Party escort submission position.
A/N I'm sorry it's been so long, the chapters huge and it was rather intimidating for me with this + Year 12 tackling me. The good news is, I'm nearly out of school, 2 more weeks and all I have left are tests. :3 But yes, It took me ages to edit this, and in the end, I've gone over it enough times not to care.
It was cold; freezing. Like a fine coating of dusty ice had come to rest along my skin, my blood transporting the chill all through my body. I shivered involuntarily, feeling cloth shift around me. It was hard to move and my skin felt tight, like something was bound around it. Whatever it was, it didn't do much to keep out the chill that seemed to have consumed my body.
The only thing that was warm was something pressed against my chest. A heavy, crushing weight that was somehow familiar.
I felt it shift suddenly. A harsh jerk accompanied by the quiet spray of sparks… I had heard it before somewhere… but… where? It was hard to hear over the constant beeping to my right, the sound could be anything from a timer to a bomb, and I'd learnt from experience that the two could be very closely linked.
I forced my eyes open, wincing as I did so. Something was wrapped around my forehead that prevented me from opening them any further than a thin crack and it set all my senses on higher alert then they were before.
"Hmm... What then… what then…? Another sorry? Nononononononono. She wouldn't like that, nope, she would absolutely hate that, it's a terrible idea, she already wants to kill me, I mean, I would, if I was in her place, and uh… five hundred and sixty two- three apologies isn't going to make it any better. I mean, look what I bloody did, no help at all Wheatley, you promised to help her and look how that bloody ended, horrid! That's how." I tensed. Was that… that wasn't even a question worthy of thinking, it was Wheatley, I glanced down tiredly to see him partially under some sterile white sheets, sheets? Who would care enough to give me sheets? GLaDOS wouldn't, and as far as I knew there wasn't anyone else living around here, save for the creepy stalker that painted the walls.
I shifted, sitting up roughly with my good arm, not that it was necessarily any better than the others, it was after all covered in some pretty bad burns—bandages? It was covered in… bandages? I checked out everywhere else, bandages where the worst of the burns had been, my arm however, remained in some dull but constant pain around the shoulder, slowly I shifted my free arm around and clasped the also bandaged hand over my dislocated shoulder, and with a muted and pained grunt, pushed it back in with a loud pop.
"AHHH! What the hell was—you're awake! -Is that healthy? Oh! On more important matters are you healthy- Alright? I mean, I know you can't answer but... A jump, a nod, anything?" He struggled to turn his optic to see me properly, a difficult task when my arm was looped through his handle. "A-Actually, don't move, She said that if you move and injure yourself any more, then I was going straight to the room where all the robots scream at you—for no reason, whatsoever, remember that ghost story I told you? Yeah, well that's it… really creepy down there, not that I've been and I really would not want to go down there myself—but are you? Okay I mean."
I shook my head, letting the small core off my arm with my free hand, tucking him on my lap as I sat up properly, swinging my legs around. Good, my long fall boots were still safely attached, (at this point I wasn't a hundred percent certain they could come off) the arm I'd been holding him with hadn't been treated, nor had he been pried from my grasp, obviously it had been a bit difficult working around the rest of my unconscious body, let alone the bit that had a death grip on the metal ball currently in my lap. As he settled himself there, handles waving wildly to adjust themselves I came to realise that he had been the comforting warmth on my chest, he swivelled his optic to look at me even as I thought it, and he smiled reassuringly even as I shook my head.
Right before a twitch broke the look, he glared towards where the sparks had flown from, obviously displeased at how much worse his twitch had gotten, I felt a little bit guilty, knowing that it was my handy work with the corrupted cores that had probably induced it. He looked back at me, a faint twinge of worry now occupying his glowing, cracked optic. But I really wasn't alright, my shoulder stung and all my limbs felt like they'd been placed individually on a rack, my entire body radiated a faint burn, the cold air touching it only made it sting… I must be bruised everywhere. Admittedly however, I was a good bit better from directly after the battle, when I had lain panting and sobbing on the cold wet floor of Aperture, GLaDOS had done a good job of fixing what She could, (If it was actually Her) though whether She did this out of pity, sympathy, or a need for a not half-dead test subject was currently unknown to me, and that in itself was rather terrifying.
"Alright, so uh, you are not okay, glad we got that down. Not okay. See, one solid thing we know, very good to have some solid details in- in a situation, yeah." He twitched in my lap, sparks flying up a few centimetres before fading away, lighting the dark room that little bit more than the half dead fluorescent light. I only noticed the dull buzz now, it was hanging from the ceiling by a wire and I was honestly surprised it hadn't fallen yet. By the look of the run down walls and patchy floor this was one of the rooms where Wheatley had enjoyed a field day smashing into a wall in a type of manual override. "N-not that I'm saying this is a situation- I mean, it could be if you- uh- strained the term, but other- otherwise not a situation, nope, so- uh, just remain calm and... How about you just be you? That's a good thing to be, because you—you are very good at being calm and Uh..." He kept glancing nervously away as he steadied himself with his two handles, there wasn't much to look at that wouldn't remind him of something he didn't want to be reminded of.
I checked myself over silently, my left arm really needed the bandages more than my right arm, the messy gash on the forearm had been tended to with a small sticky piece of gauze, but otherwise the burns remained, as did the bruises, I discovered, where Wheatley had been looped around my arm.
"So... How about 'alive.' I mean, you look alive, totally alive, no doubt there, but I rather have your opinion, you seem to be pretty good with opinions... When the jump needs some extra… uh, oomph... that's how you humans say it right? Oh! And when... uh... when that cube is about to fall into a vat of toxic waste... Acid... whatever that goo is, that's another one!" A dark silence stretched on in the hollow light and I tugged idly at the end of the bandage wrapped tightly around my right arm. Who could have wrapped me up? GLaDOS had her claws, but I didn't think they were dexterous enough to wrap around my arm like this was, perhaps there was another human about, or she had access to some kind of android.
Wheatley simulated a quiet cough, trying to break the awkwardness that often came when I was asked a question, all it really achieved was sending out another small spray of sparks, he looked away once more, focusing on the dangling light as it buzzed hypnotically, finally he looked back at me with that sheepish little smile he had when he told me I might have brain damage. I guessed I had a faint glare lighting my eyes by the way he was trying desperately to shrink himself. "So…uh, you... You haven't killed me yet? Or... Are you just thinking about ways to get that done?" He asked quietly, I tilted my head in confusion but he wasn't paying much attention, too wrapped up in his little speech. "Emancipation, incineration, electrocution... See? Plenty of suggestions, plenty of-" he twitched again. "Ah! For God's sake—oh, um… plenty of big words there; just don't leave me to the birds, anything but the birds." He closed his optic tightly and shook his head resolutely, well, his optic shifted from side to side, but he himself couldn't move much. "Evil things, those birds... With their beaks an Uh... Feathers! Nasty things those feathers. And can't forget the claws, claws are very important there, good at... Clawing at- optics. Or eyes, can't forget the eyes… and if possible please don't leave me in the room where all the robots scream at you for no reason,"
Oh, that was right, he betrayed me, brutally, as in dangled a piece of freedom above me then threw it into an incinerator… not that I had forgotten, of course I hadn't forgotten, how could anyone forget being betrayed like that? I just didn't like to linger on it, at all. Because when I looked at the core in front of me, quivering quietly in his own shame; I could tell it wasn't the same core who tried to kill me. It was the one who woke me up from my cryogenic prison and helped me find the portal gun, the one that helped me escape from GLaDOS, the one that I carried over half the facility when his management rail snapped from a falling beam She tried to crush me with; well, less than half, I alone could vouch that the facility was pretty massive, both on this level and far far below.
I smacked him lightly on the hull with a grin and he cried out in what was intended to be a response to me hitting him with something like a metal pipe.
"AAAHHH!—that... uh... that was pretty soft actually. Not... not really punishing, Nooo..." He started chattering again, celebratory now that we had established that my first and foremost thought was not trying to murder him in the most brutal ways possible. I pet his hull quietly, giving him a peaceful little smile, quieting him almost instantly. He looked up at me with a wide innocent optic that promptly broke into a pleased grin. I was honestly surprised he didn't start purring with the look he had. "Oh... uh... that's... that feels rather nice actually... what are you... uh... I'll be quiet now..." He started a quiet hum, almost like a purr and my expectations were fulfilled, I smirked, I hadn't known he could even make that sound, but it suited him.
I looked up, keeping my hand on top of his hull comfortably as he hummed, glancing around the room with what little light I had, the light above, as if on cue, started fizzling and it dulled considerably. With the light that was left I found what looked like a decrepit infirmary. It would have looked better if it wasn't so… destroyed. The shelves nearby had buckled in on themselves and hadn't held anything in a while, there were two other cots; mine however seemed the only one not about to keel over.
Suddenly the light sparked before crashing to the ground with a trail of sparks, thrusting the room in darkness interrupted only by the loud crashing sound and the explosion of light that quickly faded to nothing. Wheatley screamed again before I tapped him, wincing plaintively. "AHHH- Oh, uh, it's rather dark now isn't it? I'm ah… I'm guessing that was the light, yep, must have been, told you the light was on the blink." His glowing blue optic nodded sagely and I sighed aloud, picking him up and effectively shutting him up. I turned him around in my hands to try and look around.
"What are you-? Oh, right, of course." His flashlight turned on suddenly with a painful looking spark; illuminating the near-black room in a sudden flash and I winced against the light, holding it away as I blinked away the spots dotting my vision. When my vision cleared I was grateful for the fresh illumination that didn't flicker as much as before, even if I suddenly felt blinded. "There, let there be light, remember that? Good times... It was- Uh, right before She woke up... Which uh... not quite my fault- I mean- It sort of was, but I didn't mean it..." I shook him slightly and he went quiet, resting him on my lap I began to work on the bandage again, prying it loose. "Hey—hey stop that! C'mon Luv, stop it, that's not good—She'll kill me. I mean, quicker than before." I glanced up at my new apparent pet name, blinking curiously before I returned to ignoring his protests, peeling the bandage loose completely and working on wrapping it around the burns on my other arm, carefully pulling it tight as he watched fascinated.
"Brilliant! What a good idea! And your other arm doesn't look too bad either! Pretty good hey?" He piped. I grinned, the jumpsuit had protected most of my body from being burned, probably because it was Aperture made, and whatever GLaDOS had done had definitely eased the redness of my right arm, if anything, I was probably ready for some more tests, not that I wanted to test, I much rather leave.
Finally I stood, stretching plaintively with Wheatley clasped tightly in my hands, washing his light over the walls, a broken window with shattered artificial lights, another broken window… a decrepit painting, a slightly more intact window- a door! Slowly I started towards it, keeping one eye on the floor to avoid stepping on too much debris and being very careful to avoid the still sparking light. "Oh! A door, I guess we'll need to go through... I mean-" he twitched again, the light he was giving off jerking violently before settling back into place, he sighed, defeated and readjusted the light diligently. "Blasted circuits… but uh, is now the most opportune time to go through? I mean... I'm not saying don't go in there, anything but that, you can go wherever you bloody want, I won't stop you—But really, luv, you really should rest a tad more, you know, rest that ah… arm of yours, it must be… must be tired from holding onto me… in the ah, void of space."
I turned him around impatiently, wincing at the flashlight before he turned it off quickly, his bright blue optic staring at me innocently as he thrust the room in darkness once more. He had used that new pet name again 'luv.' He had used it before when he was all crazy, but he seemed in his right mind.
'What's over there?' I wanted to ask him, of course lacking a voice I settled for pointing to where the door was, tilting my head quizzically. His optic disappeared as he blinked sheepishly, looking away nervously once more. I tapped him again and he flinched, eyes focusing on me again as I pointed towards the door even more determinedly, being careful not to jerk my arm as I did so.
"You- you want to know why or uh… what? Uh... Well, Uh, for one you're still a little injured, lots of uh… burns there. Once again: I really really didn't mean to do that—really did not know what I was doing, especially with that failed hack, uh… and there could be anything over there! Mashy spike plates- that spit fire! Oooh, scary those things—even if I never quite got around to making them… or what about an acid pit?! That would be horrid wouldn't it? Absolutely dreadful!" He wriggled in my arms plaintively, obviously trying to be as distracting as possible, but I was having none of it. I adjusted his weight as he wriggled. I had never noticed how heavy Wheatley really was before until he actually tried to be heavy; he'd always been in the hold of the portal guns gravity field... except when I had to catch him when he dropped from his management rail. I swore to God I'd broken my knees... Or that time he had tumbled from the neurotoxin tube screaming bloody murder as he bashed along the sides and I'd just managed to catch him in both arms, dropping my portal gun at the last second; that little heroic made it spark a little more than it should. But I'd never had to hold him long with just my hands, I'd always sit him on my lap and quickly equip the gun again, activating the gravity field so I'd be able to move more freely again before GLaDOS decided to try and kill us for the hundredth time.
But he was heavy, he tugged on my arms like a dead weight, I had to hold him with both hands wrapped firmly around his cold handles and let him hang by my waist as I continued to glare at him suspiciously. What was behind the door that he so badly wanted to avoid? Was it GLaDOS? We could take
Her down again, using a different tactic obviously, but I would be here to protect him, and She owed me, big time, I could have let that bird peck Her to death, but no, I helped Her out, She had to help me back, and She promised freedom. Whether I believed that or not was another matter, I'd had it promised to me before and had it cruelly taken away, but at least GLaDOS had some semblance of how to make a promise.
"Uh, are you still angry at me? Listen- I am so sososososo soooo sorry, sorrier than you could ever imagine. Humans have great imaginations—well, that's what my database says and I'm sure yours is fairly big- but Uh- thing is, good news! She's still very much alive, your uh… friend-enemy, giant, omnipotent AI that used to want you dead? Well, She still very much hates us, well me mostly, I'm still a little iffy on whether She hates you or not, But uh… I'd be being tortured-" Another twitch made me nearly drop him once again as it briefly lit the room. "Ow—can you just hold off for thirty seconds—b-but you saved me, twice, She couldn't get me off your arm, very good arm that, by the way, strong grip, very uh... firm. But I'm fairly certain She's behind that door, well, I'm fairly certain there's an elevator first, uh, and She'll be waiting, for you... And me, She's not all that happy with me and I'm fairly certain She's very happy to get her test subject back... if uh… if not that She might be a teensy bit upset that you held on and uh… wouldn't let go, despite being unconscious." I stared at him for a long moment before I readjusted my grip and took another wobbly step towards the door, shuffling to kick away anything I might trip on.
So She was still out to use me as Her little test subject? Despite everything. There goes all my trust for AI's, here is me taking it, and throwing it down the incinerator, no matter how things were now, I didn't trust Wheatley yet, I was still afraid if I plugged him into the wrong port should he ask, that he'd try and kill me again… but if She still wanted me to test then fine, I'll just find my own escape; all over again.
Wheatley immediately started blabbering again. "What?! Didn't you hear me? Lady! She's waiting for you to bring us both out there! You're walking towards a room filled with neurotoxin! Acid pits! Mashy spike plates! Lady! Nononono!" I gave him a quiet pat, reassuring him silently and adjusting him so he was safely in the crook of my arm. I fiddled with the door, hands searching for the handle blindly and scrambling to get a grip on it before finally managing to tug it open. Wheatley squirmed as I refit his handles into both hands again and kicked the door open, revealing an all too familiar room, round with screens flashing to life with the usual warnings and a cylindrical elevator in the centre. "No—No don't go in there—lady!" I nestled in near the back of the elevator and held him close as it started to descend, he was shaking in my grasp and I wished I could tell him that I'd protect him, there wasn't anywhere else I could really go right now, it was stay in the infirmary or move forward. And rotting away in an old infirmary was not my ideal choice of death, neither was death by neurotoxin or bullet, but I had little choice in the matter. I never had any choice in the matter… yet still I found myself chanting through my mind: She promised me, She promised me, She'll hold to it, She has too, She promised me-
Ding
Oh, that hasn't happened before. Usually it just slowed to a stop without a sound, save for some kind of harsh commentary from either GLaDOS or Wheatley, either one really. I stretched once more as the door slid open, Wheatley immediately relit his furious exclamations "Nonononono-"
"Hello." The seductive voice ran over my ears with a harsh, more sinister layer. I looked up at the golden eye staring at me from where I stood in the entrance of the elevator, it seemed so familiar compared to Wheatley being attached to that giant body, it almost felt homely, then I berated myself for how stupid that sounded. She promised, She promised, I know I can't trust you, prove me wrong GLaDOS, you love doing that. Don't you love proving me wrong? She shifted to look at me better, yellow optic narrowing at the bandage on my arm. She peered at it closely before scoffing, pulling back again as Wheatley went dead silent in my arms, trying desperately to be invisible, and GLaDOS was doing Her best to pretend She didn't notice his existence. "I see your finally awake, took you long enough... then again I shouldn't expect much from you." I glared up at the one golden eye from where it hung on the chassis. She must have moved the infirmary closer just so she didn't have me walking all over the facilities, whether it was an act of kindness or simple practicality was up to how optimistic you were, sadly I had learnt not to be very optimistic when it came to GLaDOS, or anything Aperture really. "Oh don't give me that look, I patched you up, and believe me, that took a long time, especially with all that generous…ness." She commented snidely. "And then you ruined it, you could have just dropped the idiot and let me wrap up both arms. Unfortunately he was rather… attached you're your arm. I was tempted to just cut it off but I figured it was a bad idea, being a super intelligent artificial intelligence, I can identify bad ideas.." I glanced down at my own poor job of wrapping up my arm and shrugged, pulling Wheatley close to me.
Suddenly a claw darted down from the roof and I had a scary moment of Deja vu as it loomed above me, the same scary moment after She had just woken up, plucking Wheatley from his port and me from the ground before throwing us away like trash, this claw however was only intent on one thing, it swung towards Wheatley who cried out in shock, I stepped back into the elevator and held him even closer, wincing as he rubbed against my burnt arm and narrowing my eyes at the AI, pointing up at the roof with my free hand determinedly.
You promised, you promised, you promised, you promised.
She laughed, it was mocking and cruel. "You think after everything that has happened to my facility, I would let that bumbling idiot go? He destroyed the Enrichment centre, he put me into a potato, he tried to kill both of us!" Her voice had lost the pleasantness and had taken on a much darker tone I recognized from having to deal with it so often. "I'm actually glad you held on to him, Space is too good for him, now I get a chance to have some fun… for science." I shook my head, storming right up to her and pointing up again, Wheatley was shaking, eye wide and locked onto me. You made a promise, he did too. I jabbed at what represented her head roughly and pointed to the roof again. "No." She stated, shoving me back with her faceplate, I stumbled back with a scowl. "No, you can leave... in fact, I'd be glad to have you out of my facility before you screw something else up, I'm sure there are plenty of ways no matter how well I lunatic-proof my chamber… but only if you leave him behind. I'm rather surprised he's still alive after being in the same chamber, alone, with you. But I have some very interesting tests planned for him." I just stared at the golden optic in front of me, She seemed smug, as if She actually thought I'd let him stay here… or thought that I'd be emotionally torn in the least.
I knew my answer, and I wasn't going back on it, no, I would never go back on the one thing everyone else had backed out on, I would prove better than both the AI's, I would keep the damn promise I made to reach the surface with Wheatley, I would hold him to his own damn promise if he couldn't, and force GLaDOS the same courtesy. I glanced downwards, my grip tightening around Wheatley as he looked up at me and… smiled? I expected him to argue about it, make a joke that I would never give him up with the same confidence he had before going crazy, say something about how GLaDOS was stupid to think I would do anything She said... I honestly expected him to be like he was before.
But he didn't; he was silent, Wheatley the chatterbox was silent, maybe it was the recent events that triggered this, maybe I was thinking too much in the past, before he betrayed me, punched me down a pit, then tried to kill me, before, when he was loud and excited and happy to escape with me without worrying about too much consequence. Maybe, I had underestimated AI's when I thought they stuck to programming and viruses, maybe they branched a little further out. I understood the whole learning thing, but when it changes someone's personality… maybe, like me, and probably other reasonable humans, they changed with experience too. Got a little smarter, got a little braver. I looked back at his smile; it was that smile, the one I wanted to see, that reassuring nervous smile, which made everything alright, and then finally: "Luv, you should let me go."
I looked down at the small personality core in shock, my hands wrapped so tight around his battered frame, started to tremble, and I shook my head. 'I held on to you on the moon, do you think I would let go now?' I wanted to ask, I opened my mouth, but no words came out, I shouldn't have expected them too. Instead I shook my head even more fervently, bringing him closer to me and taking a hesitant step back, continuing my icy glare at the giant AI.
She sighed dramatically, as if somehow I had proved myself somehow more brain damaged than before, I had never cared what She thought about me before, and I didn't plan to start caring what She thought about me now. I'd be damned if She could influence me with her talk of freedom. She might be keeping Her promise, but I would be breaking mine, and he would be breaking his. And I was not backing down from this, not in a million cryo years. "Fine then, you mute lunatic."
Wheatley struggled in my arms, flapping his handles plaintively. "Lady, I'm being serious here... you want your freedom, you've always wanted your freedom, right? Just uh, give me a nod luv, let me know if that's what you want or if you find Aperture homely or whatever." I stared at him, before giving a slow and hesitant nod. Still clinging to him tightly as GLaDOS rolled her optic lazily, the claw from before hanging from the ceiling idly. "See? There, you want your freedom, freedom is good; blue skies and sunshine, maybe some not quite evil birds, and I promised you that right? All that sunshine, staring up at a sky that wasn't made of panels, I made that promise, to you, so just... let go, you go free, dance among the flowers, be happy and… and I keep my promise." Wheatley smiled reassuringly. "You enjoy that sunshine for me too alright?"
'We'll enjoy it together! She promised I'd be free and you promised we'd be free together! You promised we'd escape together!' I thought, clinging on to him tightly... and before I could stop Her, a claw picked me up by the wrist and Wheatley was ripped from my hands with a cry, jerking me forwards with a hiss. I swung desperately as Wheatley was snatched away, shaking visibly in his own claw, but staring at GLaDOS in determination. I kept the swinging up, urging myself to move rather than give in to hanging there as I did before, before, when he got crushed.
'You promised.'
Wheatley lowered his handles in a surrender, Optic widening slightly as he left behind most of the fear in favour of the grim determination, but it wavered. He would always be afraid, and I would always be there to be strong for him, I had to be. "T-There! Y-You got me! Just like y-you wanted! Now uh, you have to let her go!" There was a break in his loud voice that proved to us both how scared he really was, hesitance glittered in his optic as he glanced to the side, away from both of us, would he back out completely now? No… his Optic settled on me, and returned to that reassuring smile, now there was worry, for him or for me? I couldn't tell.
GLaDOS seemed to sneer, lifting the small core higher, further away from me. Fear now, he looked completely terrified, his optic shrunk to a small blue dot as he shook, the claw wrapped around him tightly, almost the same grip as before. 'Don't you dare crush him again, please don't crush him again-' I narrowed my eyes tightly and kicked my legs again desperately, swinging even further up, if I could just… reach then I could—Wheatley started whimpering as She moved him further away from me. "Nononono let her go first, give me that! Final wish! C'mon-" I kicked again, but there was no escape, I just couldn't get high enough without my… hand... I wasn't holding my portal gun right now.
GLaDOS shook him sharply, forcing him to go silent as She shoved her head plate up to him threateningly. "Shut up metal ball, I'll let her go... you honestly think I'd keep that lunatic around?" GLaDOS snarled darkly, keeping Her golden gaze on the small shaking ball, shaking even more now that Her gaze was trained directly on him, She was distracted, well, She had cameras everywhere, but She was focused on one thing right now, him, and I would take that use that to my advantage. I swung harder, kicking my legs out and reaching out with my arm, preparing myself for the pain that was sure to follow, all the while Wheatley babbled in the background.
"Al—Alright then... I… I don't really trust you but I am really not in a position to judge huh? But uh…I don't suppose you could have—uh, have a change of heart, possibly, I mean, you don't really have a heart; Not literally! Not literally! I'm sure if you actually had a heart it would be uh… very… big! Yes, big and uh, squishy, lots of fluid… and uh... perhaps you could have a change of said heart and uh…. let me go too? Just as... I don't know... a little gift to your... uh... favourite lunatic? I mean, she's going to be lonely up there-" He chirped rather nervously, shaking erratically in his shell, he was twitching more every second, a near constant spray of sparks flying out from just under his optic as he shook violently; GLaDOS still hadn't glanced at me as She absently brought the claw closer to the escape elevator... intending to get me to leave forever, to have my freedom, She was actually going to give it to me... She was going to keep Her promise, after every broken promise She had thrown at me before, after everything.
I glanced down at the tube as I swung, back and forth, back and forth, praying Wheatley wouldn't blow my cover. I clenched my eyes tightly as my wrist started to twist in the claws grasp. The last time I'd been in that elevator... I'd been punched brutally down Test Shaft Nine, which at the time felt like oblivion…
But right now She had Her attention away from me, it was focused all on Wheatley... if I could just... I managed to shift my weight one final time; throwing my legs in the air and reaching up with my free arm, I enfolded my fingers around the wires and cables holding the claw up, my arm screaming in agony at the tug in my sore shoulder, before I wrapped my legs around the claw itself, sliding my hand free from the claws grip and quickly hoisting myself up so I was standing haphazardly on top of the claw itself.
Upon realising Her little rag doll was loose She turned Her one glowing eye on me; it narrowed in anger and She emitted a short cry of rage, stopping Her interrogation of Wheatley as I clambered up the cable that held the claw. It writhed under me, struggling to shake me off, and my hands wrapped securely around the wires as I neared the top, clinging onto the metal beams above as I inched towards GLaDOS's chassis.
She growled lightly. "So it turns out you really are brain damaged, you prefer to stay in the facility, completing deadly test after deadly test... be my guest." She scolded sarcastically, the claw tried to snatch at me from my perch and I jumped to the side, grabbing onto one of the thicker wires connecting Her head piece to the chassis. She screamed in agony and I pushed off another wire to clamber higher as She tried to shake me off. "You fat, adopted-"I barely managed to grab on a higher edge then Wheatley, another claw attempted to pry me off, tugging at my leg before I kicked it off.
"No! Luv! The elevator is right there. Right there! Jump in!" Wheatley screamed, I swung up higher, arms straining as I lifted myself, barely dodging another claw as Wheatley shrieked suddenly, I glanced over at him where he hung in the claws grip. He started squirming again as a Panel opened up below him, a giant gaping maw ready to swallow him up and take him away from me, further away from freedom. I edged over Her chassis a little further, closer to him as another claw leapt at me, I dropped down, falling a precious few feet lower as GLaDOS growled at me, the elevator to freedom disappearing into the floor as I shifted over a little more.
"There, the lift is gone now, are you happy? I hope you are, it's not easy bringing a lift in from the surface, it was all clogged up with vines and decay, but I cleaned it all up, for you. You monster." Another claw came down, blocking the way between Wheatley and I as he dangled, the blue lights of the panels turning an eerie red. I dodged the first claw, long blades extending from its end, Wheatley's Optic widened in shock and he struggled,
"Run! Oh God run!" He shouted, "Those things would go right through you lady!" I ignored the panicked commentary and instead locked my eyes on the next claw charging at me, the one between me and Wheatley, its sharp dagger like extension glinting dangerously as GLaDOS pitched me forward. Smirking, I braced myself and leapt over, hands reaching out to the wires above the claw and using the force of my charge to swing over towards the core suspended above the dark pit. My good arm fell short and only caught the very edge of the claw, clinging on dangerously as I was brought closer to the core, my hand slipped and I felt a harsh painful pull shoot through my left arm, I cried out silently in agony.
I let go, the earlier claw slamming into the ground just behind me, I fell short of Wheatley, landing right on the edge of the pit and struggling to keep my balance, the momentum driving me forward. My hands waved desperately as I felt the claw rise again, glancing behind me in a moment of balance, I saw more panels rising, turrets being pulled out and booted on.
"Make it easier for both of us and stay still!" She roared, claw crashing behind me as I weighted my options and leapt again, hands wrapping around his handles as I clenched my teeth against the pain burning through my left arm, my shoulder aching terribly. Glancing behind me, the claw had destroyed the edge I had been on a moment ago, my bad arm fell loose and I was left holding onto Wheatley with my only good arm, the weight of holding myself here slowly urging my fingers to fall loose from their grip, but I resisted, clenching my fist as best as I could, my teeth forced together and my eyes squeezed shut in effort.
"There you are." The turrets adjusted their guns and pure instinct drove me as I swung upwards, grabbing loosely at Wheatley with my bad arm, I braced my legs on the claw and pulled, using the extra momentum to push against his captor, there was a loud groan and a sudden clack as the claw slammed shut, no longer held open by Wheatley's frame. We tumbled quickly down into the black shaft as gunfire echoed above us, pounding into the swaying claw.
I hissed and pulled my left arm away, settling to hold Wheatley with my good arm instead as the pit's darkness swallowed us whole. I curled my arm protectively around us, as I straightened myself instinctively, I would not let go, If we were going to get out of here it would be together, just like he promised me!
"AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH- Oh, we... We're not dead." He looked down. "AAAAHHHHH! Just... uh-" he coughed quietly and it echoed around us as much as the scream, I wanted to block my ears but he would probably die if I dropped him now, hard shell or no. "Just looked down, don't suggest it, bad idea… should've uh... learned from last time..." He swivelled his Optic; "AAAAAHHHHHHHHHH! A-Alright, not looking down again, but uh, fair warning, there is a rather large floor incoming, really really quickly, lots of fancy red criss-crossing and uh…. we are definitely going to die unless we do something fast luv... Like, uh, really fast," he informed me as I adjusted him. His warmth against my chest familiar and definitely comforting as I myself glanced down at the fast approaching floor. I clung tighter to Wheatley, using both arms again, refusing to wince as my arm let loose another spasm of pain. I noticed the red criss-crossing he was talking about, turrets search lights, I'd have to choose a direction and run it at my first chance, or I'd be stuffed.
Oh I'd kill for a portal gun right now.
I landed heavily despite my Long Fall Boots, I didn't care if they made my feet ache, as long as I didn't become a gooey mess of pancake batter, they would continue proving themselves lifesavers again and again. The turrets flared to life around me, panels shifting to reveal their guns as their lights honed in on, not me, but Wheatley. Which of course would probably be okay, his outer shell of metal would surely protect him a bit. But as of the moment, I was going to get caught in the crossfire. "Oh well, that wasn't so bad was it huh? Forgot you had those boots-" His optic opened hesitantly as he spoke, smiling up at me, right before he noticed the bright red light focused only on him.
Exit, exit, exit, exit—Exit!
"I see you."
"Oh-"
I charged at the closest turret where it sat in front of the long hallway that was my only route at the moment and kicked it backwards towards another turret, praying that it would actually collide and take out one of the two standing near it. If I was as lucky, as I usually was when it came to surviving near death scenarios, then maybe they would play dominos and all fall over, or maybe I'd grow wings and fly to the surface.
As they tumbled behind me I was dimly aware of the room starting to shake, a low grumbling echoing down whatever hidden hallway was not currently in my field of vision and I didn't stay long enough to find out, leaping forward over a broken panel as I started a forced sprint, bullets ricocheting of the tiled floor just behind my heels, some colliding with the curved spring that served as my heel. Alright, not lucky enough to take down all of them. 'Why would they need a hallway here? It should just be an empty room, is She leading me? Is She trapping me?'
I closed my eyes tightly for a mere second before I opened them again, refusing to back down, the mantra that had kept me safe through years of testing pumping through my head. 'Don't die, don't die, don't die.' A bullet grazed my cheek, leaving nothing but a thin line of blood, Wheatley was too busy glancing from side to side, I hoped he was looking for one of those ports that I had plugged him into before so he could open a door or something relatively helpful. while I did an excellent job of refusing to stop running even for a moment, not until I couldn't hear bullets anymore.
'Didn't want to test, didn't want to go back to testing, didn't want GLaDOS to hurt me anymore, didn't want Her to hurt Wheatley, didn't want Wheatley to go crazy, didn't want to lose my one and only friend and-'
A sharp pain ripped through my right leg, just above my knee, I would have screamed save for the lack of a voice. Shocked, I tripped over, landing heavily on my side to avoid crushing Wheatley into my chests, my insides were mashed up enough without him grinding through it. I lay there for a moment, pondering if I should even bother before I shifted again, keeping Wheatley close to me as I struggled to move, gritting my teeth. "Come on luv, get up, you have to get up... Lady—oh- Oh God you're leaking red stuff again, oh—it's… it's all over your leg mate… that's not supposed to happen right? L-listen, Luv, you need to get up-"
A quiet grinding joined the low grumble, echoing from behind us. It shook the panels and the floor, the vibrations it sent along the hallway left my ears ringing. The turrets suddenly stopping their tirade of bullets and shouting their usual complaints, crying out that they didn't hate whatever had knocked them over. The sound was accompanied with a sound like the scuttling of many metallic feet. I struggled to move, freeing a hand from Wheatley to reach out over the ground and claw at it desperately, trying to get up. The sounds were coming closer, like footsteps except... lighter. As if they were only very small.
"Luv you need to get up." Wheatley shouted, waving his handle desperately against my chest as if that would actually help me up. I was surprised when I actually felt him shift my weight a little. I took advantage of it, hand scraping along the floor with as much pressure as I could manage, I felt a shift in my weight and I glanced around quickly to take note of my surroundings; just one long hallway, plain white walls stained by the splatter of blood, behind me the ground was littered with bullet holes, still with the bullet nestled into it safely. My vision swam as I slowly managed to stumble to my feet, Wheatley's weight nestled into my rib painfully as I stared down the hallway I'd just come, a purple eyed core sitting comfortably on what appeared to be a robotic skeleton, stripped of all components it didn't need, it scuttled towards us on thin mechanical legs that would be unusable in a test.
A sudden memory flashed back to me from an infinite number of years ago, staring at GLaDOS lying in the damp grass, sparks still raining gently from the bright blue sky. Knowing I had finally made it, after all this struggling, I had somehow reached the surface. And then something grabbed me and dragged me away, thanking me for assuming the party escort position as dirt and stones dug into my arms, I couldn't struggle as it tore me away from the one thing I wanted.
I shook my head, turning a bit more sharply at Wheatley's panicked urgings and started another pain filled jog along the sterile hallways. A horrible limp causing progress to slow massively as I dragged the leg along, still dripping blood behind us in a macabre 'follow me' dotted line. A sharp jolt of pain lanced through my leg every time it hit the ground a little too sharply, or when I used it at all actually. The run became an awkward half hop as I struggled to move further ahead, out of range from whatever was behind me.
All I knew was that I had to keep moving, I couldn't slow down; I couldn't stop.
Wheatley's optic finally locked on to something and immediately set to going against what I just said. "Hey! Slow down! There! Theretherethere!" Wheatley wiggled his handlebar helplessly towards a wall and I shifted towards it, falling to my knees with a wince as a panel opening up to welcome Wheatley. Blood leaked on the floor and I felt dizzy, Wheatley started to struggle again. "There! Put me down! Put me in there!" He cried. I obeyed quickly, hands fumbling weakly before an audible click reached my ears.
The grinding was growing louder, I glanced behind me where the lights had started to flicker, the scuttling was growing closer and I shifted painfully closer towards Wheatley, praying that he didn't screw up with his hacking and open up a panel full of turrets or decided I needed to turn around because he 'couldn't do it while I was watching.' A light suddenly crashed further down the hallway and flurry of sparks lit up the image of the humanoid figure with a glowing purple eye, open inquisitively as it stared directly at me, it locked on and its eye flickered to red.
"I apologise for that little turret show back there, it was originally intended for that little moron you insist on helping." Wheatley's optic narrowed as GLaDOS's voice buzzed over the intercom, a series of beeping spat out of his audio as his optic plate spun, his optic shrinking to a pinprick and pulsing with every beep. He glanced at me worriedly, and with a ragged sigh I glanced away, right, he was still embarrassed about that. "Don't worry, it wouldn't have killed it. But it might've killed you and I would like to apologise. Why don't you just continue down this hallway before you mess more of my floor up with your blood... oh, look, the infirmary again... with some cake sitting on the table and… oh, it looks like the escape elevator has smashed a wall in...Oh well, when you get your leg patched up, we can resume with testing." I knew it was an obvious trap, I doubt she was even pulling it thinking I would fall for it, more so to either distract me as that bot came scarily closer, or to throw Wheatley off.
There would be no cake, no elevator, and there might be an infirmary, a few bandages but not much else. Then it'd be back to incredibly deadly tests, this time would Wheatley save me? No, he couldn't, he was once again, fully reliant on me unless some kind of miracle came around... The thing was; I would probably die unless I patched my leg up, the thick cloth of my jumpsuit stemmed most of the blood. I glanced back at Wheatley and he rolled his optic, resulting in a heavy spray of sparks.
He simulated a cough. "I can't uhhh. I can't do it unless you-" The grinding grew louder and I turned sharply to find that thing looming scarily close now, it didn't need a spray of sparks to see it clearly, but I didn't want to see it at all, long thin arms that I was sure could easily pick me up and drag me back to whatever test was desired by the giant AI, I felt like an injured rat in a maze, while GLaDOS watched from above, easily able to block any exit her little lab rat chose to take. I stared at Wheatley and glared. His optic shrunk. "You're right; we really don't have time for that, do we?" The beeping returned in a mad rush as he stared directly forward as if looking at nothing at all, his optic plate sunk an inch into his hull and the outer ring spun around rapidly as he most likely argued with some panel to open up and stop being stubborn. I blinked in confusion, drawing closer and getting my hands ready to grab him as the… thing hulked even closer. He finally stopped, popping off the port and into my hands as the panel opened beside us just enough for us to fit through, it struggled, constantly on the brink of slamming again and I didn't hesitate to squeeze through the gap, more than happy to see it slam behind us.
"Could you uh… could you just forget that you saw that? Very embarrassing, not really… accustomed to... Urgh, just, keep going, please." I obeyed, falling into a steady limping pace across a small thin catwalk. Not as fast as I would like to be going, but it was this or my leg would surely just give out and I'd have to hop around the unstable catwalks with a big heavy core sitting like a dead weight in my arms.
"You're going to die, you know." GLaDOS called, her voice sounded slightly tinny, muted over the intercom, we were safe here. "Come back. The infirmary bot is waiting for you... you really shouldn't keep it waiting; it has better things to do then fix up a squishy human... You'll miss out on the cake I had there." GLaDOS called. The cake is a lie, it was always a lie, it was a lie from the start and you knew that. Wheatley had this confused look on his face, right, he would never understand the cake thing GLaDOS was always going on about.
I didn't understand the cake thing, I'd never had cake before, I didn't know whether I liked it or not, for all I knew it tasted horrible; like neurotoxin. "Your cube friend is there, from Chamber seven." My cube friend didn't speak. I didn't understand all the warnings that it couldn't speak to me, or that it would threaten to stab me, it was a cube! One that played weird music but a cube none the less. A storage cube was just as helpful; though admittedly the cube had a better personality than GLaDOS, or Wheatley when he was… well, insane. Either way, my cube friend was silent as the dead, not much for conversation, neither was I, I never remembered being able to speak, but Wheatley wasn't silent, annoying perhaps on occasion, but his voice was welcome compared to hers and staying alive wasn't bloody silent, it was quite loud actually, the crash of bullets as they didn't hit you, the splash of something in acid that wasn't you.
"Don't listen! Just-" he twitched again as I made my way across the catwalks, foot held awkwardly as I limped along, sparks illuminated the dark hallway we had found ourselves in, walls closing around us as my feet crashed against the unstable catwalk, perhaps they weren't actually closing in on us, but with the current load of stress that was at my throat I wouldn't be surprised. "Just keep moving! We're nearly there!"
Nearly where? All I saw was an endless trail of catwalk after catwalk, barely lit by ambient light. Did he actually have a location in mind other than 'away'? I would never rat on Wheatley's intelligence (if only because it's already been seen what that leads to) but his plan's often avoided the fact that there was a possibility that things might not go as planned… Or what exactly happened afterwards… or that something might be between us and the end goal.
"Don't you like Cake? Or have you finally managed to get it through your thick skull that it was always a lie?" GLaDOS taunted. Her voice was distant, we were far from her right now. We would never be safe of course, but for now we weren't in immediate danger. "Is it just that you want to die? You certainly didn't show me that attitude when you murdered me." GLaDOS continued ruthlessly, I myself wouldn't call it murder, I would call it self-defence, and she did try and kill me beforehand, in more stealthy ways than others. But the way she teasing me now reassured me she wasn't able to touch us back here. All she could use washer voice, but the thing she seemed to forget was that a voice can be ignored.
I slowed down as I struggled to see in a straight line. I needed to get my leg fixed up and she knew it, she knew that eventually we would stop so I could undergo such a task, or at least go off our course to find something to do so.
Wheatley glanced up at me in a panic, optic dilating as I was forced to close my eyes, just to pass over a wave of dizziness, before opening them once again to see him glancing around frantically. Finally he decides to wave his handle wildly at a split section catwalk.
"There! To your left- right! I meant right! Go right!" I followed the prompt tiredly, putting on a burst of speed when I heard a crashing sound from behind me; followed by the all too familiar grinding sound. Turning I raced along the rusty metal path; across was a door that looked like it had an elevator in it, not one that GLaDOS could control apparently, it looked like one of those incredibly old ones that were more like a forklift than anything else, perhaps some scientists weren't as dumb as they first appeared.
"Nearly there Luv, come on, keep going." Wheatley urged as I placed one unsteady step in front of the other. I'd just made it half way before the already unsteady metal gave a gravelly groan, an unhealthy jerk forcing the catwalk to tilt dangerously.
"AHH! What was that?" Wheatley shouted fearfully, optic searching all around us as I shifted him to one arm, holding onto the railing as I attempted to continue an uneven shuffle. The angry grinding coming closer every moment, the grind of gears mashing into each other as the scuttling of legs tapped along a barely lit ground, it was coming ever closer, it was going to get me if I didn't keep moving, and it would take us back to her, and this time I was far less likely to be able to find some kind of miracle to help me escape.
No, this time she would take Wheatley and break him like she did before, but she would make sure he stayed broken, she would make sure that he was in pain, and she would make sure I ended up in pain too. That, or boot me out to the surface, which perhaps in hindsight would have been an excellent choice to make rather than purposefully risk my life for the personality construct—for Wheatley, whom was becoming a real hazard to carry with my aching arm and wounded leg.
I could have taken the elevator if she was honest about it, I would have made it to the surface, learned how to survive, and then, hopefully made a home somewhere, otherwise, if she was her usual murderous self, she would have filled me with sixty five percent more bullet per bullet, and wouldn't that have been lovely. But no, of course I couldn't take the easy way could I? And it was far more likely she would kill me if she caught me again, I was a wounded little mouse in her sterile white maze. I… I couldn't have gone up to the surface anyway, whether she was telling the truth or not, leaving would be like what Wheatley did to me, make a promise and then break it, we were going to see the surface together, that's what he had said, and I had agreed, we would see that damn sunlight even if we died a second after, but not before.
I would risk my life for this stupid little… this stupid little core over some stupid promise! Because I was more than sick of having promises broken, I was sick of these stupid AI's and as soon as I made my way to the surface I was making a god damned cake, and I was going to eat it! Yeah! I would eat that damned cake and then maybe egg Aperture provided she didn't have any turrets on the surface, and maybe even if she did.
I readjusted Wheatley with my newfound determination in mind and took another unsteady step forward, his eye was everywhere but downwards for once and for that I was grateful. I had to stay calm, I couldn't panic, even as the grinding got louder, I had to keep moving forward. The catwalk shaking with every step that I placed along the rusty, bent metal, I knew that I wouldn't be able to make it to the other side, not to that slightly lit doorway that was so promising. No, forward wasn't an option, but it was still something to walk towards, I knew I couldn't go backwards either, and that spurred me on even more. To me it was a two option thing, it was forward… or GLaDOS. And a fall down that incredibly dark abyss below me did not seem overly friendly, but neither did neurotoxin or a barrage of bullets. It was a fairly obvious answer.
It was then, in the middle of a one sided debate going on only in my head as Wheatley panicked, finally realising what exactly had made that incredibly scary groaning noise, that the catwalk chose to collapse; tearing itself off at the hinges. Wheatley started screaming again as we fell. Almost instantly my arm let another sharp jolt of pain rip through it, the hysterical core leaving my grip and falling just a bit above me, seemingly suspended in mid-air, just as I was. But of course, as the near black, decrepit walls racing upward around us, kindly reminded, we were falling at a speed that would surely turn me into a pancake, if not of course for my incredibly trusty long-fall boots that I was praying would not crash under the stress of the fall.
"I'm going to die, I'm going to die, I'm going to die," he chanted, raising his optic higher as if looking away from a problem would solve it and waving his handles desperately as if they could help him fly, I guessed it was instinct to try anything and everything when about to die, I'd tried it once or twice when I was a bit unsure whether I got that portal set right, or when I was punched into a pit by a giant suddenly psychotic friend of mine.
He glanced down, as one tended to do when one wanted to know how long until their death, this was also something I've tested, but it was less with death and more trying to align myself with a portal before I reached my death via miscalculation. "Ooop, looked down-" A pause before the inevitable comment that led to the usual Deja vu. "Alright lady, just uh... don't-" He glanced down again, as I guessed, and I held back a fond smile at the memory of just before a certain maniac AI woke up. "Ahh! Don't look down—uh-" He looked at me, his optic as small as it could possibly become.
I reached out across what seemed a mile between us. "AHHH! Catchmecatchmecatchmecatch-" I landed a split second before him, wounded leg jarring painfully on impact, I felt more warm fluid flood down my leg, and, ignoring the sharpness that was radiating outward from the now reopened wound I reached out and caught Wheatley, pitching forward as his weight unbalanced me. It was a hard catch, I had to lean forward just to get to where he was before he was there himself.
His sudden weight forced me to the ground; I crashed to the dusty metal, landing on my already sore shoulder. I managed to turn myself to the side properly, bringing my good leg over and ignoring the pain that I was feeling over every square inch of my body. I silently curled instinctually around myself like I was an armadillo, and this time, I decided not to get up. Didn't I deserve… just a little rest? Not an induced black out from being partially blown up and then sent to the moon… just a… just a quick nap.
"Oh, you caught me! Not that I doubted you! Not saying I doubted you! I could never doubt you! Well, that's a lie, I did doubt you when I was absolutely insane and you were trying to kill me, actually, I'm still not sure on the you trying to kill me thing, you didn't look that into it, I was just... Grateful- luv? Luv stay with me, c'mon, you're stronger than that, wake up! C'mon, stay with me luv!" He was shouting, but his voice was so quiet, muted almost, I just wanted to sleep… he woke me up before, I could have slept forever, no GLaDOS, no turrets or neurotoxin or acid, just peaceful respite in a dreamless slumber, but now he wanted me to wake me up again, when I was so tired. "Luv, you need to get up, please, for ole' Wheatley!"
It was cold, freezing. I was suspended in an ocean far away from the warmth of the sun, and I was only slightly afraid of where it would take me, it was a peaceful ride, but the cold struck me deep into my core, wrapping an icy hand around my heart and promising that it would not let go.
The only things warm was the press of a sparking core pressed to my chest, a constant source of confusing noise as it shouted at me with words I could barely recognise. It was rather comforting, having this thing pressed tightly to my chest, the only place that didn't quite hurt. It was like a heartbeat, humming and throbbing with all its gears, warm and peaceful. The warm flow of blood from my leg too, that was warm, pleasant against my freezing skin, but all the same it seemed like it was the source of the cold, it crept out and the cold replaced it, it flooded out into my ocean and drifted around me, hovering too far away to warm me up like the core did, It was actually kinda pleasant. And it offered me a comforting sleep away from all my troubles.