test drive meme

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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 is your least favorite color? Which tool in a standard toolbox is most useful to you? What time of day do you accomplish the most? Do you have children? 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 ) Congratulations! You have been judged Drift Compatible, and sent home to pack after giving a definite yes to the Pan Pacific Defense Corps. The next thing you face down is the flight into Santiago, Chile, and the subsequent drive in to Valparaíso's Shatterdome. You and the rest of the crowd of soon to be PPDC Ranger Cadets have been gathered together to wait for the old bus scheduled to take you to the Shatterdome. While waiting in the open air, those from any Northern Hemisphere countries may find the summer weather strange. Today's high is going to be in the upper 80's, and there's not a cloud to be seen that's not clinging to the distant mountains. Welcome to Chile. When the bus arrives, it's another hour ride out toward the coastline to get to the Shatterdome. Even better? The bus Air Conditioner is broken. Safe travels, Cadets!
Please set up your own scenarios as you like. The above two scenarios are suggestions. Anything goes!

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Andrea Martin | OC | Ranger for Hydra Corinthian

[doubleshot]

Scenario One:

Andrea picked up the clipboard, tucking it under her arm as she turned the handle into one of the small partitioned interview rooms. Fascinating how much has changed, she thought, remembering back to tests involving the X-Box as a highlight of mastery in coordination skills. The Pan Pacific Defense Corps hadn't been too far off the mark in considering hand eye coordination to be key, but it wasn't an early indication of Drift Compatibility. Not in Andrea's experience.

She was dressed casual in jeans and a button down shirt, no jewelry or make-up in evidence. A headband kept her hair swept back off her face. She held out her hand to the other occupant of the room, a smile sliding into place.

"Nice to meet you," she said. "You can call me Andy. You are...?"

[secondtry]

"Mike Traceur," he answered, standing to take the offered handshake. "Nice to meet you."

This part definitely wasn't like military school had been. If anything, it was painfully casual compared and left him feeling a little suspicious. He was waiting to hear the shout of a sergeant telling him his shoes were out of regulation, or his gig line wasn't straight. (He couldn't help it. That style of belt just pissed him off.) And in jeans, a henley, and an open button-down, it was kind of hard to have a gig line.

His shoes, however, were combat boots. They were comfortable!

[doubleshot]

"Likewise, Mike." She inclined her head toward him, the grip on his hand firm. She took a step to the side after letting go, pulling out the chair opposite to where he'd been sitting. Her eyes flicked over him, taking in the little details. Whatever impression he made didn't seem to change her outward expression. Her smile remained polite.

"Been through many of these today?" Andrea set the clipboard and questionnaire down on the table, sitting in a smooth motion. She kept her body language loose and comfortable as she invited him into conversation.

[secondtry]

He laughed under his breath as he dropped into his chair, posture not exactly perfect but looking comfortable instead of on edge. "Yeah, a couple," he said, smile edging toward amused. "Every time I answer one certain question, it seems like I get the same look, though."

Now it was more than edging toward amused. He could almost laugh aloud at the thought of it, but what could he say? He definitely wasn't a monk.

"How about you? How's your day gone so far?"

[doubleshot]

Andrea's own lips quirked up in her own amusement. "Ah, let me guess. Father of twelve?" Aiming for the absurd would hopefully provide amusing for both involved parties.

She shrugged, hand settling on top of the clipboard. "I'll consider it a success if I get through the rest of this unscathed. Interviewing's never been my strong point."

Particularly the kinds of interviews they ended up participating in as part of the publicity machine for the PPDC. Andrea was better known for being off screen than on screen, at least for anything not shot at a distance.

[secondtry]

"I'd say I know the feeling, but I really don't," he grinned. "And close. More like 'I have no idea.' I've had a couple protection failures in my lifetime, but I've never been asked for child support, so I really don't know. And as for favourite colour, I waffle between maroon and grey. Depends on what shirt smells better."

Honesty, right? He was here to get the position, here to get in a jaeger, and being honest in these interviews was the way to get in. And honestly, none of these questions probed into anything he'd be interested in lying about. If anything, he wondered what these questions were supposed to measure.

Mike let his arms rest on his thighs, comfortable enough despite the creeping feeling that a drill sergeant was around the corner.

[doubleshot]

"Not on the more visible sweat stains?" Her fingers tapped on the clipboard, amused smile still in place. "I'm more partial to purples and reds, myself. Can't stand pea green on the other hand."

Bad half-memories of ill-sitting dinners as a child haunted the back of her mind. She counted her own blessings, outside of split pea soup. She'd never had to worry about protection failures leading to unexpected family expansion. It had to count for something.

"Are you much of a morning person?"

Re: Andrea Martin | OC | Ranger for Hydra Corinthian

[heliokleptic]

Luke had been too nervous to really look carefully at anyone before he was moved from the waiting room to the small interview room, but as soon as he had seen who else was called with him it was hard to keep a straight face. And, okay, it was impossible for him, he utterly failed. But at least a jaeger pilot was probably used to a certain level of stunned recognition.

"H..Hi. Uh. Holy crap, really..."

Luke's mouth started wandering off before his brain could catch up.

"I mean! Sorry! I-I'm Luke."

Despite the stuttering, Luke was less bashful than startled. He had never exactly given much thought to the pilots that had kept the disaster at Telluride from being even more of one. To him, the pilots were just as hard to realize as the massive robots themselves. Larger than life, unreal, and not someone you just run into. And for all he was trying to get accepted to the Academy, he hadn't really expected to meet anyone but other hopeful wannabes like himself.

It takes him an extra several seconds of staring before he hesitantly goes to shake her hand, even while mostly expecting her to pull it back.

[doubleshot]

Andrea's hand was warm, her grip firm as she shook Luke's hand. Her smile seemed sincere, even as she gave him a speculative look. Something seemed off... Two years ago had a lot of history to fill in, and Luke himself without his family's name wasn't going to ring any firm bells. His reaction told her that he recognized her, little more. Andrea set her feeling to the side, opting to get him settled in and talking before exploring the why of her odd feelings.

Jacqueline would love this. Her co-pilot had a fierce sort of amused love-hate relationship with the fame and lifestyle that clung to all active Rangers, especially after a successful take-down in the field.

"Nice to meet you Luke," she said, inclining her head toward the available folding chairs. "Did you want to take a seat?"

[heliokleptic]

"Sure." Luke responds, automatic, agreeable, before even fully processing her offer. Frankly she could've asked if he'd like to stab himself in the eye and probably gotten the exact same response.

He takes the seat, but doesn't settle, tight with an obvious nervous, anxious energy. He always knew when someone didn't recognize him, in the exact same way he always knew when they did. Not everyone was mean to him, told him off, told him his father got what he deserved, but there was still always that initial look of disgust, distrust that they couldn't quite hide. Luke had gotten good at recognizing it. But not seeing it on Andrea Martin's face was a blessing.

Maybe if he kept just dove right in there wouldn't be a chance for his luck in that department to change.

"What are you doing here?" Abrupt, blurting. He back peddles. "I mean... you're already a pilot. Is this a test?"

[doubleshot]

She keeps her expression nonchalant, her own posture reading as relaxed and comfortable. Luke is so clearly on edge, she doesn't want to further agitate him.

Andrea speaks in a reasonable, affable tone of voice when she replies. "This is all a test, Luke. That's why you're here. As for me?" Here she gestures toward her chest, an unaffected motion. She shakes her head. "How do you feel about me being here?"

She watches his face and upper body, keeping track of his tension levels. "If you'd like, I can ask one of the K-science guys to come sit in with you."

You can deal with the stress, Luke. Communicate why it's a problem, or when you have a concern.

[heliokleptic]

Luke starts a bit, looking over to the glass where he knew they were being watched. He knew but having her talk about it so casually made it sound so much more real, maybe she was running the test? Or at least working with them. Yeah, that would make sense, obviously.

"Um." His eyes wander back toward her, not afraid or alarmed but obviously uncertain. "It's fine? Unless you think one of them should come in here..." What was the right answer? Maybe she didn't want to be alone with him? Seemed perfectly reasonable. Maybe he could fix this.

"Sorry. I'm just surprised, I guess... I didn't mean to be weird. I was just expecting I'd only be talking to..." He makes a nonspecific, half handwave, "you know, other people like me. Just trying to get in."

[doubleshot]

"Kind of a surprise, I can imagine." She smiles, the first big flash of teeth and laughter that comes from a gut level. Short lived as it is, she seems to be in an honest to goodness good mood. "You're fine, Luke! There's no right or wrong answer when you're in here."

Gesturing to her clipboard, she continues to relax in her chair. "It's relatively painless, even if the questions seem ridiculous. DO you feel like going first, or would you prefer for me to?"

Re: Andrea Martin | OC | Ranger for Hydra Corinthian

[protagerrant]

"Yuri," he said, taking her hand for a firm, brief shake. It was probably obvious to Andy that Yuri recognized her right off. His posture straightened up from his casually indifferent sprawl, and he observed her with interest and some small measure of wariness. What were the chances of him being paired with one of the pilots who saved Telluride?

Higher than you think, He told himself. There weren't that many active jaegers and anyway, an attack survivor joining the the PPDC was an old story. This wasn't some weird, backhanded psychological test. Probably.

He relaxed, dropping into his seat and resuming his easy posture, ankle resting on his thigh.

"I didn't know they made pilots do this kind of thing. Unless you volunteered."

[doubleshot]

She was used to the recognition by now, though had she had her way, she'd have been further removed from the spotlight. Rangers didn't really have the option, but Andrea didn't thrive under the attention in the way Jacqueline did.

"Nice to meet you, Yuri." Her own handshake was equally firm, and her posture equally relaxed. Being here as part curiosity, part favor, she knew all she was doing was filling in time while the minds behind the gambles and calculations did their work.

She shot Yuri a half smile.

"I must have at one point, if I'm sitting here now. Though lucky for me, today's not about putting me through the grinder. That's more your honor of the hour." Her tone of voice comes across as dry in amusement, not unfriendly, but aware of the overall situation. "Dubious as it may be. Feel like kicking us off, or would you like me to pull from the list at random?"

[protagerrant]

"Grind away," he offered with wry tone. He wasn't particularly anxious about the interview--he bought that there were no wrong answers, except maybe trying to strangle your interview partner--and he wasn't the type to get starstruck, either. He did want to say something about Telluride, thank her at least, but there was no rush. If the conversation didn't stray that way now he could always find her later.

He had a more pressing question to ask a pilot who had experienced the Drift, but he would wait for the conversation to head toward that direction naturally, too. Jumping too fast on the particular question he wanted to ask could raise some flags.

[doubleshot]

The Drift was inevitable, following the list. Andrea knew the questions typed on the white page, having seen drafts of similar questionnaires over the last six months.

"Talking about grinding down, are you much of a handyman?" Her finger tapped over the second question on the list, looking his way with a calm sort of curiosity. "First tool that comes to mind: go."

[protagerrant]

"Duct tape," he said immediately. "That's about as handy as I get."

It was just a fact that something was always falling apart in his old neighborhood, but anything more involved than hammers and screws was beyond him. He'd always joked with the old lady who'd raised him that he just wasn't a very constructive person. Trying to pick things in the two years after the kaiju attack on Telluride, he'd wished he'd been wrong.

He shook his head a little to clear it--was the whole interview going to be like this, constantly bringing his thoughts back to his hometown? He could blame that on the company, at least.

Still, he'd like to avoid it. He tilted his head, looking at the list without really reading it as he pondered his return question. "... What about you? Find yourself doing much home improvement around base these days?"

[doubleshot]

"I leave the home improvement to the ones with a talent for it." Andy'd never had the mind for domestication, and when it came down to being a handy-woman, she alternated between the wonders of the internet as a go-to manual and calling in the professionals before the situation escalated. Still, she allowed herself a halfway smile. "Usually all I need on hand's an Allen wrench."

Most of what she needed to do with her mountain bike needed little more than a few good hexagonal wrenches.

"The really impressive toolkits are what the engineering and maintenance teams lug around. I'm not even sure when they get around to sleeping."

Speaking of... "Would you consider yourself a night owl?"

Re: Andrea Martin | OC | Ranger for Hydra Corinthian

[ganbareist]

"Guy Cecil," he answers, the name still new and a little thrilling when he gives it. Not that it shows on his face - he looks relaxed, though to anyone good at sizing up body language his nerves are like coiled wire, carefully wrapped. His easygoing smile drops off, however, when Andrea offers her hand - the brief show of anxiety is quickly covered with an apologetic smile, putting his hand up in polite refusal.

"I have a cold - I don't want to make you sick," he explains. "It's nice to meet you, Andy."

It's a lie - the cold, at least. He's not sure if he'd be able to Drift with a girl, not with his... problem, though screening had decided it was possible so long as his anxiety was limited to physical proximity. He had no intention of lying to potential partners about it, but this woman obviously wasn't that. But he had wanted to meet her, honestly. He was intensely curious about what she was like, and he was certain he'd learn something from this - maybe even get a single bearing, if not all of them.

[doubleshot]

"Likewise, Guy." Andrea's an old hand at reading body language, but she can't figure out if it's a tension that has anything more mysterious than the nerves of the present situation behind it. Even the anxiety is tentatively slotted into that category, though she keeps it in mind. She's trained to do that, in what felt like another lifetime.

Her hand drops back down to her side after that moment of hesitation, shoulders dropping a fraction as she schools herself into exuding a greater degree of relaxation. "I hope you feel better soon. Cold's take it right out of you."

She gestures to the chairs, the same kind of uncomfortable metal folding chair that should have gone out of style in the 90's but kept popping back up like bad pennies anyway. She offers him a polite smile, a good fit for the situation. "Shall we?"

[ganbareist]

"Thanks. And of course," Guy answers easily, not lingering on his white lie and eager to get started. Despite the cruelty of such a chair, when Guy sits he somehow just looks comfortable, crossing his foot over his knee and leaning back just enough without too much of a slouch. Maybe his clothes - a well-worn worker's jumpsuit, top down and tied around his waist - help that illusion. Not that he was rugged; he wasn't old enough to pull that off, and he kept himself shaved and clean, though he hadn't quite managed to get all the construction stains out of the skin of his fingers.

"So, how do we start?" Guy asks, for lack of how else to start this. If he managed to get through this whole conversation with the whole 'Hey, you saved my city, wasn't that whole thing awful' conversation skipped, he'd pat himself on the back. "We just ask these questions back and forth?"

[doubleshot]

"That's the general idea," Andy agrees, her own body language relaxing another degree. One on one is easier for her to handle than audiences and crowds. Unplanned as her participation really is, she finds she doesn't mind this.

"Not that anything happens if you go off list. For example, what's your favorite vegetable?"

Her lips pull up at the corner, more a suggestion of a smile than a full on grin.

[ganbareist]

Guy looks a little bemused, though returns the slight twitch of a smile. He leans back, thoughtful.

"Vegetable, huh. Breaking out the hard questions," he replies, voice flat and serious, as though this answer to a vegetable question seized his very future.

Well, in a way, that was reality.

"Well, parsnips, I guess," Guy answers. "You wouldn't think much of 'em but they're pretty tasty. What's yours?"

[doubleshot]

"Eggplant." She's definitive in her answer, though something around her eyes looks amused. The laugh lines there deepen right before she blinks. "Particularly with Parmesan."

She continues to ignore the list. "How about hobbies? What do you do in your you time?"