I thought the story jumped too quickly, so I changed this chapter a little, and deleted the transfer. That will be in the next chapter.
CHAPTER ONE-Development of a Giant
He was dying. Everyone knew it. No matter how much he tried to keep a positive attitude, his employees always had a glum face when they saw him. His coughs echoed down the empty hallways. Since the loss of the Olympians and astronauts, Cave Johnson lost the trust of many people. As his cane hit the hard metal floor, he remembered a better time. He remembered a time, which when life gave you lemons, you made lemonade. But no amount of sugar would change his situation. His only hope was that if the GLaDOS project could be finished in time.
"Caroline, more pain pills please," he managed to say in between wheezing. Caroline replied with her standard, Yes sir mister Johnson. It hurt his heart that Caroline would never live forever like he would. Caroline was too modest. She always said she could never run the facility, even when she did it as her job. If only another GLaDOS could be built in time for Caroline. As he thought of the possibilities, Caroline came back with three pills, manufactured by Black Mesa. Cave didn't even care anymore about the Black Mesa-Aperture Laboratories rivalry. In fact, Black Mesa's pills were his only hope for staying alive until the body was completed. Cave Johnson stepped into his chair while Caroline held his chair.
"Mister Johnson, would you like to see the GLaDOS Chamber? Maybe it would cheer you up to see the progress our scientists are making on the project."
"Nah, all it would do would break my heart. There is no such thing as making progress until it is complete. I could die any second, so we can't waste any time on the body!" Cave coughed again and ate another pill. He drank a glass of water and hammered his fist on the table.
"Caroline, turn on the television right now! I remembered something I heard a lab boy say in the halls." Caroline obeyed and switched on the television. It was a commercial for Aperture's products, shower curtains. Cave was furious at Caroline.
"No, not the twenty-four seven Aperture channel! In retrospect, that was a waste of money. One million dollars gone up in smoke! But again, the news!" Caroline hurried to change the channel. Cave watched as the leader of Black Mesa showed off a giant machine. He hung on to his seats as the veil was lifted. It was a giant cylinder, covered with wires, pipes and electrical circuits. It was a Large Hadron Collider, and Black Mesa was planning to use it for creating a black hole.
"Waste of money that was. It only takes a miniature black hole to rip time and space. But this is what's wrong with us. If the government knew about the Quantum Tunnelling Device, I'm sure they'll give us money!" Cave reached for the telephone and Caroline snapped his hand.
"No sir! Remember, if the government knows, Black Mesa knows. That was what one of your posters said remember?" Caroline looked worried. "Sir? Are you alright?"
"I'm sorry Caroline. My state of mind has caused me to think money is more important than science. Ugh." Cave Johnson stood up and walked over to the wall with an uneven gait. Caroline's wasn't any better. Running back and forth bringing pills and coffee had stressed out Caroline. Cave pressed a sequence of buttons and the wall opened up into a room. Cave walked over to his bed and pressed a button. A small bedside window opened, and his coffee popped out, steaming hot. Cave was proud of Caroline's newest invention. The Fifteen Hundred Megawatt Aperture Science Heavy Duty Super Thermos was what he called it. Every time he called it that, Caroline would laugh and tell him, Just call it a thermos, mister Johnson. Cave Johnson looked over at Caroline, reading her favourite book, The Grapes of Wrath. Cave put the coffee in the Fifteen Hundred Megawatt Aperture Science Heavy Duty Super Thermos again and went to sleep.
