Chapter 4: Cries and Eyes

"Heaven knows we need never be ashamed of our tears, for they are rain upon the blinding dust of earth, overlying our hard hearts. I was better after I had cried, than before-more sorry, more aware of my own ingratitude, more gentle."

― Charles Dickens, Great Expectations

Wheatley had learned several things about space.

It was big.

Very beautiful.

And extremely boring.

It seemed like he had been stranded up here for years. Only singing (his secret passion) and the thought of the lady, had kept him from going insane. He spun his optic around for the millionth time, trying to ignore his fellow core's words.

"Space! Space! I'm in space! Are-are you in space too?"

"No, I'm in Aperture. Ah, where do you think we bloody are?"

"Space."

"Ye-"

"SPACE!"

"Never mind, but do you remember the test subject? The nice lady who liked her portal gun and-"

"SPACE! She liked space! She's a space cop! Ba ba ba ba!"

"Please at least try to respond decently, I'm making an effort to hold a conversation here, but of course you have to bloody mess it up! I don't know anything about you- even your name."

Space core's voice quivered, and he said, "My name is...is..."

"Come on, mate. You can do it. No one is here except you and me- and the moon and the stars, but you get my point."

"Kevin."

"Good job, Kevin. Well, my name is Wheatley. It's like wheat, but with a ley at the end. It's a quite unique name, not as unique as Hers or the lady's, but it's still up there. So, what do you like? You know besides-"

"Space? SPACE! Ba! Ba! Ba!"

Wheatley groaned, and because he was as bored as hell, he decided to sing. He didn't know how he knew most of these songs, but they made him feel less lonely. They made him feel like the lady was with him.

"Okay, Space C- Kevin. I am going to sing a song, you know like usual, so please don't start freaking out like you did last time. You can sing along- but, just remember my voice will probably sound better. No offense. Anyway, here I go!"

Wheatley cleared his throat, then started to sing.

"I had a way then, losing it all on my own. I had a heart then, but the queen has been overthrown. And I'm not sleeping now, the dark is too hard to beat. And I'm not keeping now, the strength I need to push me."

While singing, memories of the lady and him fill his mind. His optic drooped down, like a wilting flower. He begins to sob quietly.

Space core abruptly ends his latest rant about space. He looks at Wheatley with genuine concern in his eye. He floats over to him, and taps Wheatley with his handle.

"Hey, hey, mister. Are you okay?"

Wheatley looked up. "Just leave me alone, Kevin."

"But, you're not talking a lot. Something's wrong."

"Well, you're not talking about bloody space for a change- I'm not sure to be either seriously worried or happy. I think it's a combination of both. Yes, yes, that's sounds right."

Kevin started to slightly tremble. His eye flashed a brilliant gold, blinding Wheatley for second. Then, it turned back to its normal shade of yellow.

"It's not my fault."

"Of course it's not your fault, that I feel a bit crappy! It's mine of course. I should have never had betrayed her and even fall in - er, fall into the trap of... friendship with her. We should have been just teammates, nothing more, nothing less."

Kevin's voice suddenly became less high-pitched. "I didn't mean that. I meant my programming. My obession with space. I liked space as a child, I even wanted to be an astronaut, like my father. I told all of his co-workers of my dreams, they used to smile and doubtfully nod their heads in agreement."

Kevin sighed. "My father helped Mr. Johnson get some moon rocks, but both of them ended up being poisoned. I tried to find a cure for my father and Mr. Johnson, but the workers stopped me. They wanted to die. So, they turned my research team and I into cores. They made our special talents our obsessions. And that's how I ended up like this."

Wheatley laughed. "Ha, good story, Kevin. Cheered me up, that's funny thinking that you were a human- it's bloody impossible because all of us cores are artificial intelligence. You're good at making stories up, though. And I'm glad you're talking to me. You... You did before, but it was all about space. Thanks, mate."

Kevin's swirled his optic around, in annoyance. "I'm not lying."

Wheatley chuckled. "Don't worry, mate you already cheered me up. I think I'm at maximum happiness right now. Well, not really- but I feel better than I did before. And if that really did happen, why did you suddenly stop talking about space?"

"I defied the program. They never thought I would end up in space. That was my programming; to want something that I would never get. But, I did go to space. And I remember my past, now. All thanks to you."

Kevin bumped his hull lightly against Wheatley's, representing a hug. Wheatley just floated there, confused as ever.

"Er, what? If all of this, er- stuff, did happen to you, why did you just remember all about it now? It doesn't make any sense."

"The tears of a friend can bring back memories, good and bad ones. Wheatley, don't you get it? You were once-"

Surprisingly, Kevin's yellow optic's glow started to fade. He tried to move closer to Wheatley, but it was futile. He looked like he was dying.

"Um, mate? Are you alright? Um, are you still alive?"

Sparks started to fly from Kevin's body. He screamed in pain, begging for his parents, Wheatley, or just anyone to help him.

A few tense moments later, Kevin's eye turned a dull gray and closed.

"Er, Kevin?"

Wheatley tapped Kevin with his handle.

"Mate? Are-are you alright? Are you alive? Okay... I got an idea. Nod once if you're alive, but dying. Nod twice if you're alive and okay. Don't nod at all if your dead. Okay, do you get it? If not, i'll repeat it. Okay, I'll say it slower this time. Nod once if you're alive, but dying. Nod twice if you're alive and okay. Don't nod at all if your dead. I'll give you a minute to process that, alrighty then."

Wheatley starts to hum a song, while waiting for Kevin's response. After a few minutes, he gives up.

"I am guessing you are dead. It's really sad, actually. Finally, I get someone to actually converse with. And of course they have to bloody die on me. Anyway, I guess I'll have to give you a funeral. Wouldn't be a proper death without one. Even though the dead test subjects never did get one. Quite sad. I'm just glad the lady never had one. I almost made her have one-"

Suddenly, Wheatley got a pounding pain in his head. It was steady at first, but then it came in painful bursts. A minute later, a cool voice entered his head.

"Hello, Moron."

Wheatley rolled his optic in annoyance, but his core started to tremble a bit.

"H-Hello there! Well, I have to be going, you know, stranded in space and all. Haha, well, bye!

Wheatley started to float away, but the voice stayed with him.

"I'm communicating with you through the inner speakers in your core. So, I'm here to stay. Unless, I somehow lose connection with you, but I doubt that's going happen. After all, you can't do anything. Just a stupid, little, metal ball, who betrays their teammates."

Wheatley started to shake in fury.

"I guess I can't get a bloody break! You won! You and the lady sent me to space! But, of course you got to annoy me, even when my friend just died!"

"Hmm, I guess you're trying to fight your own battles now? Even when you have no arms, legs, and no brain. That just proves my point. You really are retarded."

"Well, being in space isn't making me any smarter!"

GLaDOS chuckled. "Oh moron, don't you get what I'm here for. To give you a proper punishment. Being banished into the celestial heavens and slowly going insane over the years of decay and a dying battery is too little of a punishment for you. No one takes my facility and gets away with it! So, I'm bringing you back."

"That's a very bad idea! So, it must be bad, because I'm... Um, made to generate not-so-great ideas, so I can tell what's bad idea when it's thrown out there. Ha, so me going back to your precious facility is not a good idea!"

"Your attempts are futile. You are coming back to get the most painful punishment ever known to science."

The announcer's voice from the facility entered his head. "Initiating Aperture Science Mechanical Touch the Stars Claw: 20% completed."

"What the hell are you talking about?"

GLaDOS laughed. "I'm just getting your pick-up ride. It's very comfy. You'll like it."

Wheatley grunted. "I don't have a good feeling about this. You lie a lot. More than I do! Not that I lie much... Hehe..."

"ASMTSC initiating... 90% completed."

Wheatley sensed a change in the scenery. Coming from Earth was a long silver thing, with two sharp objects sticking out of it.

"What is that?"

"The ride to your doom."

"Sounds pleasant..." Wheatley sarcastically said.

"ASMTSC initiated. 100% done."

"Oh goodie. The claw has arrived."

Wheatley shuddered at the massive object rapidly approaching him. He tried to float away, but the claw always moved faster than him.

The usually toneless announcer, apparently got an update. It spoke in a feminine voice.

"ASMTSC Manual Override: 50% completed."

"Can't you ever go away!" GLaDOS screamed.

"Sorry, mate, but you're the one bringing me too you. I'm perfectly happy staying here, thank you very much. Now, that sounds like a good-"

"I wasn't talking about you!"

"ASMTSC Manual Override is Completed," The voice said.

The claw started to move toward him, but it kept jerking back and forth. GLaDOS kept screaming at the voice to give her full control over the claw. The voice ignored it.

"Hey, Moron! I forgot to tell you something."

"Yes, what is it? Is it a surprise? I just know it's not cake, because you know- the cake is a lie."

"Remember that deadly weapon I almost killed you with. Well, this is it. The magnificent object that practically destroyed you once, is bringing you to me. Your death."

"Why don't you ever stop torturing him? Hmm..." The new announcer said.

Wheatley gasped. "Hello, there, new announcer! Can you do me a favor and well, get this bloody thing away from me! I don't want to die. Please!"

"Don't worry, I got this," The voice replied.

Suddenly, the claw moved toward Kevin. On it's way there, it hit Wheatley and he started to move away from the moon. Soon, he was flying through the sky towards Earth.

"AH! Bloody hell!"

"I hate you, so much. Even more than the mute lunatic-" GLaDOS's voice faded out and the other voice replaced it.

"Good luck, Wheatley."

"Thank you. Wait-What? How-how do you know my name? That does not make any sense to me. Unless, you're the lady! Wait, she's probably dead or testing by now. Agh, and she never talked, so you're someone different."

Wheatley started to enter the Earth's atmosphere. Heat pressed against his core, causing him to scream. Some of the paint on him started to burn off. His pieces of wiring that sticked out of his core, were disintegrated in a mere matter of seconds.

"Personality Construct 144, You have taken 35% damage," The usual announcers voice, rang in his head.

"Ha, nice to bloody know, but I could tell. You know- falling back to the Earth at the speed of a rocket. Haha, all in a day's work- wait, or is nighttime? Well, from here it's both, because one half of the Earth is sleeping, and the other half is awake."

"Emergency Protocol Activating... Step 1 to Crash Landing to Earth: Stay Calm. Step 2: Activate your parachute. Step 3: Don't die.

"I have a parachute? Wow, those scientists sure did think of everything, but how do I activate them?"

"Activating Parachute... Enter Password for Parachute Activation."

Wheatley groaned. "Agh, I'm not good at these. But-"

"Password Incorrect. Try again?"

"Is it Aperture? Or Science? Or Aperture Science? Oh, I know! It's GLaDOS!"

"Passwords Incorrect: Try again?"

"What is it? Is it parachute? The most obvious answer. Someone must have been an absolute retard to make such a-"

"Password Correct. Parachute Initiating... Parachute cannot be open due to extreme temperatures. Sorry, for the inconvenience. Have a nice day!"

"You got me all excited for nothing, huh. Can you tell me what that thing that I'm about to fall into is? It's big and gray, but the sun is out. What, that's the sun? I kind of excepted it to be bloody massive, everybody makes a big deal of it. What's that stuff falling out of the gray thing? Is that... Oh, bloody hell! It's water!"

Wheatley flew threw the storm clouds, getting soaked on the impact. He shivered, as sparks flew from his wires.

Gravity pulled him down, as he witnessed a sun shower for the very first time.

"This isn't very fun. Isn't the world beyond Her control supposed to be, well-fun? Or at least it can make up its mind about the weather. How are the gray things leaking, but the sun is shining? Doesn't make any sense."

Wheatley approached a field of grass, with gray stones in the ground. There were millions of them, but only one human was in sight. She was leaning over a stone, her dark ponytail hung limply behind her back.

Wheatley flew away from her, but the wind seemed to carry her words to him. She sang softly, her voice full of sorrow.

"Just close your eyes. The sun is going down. You'll be alright. No one can hurt you now. Come morning light. You and I'll be safe and sound"

He tried to warn her to watch out, for he was spinning randomly on the air. Only a tiny squeak came out from his vocal processors.

"Vocal Processors are... Damaged. You will be unable to communicate via your voice for 10 minutes."

Suddenly the young girl looked up; she looked so much like the lady, Wheatley realized. Her eyes, were much different though. Her eyes were filled with confusion, depression, hatred, but most of all... Curiosity. Her light brown eyes observed him, greedy for knowledge and excitement.

Distracted by this fascinating creature, Wheatley didn't notice that he was about to crash into a tree. When he did, it was too late. His optic started to slide shut, but he tried to force it to stay open. He wanted to see her.

The human looked very interesting.

Disclaimer: I do not own Portal 2, and the songs, Lights and Safe and Sound.