How do you build a bridge
if you can't find the gap?
-anonymous
The old shed had been very hard to locate again, hidden within the overgrown stalks of the immense wheat field. After two more days of walking around, first to make a cursory exploration of the rest of Prall, then finally to head back to this entrance of Aperture Science, Chell stood with her hand poised to knock on the door.
Do I really want to do this?
It was pretty pointless to be second-guessing her decision to return, now that she'd come all the way, but there was always the chance that GLaDOS would react violently in some unexpected manner—it had certainly happened before. The memories of all her experiences as a test subject flooded back to her, undermining her determination to confront the AI and finally get some answers. The companion cube on the ground off to the side wasn't really helping. She was out of options though, and she couldn't really afford to spend all day out here waffling back and forth, but still she hesitated...
"Are you hoping to catch the Aperture Science Selective Backdoor Emergency Exit on fire by staring at it? You can't eat metal, you know." The synthesized feminine voice rang out from tinny speakers in the shed. Chell froze in surprise, then rolled her eyes and looked around for the camera GLaDOS was watching her from. She spotted it sticking out from under the roof of the shed.
After five days of freedom, it felt surreal to hear that voice again. Here she was, not only trying to get in contact with the AI, but also to re-enter the facility she controlled. I must be suicidal to have come back here.
"Well? What are you doing? I'm not letting you back in only to have you wreck my facility again—which I'm still repairing, by the way. There are plenty of other things you can destroy now that you're out there, but I suppose I should have known you wouldn't comprehend—" GLaDOS stopped when Chell thrusted the newspaper she'd brought with her up close to the camera. The headline declaring humanity's surrender had to be clearly visible, because GLaDOS remained silent for several seconds.
Chell lowered the paper and glared directly into the camera, daring her to make another flippant comment.
GLaDOS sounded just slightly unsettled when she spoke again, despite her words. "...I don't know what prompted you to create this obviously contrived piece of media, but the Enrichment Center is required by law to acknowledge all potential safety concerns brought to its attention. Your concern is appreciated and will be addressed properly." After it seemed like GLaDOS wouldn't say any more, Chell rapped on the door of the shed, looking at the camera meaningfully.
"If you are under the impression that you will be allowed to enter the facility, the Enrichment Center would like to reiterate that you, [Subject Name Here], have been deemed unfit for testing," the speakers responded.
She felt a small chill at those words. Unfit for testing...that was very similar to the start of her first nightmare, but Chell shoved that thought to the back of her mind. She'd come all the way here, she wasn't about to back off now. She knocked again, harder than before, and stepped back with her arms crossed.
She heard what may have been a sigh from the speakers, but the door suddenly swung open, so apparently GLaDOS was at least a little interested in what she'd found. As she rode the elevator down the dark shaft, Chell wondered what the giant machine would do. It seemed that GLaDOS hadn't known about the portal storm or The Combine, judging from her surprised reaction. Did it happen during the time GLaDOS was...non-functional? It was hard to imagine her not knowing about...well, anything, really.
Chell reached the AI's chamber and the elevator doors opened. As soon as she stepped out, though, big metal claws reached out and dragged her over to the wall facing GLaDOS, keeping her firmly in place. Eyes widening, she started struggling as much as she could against the restraints, looking for an escape. No! Nononono...
"Oh, relax," the giant machine said exasperatedly. "Why would I let you back in here after I released you, only to kill you? I just need to make sure you don't try to kill me."
The former test subject warily looked up at her former captor—well, semi-former. It was a strange feeling, being right there next to the AI and not having to fight for her life. It was entirely different from the short moment before she was freed, because this time, she had come under her own volition. She still wasn't sure this hadn't been a huge mistake. It was far too similar to her nightmare for comfort.
GLaDOS eyed her with her yellow optic. "Now, I assume you aren't so brain-damaged and barbaric as to be illiterate." Chell gave her a dirty look, but she was unfazed. "You did bring the newspaper and seem to be distressed by its contents, after all," she said as a strange looking keyboard was pushed in front of Chell. "So why, pray tell, did you insist on entering?"
Her arms were freed from the claws and she reached out to the keyboard, but Chell found herself at a loss as to how to explain her motivations. She wanted knowledge—knowledge about the state of the world, knowledge about her past, and most of all, knowledge about where to go from here. GLaDOS couldn't provide all those things, and she probably shouldn't be her primary source for them, either, but...this place was a known entity. Now that she was back at Aperture, Chell realized how lost she'd been outside—both physically and emotionally. She wouldn't be able to really thrive until she got some answers, as well as closure for this chapter of her life. She wasn't sure how to explain that to the AI, though, nor did she really want to.
"Why didn't you ever give me a keyboard before?" Chell finally typed (excruciatingly slowly). GLaDOS shifted backwards in what may have been surprise, as if she hadn't really expected a coherent response.
"Obviously, there was never a situation in which it would have been both useful and practical," she replied. "Furthermore, I didn't want your dirty little paws mucking up any more sensitive equipment. Now answer my question."
Chell asked another question instead. "Is the newspaper true?"
Before it was fully typed out, GLaDOS leaned forward and back agitatedly, finally leaning in close to observe Chell. "Well, I wouldn't know, would I? Somebody decided to murder me, disrupting the advancement of Science by seventy one years, three months, two weeks and six days, according to the Aperture Science Reserve-Power-Powered Clock. Anything could have happened during that time. I still can't believe you tried to do it again, considering the as yet unquantified ramifications of your actions." GLaDOS moved back to her regular position. "Do try not to do it a third time, will you?" she said snidely.
Chell was flabbergasted. She could tell she'd been out for a long time, just from the initial overgrown and worn down appearance of the test chambers, but seventy years?
GLaDOS ignored Chell's reaction. "As for the state of the human race, I have no way of knowing whether those events occurred. I won't be able to communicate with my satellites until I re-engage all of the facility's main functions. Even then, I don't know if they have survived this long without any trajectory correction and systems maintenance," she said coldly. "Now, answer my question. Why did you come back?" And this time Chell could actually hear some anger in her voice.
Still trying to recover from the most recent revelation she'd had during the past several days, Chell hesitated. Finally, she decided on the simplest answer.
"I needed your help."
GLaDOS remained completely still and silent, her optic trained on her. Chell maintained her gaze without wavering, although she felt a little uneasy in anticipation of her reaction. After what seemed like minutes of silence, the AI spoke.
"You're serious."
Chell cringed.
"After murdering me, leaving my facility in shambles, awakening me only to try again, then expelling me from my body into a potato to put an idiot in charge, very nearly resulting in the complete destruction of everything beyond hope of repair...you come back to ask for help? After I let you leave, when I should have killed you? You are brain-damaged beyond all comprehension."
GLaDOS had started rocking back and forth during her tirade, slowly at first, but then increasing in violence until the fastenings keeping her suspended from the ceiling began creaking under the strain. She stopped suddenly, and made a slow swooping motion, trying to calm down.
"Why on Earth do you think I would help you?"
Carefully, Chell slowly typed out, "It's not much, and you did pull me back out of s—"
"That was on a whim, undoubtedly brought on by the resurfacing of Caroline in my system. But I helped you, granted. What could you even need help with now? There's nothing for you here. I believe I have made that perfectly clear."
Somewhat frustrated at not being able to communicate at the speed of regular speech, Chell tried to elaborate before being interrupted again. "I need answers. Science." It was a longshot, but technically, science was nothing but searching for answers.
GLaDOS examined her, and Chell could almost feel the derision pouring from her. "That's funny. You never seemed too interested in Science before. In fact, the only interest you really showed was in its impediment."
She sighed. This wasn't getting anywhere. Chell decided to just out with the truth.
"I need to know about the state of the world. About myself. I'm can't remember anyth—"
"Interesting. You know, it's not often people actually admit to being mentally...unique, but I suppose you deserve some credit for that."
There it is, Chell thought exasperatedly.
"I can't help you recover memories, obviously. However..." GLaDOS paused to consider. "I need to record any significant changes in the natural environment and human society on the surface, and considering how long it's been since the previous log, that will take a very long time."
GLaDOS looked at her pointedly. "If you want to find out what's happened in the last seventy years, then you will have to contribute to fixing my facility. It's the least you could do, really. Otherwise, you will have to leave."
Chell shifted, starting to feel some discomfort from the restraining claw arms.
Is it worth it? she wondered. She hadn't considered the possibility of having to stay in the facility for an extended period of time, but if she was staying for however long it took to get most of it back online, then...that could be weeks. There were too many unknowns. How could she be sure GLaDOS wouldn't try to kill her? Could she even help in fixing this enormous monstrosity of a facility?
"Where would I stay?" she typed slowly. "What would I do?"
GLaDOS responded after a moment. "There are numerous unoccupied relaxation chambers in the Employee Wellness and Habitation Center. Just pick an empty one. Obviously the one you stay in won't be activated. You will, however, be under constant observation to ensure you don't get any...ideas."
Come on...She really needed to point out that GLaDOS was the one that tried to kill her first, a detail the AI seemed to constantly ignore...although perhaps now wasn't the best time.
"As for your tasks...well, there are maintenance shafts, ventilation ducts, and various other places that you would actually be better suited to access than any of my current robots...as hard as that is to believe. Trust me, you'll be busy; don't expect to be allowed to lounge around all day, eating, or sleeping, or...whatever it is you do in your spare time." GLaDOS paused. "Perhaps you might help explore and collect information from the old facility. I don't want to lose any of my own valuable robots down there, after all," she continued.
No, we wouldn't want that, Chell thought sarcastically. GLaDOS didn't seem to think she could help with her memories, but she had constantly made comments about her file while testing...it may have been just a joke, but there had to be an actual file of her somewhere. She'd have to ask about that later. For now...
"I'll stay," she typed, against her better judgement.
"Oh good," GLaDOS said flatly. "Well, Orange and Blue will escort you to a Relaxation Chamber. I'll be watching, so don't try anything."
The horrible claw arms finally released her fully, and Chell rubbed the painful indents they'd left on her torso and legs. Two robots, the ones she'd seen right before leaving, actually, entered the chamber, making little chittering noises to each other. Orange and Blue...she smirked. What original names.
She typed one last thing into the keyboard. "I haven't eaten."
GLaDOS did the equivalent of rolling her eyes and responded, "Oh, of course. How rude of me. Don't worry, you'll be fed soon. Now go along; we've spent far too much time talking as it is. You will be summoned in approximately eight hours."
Chell recognized the obvious dismissal and turned hesitantly towards the robots. They looked at her for a moment with an almost childlike curiosity, and then the short round one...Blue...led the way out.
An hour later, Chell was in her Relaxation Chamber, mechanically ingesting some cubes of bland, grey, spongy ALF. It kind of reminded her of tofu, actually, but it had even less taste. She sighed as she popped the last bit into her mouth, thinking of the incomparably rich vegetables she'd enjoyed over the past couple of days. The camera on the ceiling in the corner of the room followed her every move. Chell didn't think she'd get a wink of sleep, even though she knew she'd have to get up in less than seven hours.
Was it worth it? she asked herself again. The colorless hallways, the sterile smell of plastics...it was all too familiar. She turned off the lamp and laid back on the bed, trying to relax. Hopefully I'll be out of here again in a few weeks...ready to move on, finally.
After several hours, Chell finally succumbed into a fitful sleep, unsure of what she would face in the morning.
—
GLaDOS observed her former test-subject through the camera in the chamber. Was she telling the truth? Did she come here only to find out about the past? There hadn't been any detectable physiological signs of deceit during their small...discussion...but you could never be too sure with humans.
"Orange, Blue." She called the robots to attention. "The pipes in Enrichment Center sector 92, level 24, are to be repaired next. There are multiple breaches in..." Even as she listed instructions for the repairs, though, GLaDOS kept a watchful eye on the human. Never trust a human. Especially one that comes to you willingly. Never trust a human...
A/N: I hope this chapter wasn't too boring. I tried to set the tone for Chell's and GLaDOS's interactions, as well as dropping a few more hints towards where the story is going (I hope I wasn't too heavy-handed). Not much happened, and I reverted back to the style I'm most comfortable with here. I edited the ending to the third chapter a bit, but I'm still not happy with how it turned out. I have to go more slowly in improving my prose, I think.
I'd like to thank all of you who have reviewed, favorited, and followed my story; it really means a lot. Special note goes to Jamiwami, for your extended and detailed reviews. Any feedback is appreciated, of course. Thank you, all of you!
