The Night of Goo

We all gathered in Miguel's basement, anxiously awaiting the grand unveiling of his "surprise." There were 9 of us, but the group was led by Miguel, Iglesias, Tony, and myself. Tony is the quiet one. To help you remember, say this aloud: "Tony is the quiet one." Got it? Good. Anyway, everyone shuffled down the basement stairs and began gathering in a small circle. The basement was cramped, and such a large group was less than ideal. I suggested we go upstairs for the surprise, but Miguel simply whispered in my ear "We need the darkness. More importantly, HE needs the darkness." That sentence horrified me, but I quickly lost interest when I saw a Chewy bar resting on a stool in the corner. I was in luck! I grabbed my snack and found a seat in the circle right next to Iglesias. "This better be good," he said in a nervous voice. "Miguel's been acting a touch odd these past few weeks, and I'm concerned that it may be related to that weird book he's been reading." "Yeah," I said with a mouthful of granola, "It's a creepy looking black book. He seems to have his nose in it every time I look at him." "Hmm probably," Iglesias responded, clearly distracted. "Hey where'd you get that Chewy bar?" he asked impatiently. "I found it I guess. It's pretty good." "Can I have like a pinch or something?" "Nah, I didn't really eat lunch." I said without looking at him in the eye. "Oh, ok," he sighed sheepishly, "Is it peanut butter?" "Yeh," I said sharply. At this time, Miguel stood up and requested everyone's attention. "People!" he yelled at a piercing pitch. Too loud for such a small basement. "As I'm sure you know, I've called you here tonight to show you something..... special." Everyone began murmuring and asking questions. "What does that mean?" "Special? What is this?" "Where did he get that Chewy bar?" "In due time," Miguel continued, "you will have all of your questions answered. But first we must.... cross the barrier." Miguel froze, his eyes locked onto mine. Neither of us moved for several seconds, trembling, awaiting the other's next move. He broke the silence with a warm chuckle, and continued in his speech. "Does anyone here believe in... spirits?" No one raised their hand. "Fair enough," he said licking his lips. "But does anyone believe in life after death?" This question aroused a few hands. Everyone looked confused, as if their slightly Hispanic friend was no longer the one they recognized. "What are you getting at?" Iglesias demanded. Miguel quickly turned around. His eyes were nearly bulging out of his head with surprise. His lips were pooched out in a curious fashion. "You know," Miguel said nearly in a whisper, "If you were quiet like Tony perhaps you would learn something." Iglesias glanced over at Tony's expressionless face. Iglesias nervously swallowed. "As I mentioned earlier," Miguel continued, now addressing the entire group, "some of you believe in the afterlife, so therefore you believe in Hell." The word "Hell" echoed in the stuffy basement. "Tonight, I want to give you a taste of the afterlife by welcoming someone from the other side." Everyone gasped. "A demon." Miguel threw his hands up and began chanting in a dead tongue. His eyes rolled back in his head and his voice sounded like a reversed scream. The ground shook as he flailed his arms in every conceivable direction, and everyone in the room began screaming at the top of their lungs. His mouth was moving at an unfathomable speed, spouting demonic chants and disembodied screams. I thought about running and escaping this horror, but my body was frozen to the ground. I looked into his eyes, and I saw the gates of Hell. Suddenly all was quiet. Every light in the room was snuffed out the instant Miguel's screams abruptly stopped. After a few seconds my eyes were drawn to the slowly growing green mass in the center of the room. It was goo, green glowing goo. Everyone stared in disbelief. I looked around to see everyone's ghastly expression, but Miguel was nowhere to be seen. The goo was rising at an increasing pace, and we all shuffled away from the disgusting slimy substance. Someone had the gall to make the joke, "What is this? Slime Time Live?" The absolute lack of laughter was far more disturbing than the creeping pile of green snot. I admit, after watching that goo wiggle around for three minutes got a bit boring. I actually started to yawn, but as my mouth opened to release my rank breath, I noticed something. The goo... it was starting to take shape! A man was arising from the slime! A rather gooey man!