Chapter 12 – Surprise!
A/N: Portal 2 spoilers ahead. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.
Josh ran back to the Enrichment Center, still feeling jumpy from the effects of adrenaline. Opening the door, he failed to notice that the lobby's light was turned off. When it turned on, at least twenty ponies were standing right next to him. "SURPRISE!" they yelled, making Josh scream and duck under a table. Pinkie Pie ducked under said table. "Hey, what's the matter? It's a party!" Josh looked around, and realized where he was. He came out from under the table, blushing. "Sorry. Surprise can mean something a bit different where I'm from." At this, the festivities started, and Pinkie Pie playfully punched him in the leg. "What else could it mean but FUN?" she asked. Josh shivered. "Neurotoxin," he nearly whispered. Every Aperture scientist had nightmares of GLaDOS's unrealized fury. Josh brightened up quickly, however. "But that's behind us. PARTY TIME!" he yelled, sauntering off to the food area. Pinkie laughed and went to dance.
Josh met Twilight, who was drinking punch. "So, party boy, this is your welcome to Ponyville," she remarked, taking a sip. Josh grinned. "So, I'm a citizen now?" The mayor came up and nodded. "With full privileges thereof!" Josh grinned. He couldn't possibly be happier. "As a matter of fact, this is something I very rarely do, but you guys deserve it," he said, bringing out a small button. About half the ponies cowered in fear. Josh pressed the button, and a panel was removed on the ceiling above the food table. A huge Black Forest cake was brought in on a plate, and those who were cowering stared at the size. "The one and only cake," Josh said. "Normally, this is a motivation for Test Subjects only, but… what the heck, it's a party. Dig in!" Every pony immediately rushed over to devour the delicious cake. "So good!" "Amazing!" and "Delicious!" were heard.
Twilight grabbed a slice, and took a bite. "Wow," she said. "Good stuff!" Josh nodded. "We took a survey among the entire population of America to figure out what was the best kind of cake, and Black Forest was the winner." Rarity trotted up, eating a small slice of cake herself. "Simply divine, dear," she complimented Josh. "Anyway, there are a few presents for you on the table. Ready to open them?" Josh grinned and saluted. "Ready!" He walked over to the table, and picked the first present he could find. It was huge, and flat. Rarity gasped. "Ooh, that's my present!" Jack opened it with a mechanical precision, taking care not to rip the paper. He was met with a jewel-encrusted robe, fit for a human. "It's beautiful… Thank you," Josh said. He put it on, and started towards the next present. It was from Pinkie Pie, and was a box of cupcakes. "Baked specially for you!" He read. Pinkie Pie jumped with joy.\
The rest of the gifts were equally great, right up to Princess Celestia. It was a very simple brown box, almost identical to Cave's original message. Josh stared. "Something wrong?" Twilight asked, concerned. "This looks exactly like the box that my CEO had," he said. "It was the thing that told me to come here." He read the card from Celestia. "Found this in the Royal Archives, addressed to you. Enjoy!" Twilight attempted to open the thing with magic, but gave up, exhausted. Josh, meanwhile, took the box from her, and said "Open." It immediately opened, and Josh pulled out a single sheet of paper. He paled at what was written, and put it back in the box, carefully closing the lid. Twilight noticed the expression on his face, and started wondering what was written there. Josh noticed this, and immediately grinned, trying to cover up his mistake. "Um, nothing, just personal stuff," he blushed. "It must be pretty personal to make him look like THAT," Rarity whispered as an aside to Applejack, who nodded.
When the party was over, Josh excused all the ponies but Trixie, saying he 'needed to get ready for Opening tomorrow'. Trixie then excused him to bed. "You've had an exhausting day," she said. "Get some rest, I'll prepare the facility." Josh was reluctant, but eventually gave in. He hung up his robe from Rarity in the closet, which was now actually a closet, and climbed into bed. "Say, Josh." Trixie spoke up over the intercom. "Yeah?" Josh said sleepily. "What's a GLaDOS?" Josh bolted up, eyes wide. "Ah, er, nothing! Nothing at all!" he hurriedly answered. "Josh, you're hiding something." Trixie complained. Josh sighed in resignation, and began explaining.
At the end, Trixie was thoroughly horrified. "So, that's what you meant when you were installing the electric disabling system? One of us could go insane and kill people with neurotoxin?" Josh sadly nodded, sitting in a chair inside the Main AI Chamber. "That's correct," he said. "No one knows what went wrong with Caroline, but when she was made into GLaDOS, she snapped. Now, she tries to kill us within one-tenth of a picosecond of activation." Trixie was horrified, but at the same time angry. "Well, of course! Every one of you betrayed her!" Josh considered this thoughtfully. "True, but it was our CEO's orders. And his dying wishes." Trixie cocked her head. "He died? How?" Josh ruefully smiled. "Well, normally we're allowed to tell no one, but you are an employee now. He died from a combination of deadly moonrock dust, and attempting to poison some curtains for the United Nations with mercury. It's really rather embarrassing." Trixie almost laughed. Josh excused himself to bed, noticing that almost all the display cases were up.
Trixie, meanwhile, was finishing up on the display cases, using a model of a 1960's Aperture display area. Everything was there, from the Excursion Funnel to the Sentry Turret, still removed of it's willingness to shoot. Also present was the Great and Powerful product line, with custom fireworks and magical potions for entertainment. These were placed in the lobby and the Central AI Chamber, which showcased both of the AI bodies with a large placard. Trixie smiled, looking at her work. She then disconnected from the suit, leaving the Enrichment Center to its own devices, and went to her room, marked with her name. It was next to Josh's, and had been specially remodeled for ponies. She sighed with pleasure and drifted off to sleep.
A/N: Bit of a short chapter, but it's more filler than important stuff. And I promise, most if not all questions I found in the reviews will be answered in the next few chapters.
