LOCKDOWN

[saw_a_deer]

Who: GLaDOS and everyone.
What: Testing.
Where: Aperture Smash Academy
When: August 13th
Warnings: Homicidal AI, science, testing, and more science.
Reference: Partner ooc post.

You know, it's funny how things work in life. Chell had had returned to the school after feeling guilty, in order to warn everyone about the impending danger that would befall them. What she didn't know, however, was that once the warning goes out, all it does is enrage the AI. So before anyone would dare leave, all the exit doors in the school became boarded up with panels. Any windows that may have been at the school were closed off, preventing any other means of escape.

For an hour or so, nothing happens besides that. No announcement, no warning, nothing. That is, until panels on the floor open up underneath any unsuspecting victim. The panels will lead to tubing, sending them downwards. Down into a plain white room. Thankfully, for those of you who didn't put on your Long Fall Boots, there will be a cushion to land on. Other than that, the room itself is fairly empty. The only things of mention is a table containing the equipment from the beginning of the week (if you didn't take it), a door (that won't open unless you have all the equipment), and...another person: your partner. Meanwhile, a message from GLaDOS chimes in over the intercom:


"The lockdown of Smash Academy is now complete. For those of you who are curious as to what is going on, a manual testing initiative has been added to the school's curriculum, for students and staff alike. In order to advance, you will need to work with your partner to complete the test. Failure to do so will result in...dangerous consequences.

No one will be allowed out of their current chamber until they are equipped with a communicator, a pair of Long-Fall Boots, and a Dual Portal device. Once those objects are in hand, you may start testing.

That is all."

Good luck testing, Smash. You're going to need it.

Comments

[obfuskate]

Heh. Chell didn't try to rival him at handling important situations, nor was she loud, grating, or even wordy at all. She also seemed to be decently intelligent, at least by comparison to the rest of these ingrates.

Shadow could get used to this one.

He wasn't about to spend his time with needless praise, however, not matter how inward it was. He fired his own portals yet again, but this time towards the platforms. In one more swift movement, he leaped for them, endlessly falling in a sensation that was admittedly strange and unfamiliar. He got the timing just right, so he was able to recognize already when he needed her portal, and that... was...

Now!

[testsubject1]

Fortunately, Shadow wasn't one to annoy Chell with endless drivel or insults, or a bunch of words about nothing like Wheatley. She could get used to him as long as he didn't try that "Chaos Control" stuff or whatever it was called.

As soon as Shadow jumped into the portal, Chell immediately aimed her gun to the white wall, judging by pure instinct as to when to fire. It was only a brief couple seconds that needed to pass before Chell fired, and she did quickly, watching Shadow fly out from the wall above.

[obfuskate]

Mission: success. Shadow landed with complete ease on the platform, his boots providing the perfect amount of cushion. Now he saw what Sonic meant by the strange, yet fascinating feeling they gave, and frankly, he liked it... for those inexperienced. It wasn't as if he couldn't do the same thing without these boots, but rather, by relying on instinct.

He straightened himself up, looking to Chell with a smirk, one of devious intent towards GLaDOS. However, if she were to look carefully, she might see a hint of gratitude in there, and that was not aimed at the AI.

There was no time to dilly-dally, at any rate. He plowed forth, the doors sliding open to reveal their next test chamber...

[testsubject1]

Chell was rather relieved that it took only one try for Shadow to land correctly on this platform, and likewise with her. They made a good team; she could almost get used to his company.

Did GLaDOS purposely pair Chell up with a more intelligent being? She doubted it; GLaDOS didn't want to hasten her next death, after all. But even as Chell thought about it, she almost regretted that she would have to dismantle the robot once more. She knew she had to; what GLaDOS was doing was despicable, and Chell wouldn't stand for it.

But then again, GLaDOS had helped her on more than one occasion... and Caroline...

Caroline was still there.

Either way, Chell tried not to dwell on those thoughts as she followed Shadow into the next test chamber.

[obfuskate]

And...

KABOOM.

Shadow flinched, whirling to the source of the noise: some sort of explosion that wound up in a tile in the ceiling dropping. Something dropped along with the panel, yet he couldn't place exactly what. What really threw him off was the seemingly harmless blue liquid that a nearby machine began transferring onto a wall panel.

Okay, that... was odd. Very odd, in fact. It wasn't the end of it, though. He had a feeling that blue light to the side had something to do with this material, but what?

Maybe...

Aha.

Shadow took the chance, firing a portal into the blue light. With a flick of his switch, he alternated to his second portal and fired that one into the blue liquid. Once the paint-like material was just above them, he cancelled his portal. Sure enough, it made the ground they stood on wet and blue and slippery as it fell beneath them. With a good sniff or two, he determined that this fluid was very much non-toxic.

Yes, now the cogs were beginning to roll. He tried to slide with the liquid and use the momentum to hop onto the nearby platform, but instead, wound up bouncing upon contact. Either way, it accomplished what he needed. A red button remained there, one that he discovered that, when pressed, changed the blue light to an orange one.

He looked to Chell and quirked a brow. Was there an orange liquid somewhere...?

[testsubject1]

So this chamber used repulsion gel and an excursion funnel. Shadow was quick to attempt to figure them out as Chell observed the chamber. She didn't know where the exit was, but it was likely behind those glass panels. As Shadow stepped on the button that reversed the funnel, Chell shot a portal out to redirect the funnel.

Hopefully Shadow would catch on to what she was about to do. Another time she wished she could speak, but giving GLaDOS and Wheatley that satisfaction simply was not worth it.

They would need to combine their portals in order for Chell to travel through the opening of the glass panel, and Shadow would need to know when to reverse the funnel. But, she had a feeling she could trust him somewhat. He was at least intelligent, unlike Wheatley, whom she made the mistake of trusting at first.

Either way, she hopped into the excursion funnel and began floating through the air.

[obfuskate]

Ah... ah. Oh yes, he was no dummy. Only the oblivious would be unable to see the clear solution. The question was getting both of them up there, however. Maybe there was a switch beyond that glass paneling...

They were just going to have to find out. Shadow was going to have to utilize his portals in the very same positions, and once Chell passed through his first one, he had to relocate it and then reverse the portals. He did it just as he planned, placing them so that he would direct her to the source of the excursion funnel. Once she got through to the other side, he'd switch, and then he'd reverse at the right time.

One, two portals were fired, and he lied in wait. It was only a matter of time now...

[testsubject1]

Chell was rather relieved to be traveling right through the portals, not hovering against a wall or falling into the acidic bath. Thank God she had Shadow. She might have to thank him later somehow, on paper.

She landed over in the next section of the room, being followed by globules of repulsion gel, as it splattered everywhere, giving her a good surface to bounce on. Jumping up to the next level, she found a small window where she could fire out a portal if she wanted to, and a button that released a cube. The cube, however, had to go on that button down below for Shadow to utilize it. By spawning another cube, though, the current one would disintegrate...

Chell tossed the cube through the window for Shadow to throw onto the button, and she shot out a Portal to the small patch of wall she had access to, enabling him to jump into the excursion funnel. Now she just had to wait for him to enter for her to continue.

((Note: You can have Chell successfully configure the portals and such, etc., for the next tag while Shadow's flying through the funnel thingy if you want. Just don't go through the door at the end because Jon wants to tag right before.))

[ got it! /o/ ]

[obfuskate]

Ah, this was child's play. Shadow saw how this worked now. He leaped inside, allowing Chell to utilize a very similar strategy to get him up there. He floated through the glass area, landing just a small ways away from her neatly.

This was so painfully simple that he had to wonder if GLaDOS was nearly as intelligent as she gave off. Pssh.

He smirked lightly. He held a lot of pride, especially being that he's trumping a supposed `super-computer` manufactured by humans. Not even she can best the Ultimate Life.