Chell looked around at the golden wheat field that stretched out for miles, the fresh air filling her lungs and caressing her face. The charred Companion Cube hummed quietly, seemingly pleased to be out of Aperture.

This was it.

She was free.

So….why did she feel so empty? Chell had absolutely no idea how much time had passed since she had gone into the long-term stasis – even if her parents had been alive (which they weren't), any childhood friends she had were probably gone, too. If there was still a government, Chell knew they wouldn't believe her if she told them about the goings-on at Aperture. She sighed. For someone so tenacious, something felt off the moment she was thrown out of the Enrichment Center.

The Companion Cube stopped humming, making Chell turn to face it. It wasn't sure what she was doing, or why she wasn't going anywhere: wasn't she happy to free of that psychotic place? Chell gave a soft smile, stepping over to the Cube and patting it. It hummed more, pleased, yet still unsure. Meanwhile, Chell furrowed her brow as she stared at the decaying shed that lead to Aperture's bowels…bowels she had scoured up and down. Honestly, Aperture was most of what she knew. Sure, many of the passing years were spent in stasis, and Chell hadn't aged at all in those years; yet, (and she was loathe to admit it to herself), GLaDOS had been right – all of that testing gave her life structure and meaning. It was dangerous, but testing had kept Chell's mind sharp and her resolve strong.

Now, what was there to do? The wheat field was massive. Maybe it was a sign that the Combine Invasion had ended. Still, fear gripped at Chell's heart; being stubborn was easy when jerk-off AIs were resenting you in a murderous rage. When you're all alone, though, you have only yourself to look to. Chell moved around a bit, wondering if GLaDOS could sense any movement around the shed. No, it didn't matter – Chell would never give her the satisfaction of going back in there. With a grunt, she picked up the Companion Cube, carrying the humming block out into the golden expanse.

The time had come for her to start living.