test drive meme (#2)

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Test Drive Meme The Pan Pacific Defense Corps was usually offered any of a variety of local buildings to set up their testing centers. For reasons of access and availability, most testing clinics were set up in central areas for any given community. Those of the PPDC staff on hand vary in their personal intensity. Some of the men and women wearing Strike Group insignia seemed overly serious, to the point of frowning with intensity at some of the youngest checking in for this testing round. Those from the K-Science division are tight with nervous energy as they direct prospective cadets through various activities. Everything was meant to measure potential, looking for that spark that meant they had somebody who was Drift Compatible. The majority of people were turned away after the first series of seemingly random tests, officials looking in eyes, placing odd looking contraptions over heads, asking for people to play a series of short games, one even in a virtual reality set-up.
	( SCENARIO ONE ) If you are still here now, you've made it past the first cut. You'll be sat down in a room with the rest who have made it this far, then systematically led into smaller interview rooms as pairs. If you came with a partner, they're your first interview candidate. If you came on your own, all your interviews are random assignment. All who have been asked to stay are required to sit through and conduct a series of short peer to peer interviews. The questions are straightforward. What kind of pets would you like to own? What game do you gravitate toward first in an arcade? What does the fox say? Where do you squeeze your toothpaste tube to get toothpaste on your toothbrush? What do you believe the Drift is like? Peer to peer interviews last for half an hour to an hour, and each person is asked to participate in at least three peer-to-peer interviews. There is no punishment for going off script. There is a one-way mirror looking into each interview area, and one door leading into the room with a small panel of glass located on the door. There is a clock on the wall in each room. The time they report is odd when examined. These are not digital clocks, but timers, counting up time since the last Kaiju attack.
	( SCENARIO TWO ) You've been accepted into the Jaeger Academy. You've been assigned to your barracks, issued your uniform and necessities, shown the overall layout of the Shatterdome, and told the wake up call is at 0530. You're settling in to the Academy schedule, and for many, it may be brutal indeed. When you're brought into the indoor swimming pool, it's to an overwhelming stench of chlorine. Your swimsuits are all the same for the men, simple swim-trunks, one uniform blue. Women wear a blue and white racer style swimsuit, in the same cut across the board. Uniformity doesn't disappear for swimming lessons. Lessons start out basic, teaching each Cadet to rely on themselves and each other to keep them afloat. From there, maneuvers get more complicated. Learning safe diving techniques, practicing proper holds to keep an unconscious or panicked partner afloat. Speed, agility, and endurance: all will be in demand. Then you start hearing rumors about full uniform swims coming up the next session.
Please set up your own scenarios as you like. The above two scenarios are suggestions. Anything goes! If you want to stop by and see about doing some communal AU Worldbuilding, check out the new AU Worldbuilding Meme!

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Herc Hansen | Pacific Rim

[fieldcommissioned]

Scenario One:
Being in the shatterdome meant doing your part. It was on all the signs, anyway, and after a life spent in the military, he was used to picking up tasks that needed doing and getting them done, even if they weren't strictly in his orders. That included days like today.

He'd picked up one of the many clipboards with today's interview questions and had looked over them, having to suppress a snort of a laugh when he saw number three. The first one just made him think of his son's jowly bulldog and the second one made him nostalgic for his youth. The Drift question, he didn't have to wonder about. He knew that answer backward and forward.

The fourth, though, made him shake his head. "These questions just get weirder," he muttered to himself before pushing open an interview room door to step inside.

"Mornin'," Herc started, pleasantly enough, offering his hand for a handshake. "Name's Herc Hansen. And you?"

Scenario Three:
Valparaiso wasn't so different from Sydney - at least in a few ways. It was still warm this time of year, even if the sun rose over land instead of over ocean. Most importantly, the work was the same, and he still needed to keep himself in fighting form.

With his knuckles taped, Herc was putting in some time on the heavy bag, and those who have paid attention may see some of the signature moves of Lucky Seven. It was almost meditative to Herc, though, movements that were so much a part of him that he didn't even have to think to go through them.

1 for the hilarity

[doubleshot]

Andy looked up as she took his hand, giving it a firm shake in return. She didn't bother disguising the amusement that flashed across her face.

"Andy. Looks like a few wires got crossed. Have they been drafting you into these all day?"

Bwahah, yes, this is exactly the kind of thing that happens.

[fieldcommissioned]

"...Serves me right for not even lookin' up," Herc said, amusement thick in his voice. "Yeah, they needed a few more, figured they'd toss me in to catch some reactions, I guess. Y'know how the brass gets sometimes. Wish I knew what they were thinkin' with some of these questions, though. Got that damn song stuck in my head now, and I've not even thought about it in five years."

The damn song and his son's dog.

"Gotta say it's nice t'meet you, though. Not often we get to meet other pilots outside of combat anymore."

[doubleshot]

"They keep us too busy with everything else." She sat back, posture more relaxed than it had been earlier. She'd been waiting to gauge reactions of the ones she had coming to her, or the ones she walked in on, to sense her best approach. Herc Hansen was a pro, and someone she was genuinely interested to get to know. He was right. Rangers didn't run into each other outside of combat all that often these days.

"Right, the one that came out of Sweden, wasn't it? I think I remember hearing them get played for laughs in the clubs, back before the world got into close encounters of the third kind."

A dated movie reference, and one she wasn't certain Herc had ever seen. Andy shook her head, feeling old for no good reason. The median age of people being pulled in made her feel like she was engaging with a highschool and university aged crowd.

[fieldcommissioned]

"Wish this was just a case of potatoes and synthesizers," Herc muttered, shaking his head. "But no, we skipped past Spielberg and went straight into the goddamn Power Rangers."

He hooked his foot around a chair leg, pulling it out to where he could drop into it with a heavy kind of grace. "The sooner we can put this shit down, the better. Y'know they have an action figure of me? Got one of you, too - I saw the whole line last time I ended up on a morning show. All of 'em had the right eye painted on crooked."

[doubleshot]

"Are they still classified as action figures if they come with multiple outfits?" Her lips tugged up at the corner. "Jackie says she can't stand any of it, but she likes to see the kids dressing up and feeling like they're part of something big and important." Usually because those were kids who often felt like she had growing up.

"Easiest thing in the world to convince a few sponsors to donate the semi-useful stuff around Christmas. The shoes aren't so bad. I think I even tested out a pair of Lucky Sevens."

Less of the topic that people wanted to talk about, with Lucky Seven (and one of her pilots) 'retiring.' The particulars were kept out of everything. Andy admired the amount of effort that went into keeping anything in a Ranger's life personal, particularly when it came to pilot pairings. "Looking forward to taking Striker out there with your son?"

[fieldcommissioned]

The mention of Seven gave him a faint smile, even with the destruction, and Scott's ousting, still a little raw. The subject of just why Scott was no longer piloting had been kept quiet. Herc was fine with that, and it wasn't a subject he'd speak on just now. "I'm lookin' forward to stretching Striker's legs in the field," he said instead, "but I wish my boy wasn't involved. Selfish, but I wish he was somewhere safe instead of in the middle of all this. We're compatible, though, and they're not willing to lose me. And he's never been one to do what he's told."

He was aware of his son's shortcomings. He knew Chuck was mouthy, arrogant. Overeager. Reminded him of Scott every day. The difference was that Chuck wasn't half as much of a hedonist. His boy had discipline that Scott never had. He'd make it. He'd just need to learn a little humility.

and 2 to round it out

[lazyinlove]

There was a kid with a clipboard, which he checked, double checked against his watch -PPDC issue- and checked again. He tapped the watch a few times, expecting it to change its mind, perhaps. Then he glanced back at Herc uncertainly, and again to the clipboard.

Either someone fucked up at scheduling, or there was a dude in the gym during down time. Not that it was a huge, sweaty emergency or anything. Like half of the staff there were too nerdy to work out, and the Cadets got run totally fucking ragged as it was. They weren't about to volunteer for extra punishment, and anyway they probably weren't allowed. Not the shiny new ones. Everyone there was shiny new at the moment, including this big dude sweating up the gym equipment when Stan was supposed to be wiping it down.

He perched on one of the exercise bikes for a minute, backwards where the handlebars would be on a real bike, but on this was simply a grip and a control box. He was a tall kid, kind of skinny, with long hair pulled back loosely into a ponytail and smudges on his nose, elbows and knees. It was a pretty safe bet the teenager had spent the morning cleaning anyway. He didn't seem too distraught about taking a breather.

Eventually, though, the radio on his collar crackled and he grimaced, assuming one of the security jerks had caught him slacking off again. So he rolled his eyes and hopped nimbly to his feet, clearing his throat. "'Scuse me, Sir."

Hi there!

[fieldcommissioned]

It was the sound of the radio that first got his attention, followed by the voice. He had been deep into the trance of his workout and it was a little surprising to come out, the world outside the heavy bag coming into swift, sharp focus. He turned, though, snagging his towel from nearby to blot against his face, drying away the sweat. "Yeah, kid, what is it?"

Herc was careful not to be too gruff. It wasn't a big deal that he was being interrupted. It was just a workout, after all, and he'd have plenty more of them in the days to come.

heya

[lazyinlove]

"Sorry but they're gonna keep razzing at me til I clean through here once. Five minutes? I'll totally half ass it, don't worry."

From one of the pockets on his PPDC uniform he pulled out a spritzer full of a cleaning agent, from another pocket a set of disposable gloves and a bio-contaminate towel. Hopefully a clean one. He didn't seem too concerned about it anyway, as he held them up with a shrug. No offense, man. Just business as usual. He did eventually remember to tack on a polite address, though it came as an afterthought. "Sir."

[fieldcommissioned]

"Don't worry about it," Herc said, heading over to a bench to take a seat. "Do it right, then whatever mess happens, they can just blame me." His fingers closed over the neck of a water bottle, spout folding out so he could take a long drink. "I'll sign your checklist so they know."

He knew what it was like to be at the bottom of the ladder. Nobody started out with a decent rank. It was something that had to be worked up to. And nobody at the bottom of the ladder needed flak when somebody higher-ranked did something that could get them chewed out.

[lazyinlove]

"Seriously? Thanks." The kid grinned a little, clearly not used to people cutting slack when they could. Of course if he was looking for a promotion, it probably didn't help matters that he turned and made a face at the nearest security camera before he wandered over to give the punching bag a good, thorough wipe down. Not without pointing out -again playing to the cameras- that it was a somewhat phallic task with a few broad, suggestive sweeps.

After getting that little protest in, however, he cleaned the rest of it to specifications. Hey, if someone was going to check it off for him he'd better make sure it was done right. There were a few unnecessary spins and leaps to liven things up as he made his way through the contact surfaces of the various machines and equipment in the area-almost as if he viewed the area as a big obstacle course instead of an orderly gym.

After frog leaping an exercise bike and polishing the seat and handles, he glanced curiously over at the bench. "You're one of the Hansens, right?"

[fieldcommissioned]

Herc stifled a chuckle at the kid's miming. He could tell just what the kid was doing, what he meant by it - and honestly, he didn't blame the kid at all. There were harmless kinds of rebellion and this was one of them.

While he sat and rested, though, he observed, and he could see that there was definitely some agility to how the boy moved. That could be worked with. That could be translated into jaeger fighting -- if that was even what the kid was interested in.

"Yeah," he answered, looking up when he was addressed. "Name's Herc. How about you?"

[lazyinlove]

"Stanley." The teenager responded, moving on to the next piece of equipment and wiping it down as well. It was a boring task, so having someone in there for once to make small talk with was actually a cool surprise. Half of the time he felt like a ghost wandering the building with a chore sheet and the powers of supreme invisibility. No one ever needed him for anything more important than dishing out soggy noodles or scrubbing the nasty stuck on junk out of the beakers upstairs. Eugh.

"It says Stephan on the badge, but it's Stanley." Which probably highlighted exactly how important he happened to be around there. But he didn't seem too bent out of shape about it, if the easy going shrug was any indication. He just moved on to the next piece of equipment and wiped that down too. He got all of the contact areas, but he didn't bother rushing. If he finished one task, they just gave him a new one anyway. No point in killing himself over sanitizing some stationary bike seats, right? "Bet they got yours right, huh?"

[fieldcommissioned]

He smiled, shaking his head. "Got it right enough. After all, a name like Hercules kind of rings in people's ears. Gimme about three days and you'll have a badge with the right name on it."

People deserved at least that much. Especially in times like this.

"So what do you do around here? In trainin'?" Or, Herc wondered, was he working for the food like so many people did. He didn't blame him if that was the case. Food was a necessity of life and outside certain areas, it was getting harder to find.

[lazyinlove]

"Guess so. Cheater." Stanley chuckled, probably breaking a handful of staff guidelines in all honesty. He had vague recollections of agreeing not to bother the Rangers at all, in fact. Something about not speaking until spoken to and all of that. It was just hard to imagine that they'd bother punting him out for a conversation if no one complained about it. The offer was nice, though. Maybe if they did fire him, they'd even get the right guy. Poor imaginary Stephan could keep on keepin' on. This Herc guy seemed alright.

He grabbed the pullup bar and swung up on it, casually perching his bony rear on one side while he wiped the bar across and considered how to answer that question. "I'm a clipboard guy. Just fill in the cracks, wherever the schedule leaks I guess. Except forklifts. You gotta be 18 for some reason."

[ychan]

Serena was doing her best to keep her nerves down, sitting in the interviewee chair with jittery legs and her hands balled up into fists on her knees. Her long, blonde hair was tied back in a ponytail and she was dressed in the cadet uniform.

When the door opened, Serena was already standing, smiling before Herc had even begun to speak. Not having to sit all by her lonesome definitely made it easier to keep herself calm. Even if she had to tilt her head back to look up at him. She gave a small nod in greeting and when she spoke, her voice was heavily accented by French.

"Serena Gabena, Sir." She put her hand in his, shaking it as firmly as she could manage, though age and size difference probably meant it didn't amount to too much. "Good morning, Sir."

[fieldcommissioned]

"Miss Gabena," he greeted, then motioned her over to to the chair she'd already been sitting in. "Nice to meet you. Not too nervous, are you?"

Herc gave her a smile as he seated himself opposite her. He wasn't here to intimidate and that meant remembering not to be too serious just yet. In fact he sat slightly slumped, casual and calm.

[ychan]

Serena gave Herc a small nod before taking her seat, flattening her skirt out once she was sitting down.

"No! Not at all," she said, shaking her head along with the words. It was only a bit of a lie. She was still nervous, certainly, but much less so than when she had been all alone.

Unlike him, Serena sat upright in her chair, back straight. It was more an inclination towards good posture than a result of over-seriousness, though. She gave him a smile, looking forward now to his first question for her.

[fieldcommissioned]

Herc nodded, "Good. Few things I want to tell you first. There are no right or wrong answers to any of these questions, and some of 'em are unusual. Just answer however it occurs to you to answer. You also have the right to ask me questions, and you don't have to stick to the list we're given. This is as close to no pressure as you're gonna get. So."

He sat up, arms coming to rest on the table between them.

"Anything you wanna ask before we get started?"

[ychan]

Serena stared straight ahead at Herc, never breaking eye contact except for when she nodded once or twice at what he was saying. She hadn't even really thought about wrong answers. She was sure there were answers that would be wrong, like if he had asked her why she wanted to be a Ranger and she told him that she liked the color blue. That would have been a wrong answer, she was sure, even despite his words.

And at the news that she can also be asking questions, her smile finally broke. For a second she just looked confused. What kind of questions should she have been asking him?

"Um," she blurted out, at first. "No! We can go ahead and start. Sir."

[fieldcommissioned]

Interesting reaction, he thought. Maybe this was what these questions were for. "All right, then, let's start with the first one. What kind of pets would you like to own?"

Herc thought of Max. And then he thought of how happy Chuck had been when he'd first gotten Max. Yeah, the dog was worth it.

[ychan]

"Well, I already have a lot of pets!" She was close to blurting out that two of them were there. With her. In the Shatterdome. But she managed to keep her mouth shut about that.

"A really big dog at home, and a fox, and birds and a frog and a really fat hedgehog. We worked really hard to make sure they all had enough to eat and kept them safe. My mom and I." She turned her head up in thought as she rattled on about them. "I guess I would want to have all kinds of pets, if I could choose any kind." She stared across at Herc again. "I love all animals!"

But then she wrinkled her nose a little, as she thought about the question again. "But I don't think we own any of them. Any of the pets we have, I mean. They're like family to me! It would be weird to say I own them or something like that."

But then she felt like she'd drifted away from the actual question. "But if I had to choose one that I don't have! Um. Maybe a monkey! I think it would be a lot of fun to play with a monkey." Serena nodded to herself, satisfied with that answer.

[fieldcommissioned]

He was surprised at the conclusions he was drawing just from this one answer. Environmentalist type, maybe here to save the world from the destruction of kaiju blue. Not a bad cause, but a little naive. "I'd be careful about wishing for monkeys. I've heard some horror stories. But let's go on."

Keep it rolling, he thought.

"Out of all the games in an arcade, which one do you head for first?"

[ychan]

"Yes, sir."

She didn't want to say that she would wish for a monkey all she wanted, no matter what kind of stories people told. With only the most positive of experiences with animals, she felt some confidence that she could keep it up.

At the next question she shook her head a little. "I've never been to an arcade. I don't know what sorts of games they have in them!" Even though she couldn't and hadn't really answer the question, she was still smiling. She remembered what he had told her earlier.

"Can you tell me what sorts of games they have in an arcade?"