] I brought Matt lunch. It's in the car, if you'd like to join us.

[Cora nods, her eybrows lifting because he's right with that one.] True. [She doesn't pull away or squirm, instead leaning into her brother's show of affection for a moment. They're not the touchy feely type; she just knows that, or maybe it's just her. Funnily enough she can remember flashes of hugging other people--classmates and shit, but at the same time it feels almost fake...not like her.

It's not important, or at least not the most important, right now, though. She can decipher it later when she's got a little more memory to go along with it, even if she wishes she could have it all back right now because this is frustrating.] I might...what'd you bring? [She looks at her brother, eyebrows up with curiosity and maybe a bit cheekily.]

Sandwiches. And wine you're not allowed to have. Water. Fruit. [ Lunch. ] Does that sound appealing?

[There's the trademark Cora eyeroll.] I don't want the wine anyway. [So there.] Sounds okay, though, I guess I can stick around for lunch. It's not like any of the games or anything were really that tempting anyway.

[Cora gives a bit of a gesture, arms out for a moment to wave off the games.] Where is Matt, anyway? [Easier to ask than listen or sniff him out herself.]

He's around. He doesn't like when I hover. [ Derek doesn't like this disadvantage, not remembering how to be married to man who's blind. He finds himself tripping up, making small mistakes Matt doesn't mind, but Derek does. ] I offered to come with him this morning. He let me sleep in.

Well, I don't like it when you hover either, so I'd call that par for the course. [The comment is dry, but it's obviously meant as a joke, and Cora isn't exactly the person you want to go to for sympathy or encouragement, for the most part. So...she leaves it at that, nodding to acknowledge Derek's words.]

So, what, you're supposed to meet at x place at y time, sinc he wanted to fly solo for a while?

[ He'd shove her for that, but he ignores the impulse. It seems more like something he believes he should do, than something he would do. He's learning the difference between the two. ]

We're meeting here. [ Is that not enough? If he concentrates, he'll be able to find him, whether visually pr audibly. He hadn't wanted to fly solo, however, he thought it best. Something about being alumni.

[Shrugging at the response, Cora realizes tht all that's left to do is wait for her brother-in-law to make his way to them. It's not exactly easy for her to be passive. Or to wait.

It's really the waiting that sucks. Patience isn't one of Cora's strong-suits, generally.] Got it. [Cora looks around, trying to Where's Waldo the other man, but that is easier said than done at a lively, crowded event. She knows that a lot has been forgotten, at least when it comes to the two of them. She hasn't heard all conversations between the married couple, though. Moving to stretch back so that she's leaning back on her hands, she hasn't managed to pick her brother-in-law out of the crowd yet, so her eyes wind up back on her brother.] Lunch isn't supposed to be a romantic reconnecting thing, right, because if it is I'm not gonna be the third wheel for that...?

[Best to double check...maybe?]

No, Cora, it isn't going to be that. [ He didn't pack lunch to be romantic. He doesn't think he did. He packed it to be helpful. Right? ] We can't reconnect when there isn't a connection in the first place. [ That connection will take place. And though Derek wants to be able to reconnect, with both his husband and son, it's not easy to try blindly. He didn't try to make Cora wait. His point was that he had a meeting place. He thought that was enough.

But, now he thinks again. ] Should I find him?

[Okay, yeah, she can't help but smirk a little bit eliciting that response from her brother. Still, she gives a bit of a curt nod of acknowledgement. She doesn't want to be privvy to that. Every set of siblings has their limits, after all.

It sucks, for Derek, that he doesn't feel a connection with someone that he's committed to. Even Cora can admit that (at least internally).] Guess there'll be one at some point, or there was. [Real helpful, right?

Shaking her head a little, Cora shifts to make herself a little more comfortable.] Nah, if he's going to meet you here we can wait. I'm not that impatient. [Cora offers dryly. She's not denying that she can be impatient on occasion, though. It's a small thing.]

[ Or, we're being told they're was.

He doesn't want to alarm her, not unless what he's heard pans out.

That earns her a look, a 'really,' you aren't look, but, he lets that go unsaid. He likes this time with his sister and he's not in any hurry of upsetting it. Derek did say he'd meet Matt here - but not exactly where they are. So, he will get up to find him, but for now, knowing Cora is safe and right beside him, that's enough.

Even if he doesn't know why. ]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only