"WHAT THE F**K WAS THAT?" Gary screamed.
Just a little while ago, he had found a strange contraption. It was pure white, boxy, and something was spinning inside. Looking in the front, he unwittingly watched with Salem as the rock within crumpled like tinfoil.
Seeing that happen, Gary's instincts flared. Over his years, one thing hadn't been wrong even once: his instincts. Turning and running the way that Salem and Alina were going, Gary kept glancing behind him as if to make sure the contraption wasn't going to grow legs.
After running for almost two kilomiters, Gary turned to look at it one last time. Gary's instincts flared again and he looked away just in time. The machine flared with a violent violet light and exploded, releasing a massive mushroom cloud. Immediately following the explosion was a massive shockwave, carrying with it an incredible amount of heat. As Gary turned to run once more, he felt his clothing heat up enough to burn him.
....
Just two hours later, Gary felt feverish. He had been running that whole time and with each glance behind him, his sense of dread deepened.
Looking behind himself again, he saw it had begun to snow.
It was midsummer and it wasn't supposed to snow around these parts until late winter. Gary's instincts reached heights he previously thought unimaginable.
As he continued to run, he fatigued far faster than he should have. With each second, he felt the snow fall closer to him.
At this point, Gary was hysteric. His instincts told him the snow was dangerous, but his rational mind said it was harmless. Continuing to trust his instincts, he pushed on.
....
An hour later, Gary could not even run. His legs felt leaden, his body felt feverish, and he had to stop and vomit several times.
At last he collapsed, exhausted onto the warm, inviting ground. As he lay there, he felt his instincts warn him frantically about the snow. Gary tried to get up and continue, but he was too weak.
As he lay there, struggling to even draw breath, he felt the first of the snow fall on his face. His fear made him find a strength he never knew he had. He got up and staggered on.
....
He spent hours in the quiet snowfall, constantly moving towards the edge.
Finally, Gare reached the edge. As he exited the eerily silent snow, he felt his fear turn down a notch.
Collapsing next to a tree, Gary cursed the day he accepted a bounty for the Machinist.
As he lay there, Gary finally understood why being in the snow made his instincts go off. But by the time he figured it out, his body had begun to shut down.
"F**k! This whole area is radioactive!" He exclaimed, just before his world faded into darkness.
It was unlikely that Gary would ever wake up again.