The Recovery

Slowly, a steady flow of electricity aroused Wheatley from his deep sleep. Something felt different, though. A lot of things, actually. He heard sounds again, familiar sounds that rooted an uneasy feeling in him, and it wasn't as cold as before. He slowly revealed his optic and was blinded by light. Light? It surrounded him, illuminating the room he was in. He forced himself to bear the brightness and examine where he had ended up.

A large room, it reminded him of something he couldn't quite place. There was an intimidating structure that hung directly in front of him, but his vision was a bit uncalibrated so he couldn't fill in the details. He blinked a few times, attempting to adjust his visual sensors, and slowly pixels turned into comprehensive shapes, light obeying to the curved edges of objects. The process seemed like a puzzle putting itself together, now fully solved. Fear, like lightning, struck through him. It was GLaDOS, he was in Aperture Laboratories, he was back with her.

"Oh, you're awake. It's about time."

His optic darted around the room, his pupil as small as a needle. There had to be some way out of this, maybe all of this was just some horrible dream. Was this android hell? Was it real?

"For once in your pathetic life, you're quiet. Interesting, considering you had no one to talk to for years, I figured you had much to say."

This wasn't a dream, this wasn't android hell, this was her. In all her twisted glory.

"I- uh, hello! Again. Can I just say, the place looks lovely. Very, not on fire, looks great. Um, I just- I didn't really mean to wreck the place, honestly. Uhm, y'know, all in the past, right? No good with grudges, is there?"

"And you think I'm going to let you get away with that? I don't know what I was expecting, coming from a moron like you."

"I am not-! Just, listen, will you? I don't want to be here, and I'm sure you don't want me here either! So, why don't we just go on our separate paths, yeah? I think that's pretty reasonable! I mean- why even bring me here?"

She swayed gently from her chassis, obviously taking pleasure in his fear.

"I couldn't leave you up there to rest without harm, so, I'm glad we can agree on the fact you should leave. I'll stay down here, and you can go to the surface, free. Well, I wouldn't say free, considering you can't move. Oh well, that's a shame, corroding on the surface."

A claw descended from the ceiling and harshly plucked Wheatley off of the charging port, followed by a yelp.

"Ah- wait wait wait! You don't really mean that, do you? That's monstrous! Do you know how painful that'll be?! Come on, mate- you- you can't do that!"

The claw flung him into the elevator, he hit the side and fell to the elevator floor. "Ah! Ow… Wait! No no, you can't just leave me up there to rot- that's unfair!"

"Putting me into a root vegetable was unfair, metal-ball."

"Uh, good point, but- but I was absolutely wrong about putting you in a potato, right? You don't want to be wrong, do you?"

The elevator began to ascend, its gears clicking into place and pulling the cargo upward.

"Ah! Nononono- um… Fine! Fine, throw me out into the surface, but at least give me something to move around! It's not like I can roll around, I don't really work like that, do I? So maybe just-"

The elevator came to a sudden halt, GLaDOS stared at the core with an unmoving glare. Her yellow optic seemed to burn into him, the only reason he didn't pipe up was because he was afraid.

"Oh… It seems that I've been making an error."

"Yes! Yes, an error, tremendous! That's exactly what I was trying to tell-"

"Remember when I said you were designed to be a moron? I wasn't lying, but they did have a head start."

His gaze laid on her blankly. He squinted his shutters and looked to the side. "Sorry, just- I'm not sure if I'm following here, hah…"

"You were already a moron."

He was just as confused. "Well- not a moron, for starters. Secondly, what on earth do you mean? I've been me my whole life, haven't I? It's not like I was a bloody human at one point! What are you even trying to drive at, here?"

"Unfortunately for you, it's true. You were a human, and guess what I have. The body! Isn't that just so exciting?"

Wheatley's aperture drew inward, staring at the central core in disbelief. He blinked a few times, as if trying to comprehend the situation. "Ah, haha, HAH! I- I see what you did there, trying to get me to go mental, have an existential crisis or something! Hah. Oh. No, no you're not joking, are you? You're telling the truth? You have got to be kidding."

"You wanted to move on the surface, now you can. Well, if you can figure out how to walk, that is."

A claw slowly emerges from the ceiling panels, going unnoticed by Wheatley.

"No! No no no no no no no, I don't want to be a human! Please! I just want to stay a robot, I really don't mind that! Humans are squishy, and- and smelly! I don't want to be that!-"

The claw snatched him from the elevator, taken off-guard by the sudden jolt, now being held up in the air.

"Oh god-"

"Remember when you turned me into a root vegetable? Consider this revenge."

He was lowered under the floor where GLaDOS hangs above, like he had done to her once when he was in charge. The core descended into a dark room hidden away beneath GLaDOS' chamber, the only light coming from the room above. The claw that held Wheatley swung to the side and roughly plugged the sphere into a port on the wall. The panels that had shifted to reveal the room, now huddled back into place and sealed it off, giving up on any chance of light. A tense feeling welled up within Wheatley. There was no light, no sound, no movement, no hope.