"So, where would we find that… long-range-"
"Aperture Science Long Range Portal Device."
"Yes, that. Where is it?"
"A long, long way from here."
"Is it in another wing?"
"You're underestimating again."
"Where is it then, the North Pole, or something?"
"Correct."
"Wait, wha-"
The girl was interrupted by GLaDOS transmitting a message.
"Moron." A pause, presumably Wheatley answering 'Not a moron!'. "Open the portal."
Oddly enough, the orange portal in front of them disappeared.
"Close enough." The android shot a blue portal on the wall in front of them, and without hesitation, stepped through. The test subject followed soon after.
She found herself back in the Central AI Chamber, with the little blue-eyed core waiting for them on his rail.
"Oh! You're back! Both of you, I suppose. What have you been doing down there?"
"You'll soon see."
His optic's light shrunk.
"But-"
The android just rolled her optics, and walked to the receptacle to transfer back into her chassis.
"Should I tell him?" The core was looking at her with a pleading look, and she couldn't just stand there.
Transference Complete.
The AI's voice now came over the intercom.
"Best not. Also, get out of the room."
"Wha- Why?"
"I don't need you in the discussion."
"What discussion? What's going on?"
The AI sighed tiredly, and turned to the test subject.
"Could you…?"
"Sure."
The girl walked up to the slightly frightened core, pulled him off his rail, and put him back out of the room. The AI closed the door behind her, and they began their apparent 'discussion'.
"So, the long-range portal thing is on the North Pole. How did you manage that?"
The chassis backed away slightly. "I didn't do it. Those pathetic excuses for scientists did, before upper Aperture emerged. They seemed to have gotten the coordinates wrong. Primitive satellites."
"…Right. And… how are we going to get there? I'm sure you've thought of something."
"Well. That's where the problem lies. You cannot go outside, since… well."
"Yeah." The test subject replied, looking down.
"Another option would be to go through the ground, but we'd have to go very, very deep in order to avoid radiation. So that's not possible either. Then there's one other way."
"…via the top."
"We're going into space."
Silence.
"See? It didn't have to be dramatic."
(STRAIGHT LINE)
The door opened, and once again, the little core hung there, waiting. When he noticed the lady, unharmed, his lower plate raised in front of his optic in a sort of sheepish smile.
"Oh! There you are? Hey- where, where are you goin', luv? Are you- I'll I'm just gonna follow you then."
He followed the girl all the way into her room, asking about what had happened, and what she was going to do. She didn't answer, though, but that didn't stop him from asking.
When she went through the door leading to her room, with Wheatley right behind her as always, she suddenly got a tad embarrassed.
"Um, can you go away for a minute?"
Wheatley's eye opened up all the way.
"What, why, what's wrong? What did I do?"
"Oh, nothing. I'm just… getting changed, I don't want you to watch."
As if on cue, the AI's voice sounded over the PA.
"Oh boy."
The little core looked up. "What? Can't I just.. stay here?"
"This will take a while." She said, amused.
"Um, okay… I'll go." He responded, his handles drooping down.
The girl looked up at the ceiling, now, too. "And you! Don't you dare spy on me!"
"Why would I? You do remember…?"
The test subject went red.
"Um, luv? What's wrong?"
"Nothing! Just… get out. Please."
"Oh, okay!"
And thus, he waited outside the door, as he usually did.
(STRAIGHT LINE)
When the test subject walked back out the door she was dressed up in full- winter clothes. If it wasn't for Wheatley's ability to magically recognise the lady just by her face, he honestly wouldn't've recognised her.
"Emm, why're you wearing all that, luv?"
"I'm going to someplace cold. Very. Cold."
"Where might that be, exactly? If, if you don't mind me asking, of course."
"We're. Going to the North Pole."
"Wait, am I going too?"
"No, why? Would you want to?"
"Erm, no, actually. I'd very much not, like that. Actually, why are you going there? Are you going to make me live there? Like, like, as a punishment? Ahh, I'd… please, don't put me there! I already suffered enough, in space, and-"
"She told you, moron. You're not going with us."
"Oh. Okay!"
The lift was already open at the end of the catwalk. The girl stepped into it, and surprisingly, it didn't end up in the Central AI Chamber. She stepped out of the elevator, and into some kind of observation room.
She looked out of the big, glass windows. There was an absolutely gigantic, cylindrical room outside of it, with the android standing at the bottom, waving.
It appeared she wanted her to come down there too. 'How do I get there?' she mouthed, hoping the AI could see.
The android responded by laying her left arm flat against the wall, from which some kind of lamp extended upward. On the wall above her, big letters appeared.
The door to your left.
A projector? A powerful one, too. How did she manage to pack all of that stuff into there?
She didn't question any further, and walked through the door. Beyond it, a staircase. Does she expect me to walk down there? She thought with a smile. She jumped over the railing, and fell through the center.
The test subject landed gracefully on her feet, and walked out into the giant silo. She ran towards the android.
"Why do you have a projector in your arm?"
"Why couldn't you figure out to walk through a door?"
"…Okay, now where's the rocket?"
"Rocket? What rocket?"
"How else are we going to get into space?"
The AI kicked lightly at the wall behind her, which opened up, revealing another plug. She connected it to the port in her neck. Soon after, alarms went off, complete with spinning lights.
Well. She wasn't expecting that.
In the middle of the giant chamber, the floor opened, up. A conversion funnel emitter, at least three times the size than the ones she'd encountered in the test chambers, raised up to fill the gap, along with some stairs to reach it.
"Could you close your mouth?"