Life for package delivery worker Whipps changes forever the night he handles a box of thawing pig remains. By morning he is host to a virulent new parasite, one that releases mind-altering secretions as it wrecks massive internal damage. As Whipps' existence becomes more and more surreal, a college professor pieces together the connection between a missing student and a trailer of mutilated swine. Her search takes her to a valley of toxic industry where she stumbles upon a nightmare of unregulated waste, clandestine animal research, and a depraved drug lord. And all the while Whipps' stowaway is developing, preparing for the stage when it will bring back reality, with exponentially increasing pain. . .