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28

Ben observed Kyne with a gathering of people near the town's boarded-up mine before he moved to the laboratory. His claws pried some of the wood away to see inside. That was when he noticed Chell and immediately twisted the door knob off. He stepped inside and Chell was never more happy to see the creature than now.

"How did the Chell get into such a thing?!" Ben asked.

Chell glared up at him as he pried the screws from the machine off with expert skill. "That asshole Kyne put me in it!" she spat, starting to stand. "He's planning on taking over Halfpeak and probably going to kill Freeman and his kids if we don't do something!"

Ben's features were almost difficult to read, but she saw a narrowing of his large eye. "Yes. We will confront the Kyne about this and he will face justice."

"Right after I beat his ass!" Chell added fiercely.

Meanwhile, GLaDOS and the androids arrived at the walls of Halfpeak, keeping themselves properly hidden from the cameras. There was a blind spot against the wall where the cameras could not see between a rocky surface and the humans positioned at guard posts could not see them either.

"Okay, we might not be human, but those guns can probably pack a wallop." Rick remarked.

"We will die if we attempt to move." Fact Core added.

GLaDOS quickly worked on typing on a small handheld and Wheatley stared at her skeptically, leaning down to take a look. "What is that?" he asked. "No time for toys, luv; we need to get in there and save our human from their clutches!"

"The technology they are using is ideal for the job, but rather primitive." GLaDOS explained. "I am able to access the protocols of their security systems and they are capable of picking up organic lifeforms and technologically organic ones as well."

"Well we can't very well walk up to them, now can we?" Wheatley muttered, looking up toward the guards. "They don't look like regular old tossers, these guys."

GLaDOS smiled. "I think we can use a distraction."

"Really? Who's going to be dumb enough to do that?"

When Wheatley realized that all eyes were on him, he let out a huff of dismay. "Of course..."

The guards stationed pointed their weapons down at Wheatley when he approached, waving cautiously. "Uh, hello!" he greeted, attempting cheerfulness, "Nice to meet you! I'm Wheatley. I come from a place far away and I'm glad to see other humans!"

The men glanced at each other, confused and lowered their weapons slightly. GLaDOS made a face at Wheatley's attempts and led the androids toward a weakened area in the tall fence. "By all means, tell them everything..." she muttered with annoyance, "You know how that thrills me..." She looked up at Rick and the others. "I want you to infiltrate this pitiful excuse for a domain and locate [Subject Name Here]. I will meet up with you again shortly."

Rick tilted his head curiously. "Where are you going?"

GLaDOS smiled. "I have an idea."

"Who are you?" one of the guards bellowed, leveling his weapon at Wheatley.

Wheatley stood there, trembling a little. His eyes wandered about and he tried to come up with an idea, wracking his natural programming for doing utterly stupid things. But then, he did come up with something and a smirk slithered onto his face. He looked up at the guards.

"So what are two lovely blokes like you doing out there alone anyway?" he asked.

The men stared at each other, features twisting like they had tasted something awful.

Meanwhile, Chell and Ben apporached Kyne's group and Johnny immediately noticed them. He moved with his weapon drawn, pushing it against Chell in a manner that looked like he was simply attempting to keep her from getting too close.

"Move out of my way!" she ordered.

Her anxiousness drew the attention of the crowd and they looked in her direction. Kyne noticed this as well and smiled calmly.

"You son of a bitch!" she spat, struggling against Johnny's strength. "Did you think you'd get away with it?"

Kyne chuckled gently and looked at the mildly concerned group. "And it is these kind of people that Freeman allows into our circle," he told them. "Wild, untamed savages who question our very way of life. Why, who's to say that he may very well bring in Missionaries to our doors? Maybe even the Combine themselves!"

Ben looked back when William approached the scene. "What is the meaning of this, Elliot?" he demanded.

Kyne smiled at him. "Time for a change...Freeman."

"What?" William demanded. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about a change in Halfpeak, Mister Freeman." Kyne told him. "A change that humanity desperately needs."

Kyne reached behind him and removed a pistol, taking a shot in William's chest. William doubled over and Chell watched him fall with horror on her face. Johnny just laughed at the sight and the people around them looked just as stunned. Chell wrenched from Johnny's grasb and bent down, attempting to stop the flow of blood.

"You'll be okay!" she told him. "It went right through. We need to stop your bleeding!"

Kyne chuckled and shook his head. "No. I'm afraid he won't be." he said, pointing the pistol down at her now. "And neither will you."

Chell glared at him defiantly and awaited her death, but a voice from the crowd stopped him.

"Kyne! Look!"

All heads turned and noticed GLaDOS walking up the road. She was alone. Chell's eyes widened in shock and the AI smiled at her, meeting her gaze before turning attention to the humans. Several of them looked stunned to see her while Kyne seemed particularly annoyed.

"Who the hell are you supposed to be?" he snapped.

GLaDOS chuckled softly. "I'm just your little supercomputer going for a walk." she drawled. "I came across the mines that you so generously kept boarded up by the way."

Kyne's eyes widened somewhat.

"Yes. I found your test tube babies too. Oh! The humans didn't know about that, did they?" GLaDOS continued, watching the confused, wary looks on the faces of the humans surrounding Kyne. "So primitive, but I think they do the job rather nicely."

"What job?" Kyne snapped, clenching his teeth.

"Why, killing you, of course." GLaDOS smirked.

Behind her, shapes surged from the houses with a chorus of horrific shrieks - the same creatures that had attacked the two Missionaries in the abandoned down. They raced passed her, going straight for the now screaming humans.

O

Among the chaos, Chell was dragging William to the safety of his home with the help of Ben and met up with Alyx, Dana and Melissa.

"Oh God, what happened to him?!" Melissa cried.

"It was...Kyne..." William groaned, hissing through clenched teeth. "That bastard..."

Alyx quickly hurried to take him to the kitchen. "Ben, I need to medical kit, hurry! Put William on the counter!"

Ben moved to retrieve the item in question while Chell helped the other women guide William onto the counter top. He winced somewhat in pain and Dana looked up at Chell with fear in her gaze. The former test subject returned the stare.

"He should be okay." she told them.

While they worked on tending to William's wound, GLaDOS rushed into the building and Melissa drew her pistol, pointing it at the AI. Chell held up a hand. "Wait!"

The humans stared at her incredulously.

While Ben worked on William, Chell stared at GLaDOS and her gaze hardened somewhat. "How'd you find me?" she asked.

GLaDOS smiled. "It wasn't hard. I just had to follow the footprint indentations."

Chell rolled her eyes with a scoff.

GLaDOS' smile disappeared and she grabbed Chell's hand. "Come on. We need to get out of here." she told her. "Those creatures will keep the humans distracted, but they won't be forever. I have a vehicle proper for transport down the road a few - "

"Wait!" Chell snapped. "Why in the hell should I go with you anyway? You kicked ME out."

GLaDOS glared at her. "I had my reasons."

"Well now's a good enough time as any to explain them to me!"

"Now is definitely NOT a good time!"

While the two were arguing, they had almost forgotten about the humans and Vortigaunt watching them. The interaction was particularly interesting to Alyx, who managed a small smile as if she actually understood what was going on between them.

"...and how do I know things will be different then?" Chell hissed at the AI. "Why would I go back with you?"

GLaDOS regarded her emotionlessly for a long time before she spoke quietly. "Because you could never find a human being who you could be yourself with."

Chell's features were of shock and for once, she did not argue with the AI.

"You can come with me, back to Aperture," GLaDOS continued calmly. "You can return to me and live or you can stay here and die amongst strangers and enemies. That choice is yours...Chell."

The sound of her name on the lips of the artificial woman made a shudder run through Chell's very body.

"Still, coming all this way for nothing wouldn't exactly please me, so perhaps you should go before the big one finds us." GLaDOS quipped.

Alyx looked worried now. "Big one?" she asked. "What big one?"

Suddenly, there was a sound of splintering wood and everyone stepped out of the kitchen to find Space with his head rammed through it, grinning a goofy grin. "SPACE!" he cried happily.

"There's a KNOB, mate." Wheatley snapped.

He stepped inside and the other androids followed behind him. Chell was amazed to see the cores she had last seen in spherical bodies now in humanoid forms. Atlas and P-Body uttered delighted chirps and squeezed Chell in a ridiculously tight hug.

"Uh, look, I hate to break up the sewing circle," Melissa said, "But we need to get a grip on this situation right now!"

Rick flashed a grin. "Get me a gun and I'll show all those creatures what ol' Rick can do!"

Melissa glanced at Chell. "Who's this guy?"

"He's Adventure." Chell replied.

Melissa rolled her eyes. "That's what they all say." She moved to a closet beside them and removed a shotgun. She pushed her way passed Rick and moved to the front door. "Stay out of the way princess and let the women take care of this."

Rick and the others watched her go in disbelief.

"That's my girl..." William groaned, snickering weakly.

Rick tilted his head and watched as Melissa raced outside, shooting at the creatures that GLaDOS had unleashed with a powerful, war scream. "Huh. I think I'm in love." he said.

GLaDOS stared at him skeptically.

O

GLaDOS led the humans and Ben through the chaos of gunfire and the creatures. William was being helped along with Alyx cradling his arm over her shoulder. For an older woman, she could still move with great speed and agility as they dodged weapon fire and debris.

"We need to get out of here!" William shouted. "Where's Melissa?"

They heard Melissa letting out a ridiculous war cry when she delivered a swift crack to one of the creatures' heads with her weapon. Rick laughed with glee.

"Fight the good fight, precious!" he cried.

"YOU!"

Everyone turned as Kyne staggered up to them. His left arm was soaked in blood and burns that seemed to have come from intense heat. His face was seared on the left side to the point that it looked like a terrible, fleshy skull. Chell was frightfully reminded of Cave when Kyne raised a weapon in his hand that looked reminiscent of the Portal Device that she was familiar with. But this was more rectangular in appearance and bands of gold energy danced within it.

"I've worked too hard to have you ruin this!" Kyne roared. "So much work! I will not have you throw that away!"

GLaDOS stepped between Kyne and Chell, but then, they looked beyond the scientist and their eyes widened. A massive shadow fell over them and Kyne's eyes narrowed before he looked over his shoulder. A towering creature loomed over them, blue in color with a thick carapace where chains and mounts had been fused now dangled uselessly. It had a single yellow eye in its flat, toothy head and two massive pincers. It also had a pair of vestifial legs below the trunk.

"What is that thing? What is that thing?" Wheatley stammered in fright, "Hey that thing is moving. I don't like big, moving things that are moving towards me!"

"RUN!" Alyx shouted.

They didn't need further persuasion and fled. Kyne simply watched them go before staring up at the creature. It's yellow eye flashed to red, regarding the very being responsible for its imprisonment and raised its pincers, opening them.

Kyne closed his eyes moments before his body was completely seared by the heat that blasted out of the creature's pincers.

The androids rushed toward the main gate and Chell stopped when she noticed Johnny's torso lying against the doors as if he had attempted it. She smirked coldly and pushed the carcass aside.

"Where's the rest of you, asshole?" she sneered.

"We're trapped." Fact Core said. "Trapped like rats. Small little rats with no hair."

Ben shook his head. "The Freeman has the pass-codes to the door."

William nodded and winced, struggling to right himself as he staggered toward a console near the doors. "It...will just take a second." he said.

GLaDOS stared back, noticing the giant creature moving slowly toward them. "Make it fast!" she commanded. "I've finally discovered something much more fat that the lunatic here and equally as deadly. I do not want to die a third time!"

Wheatley attempted to dig at the ground with his hands. "If only we had a spoon we could dig our way out!"

Melissa rolled her eyes. "Real good. If we had a bar of soap we could carve ourselves a gun and shoot our way out."

"Almost..." William grunted.

The enormous creature continued moving forward and its attention was drawn to the androids and humans. Its yellow eye flashed red and it moved slowly toward them. Chell gritted her teeth and her eyes widened.

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me!" she groaned.

William smiled triumphantly. "It's open!"

The doors slowly began to creak open and they hurried to squeeze through them. The creature raised its pincers and unleashed two jets of scorching air in their direction. Space was the last one out before GLaDOS grabbed him, yanking him out through the doors and to a safe corner before the air could scorch him completely. They made their way further from Halfpeak, listening to the dying screams and monstrous roars slowly fade behind them.

Dana looked over her shoulder and she stopped running. The others stopped and looked back at her when she wasn't following. "We need to help them!" she cried, gesturing behind her.

"They're as good as dead." GLaDOS told her without a semblance of pity. "The best thing you can do is save yourself. We're returning to Aperture. And by we, I mean Chell and my machines."

Chell shook her head. "Let them come with us."

"WHAT?!" GLaDOS stared at her in disbelief.

Rick grinned at Melissa, eying her up and down. "Hell yeah."

"No." GLaDOS snapped, "One human is too much as it is."

Chell glared at her now. "Oh, is that how you think of me?"

"In case you haven't noticed, I have a horrible tendency to KILL humans! How do I know they won't do the same?"

"You've pretty much destroyed their home, so I think it's fair!"

"There's that word again!"

Rick grinned at a perplexed William. "Don't worry. They do this a lot," he told the man with a chuckle. "I call it a good ol' fashioned lover's quarrel."

William's eyes widened. "A good old fashioned WHAT now?"

Dana shook her head at the argument between the two women. Wheatley was standing beside her and leaned to the side. "Sometimes I wonder about them myself, but she's - " He gestured to Chell. " - a pretty good person. Too good for that maniac anyway."

Dana glanced up at him curiously. "What about you?"

Wheatley shrugged his shoulders. "I'm not really a big deal." he replied, waving it off with a chuckle.

Dana smiled. "I bet that's not true."

"Really? You think so?"

"Yeah." She took his hand. "Maybe you can tell me more on the way?"

A broad grin touched Wheatley's face. "I can?"

Dana giggled and the two started forward. Wheatley could do nothing but grin widely back at Chell, delight on his face. Chell just nodded her head in approval and looked at GLaDOS expectantly. The AI watched the 'moron' depart first with Rick and Melissa following and exhaled with annoyance.

O

"Federal regulations require me to inform you that although there have been accounts of death here, the Enrichment Center believes that happiness amongst companions may quell any thoughts of murder toward the empirically amazing scientific construct."

Chell was amused by the stunned looks from the humans as they observed the entire facility.

"So..." Rick began, eying Melissa with a grin on his face. "Want the grand tour by your ol' buddy Rick?"

Melissa smirked at him. "I think I can handle it."

Chell looked at them. "Can you guys give GLaDOS and me some time alone for a minute?"

They departed without so much as a single bit of hesitation, but it was Alyx who lingered and walked over to GLaDOS. The AI frowned down at her impatiently before the human took her hand and shook it slowly. GLaDOS seemed confused by this gesture.

"Thank you, GLaDOS." Alyx said, with a smile.

The AI seemed baffled, watching Alyx depart.

Chell sighed and it made GLaDOS focus attention on her.

"Talk to me." Chell said. "Tell me why you went through all this trouble."

GLaDOS closed her eyes briefly before she finally nodded. "Do you remember when you tested during my second awakening? How I had mentioned you had only so long to live?" When Chell nodded, the AI watched realization lit her face and smiled sadly. "The gears turn..."

"You're smart, GLaDOS," Chell said, approaching her and placing her arms around the android, "Smarter than anyone I've ever known. You could come up with something sometime and we can cross that bridge when we get to it."

The AI stared at her. "And you'd want to continue doing that then... the testing, I mean."

Chell smiled at her and realized it had become more true now that she admitted it. "Yeah."

GLaDOS smiled now. "You're still always going to be a lunatic."

"And you a bossy little know-it-all."

GLaDOS chuckled and held Chell closer.

"Admit it, I was right." The human said after a while. "You missed me."

"I'll admit that the absence of my fat little test subject has been quite complicating on many testing accounts, but I will not admit that you were right."

"You just did."

GLaDOS rolled her eyes, but a fond smile lit her lips. "I suppose I did."