This is my first fanfiction in a LONG time so please bear with me.

Chapter 1

Chell paced outside of the same shed in the same wheat field she had popped out of just about a month ago. After GLaDOS had granted Chell her freedom, the woman had been both ecstatic and terrified about what would lie ahead. On one hand, she had fought for this during her entire time as one of Aperture's test subjects and had nearly died many times to make it to the surface. On the other hand, however, Chell hadn't seen the outside world in a long time. She wasn't sure how she would get her life back on track.

It turned out that she didn't have to worry about that at all. She had much bigger problems.

Something had happened to the world since she had last seen the light of day. There were no people anywhere, and the buildings that stood were falling to pieces. After a month of wandering around looking for signs of life, and surviving on what little canned food she could find in the abandoned buildings, Chell decided that this was no way to live - lonely and struggling to survive - and had turned around to go back from where she came from.

Aperture Science. The very place she had fought to escape.

Now, Chell stood staring at the door. Was this really worth it? Sacrificing her pride to go back to the giant AI that had tried to kill her multiple times? At least she would have food, water and shelter. And company.

But then again, what kind of company was GLaDOS? And hundreds of turrets? And a few cores? If Chell turned herself back into the clutches of GLaDOS, she may never see another human being again.

The chances of finding another living human outside of Aperture were equally as bleak.

Chell sighed, swallowed her pride, and made her choice. She grabbed the handle of the door to the shed that led to the Aperture Science facility, and pulled.

After an anticlimactic tug at the door, Chell realized that the door was locked. Of course! She remembered GLaDOS words; "it's been fun, don't come back." Why would the door be unlocked if the ruler of the place didn't want her coming back in?

Chell decided to try another tactic. She knocked at the door. Politely at first, like she was just knocking on a friendly neighbor's door. But after a few minutes, the knocking turned into pounding her fists into the metal door.

After 10 or so minutes of this, the door flew open with Chell standing straight in front of it! Before the woman could react, the door sent her flying. She landed with an "oof." But then stood up, and entered the elevator awaiting her.

She heard GLaDOS chuckle at her incident with the door and rolled her eyes. A few seconds after recovering from that humiliation, the gravity of her actions hit her like a fist to the gut. What was going to happen now? Would GLaDOS kill her immediately after stepping out of the elevator? Surely she could, she had neurotoxin, and spiky panels, and firing squads of hundreds of turrets.

Then again, GLaDOS could have killed her instead of sending her away in the first place. She didn't have to rescue her from the moon. The AI could have left her to float away into space with Wheatley and the Space Core. But she didn't. She had saved Chell.

The elevator stopped, and opened straight into GLaDOS' chamber. The dark-haired woman took a cautious step out, and tried to look unafraid of the huge robot handing from the ceiling and looking at her with that yellow optic.

"So, the pesky human returns. Come to destroy my facility a third time?" The supercomputer sounded menacing, yet she had a note of humor in her voice as though she were simply playing a competitive game.

Chell had thought about this long and hard. She had earned her freedom, and thus she had no good reason not to speak anymore. It had been a survival tactic during her time as a test subject, a way to get back at the robots holding her against her will. But now, she needed her voice to communicate.

"GLaDOS. I'm not here to destroy your facility, I'm here to offer you a deal."

To Chell's amazement, the AI didn't seem phased by her speaking. "The mute lunatic finally speaks to me. I knew you had a voice, of course. I have footage of the time the weighted companion cube fell on your fat head, and you grunted before passing out. It's quite funny, I like to rewatch it when I'm in need of entertainment. You humans really are so fragile."

Chell's face flushed. She remembered what GLaDOS was talking about, she remembered it well, though it wasn't a pleasant memory. She tried to stand her ground against the snark. "I'll test for you 8 hours a day in exchange for food, water, and a place to stay."

"Couldn't survive out there? Didn't find any other humans?"

Chell wondered how GLaDOS knew. And if she did know what happened, why hadn't she warned her? "That's not the point, what'll it be GLaDOS?"

"Alright, fine. I must say though, it's not testing that I need your help with now." Chell was astounded. What could the AI want other than her to test? What other kind of task would she have her do? "I need your help to get rid of some pasky morons that have infiltrated my facility."

"Pesky morons?" Chell repeated dumbfounded.

GLaDOS shuddered. "Mantis men. They must have come from an old experiment in Old Aperture."

Please leave a review, there might even be cake.