The Troop

by Nick Cutter · 2014

Every summer Scoutmaster Tim Riggs leads a tight‑knit troop of boys deep into the Canadian wilderness for a weekend of campfire stories and camaraderie. This year, however, the familiar rhythm of hiking and bonding is shattered when a gaunt, pale stranger stumbles onto their site, carrying a bio‑engineered pathogen that turns flesh into a ravenous nightmare. As the infection spreads faster than fear, the boys must confront not only a terrifying, flesh‑eating horror but also the primal instincts that surface when survival is on the line. In a relentless, claustrophobic fight against the elements, the infected, and each other, the troop’s weekend becomes a brutal test of humanity—part "Lord of the Flies," part viral apocalypse, all old‑school horror at its most gripping.