Air. Fresh air.
She hadn't known that something could feel this wonderful.
She took another deep breath in, stepping forward beyond the shed before letting it out. It tasted clean, so fresh and perfect. Too clean. She frowned, casting her eyes back at the shed, stepping forward again, expecting to hear GLaDOS's musical laugh as a test chamber built itself around her.
Nothing.
It was the first time she had relaxed, she realized. The first time since she had been put into stasis before her first set of test chambers. It felt odd, not holding her beloved portal gun. It felt odd... not having to really run from anything or anyone. Just her and the companion cube. Even if there were no humans left - and Chell sincerely hoped that there were humans left and that GLaDOS hadn't been 'enhancing the truth' - the two of them could live the rest of their days out pretty happily. The warm feeling of bliss spread over her features, and she sighed, allowing that crisp air to flow through her once more.
...The feeling faded not three seconds later as she heard a high pitched, rather angry sounding growl.
Chell jumped, taking her cube into her arms and backing away slowly, cursing the long fall boots and the clicks they made every time she took a step. The woman had been in stasis for a long time, but the growl that she had just heard didn't sound like any animal she was familiar with. Or, at least, nothing native to Michigan. It sounded like some sort of canine, if it was being kicked repeatedly in its privates while its vocal chords were bring stabbed with a knife. She wished she could say it sounded like something dying, but that would have been more of a comfort than the noises whatever the mystery creatures were making.
The whines grew louder, sounding rather wolfish yet still completely foreign to her. Then more were added to the single whine, creating the most unpleasant sound that Chell had ever heard. It was like a concert of nails on a chalkboard. Then the whines became barks, like newborn puppies. She tensed again, not trusting the now seemingly harmless sounds.
It was the right move to make, because then they pounced. She was barely able to move out of the way, accidentally knocking one of the three creatures away with her cube. It bolted, whimpering as it charged back into the wheat. The remaining two let out irritated noises, shaking themselves out and allowing Chell to get a good look at them.
They were horrifying. They moved like dogs, if said-dog had only one natural back leg and no muzzle, but they looked nothing like any sort of dog that Chell had ever seen. What seemed to be a million violet eyes were peering back at her, hungry and desperate. It was both sad and terrifying, and the woman was filled with a sudden desire to give them each a slice of meat. Of course, that's what I'm going to be ending up doing, except I'm the meat. In a rather horrible way, it was kind of funny. She had survived all those tests, all of GLaDOS's murder attempts, just to be taken down by bizarre looking dogs.
She had not come this far just to die now.
One of the creatures leaped at her alone, drawing an angry bark from the larger of the two. Obviously something hadn't gone according to plan. It worked in Chell's favor, though, and she was quick to dodge it before knocking it away with her companion cube. The smaller creature yelped, following its long departed friend back into the wheat field. Two down, one to go...
The final one looked uncertain, timid. It let out annoyed little whines before tensing its body, shaking violently. Its whines began to build as it continued to throb wildly, as if-
Oh.
She jumped back against the shed just as the ground surrounding the creature exploded, the sound it emitted bursting her ear drums as she tried to cover them. Catching what it considered to be its next meal unaware, it lunged, landing a blow on her torso but failing to mortally wound her. She let out a cry, kicking it away as it tried to recover. It yelped, moving back before beginning to circle its prey again. Chell could almost see the confusion and indecision in its million eyes, whether it was worth it to try and catch something that was fighting back.
Blood was seeping through her shirts.
Gritting her teeth, she observed the creature's movements, recognizing them as something that a dog would do if play-fighting with another. They were very similar to dogs, these creatures. Perhaps the future-dogs had inherited their ancestor's natural loyalty or at least instinct. "Hey, get!"
It stopped its circling, tilting its body in confusion. It was the first time that the human had spoken, and also the first time that it had encountered speaking prey. It let out a little whine, moving back cautiously. Chell nodded enthusiastically, trying to reduce the amount of fear that was visible on her face. "Good, good... doggy. I'm not good food for you, okay?" It was probably a lie, but she didn't care. The creature seemed to relax, letting out a little whine as it cocked its head.
"Do... do you know fetch?" She always used to play fetch with her dog before she became a test subject. The black lab had always enjoyed the game. The future-dog, however, didn't seem to understand what she was talking about. It was to be expected, really, and she wasn't sure why she had thought otherwise.
Moving her hands slowly, she unclasped her left long fall boot and gently removed it from her foot, eliciting a whine of confusion from the beast. "It's okay, see? Chell's not gonna hurt you, no. I promise." The boot was heavier than she thought it would have been, and she grunted with the effort. Usually a lift like that would have been no problem, especially with the assistance of the portal gun. But as the blood continued to leak from her side, she could feel herself weakening.
"See the boot, huh? Go... get it!" She tossed it with all her might into the wheat field beyond, and the future-dog stupidly chased after it, rump wagging as if it had a tail. With a gasp, she thunked her head on the shed door, clutching at her bleeding side. Even though she had managed to chase away all the creatures, it still hadn't been enough. She was still going to die.
"I must say that I'm... impressed."
She turned her head quickly, heart pounding as she looked for the source of the voice. "H-hello?"
"You didn't have any sort of weapon... Yet you still managed to chase them off. Odd. Yet, refreshing. I haven't seen anyone do that before. At least, not one like you, Miss... Chell."
"Who the hell are you? How do you know my name? Why didn't you help me?" It would be just her luck if all humans in the future were jerks. The strange voice - it belonged to a man that had difficulty speaking in English, apparently - only chuckled.
Then, in front of her eyes, a man appeared.
He looked to be getting on in her age, wrinkles adorning his face and brown hair thinning at the top. His eyes were an almost shocking shade of green.
And strangely, he was wearing a business suit. Perfect condition with not a single speck of wheat or dirt on him. That, along with the briefcase he carried, seemed like he was on his way to an office or a meeting. Of course, that just begged the question of why he was in the wheat field anyway, speaking to her like he had known her all his life.
In response to her questions her only swallowed, fixing his tie before staring back at her. A small smirk adorned his face for a quick second before it faded, leaving his expression neutral.
"I have... Miss Chell... an offer that you simply cannot," she didn't like the way he said that word, "refuse. I've been... watching... you for a while now. Seeing how you work... how you survive. And my... employers... are interested in you. It is, of course, your choice. But we both know the correct one, don't we?"
The way he smiled at her in such a condescending way... It made her shiver. Yet, he was right. If she refused his 'job offer', then would the man be cruel enough to leave her to die of blood loss? He certainly hadn't helped her against the future-dogs. Besides, getting a job meant reintegrating herself into society, which was what she wanted, right? GLaDOS wouldn't take her back, and she had nowhere else to go...
"I, uh, I guess... I'll take it? A job's a job... right?" He only smirked at her in response.
"Excellent."
Chell could feel the air tightening around her, eyelids drooping. She recognized this sensation from the first two times.
"It's not quite your time, though, Miss Chell. Not quite."
If she had any energy left she would have given him the finger.
The world went black again.
A/N: I've wanted to do a little connecting piece with the Half-Life and the Portal worlds for a while now. And what better way, thought I, than the G-Man?
...That's really all there is to this xD; I probably won't be continuing it unless people really want me to. It works on its own, I think.
Reviews are loved :3