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She was quiet. At least, as quiet as someone could be while padding along a rusty metal catwalk on spring-heeled boots. It had been a while since Chell's untimely recapture at the hands of her personal nemesis. She couldn't tell how long it had been exactly - without any chance to properly sleep, the adrenal vapor made time a soft and pliable thing, but to her it felt like an eternity. Scurrying around these puzzle chambers that ultimately tested nothing except her patience. Treated like just another lab rat, the thought of which alone made her cheeks burn hot with frustration.
So, the moment she spotted the chance - she bolted for it. If Chell was going to die, she planned on going down on her own two feet. The surreptitiously loosened panel was just out of reach of the security cameras - which Chell had habitually taken down anyways, much to GLaDOS' pending displeasure. Christmas had come early - though, she'd never celebrated it since she got stuck in this hell-hole - because behind that panel wasn't just more wall, no - there was a whole network of criss-crossing walkways, with a single fluorescent light, barely hanging on by a thread, illuminating smooth off-white concrete - the ideal spot for a portal.
It was perfect. Too perfect. But what choice did she have? Each test chamber was becoming cleaner, more organized, as GLaDOS took the time to carefully repair the facility around her. Soon there wouldn't be any more weak points, any more chinks in the armor. If there was even a single shot available to her, she had to take it.
Two fresh bursts of her dual orange and blue portals, and Chell had successfully slipped out of the chamber and into the bowels of the facility, with GLaDOS apparently none the wiser. No sound came from the tinny speakers, no lashing from her mocking tongue or threats of corrective measures via deadly neurotoxin - just the scent of damp iron and chemicals long since evaporated from their glassware. Still, she didn't know how long it would take for her to notice, so she made haste.
As it turned out, despite the apparent complexity of the maze, there were hardly any access points for upward mobility. Portal-ready surfaces either had their sightlines blocked, were completely unavailable, or rested in front of questionably intact infrastructure. GLaDOS may have frequently taken to disparaging her intelligence, but both she and Chell herself knew that she was both an excellent strategist and survivalist, which is what made her so deadly for the AI to face, even without any conventional weapons.
Mentally charting out her path, Chell realized that there was only one way up. She wasn't sure of where it led, but if that emergency exit wasn't rusted shut, she could probably use it to access another floor entirely. If not, there was always the possibility of sneaking back into the chamber before her absence was detected altogether.
Despite her outwardly calm appearance, Chell's heart rattled in her chest with every step, cortisol spiking in her blood as she moved from ledge, to walkway, to rickety fire escape and decomissioned conveyer belt. Finally, she reached the door, her palms sweaty in equal parts excitement and trepidation. The bar gave way. A shaky sigh of pure carbon dioxide and relief left her as she made her way inside.
Flicking on the light switch, she saw that she'd come upon a row of offices. Initially, she thought this was purely an administrative space, but as she paced along the corridor, she realized that this was actually one of the volunteer intake floors - specifically, where they performed medical evaluations to make sure subjects were fit and healthy. She shuddered at the memory of the long and invasive series of procedures, knowing that after hours of poking and prodding in sensitive places no one else would ideally have known about, she was rejected as a subject for her "excessive stubbornness". Bullshit. They just didn't like that she was too quick to question authority.
Regardless, given her familiarity with the layout of the space, and despite the lack of windows or appropriate signage, she quickly came across the lobby - and most importantly, a set of two elevators. It might've surprised another that she did not immediately test whether they worked or not. Instead, she jogged over to the emergency stairwells, one on each side of the room. Shit. Stair A was jammed. If Stair B was gone too, then she'd have to risk possibly alerting GLaDOS of her presence by commanding the elevator. And wouldn't it be just her luck that the hinges on Stair B had rusted shut as well?
If this didn't work, this may as well have been the end of the line for her. She could hope for an alternate exit, but... Truth be told, Aperture didn't care that much about obeying fire codes. A vague gesture here and there at appreciating safety, but as with the majority of corporations, that gesture was a shrug.
Luckily, the elevator button did light up as soon as she pressed it. This could have meant nothing, just that the light itself worked - but after a minute of shaky silence, the doors opened. It was an express elevator. To the very top. With no suspicious vents, or anything otherwise strange. She'd made it so far, she could almost taste her freedom. One last press of a button - G - and the elevator began to move with a mechanical squeal and shudder.
Downwards.
Chell's stomach dropped, and it wasn't just because of the pace at which the tiny glass and metal box she was confined in was flying towards its destination. It was because, as she heard a soft, familiar hum over the crackling speakers, she had the sinking realization that she knew exactly where it was headed.
"Congratulations. You've managed to behave yourself for: 3 days, 14 hours, 23 minutes and 47 seconds. That's a new record."
Her teasing voice purred through invisible speakers in a way that made Chell feel surrounded by it. She clutched her portal gun to her chest protectively, eyes darting around for another hole in the wall, a crack that would let her shimmy through to another escape route.
"You should take this chance to be proud of yourself. I imagine it's the first time in your life. Let yourself bask in the feeling for a moment."
Two seconds passed.
"I hope that felt as good for you as it did for me. No, I'm not proud of you. But I did sense the rate of your adrenaline increase double over the course of those few seconds. Are you nervous? Good. You should be~"
As she spoke, a pair of mechanical arms extended from the floor, each finger on their robotic hands wiggling menacingly. Chell jolted violently from her spot in surprise, prepared to fight back, only to be restrained by a set of clamps around her ankles and wrists. Her gun, the only method of salvation she possessed, clattered uselessly on the floor.
"Careful. That testing device is worth more than your remaining lifetime."
She tutted in disapproval. "But not because I've decided to kill you. No, if anything, you've taught me that I can be the bigger woman. After all, why should I kill you there are so many more interesting tests I can run on you?"
A sinister chuckle punctuated her last sentence, as the hands began to roll up Chell's tank top, all the way up until just underneath her chest, revealing her torso, a strong layer of firm muscle underneath a softer waistline. Despite the defiant look on Chell's face, her jaw firmly set against her tormentor, she couldn't help but let a smile tug at the corners of her lips, dread beginning to seep into her bones.
"You see - while I was looking through your initial evaluations, I noticed something very interesting. According to test results - you are a ticklish person. I'm serious. It says it right here: subject is an extremely ticklish person. They weren't even testing for that."
Chell was more intimately familiar with her captor's sadism than anyone in the world, but even she couldn't believe that this was really happening to her. No deadly neurotoxin, no protracted pain or psychological torment. Just... Tickling. Just tickling. For hours on end. When she could still faintly remember barely being able to tolerate her friends briefly wiggling their fingers into her sides as a joke. Never mind, she'd prefer the neurotoxin. Her reaction to processing this information must have been visible, because GLaDOS let out another soft, amused chuckle in response.
"Apparently, you couldn't even stay still for your physical without flinching. Just like you're doing now. I'd almost call it cute, if it wasn't so sad."
Oh. Oh no. Chell thought back to the route by which she had taken her doomed journey. It must have been a coincidence. It couldn't have been-
"Deliberate. Oh, yes. Did you really think any of that escapade of yours was an accident? I'll admit, it was fun, watching my little test subject scurry around, thinking she had any hopes of outwitting me. Then again, given the nature of our upcoming test, you just might have the last laugh after all~"
Even if she could speak, what could Chell have possibly said to dissuade her, or even annoy her? Her silence was her greatest weapon against GLaDOS cruelly taunting her in her ear during every waking moment, a refusal to give her any ammunition with which to attack her. But now...
She had no choice other than to acknowledge the cold fingers creeping their way up her stomach, making her abs tense visibly even as they fluttered over them. This was so much worse than she remembered. Even the barest of light scratches were enough to thrust her into a battle with her own desire to laugh. Chell squeezed her eyes tight, trying her damnedest to block out the sensations. Unfortunately for her, that made it only more surprising when a second pair of hands started lightly pinching at her sides. The fluttering on her stomach turned to circling, pressing firmly into the spots that seemed to make her jump more.
"Poor thing. I've barely even started, you know."
GLaDOS' voice echoed in a mockery of gentleness, adding a third pair to caress the hollows of her underarms. She hadn't seen Chell quite so near the point of genuine surrender since... Ever, actually, and her excitement over it audibly spilled over into her tone.
"This is just to wake up your nerves... Can you imagine how bad it'll be when I really start tickling you?"
As if to emphasize her point, each hand sped up its motions. Chell was beet red by now from trying to hold in her laughter - maybe if she could do it long enough, she could actually pass out? Anything to save her from the devious stroking of her pits, the now precise little pinches of her stomach muscles, and the gentle kneading of her sides. Luckily for her, or unluckily, depending on one's point of view, rescue would soon be granted to her lungs when she felt a cold little instrument wriggle its way up her pant leg - and start buzzing behind her knee.
Chell screamed. It was a hoarse sound at first, unused to carrying her voice for such a long time, but gradually, as her efforts to defend that piece of tender flesh failed, the sandpapery tone of it faded and was replaced by a more melodious sound - frantic, wheezing giggles and endlessly pouring laughter. Not ceasing her machinations once, GLaDOS commanded (although, do you command that which is part of your body?) a few more tendrils to wrap around and support her favorite test subject, contorting her in the air so she was facing her, but on her back, her ponytail dangling towards the floor. Her optic was practically gleaming with satisfaction as she spoke.
"If I knew testing your sensitivity would be so much fun, I would have done it every. single. day. Luckily, we have sixty or so years to catch up on that. Imagine that. And tell me..."
Chell's kicking redoubled as she felt another tool behind her other knee, more like a rake than a brush this time.
"Would you say the tool working on your right leg tickles more than your left? Oh, right. You probably don't know the difference between the two. I'm sorry, I forgot. Here-"
The hands previously tormenting Chell's abs darted underneath the waistband of her pants, earning a surprised, and, if we were being truly honest, more than a little flustered gasp from her. Any instinctive expectations evaporated, however, as soon as said hands started squeezing at her thighs, just above the knee, one at a time.
"This one is the left-"
A squeeze with particular emphasis on that leg.
"- And this one is the right. Oh, wait. I forgot again. You can't answer me. Isn't that right, my little test subject?"
Chell vociferously shook her head in protest, her heart hammering out of her ribcage.
"You can? Or you don't like that name? Because that is what you are, isn't it? My soft, pathetic, weak, pliable little test subject..."
Each word was emphasized with yet another squeeze, the hands moving further and further up her thighs, until one of them brushed against something that elicited a noise from Chell neither of them were expecting - a startled moan. Suddenly, everything stopped moving, leaving her spent in GLaDOS's grasp - well, almost.
"Someone's enjoying this more than she's letting on~"
Her voice purred in her ear, smooth and silky despite the slight distortions from her synthesizer. Chell didn't even know how to respond. She was grateful to even have a break, even an echo of a semblance of mercy - and at the same time, her impulses were thoroughly at war against each other. The ego, to resist, the id, to give in. Of course, GLaDOS was ever-eager to nudge her towards the latter.
"It's alright. This can be our secret. No one else has to know you enjoy being humiliated so much. In fact... If you consent to continuing this testing protocol, shake your head. If you don't, do nothing."
Chell stared, slightly agape. She couldn't comprehend it. GLaDOS was... Giving her a way out?
"Really now, Chell..."
GLaDOS interrupted her racing thoughts, as if reading her mind.
"I may be a monster, but I'm not that kind of a monster."
Oh. Oh. All of the blood which hadn't already gone to Chell's face had definitely settled in her groin at the implications alone. She had to give this some thorough consideration - GLaDOS wouldn't be merciful by any means, after all. And yet just the thought of her making it worse on her was making her throb to an almost unbearable degree. Slowly, carefully, she shook her head, and if her tormentor had a face, she was sure that she'd be smiling from ear to ear. In lieu of that, GLaDOS simply moved her chassis closer, almost brushing against her face, and simply whispered -
"Good girl. Now, hold still."
Suddenly, heat pulsed at the edges of Chell's skin, almost but not quite intense enough to outright burn. Looking down, her eyes widened to the size of saucers as she watched the lasers methodically slice away at her clothing, until she was left only in her boots and a pair of Aperture-branded briefs, the fabric straining uncomfortably around her sensitive length. One of the robotic hands that had previously been assaulting her ticklish spots curiously approached it, before beginning to circle the wet spot at its tip. With a needy mewl, Chell bucked sharply against it, and GLaDOS simply laughed, a dark and throaty laugh.
Trying desperately to take her mind off the relentless teasing that was threatening to consume her entirely, Chell was surprised to be afforded even that modicum of protection - her feet were screamingly ticklish, especially so after a long day of exercise - so why would GLaDOS have any reason to avoid them? Maybe she was simply building anticipation, letting her have a false sense of security only to strip her defenses away at the last moment to really break her spirit. That sounded like something she would do, right? Unless...
Her runaway train of thought was once again abruptly cut off, as the teasing little strokes over her head were replaced by the steady, methodical buzzing of a wand pressed just underneath it. Chell wailed, unsure of whether to squirm away from the maddeningly overstimulating sensation, or to rut against it like she was in heat.
"Do you see what happens when you're well-behaved? Good, obedient lab rats get rewarded. Just look at you, a silent brat reduced to a squealing mess. If this is what it takes to make you follow directions, maybe I should implement this more often~"
Chell wished she had the heart to be angry at that. To be angry at her, but both her mind and body were so ablaze with pure arousal that if she could have spoken, she would almost certainly have been begging for more. At least, until the tickling started again.
It quickly became clear to Chell why GLaDOS hadn't stripped her of her boots. Why remove them, after all, when she could simply turn them traitor? The test subject's useless kicking redoubled as she felt something soft and bristly detach from the sole of her boot and begin to spin against her arch, which she found horrifyingly immobile. Her panicked squealing and flailing about did less than nothing to dislodge the device polishing her tender, sweaty skin - and in fact only seemed to motivate GLaDOS more to activate the device on her other boot, which felt more like nails raking her flesh.
"You didn't think we'd stop so soon, did you~? We still have so much more testing to do..."
Hardly helped by her tormentor's lilting voice, Chell felt her sight beginning to go, a pink haze filling her field of vision. The pleasure in her abdomen kept building paradoxically to no end, even when the same kind of brushes working on her left arch joined in on scrubbing just around her navel as well. She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to blink away the noxious fog in her mind, but when they opened again, it was still there, its sickly sweet taste dancing on her tongue as her throat once again started to go hoarse from a medley of shrieking laughter and moans - Wait.
"So you noticed... I'm surprised, I thought there'd be no thoughts in that depraved little head of yours left any more. Do you like it? I synthesized it just for you, no one else. And you'll be the first person to test it."
GLaDOS paused momentarily, allowing that delicious expression of creeping dread and confusion set in as much as it could, before once again disrupting it by adding another layer of torture. Robotic hands came down to squeeze at Chell's exposed hips, kneading the soft flesh, and the backs of her knees returned to being assaulted as well. Tears of desperation blurred her vision as much as the gas did. Ironically, the sensation of having so many spots thoroughly worked over sent her laughter soaring into silence, rendering her mute not in stoic defiance, but in pure hysteria. And in the face of all this, GLaDOS simply continued with gleeful indifference.
"Look at you. So wet for me already. I'm sure you must be aching for relief. How unfortunate for you that the mixture you're breathing in heightens your sensitivity, while also inhibiting your ability to orgasm. And at the right concentration... You won't be able to cum no matter how much I stimulate you. Isn't that wonderful?"
No. No no no no no. This couldn't be happening. She was so, so close, one more loose thread away from completely unravelling. Yet no matter how much she wailed, no matter how much she vainly thrust her hips against those teasing wands, her climax never came. It couldn't. Deliriously aroused and on the brink of insanity from the intensity of the tickle torture, Chell finally began to feel her will breaking. She bargained desperately with herself - maybe if she could get some reprieve from the vibrators, or if GLaDOS could stop targeting her poor feet, anywhere but the feet, then she would be able to take it. She knew all too well, however, that it was all just a comforting lie. Relief would not come until GLaDOS was well and truly finished with her.
It was impossible to tell in such a state how much time had truly passed. What Chell was certain of is that not a millimeter of her ticklish skin had gone without being thoroughly, almost lovingly worked over. High tensile silken thread was woven between her toes, claw-like appendages scratched at her underarms, vibrating massagers percussed between each of her ribs. Her back, which she didn't even know to be sensitive in the first place, was devastated by light scribbles and the harsher rolling of metal pinwheels. Any and every spot she could think of from underneath her chin to the webbing of her hands was spared no mercy.
And yet, throughout all this, none of the hellish 'experiments' GLaDOS had put her through could even compare to the suffering induced by being unable to climax. It was a simple yet devastating feedback loop - being constantly on the verge of tipping over that precipice made her ticklishness skyrocket, and in turn the sensory overload from the tickle torture turned her on even more. By this point, her shaft was flushed a dark red, soaking her panties completely with the pre-cum steadily dripping from its tip. How she ached to be free of that pressure, and how enraged she felt that having this choice ripped away from her didn't seem to make her arousal abate whatsoever. Still, Chell was only human at the end of the day, and even the measured doses of adrenal vapor were no longer sufficient to keep her fully awake and aware.
"Poor, useless, pathetic creature..."
GLaDOS tutted softly as she noticed the light fading from her eyes, though none of the instruments ceased their ministrations.
"Well, I shouldn't say useless. You've gathered quite a bit of valuable data for me, and taught me I have a new favorite hobby. It's a shame that stasis made you such a weakling, but don't worry, we'll improve your stamina with time."
Once again, she leaned in, her chassis nudging against Chell's twitching, drooling form, a gesture almost akin to a lover pressing one's forehead against the other's. The mist in the chamber was starting to recede, even as the lab rat's vision grew darker.
"Right now, though... I think I'll let you get what you want, for once. I doubt you'll even remember it. So go ahead. Come for me, Cara Mia. Admit that you're all mine~"
The moment she felt the gas leaving her lungs, Chell knew she was spiralling inexorably towards an orgasm that threatened to strip away everything she was - her pride, dignity, wit, personhood, everything. She didn't care, though, she knew she couldn't take one more second of this without fainting. So, hands gripping the cables holding her aloft, knuckles turning white from the pressure, she gave two more thrusts against GLaDOS' toys, and the most blissful, earth-shaking climax of her life washed over her like a blanket, her entire body trembling with its force, before eventually the darkness claimed her too.
Chell blinked as she found herself stirring on the floor of the test chamber she thought she'd previously escaped. Trying to sit up, she found that all of her muscles screamed in protest. All of the events that occurred felt distant as a dream, even if the proof of them was seared into her aching body. Most of it was a blur that truthfully, it overwhelmed her to remember at all - save for one stray memory, of lying on a cold, heavy, curved piece of metal, which hummed with a familiar tune. Strange.
In any case, Chell knew what her course of action was to be long before the moment she stood on her own two wobbly legs. Efficient as ever, she shot down every single security camera she could reach with her portal gun, and huddled herself in a corner where the rest could not reach her. Oddly enough, GLaDOS made no clever remarks about how long she took to finish the already nearly completed test - not that she had to. For once, the silence was enough to speak for itself, except for a faint chuckle upon Chell's last gesture to the camera before disappearing - a simple middle finger.