Snot Busters

[Likesn]

I'll be honest: I'm not the biggest fan of the movie "Ghost Busters". I know many people really like this movie, but to me it's just ok. That being said, there were several elements in that movie that I thought would work well if turned into a sneeze-fetish story. Those of you who have seen the movie wouldn't have much trouble recognizing those elements. As for those of you who haven't, fear not - there's no need to watch the movie to understand anything about this story (that's one reason why it's in the original fiction section).

Part 1:

The library was quiet, as it should be. From time to time you could hear if someone turned a page in a book, but that was about it. Dorothy didn't want to change that. She liked going to the library especially because the place was so quiet. Whenever someone made a loud noise in the library she always got a little annoyed. Well, today Dorothy had the misfortune of being the unusually noisy person in the library, even though all she did was sniffle occasionally. She felt off since the moment she woke up that morning. Winter has been at its full force lately, so it came as no surprise to her that she was getting sick. Dorothy had an unfortunate tendency to catch colds, especially during wintertime. So far, her symptoms were only increased tiredness and a nose that was a little runny. She went to the library hoping that being in a place where she felt safe would help her deal with this cold. It did not seem to be working. Her sniffles only increased as time passed and they became more audible as well. She didn't want to draw attention to herself, least of all here, but it seemed inevitable that people would start noticing her pretty soon.

"At least I'm not sneezing yet" Dorothy thought.

That was a big mistake. It's not the Dorothy was wrong, she hasn't sneezed yet, but just thinking about it caused a tickle in her nose. She tried to ignore it, hoping it would just go away. It didn't. As a matter of fact, it only got stronger.

"Oh no, please, not here" she made a plea to her nose in her mind, but to no avail. The tickle grew stronger still.

She thought about just leaving before the sneezing starts, but it was clear that she wouldn't make it in time. Her breath started to hitch and her eyes started to close in anticipation for the coming sneeze. There was a box of tissues on the table in front of her, one that she brought from home. She didn't want to blow her nose, fearing it would be too loud, but with an inevitable sneeze coming she grabbed a tissue and brought it to her face, preparing for the worst.

"Hu... Hu.... Hu Eshoo"!

Was it just her imagination or was that sneeze much louder than her usual ones? She opened her eyes, hoping that it only sounded loud in her head. The first thing she saw was exactly what she feared - everyone was looking at her, an expression of pure terror on their faces. The second thing she saw made her scream.

^^^^^

Doctor Elizabeth Hayworth sipped her coffee and bit the end of her pen. Biting the end of her pen was a nasty habit she was trying very hard to kick, so far with limited success. Coffee helped her with another bad habit. Her drinking habits were one of the reasons her peers didn't take her seriously. It was also a major reason why the university wanted to kick her out not too long ago. Fortunately, she did a much better job battling the urge to drink than battling the urge to bite the end of her pen. Being busy helped a lot with both of those bad habits. That's why Elizabeth was very happy when the phone on her desk rang.

"Please tell me that we have a case" she said when she picked up.

"It's your lucky day" said Ramona on the other end. She sounded bored but Elizabeth wasn't worried - Ramona always sounded like that.

"Something serious?" Elizabeth asked, trying in vain to inspire some enthusiasm in Ramona.

"Maybe" Ramona replied in her usual tone. "They didn't give me too many details".

"Well that's not good" said Elizabeth. "We need to know what we're getting into. Where did it happen"?

"The public library" was Ramona's reply.

"That's a first" said Elizabeth. "When did it happen? Were there any witnesses? Did they manage to isolate and conation the source"?

"About half an hour ago" said Ramona. "There were many witnesses and the library has agreed to keep everyone there until you come".

"Excellent" said Elizabeth. "I'll get the others and we'll head there right away".

^^^^^

In case you were wondering, the main reason many of Elizabeth's peers didn't take her seriously was the subject she studied. It was called "paranormal viral activity" or PVA. There weren't many people studying PVA. As a matter of fact, Elizabeth couldn't think of anyone other than herself that seemed even remotely interested in this. The main focus of her research was beings from other dimensions trying to make their way into ours via viruses, mainly the common cold. No matter how many evidence she had that PVA was real, people always laughed at her, if not ignored her completely. Since Elizabeth had five different PHD's before she turned 30, it was hard for the university to treat her as a novice scientist. However, their patience eventually ran out. They were just about to fire her and deny her access to her lab when the incident with the billionaire's daughter occurred. Oh, you want to know what happened? Maybe another time. All you need to know right now is that since a billionaire has agreed to fund her research the university became much more willing to support it. Elizabeth, however, kept her distance from them. She moved her lab and research into a building she bought (well, that the billionaire bought for her) and turned it into a business. In order to do that, she needed a team.

Velma Robertson was her first and most obvious choice. The two of them had been working together for years and Velma was one of the few people who didn't think Elizabeth was just some weirdo. On top of that, Velma was a tech genius. She was crucial in building and maintaining all the equipment they needed for the job. Just building the equipment wasn't enough though. Someone had to get their hands dirty and use it. That's when Luisa Oliveras came in. She was a student who funded her way through university by working as a cleaning lady. Elizabeth got to know her during the many times she left her lab late at night, when Luisa was the only person left in the building. She knew Luisa was capable of hard work, so when the opportunity came to get her into a more lucrative job Elizabeth did just that. The bet payed off, since Luisa turned out to be the prefect person for the job. Not only was she good at using the equipment, she was also an excellent driver.  Becky Phillips was an unexpected addition to the team. She worked in real-estate and was the one who helped Elizabeth find the perfect building for her business. When she found out what that business was, she got curious. Elizabeth agreed to let her accompany the team during an investigation of a case. Since then Becky decided she wanted in as well. She turned out to be brilliant when it came to marketing and design and thus helped the business grow. When it did, Becky was the one who decided to hire Ramona Star as their secretary, figuring the four of them would be too busy to answer the phone and take messages about potential new cases.

TBC

Ok, that's enough for now. Let me know what you think so far.

Edited October 6, 2022 by Likesn

[poiub]

Great start! Excited to see this continued

[JohnnyOxn]

Nice foundation. Can’t wait to see what comes next.

[Likesn]

Part 2:

The first hint that this was no ordinary business could be found right at the front desk. Ramona Star, the apathetic-looking secretary, was sitting by her desk inside a cell with reinforced-glass walls. People working as secretaries were often at risk of encountering sick people. In Ramona's case, those sick people sometimes had supernatural side-effects to their colds, so she needed extra protection. Ramona had a punk-rock girl vibe, with a long dark brown hair and an expression that was somewhere between bored and irritated. She had a long slender nose that she was determined to keep any weird colds away from.

When the four members of the team came down to the entrance wearing their special protective suites, Ramona didn't so much as move in her chair. She was used to them acting like firefighters about to go out on a heroic mission, but even during her first days of the job she didn't seem to share their enthusiasm.

"I'll go get the van" said Luisa. The team had a special van that she was very proud to drive.

"All the witnesses are still there, right?" Elizabeth asked Ramona.

"Unless the library had a sudden change of hart in the last 10 minutes, I think so" Ramona replied. Elizabeth ignored her snark.

"Do you want me to double check the equipment?" Velma asked Elizabeth.

"No time" Elizabeth replied. "This can be an event the likes of which we've never seen before".

"All the more reason to make sure we're ready" Velma pointed out.

"Maybe, but we need to get there as fast as we can" said Elizabeth. "Besides, I trust your maintenance of the equipment".

"The van is here" Becky said looking out the door.

"Let's go" said Elizabeth.

She knew she should appreciate all the things she had: The building, the van, the equipment and most of all the team. It was not too long ago when working on a case was far more difficult.

^^^^^

"Hello?" Elizabeth mumbled as she answered her phone. It was 11:30 in the morning but she was still in bed, after a night of heavy drinking.

"Is this Doctor Elizabeth Hayworth?" asked a mans voice on the other end.

"Yes, this is she" Elizabeth cleared her throat. "Who am I speaking to"?

"My name is Charles" the man replied. "I'm calling on behalf of mister Jeffry Travis".

Elizabeth wondered if someone was pranking her.

"Jeffry Travis as in the real-estate billionaire Jeffry Travis?" she asked.

"Indeed" said Charles. "However, I'm not calling you about mister Travis himself but rather about his daughter".

"I see" said Elizabeth. "What about her"?

"It appears that young miss Travis is suffering from an affliction of some sort" said Charles.

"You need to be more specific than that" said Elizabeth. "What kind of affliction"?

"I'm afraid I'm not allowed to elaborate too much on that matter" Charles replied.

"Did you try taking her to the hospital?" Elizabeth asked.

"Doctor Hayworth, I was told you are the one I should turn to" said Charles. "Surely you realize this means we can't take miss Travis to a hospital".

"You want to keep things discreet" Elizabeth deduced out loud.

"Precisely" said Charles. "Miss Travis is confined to her bedroom at the moment. I realize you're no medical doctor, but is there any way you would be willing to make a house call"?

"I'll have to think about it" Elizabeth said, already knowing that she was going to agree. The opportunity was just too good to miss.

"If you give me your address I can have a driver bringing you here within the hour" said Charles.

^^^^^

Since she had no equipment back then, Elizabeth got to the Travis' mansion with basically nothing but a surgical mask and a pair of disposable gloves. Her mouth dropped wide open when the limo that brought her passed through the mansion gates. All around her was wealth she couldn't even imagine possible.

"Wow. Here's something you don't see everyday, am I right?" she told the driver.

"I work here, so..." he said and shrugged.

"Right. Sorry" Elizabeth said and blushed. She was still a little hung-over and feared she might embarrass herself in front of a billionaire.

Jeffrey Travis waited for her on the stairs at the entrance to the house. Next to him was a man that Elizbeth soon realized was Charles.

"I'm very grateful that you agreed to come here in such short notice, miss Hayworth" said Jeffry.

"It's doctor Hayworth, actually. Just Elizabeth is fine though" said Elizabeth. "Why don't I go see the patient"?

"I should warn you - there have been some... unexplainable phenomena concerning my daughter's illness" said Jeffry.

"That's why you called me, isn't it? Let's see what's going on" said Elizabeth.

Jeffry and Charles escorted her up to Jeffry's daughter's bedroom but stayed outside when she went in. Inside, Elizabeth found a blond princess in her early 20's lying in bed. Her nose was red and she looked pale and sickly.

"Are you the doctor?" the girl asked.

"Well... I am a doctor" said Elizabeth. "My name is Elizabeth".

"Dice to beet you Elizabeth" said the girl. "By dabe is Baddy".

"It's nice to meet you too Mandy" Elizabeth was skilled enough to decipher congested speech.

"You should't get too close *sniffle* I have a terrible cold" said Mandy.

"From what I understand it's more than just a cold" said Elizabeth. "That's why your father called me".

"He Ishoo!" Mandy sneezed into her hands and all the lights in the room flickered for a moment.

"Bless you" said Elizabeth. "Now I see why he called me. It was the right call, so to speak".

"Please help be" Mandy said and blew her nose. "I dod't kdow what's happedig to be or how to stop it".

"Does this happen every time you sneeze?" Elizabeth asked.

"Sobethig happeds *sniffle* albost every tibe" Mandy replied.

"Things that seem unnatural, right? You see, I study something called 'paranormal viral activity' or PVA" Elizabeth explained.

"You bead 'paradorbal' like ghosts add stuff?" Mandy asked.

"I wouldn't call them 'ghosts' exactly, but there are beings from other dimensions" Elizabeth replied. "Some of those beings try to make their way into our dimension by using viruses as sort of portals. The common cold virus is the more... well.... common one they use".

"Hi Ishoo, He Ishoo!" Mandy sneezed twice more. Even though all the windows in the room were closed, there was a strong gust of wind after she sneezed. On top of that, a voice could be heard in the air. It was like an evil laughter.

"Did you hear that? I'b so scared" said Mandy. "What do those beigs wadt frob be"?

"It's not about you specifically" said Elizabeth. "You're just being used as a way for those beings to manifest in our dimension".

"That's sounds horrible Ha Ishoo!" Mandy got so scared by what Elizabeth told her that she pulled her blanket up to her face, fearing that a being might come out of her when she sneezes. However, that particular time nothing happened. For a moment, Elizabeth could see Mandy's bare feet when she pulled the blanket.

"Don't worry - I don't think you're in any real danger" she tried to reassure the sick girl.

"I'b dot?" Mandy asked and sniffled.

"From what I can tell, it looks like you're being used by a being that's not very strong" said Elizabeth. "It puts up a big scary show, but it probably won't survive for long in our dimension once it gets here".

"Thed why does it wadt to be here at all?" Mandy asked.

"Some of those beings see the manifestation in our dimension as a demonstration of strength" said Elizabeth. "It's like some sort of test to them. Most of them can't stay here for long before they have to go back to the dimension they came from, but I guess maybe they are more powerful there after they return from our dimension. At the very least, that's what they want the other beings to think".

"You soudd like you kdow those beigs" said Mandy.

"I really don't, actually" said Elizabeth. "Can I tell you a secrete? Most of my research is just speculation at this point. The university kinda wants to kick me out because they don't believe me".

"Ha I Shoo!" Mandy pulled the blanket up to her face again. This time, her sneeze was followed by another gust of wind and more flickering lights.

"How cad they dot believe you if you've seed sobethig like this before?" she asked Elizabeth.

"Well, sometimes people just don't believe what they don't want to believe" said Elizabeth.

"Thed I probise you - if you help be get through this I'll help you bake theb believe" said Mandy.

"Wow... that's very generous of you Mandy. Thanks" said Elizabeth. "Now, as for getting you through this - I think the being that's using you just wants to do a quick manifestation in our dimension and then it'll leave you be. You'll still have a cold, but no more scary paranormal side-effects".

"So how do we get this badifestatiod to happed?" Mandy asked.

"That's the tricky part" Elizabeth replied. "Different beings have different manifestation triggers".

"Just like differedt triggers for a sdeeze Hi Ishoo!" Mandy pulled the blanket up to her face and sneezed into it. More evil laughter followed.

"You know you don't have to hide from me every time you sneeze" Elizbeth told her. "It's a nice blanket you have. Don't ruin it".

"Yeah *sniffle* I kdow *sniffle* but it just feels like the right thig to do every tibe I sdeeze" said Mandy.

"Is it something you usually do when you have a cold?" Elizabeth asked.

"Do *sniffle* but right dow I just do it without thikig whed I feel a tickle id by dose" Mandy replied.

"A tickle..." said Elizabeth. Mandy gave her an idea. She took her gloves off, moved closer to the bed and gave Mandy's feet a quick tickle.

"Oh... it hi... tickles.. hi hi.... I have to Hi Ishoo, He Ishoo, Ha I Shooooo!" a flash of green light came out of Mandy's nose and crashed into the wall. For a moment, a blurry figure could be seen in the air.

"Did you see that? Was that the beig?" asked Mandy.

"I think so" Elizabeth replied. "Wow, I can't believe it worked. I was acting on a pure hunch".

Seeing the blanket routine caused Elizabeth to deduce the being's playful nature. Hearing the word "tickle" had her putting two and two together. Mandy recovered from her cold a couple of days later, without any further unnatural side-effects. True to her word, she got her father to financially support Elizabeth's research. Elizabeth remembered that case as the team was making its way to the public library.

TBC

Thoughts? In case you were wondering: No, this isn't going to be one of those stories with a lot of foot stuff (which I like, don't get me wrong). It was an idea that I got while I was writing this part and I just couldn't resist 😅 but it'll probably be a one time thing.

[SneezeLucario]

Paranormal sickness? I love it, great concept and inspired by Ghostbusters? Even better😄.

[poiub]

Loving this, very original concept!

Hope we get to see Ramona the punk receptionist fail in her mission to remain sneezeless 👀

[Likesn]

Loving the support I get from you guys 🥰 Here's another part:

Part 3:

"It can't be green" Elizabeth said decisively.

"But..." Becky started.

"Out of the question" Elizabeth cut her off. "It was hard enough for me to agree to the name".

"What's wrong with 'Snot Busters'? I think it's pretty catchy, no pun intended" said Becky.

"Don't you think it's a bit... I don't know, childish? I want people to take us seriously" said Elizabeth.

"I get that, I really do" said Becky. "However, people can't take us seriously if they don't know us first. We need to build our reputation and we can only do that by working on cases and becoming more well known. That's why marketing and advertisement is important".

"Yeah... I guess you're right" said Elizabeth. "I'm still exercising my veto on the color though - no green".

"Fine, the van would be plain white" said Becky. "I still insist we use the logo I designed for us though. Now, about the sirens"

"Absolutely not!" Elizabeth declared.

^^^^^

The white van indeed had no sirens. Elizabeth insisted that sirens should only be used for actual emergency vehicles. It did, however, had the "Snot Busters" logo* on it. The roads were wet and slippery due to the wintery weather, but Luisa was a skilled driver and they got to the public library without any trouble. When they did, they found out that the library kept all the witnesses in one room and "the source" (i.e. Dorothy) in another. Elizabeth was pleased.

"Becky, can you go and talk to the witnesses please? I want me and the others to go and talk to the source" she said.

"But I want to come with you" Becky protested.

"Why don't we all go and talk to the witnesses first?" Luisa suggested. "It'll go faster that way".

"Alright" Elizabeth agreed.

The witnesses all told pretty much the same story: They were just sitting in the library, minding their own business, when all of a sudden they heard a very loud sneeze. The sneeze came from a girl that seemed to be getting sick, but the important stuff was what came after it. Not only did it cover the walls and the shelves with disgusting green stuff ("that's just goo" Elizabeth explained), everyone saw something floating in the air. It looked like a person, maybe a woman, but it was too blurry for them to notice a face. The floating being seemed to be pointing at the girl who sneezed, but after a few moments it disappeared.

"That's definitely a serious business" Elizabeth said when they were done interviewing the witnesses. They were all sent home, except for Dorothy obviously.

"I don't remember ever seeing so much goo in one place before" said Velma.

"It'll probably be a nightmare cleaning that up" Luisa said, sympathizing with the cleaning staff.

"Most of it should go away on its own" Elizabeth reassured her. "Now, let's go talk to the source".

Dorothy was sitting in a room with a red nose and a box of tissues placed in front of her. She's been sniffling a lot and blowing her nose from time to time, too afraid to sneeze. When she saw four women entering the room all wearing protective suites she became even more afraid. Each suite had some sort of device on it, something that looked like a backpack with a vacuum cleaner attached to it.

"Cad I please go hobe dow? I just wadt to be id bed" said Dorothy.

"It's ok, don't worry" Becky told her. "I'm sure you'll be able to go home soon".

"We need to examine you first" said Elizabeth.

"Let's start with talking" Becky said quickly. "Tell us what happened".

Dorothy told them about her day, how she noticed that she might be getting sick and decided to go to the library. She then described the events in the library from her own point of view, constantly sniffling as she spoke.

"I'm guessing this has never happened to you before" said Velma.

"Do *sniffle dever" said Dorothy.

"Were there any more unusual events after that one? Maybe when you sneezed?" Elizabeth asked.

"I haved't sdeezed sidce thed" Dorothy replied. "I'b worried it bight happed agaid".

"That's a lot of time to hold a sneeze" said Velma. "Especially when coming down with a cold".

"Oh please dod't say that! You're gettig by dose all tickly" Dorothy said and wiggled her nose.

"Just let it out, it's fine" Becky told her.

"Hu Eshoo, He Eshoo!" Dorothy didn't need to be told twice. Nothing happened after she sneezed.

"Bless be" she said. "I really deeded that".

"We could tell" said Velma.

"Maybe the being is done with her? It could've been just a one-time thing" said Becky.

"Wait... I have to sdeeze agaid" said Dorothy.

"Go ahead" said Elizabeth.

"He Heshoo, He Eshoo, Hu Shoo, Hu Eshoo!" Dorothy let out four loud sneezes. When she opened her eyes, she couldn't see a thing.

"What happeded? Ab I blidd?" she asked in panic.

"No, the lights just went out" Velma said calmly.

"Quiet!" said Elizabeth. "Do you hear that"?

They all heard a soft voice in the air, as if someone was whispering. It was clear that the voice didn't come from any of them. A few seconds later the lights were back and the whispering stopped.

"Boy, that was intense" said Luisa. "What do you think that was exactly?" she asked Elizabeth.

"I'm not sure" Elizabeth replied. "It needs to be further tested, but I can't do it here".

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" asked Velma.

"Yes. I know you've been wanting to test 'the aquarium' for a while. This looks like the perfect opportunity for that" said Elizabeth.

"So *sniffle* what's goig to happed to be?" asked Dorothy.

"Tilt your head back please" Elizabeth told her. Dorothy did and Elizabeth shined a purple light into her nose with a little flashlight.

"Just as I thought - the being is definitely still in there" said Elizabeth.

"You cad see it?" asked Dorothy.

"Not exactly, but I can see signs that it's still there" Elizabeth replied. "I think I might've heard it again though".

"Can we extract it and take it with us?" Velma asked.

"I'm counting on it" said Elizabeth. "Luisa, are you ready for some action"?

"Always" Luisa smiled.

"That's my girl" said Elizabeth. "Now get ready. Timing is very important. You need to capture it the next time Dorothy sneezes".

"How do you kdow whed I'll sdeeze agaid?" Dorothy asked.

Instead of answering, Elizabeth shined a bright white light into Dorothy's eyes.

"He Shoo, He Eshoo, Hu Eshoo, Hu Hushoo!" Dorothy sneezed instantly.

Something could be seen flying through the air and Luisa aimed her gear right at it and sucked it into her backpack.

"Gotcha!" she called. A little green light that turned on at the top of her backpack indicated that she was right.

"You should be better from now on" Elizabeth told Dorothy. "We'll take it from here. Go home and take care of your cold".

"Thadk you so buch" Dorothy said and gave her nose a wet gurgling blow. She then went home.

As for our team, they headed back to their base for further testing.

TBC

* Remember the logo of "Ghost Busters"? Well, it's something like that but instead of one white ghost there's nose with two green ghost-like creatures coming out of it, one out of each nostril 😅

[Likesn]

Part 4:

"We're back!!" Becky called when the team entered the building.

"Yeah, I noticed" said Ramona.

"And we have a guest with us" Luisa said, moving closer to the front desk and showing Ramona the green light on her backpack.

"Get that thing away from me" Ramona said, momentarily snapping out of her apathy. Even behind the glass walls she didn't feel very safe seeing this. "Whatever 'guest' you brought here - keep it to yourselves".

"That's no way to treat a guest" Luisa teased.

"Stop fooling around" Elizabeth told her. "We need to go up to the lab and put the being in 'the aquarium' as soon as possible".

"I just wanted to give Ramona a chance to greet our new guest" said Luisa. Ramona pouted.

"Alright, that's enough" said Elizabeth. "We're going up to the lab. Ramona - let us know if anyone calls".

"Fine" said Ramona. "It's not like it's my job or something".

^^^^^

"In other news, a bizarre incident at the public library ended with an intervention of the team known as 'Snot Busters'. Details are still coming in, but the members of 'Snot Busters' claim to have everything under control" said the reporter.

"No need to worry - 'Snot Busters' are on the case" Becky said to the microphone.

"We are pleased to announce that everything at the library is back to normal" said Elizabeth.

"Remember to call 'Snot Busters' if your cold comes with any weird or unnatural symptoms" said Becky.

"Next we have the weather" the news anchor said, but Vivian turned her TV off.

"We're godda have a widtery weather for the dext couple of bodths" she said and sniffled.

Vivian James was more used to being on TV than watching it. She was a well known cellist and the city's orchestra was very proud to have her playing with them. The fact that she had the looks of a model certainly didn't hurt her popularity. With her long blond hair and piercing green eyes, she had the ability to turn heads whenever she walked into a room. The orchestra recently finished a series of concerts that they have been working on for a very long time. It was a great success. Naturally, after all the tension, Vivian's body was more susceptible to viruses. The fact that she was constantly around many people didn't help. Fortunately, she now had the ability to take some time off. She did not like to be seen in public when she wasn't feeling her best, so she just stayed at home.

"I Tshoo!" she let out a delicate sneeze and wiggled her long nose, which was now colored pink.

"At least by cold isd't as bad as whatever that persod id the library had" she said and gave her nose a light blow.

Vivian's cold started the previous day with a slightly sore throat, a slightly aching head, some sniffles and overall feeling very tired. Today she was congested and her sneezes started a couple of hours ago.

"Tibe to take sobe bedicide" she said, making her way to her medicine cabinet.

She felt no need to take medicine the previous day and just drank tea. Today, however, she felt like tea just wouldn't cut it. Her medicine cabinet was in the shower, above the sink. She opened it, expecting to find her stock of medicine, but it wasn't there. It was as if she opened a window to a very dark place. At first she couldn't see anything, but then she noticed something like thin gray mist floating inside. Then she heard the voices. It was as if there were people chanting in there. She closed the cabinet and backed away.

"I hope I dod't have a fever" she said, thinking what she just saw was a hallucination.

She wanted to take her temperature, but her thermometer was inside the medicine cabinet. When she opened it again she saw the same thing.

"Ha Tishoo!" Vivian suddenly sneezed.

The chanting grew in both frequency and volume. She closed the cabinet with an increasing sense of panic.

^^^^^

"The Aquarium" was the name Velma gave to a special device she designed.  It was meant to contain beings from other dimension in a way that would allow the team to observe them and study them. The team has been wanting to test it for a long time. Now was their chance.

"Put it in there carefully" Velma instructed Luisa. The edge of Luisa's "vacuum-cleaner" tube was inserted into "the aquarium".

"Now, when I tell you - press the button to release the being" said Velma.

"Ready when you are" said Luisa.

"And... now!" Velma called. Luisa pressed the button. Green light and smoke started flowing out of her device.

"Wait for it to fully go out" Elizabeth told Luisa. "There! Close the tank!" she ordered Velma, who pulled down a lever.

"Done!" she announced. "I think we got it".

After they helped Luisa get the edge of her tube out of "the aquarium", the team moved closer to the tank. At first it looked like the tank was empty. Then, they noticed something moving inside. It was like a blurry figure made of mist.

"Can we get audio?" Elizabeth asked Velma.

"Of course" Velma replied. She pressed a button and a voice could be heard through speakers.

"It sounds like it's... saying something" said Luisa. "Like it's repeating it over and over again".

"Activating translator" Velma said and pressed another button. The voice in the speakers then changed into words:

"Glory to Nazalimia. Glory to Nazalimia. Glory to Nazalimia".

TBC

[Likesn]

Part 5:

"Nothing" Luisa said after closing the book she was holding.

"Same here" Becky said and closed a different book.

"Are there any other books?" Velma asked.

"No" Elizabeth replied. "Those were the last ones".

The team spent the last two hours going over the small collection of books in Elizabeth's office. They were searching for information about "Nazalimia" but didn't find that name mentioned anywhere. Elizabeth had books about several ancient civilizations and cultures and the team hoped that at least one of those books would have the information they were looking for.

"Well, this doesn't leave us with much" Becky sighed.

"Not necessarily" said Elizabeth. "I did notice a pattern: Many of the texts about the world of 'ghosts' or 'demons' mentioned those world being ruled by a king or sometimes a queen. Maybe it was just the writers of those texts projecting what they knew from their own life, but maybe that 'Nazalimia' character is something like the queen of the dimension where the being we captured came from".

"Could it be a god or a goddess figure?" Velma suggested. "It sounded like the being was praying".

"It's possible, but based on what I've read in the books I'm leaning more towards a ruler" said Elizabeth.

"I just wish there was a way for us to communicate with the being" said Becky.

"You saw for yourself - we tried everything we could think of and nothing worked" said Velma.

"Maybe we just need a break" Luisa suggested.

"Good idea" said Elizabeth. "We've had a very productive day so far, maybe we should continue this tomorrow".

"Hi Tshoo!" they heard a sneeze coming from downstairs.

"Looks like we got the distraction we needed" said Elizabeth. "Let's go see what's going on down there".

^^^^^

Even though Ramona was safe behind here glass walls, she still recoiled when the woman sitting in front of her sneezed into a tissue.

"Excuse be" the woman said and gave her nose a light blow.

"So your cold doesn't have any unnatural symptoms, but you're saying there's something wrong with your house?" Ramona asked.

"Dot by house *sniffle* just by bedicide cabidet" said the woman. "It was dark idside add there were voices add figures add"

"Oh my gosh! That's Vivian James!" Velma exclaimed when the team went down to the front desk and saw Ramona talking to a woman.

"Hello" Vivian said and sniffled. "Yes, that's be. I take it that you like classical busic"?

"Yes, very much" said Velma.

"Always dice to beet a fad" said Vivian. "Udfortudately *sniffle* I'b here because I have a probleb I was hopig you could help be with".

"I assume that problem has something to do with the cold you have?" Elizabeth asked.

"Do *sniffle* dot by cold Ha Tishoo!" sneezed Vivian.

"She said there was something weird going on with her medicine cabinet" said Ramona.

"Huh, that's new" said Elizabeth.

"You dod't believe be?" Vivian asked.

"In our line of work - we don't rule out anything until we've seen the case for ourselves" Elizabeth replied.

"Thed cad I codvidce you to cobe to by house add look at by bedicide cabidet? I'b sure I wasd't ibagidig thigs" said Vivian.

"No one said you were" said Elizabeth. "We'll be happy to look at your medicine cabinet, but it's getting pretty late".

"Yes, I was just about to go home for the night" said Ramona.

"To be hodest *sniffle* I dod't feel safe sleepig at by house after what I've seed today add I dod't wadt to sleep at a hotel whed I'b sick" said Vivian.

"I have a spare room in my house. You can sleep there tonight, if you want" said Becky.

"That's very dice of you to offer *sniffle* thadk you" said Vivian. "I just dod't wadt to Ha Tshoo! bridg by cold idto your house".

"It's alright" said Becky. "As long as you just stay in the spare room and the bathroom next to it we should be fine".

"And we'll go with you to check your medicine cabinet first thing tomorrow morning" Velma added.

"You're all so kidd" said Vivian. "I accept your offer".

TBC

[poiub]

Loving this!

[Likesn]

Wow, I've been stuck for over a month trying to find a way to continue this story. I knew where I was going all along, just wasn't sure what was the best next step to get there. Thank you all for waiting patiently and commenting.

Part 6:

"Oh wow! Look at this place!" Luisa called when they entered Vivian's house the next morning.

"Bet I could've find her a better one" Becky mumbled. She knew it wasn't very likely, but she still had her professional pride.

"The bedicide cabidet is this way" Vivian said and sniffled.

"How was last night?" Velma asked Becky as Vivian led the group to the shower.

"Nothing special to report" Becky replied. "I made her some tea and she went straight to bed".

Velma was a little jealous. She adored Vivian and would've liked it if she stayed in her house for the night, but Becky's house was a far better option and Velma knew it. Being inside Vivian's house was exciting enough as it is and Velma decided to settle for that.

"Here we are" Vivian said as they got to the shower. "Stadd back. I'll oped it byself".

"Maybe you should let me do it" Elizabeth said but it was too late. Vivian walked to the medicine cabinet and opened it.

Nothing happened. The inside of the cabinet looked just like every other medicine cabinet.

"That's... strange" said Becky.

"It's funny how in our line of work we find it strange when things are as they should be" Luisa noted.

"You have to believe be! It wasd't like that yesterday!" Vivian called.

"Calm down" said Elizabeth. "I'm sure there's a perfectly good explanation for this".

"I'b dot bakig this stuff up!" Vivian refused to calm down.

"No one said you are" said Velma.

"Baybe if I Ha Ha Ha Tishoo!" a big sneeze interrupted Vivian's sentence.

When she recovered from the sneeze and opened her eyes, she was all alone. The other four women were gone.

^^^^^

It wasn't dark, but they couldn't see anything. A thick fog surrounded them, making the faint light around them meaningless.

Becky screamed.

"Quiet!" Elizabeth told her.

"Where the hell are we?" Velma asked, her voice only slightly stronger than a whisper.

"I hope it's not really hell we're in" said Luisa.

"All of you - calm down. Let me think" said Elizabeth.

When they stopped talking they heard it - faint whispers through the fog.

"What is this place?" Becky asked. Her teeth were chattering even though it wasn't cold at all.

"You have entered the domain of the mighty Nazalimia" a strange voice said from somewhere. "She has summoned you here. Move forward".

The fog in front of them cleared up a bit, making a path for them to walk.

"Proceed. She is expecting you" said the voice.

"I don't like this at all" said Velma.

"We don't have much of a choice, do we? Let's find out what this place is about" said Elizabeth.

They started walking forward, slowly, until they saw something ahead. It was like a stage with a chair on it, like a throne. A character was sitting on the throne, but they couldn't see it's face.

"Halt! You may go no further" the character said. They stopped.

"Are you Nazalimia?" Elizabeth asked.

"I am Nazalimia and you are in my domain" the character replied. "You will do well to show respect".

"Why are we here?" Elizabeth asked, ignoring Nazalimia's latest sentence.

"It has been brought to my attention that you are the gate-keepers of your domain" said Nazalimia.

"Gate? What gate?" Velma asked.

"You are the ones preventing my subjects from entering your domain, are you not? I summoned you here to negotiate" said Nazalimia.

"It's not a negotiation if you imprison us" said Elizabeth.

"I do not intend to keep you here" said Nazalimia. "You were summoned here because I cannot manifest in your domain".

"So you brought us into yours, where you're in control" said Elizabeth.

"You are wiser than I expected you to be, gate-keeper" said Nazalimia.

"What is it that you want to negotiate with us?" Elizabeth asked.

"Passage" Nazalimia replied. "My subjects would like to enter your domain without you stopping them".

"Your subjects hurt people in our domain" said Becky. She was afraid to speak at first, but when she saw how calmly Elizabeth was dealing with Nazalimia it gave her courage. "They hurt them when they're sick and weak".

"My subjects do not intend to harm anyone in your domain, I assure you" said Nazalimia. "They manifest the only way they know how".

"Their intention doesn't matter. People are still getting hurt" said Elizabeth.

"So you refuse to let my subjects pass?" Nazalimia asked.

"Unless they can cross into our dimension, or domain as you call it, without hurting anyone, we can't let them pass" Elizabeth replied.

"Then, in the spirit of negotiations, I shall make you a generous offer" said Nazalimia. "My subjects have very little power in your domain and cannot stay there for long, unless I'm there. If you agree to let them pass, I promise I will not cross into your domain myself".

"Can you guarantee people in our dimension won't be harmed?" Elizabeth asked.

"If smooth and secure passage is ensured, my subjects will have no reason to hurt anyone" said Nazalimia.

"With all due respect, we need more than your word" said Velma.

"Despite your insolence, I am willing to make a gesture of good will" said Nazalimia. "I used a vessel to bring you here. If you agree to my terms, I will relinquish my hold of that vessel".

"You mean Vivian?" Becky asked.

"What you call the vessel is not of my concern" said Nazalimia.

"If you promise not to hurt Vivian anymore then we can make a deal" said Velma.

"Wait" Elizabeth told Velma. "We need to make sure that"

"Agreed" Nazalimia cut Elizabeth's sentence off. "I shall send you back to your domain now. One last thing: I also need to make sure you keep your end of the bargain. Thus, I will have to do something to temporarily take away your gate-keeping powers".

"What"?!

TBC

P.S. I know, I know: Just one sneeze after over a month? I promise: The next parts will be worth the wait.

[Stormer235]

Wow this is such a fun premise for a story! I've really been enjoying this, can't wait for more!

[jke1995]

This is such a clever scenario! Can’t wait for the next installment!

[Likesn]

On 11/21/2022 at 2:44 AM, Stormer235 said:

Wow this is such a fun premise for a story! I've really been enjoying this, can't wait for more!

 

34 minutes ago, jke1995 said:

This is such a clever scenario! Can’t wait for the next installment!

Glad you both liked it 😊 Luckily for you, the waiting for the next part isn't going to be very long this time 😜:

Part 7:

"Ha Ha Haaaa Tshooooooooo! Ughhhhhhh! I ab so tired of sdeezig!" Elizabeth flopped back down on the pillow.

The other three "Snot Busters" sniffled sympathetically.

It's been two days since they returned from Nazalimia's dimension. When they got sent back they found themselves outside Vivian's building, which was a bit surprising. The biggest surprise, however, was the fact that they all suddenly had a cold unlike any of them has ever experienced in her life. There were no supernatural side-effects to this cold and no beings from Nazalimia's dimension seemed to be using it to get through. That being said, the cold was so bad it left them all unable to do much but sneeze or blow their noses. They returned to their base, thinking that they might try to figure out what happened to them in Nazalimia's dimension, but it soon became clear that working wasn't an option. Ramona almost ran out screaming when she saw the four women sneezing their way into the building. The base was not a good place to rest and recover from a bad cold, so they all decided to stay at the most comfortable place possible. Becky's house was the best place they could think of, but the bonus of it was she had a bed big enough for the four of them to share. That way they could help each other deal with the cold without having to move around too much. They were exhausted, eating only a little bit, drinking as much fluids as they could and trying to sleep between the sneezes and stuffiness.

"Hesh Choo! Tell be about it" said Velma. "I feel like there's a dever-eddig streab of bucus id by dose".

"Well *sniffle* baybe you should've thought about it before you agreed to Dazalibia's terbs, Velba" said Elizabeth.

"Hey! I saved Viviad Jabes frob ad evil possessiod!" Velma called. "I would have Esh Choo! dode it all agaid".

"But who's godda save us frob this I Pchoo! horrible cold? That's what I'd like to kdow" Becky said and blew her nose.

"We'll just have to save ourselves Hu Ishi, Tshi, A Tshi, Hi Itshoo!" sneezed Luisa. Her sneezes often came in fits.

"Raboda is defiditely Hash Choo! dot goig to help us with that" said Velma.

"Yeah *sniffle* she got really scared whed she saw us all sick add sdeezig" said Luisa. "It was albost fuddy".

"He Tshooooooo! I dod't see adythig fuddy about this cold" said Elizabeth.

"It's odly a cold though Hi Ip Choo!" sneezed Becky. "I kdow we're all biserable right dow *sniffle* but if this the price we have to pay for savig people frob a superdatural cold thed it's a pretty sball price. I'b with Velba od this Hi PchiShoo! I would've dode it agaid".

"That's all very well *sniffle* as lodg as Dazalibia keeps her probise" said Velma.

"Hu Tshi, Tshi, Ha Ishi, I Tshi, Hu Itshoo! We whould do sobethig to bake sure she does" said Luisa.

"Ha Esh Choo! Sobethig like what?" Velma asked and gave her nose a gurgling blow.

"Baybe we should call Raboda" Luisa suggested. "She bight be able to tell us if there's sobethig goig od".

"Good idea Ha Ha Tshooooo! I'll call her right dow" said Elizabeth. She blew her nose and grabbed her phone.

"Hellow Raboda" she said when the secretary's face appeared on the screen. Ramona looked horrified.

"Stop lookig at be like that" said Elizabeth. "You kdow you cad't get sick over the phode".

"With the colds I saw so far at work? I wouldn't be too sure" said Ramona.

"Speakig of work *sniffle* is there adythig we should kdow about? Were there Hip Choo! ady bessages?" Becky asked.

"Some people asked where you are, but I told them you're very busy right now" Ramona replied. "I thought it wouldn't be good for your reputation if word got out that the famous 'Snot Busters' are all sick and snotty".

"That's good thidkig Raboda" said Becky. "It's very ibportadt that we baidtaid our reputatiod".

"Did you hear adythig frob Vivia Jabes?" Luisa asked.

"She's still sick, but getting better" Ramona replied. "Just a regular cold, nothing supernatural".

"Ha Etsh Cha! That's good dews" said Velma. Ramona recoiled when Velma's sneeze sprayed the screen.

"So everythig is Ha A Tshi, Ishi, Hui Ishoo, I Tshi, Tshi, Ha Tshi! albost back to dorbal thed" Luisa said before giving her nose a wet blow.

"I... wouldn't say that exactly" said Ramona.

"Why? What's the batter? Haa Tshooooo!" Elizabeth sneezed so hard she almost dropped her phone.

"You haven't been watching the news lately, have you? Anyway, I gotta run" Ramona said and suddenly hung up.

Becky turned the television on. News reports talked about several cases of supernatural colds all around the city. Some of the reporters wondered where might "Snot Busters" be and why they're not dealing with those cases.

"We'll fidd a way to bake Dazalibia pay for this" said Elizabeth.

TBC

[jke1995]

Perfect timing ! Another excellent chapter.

[poiub]

lots of fun!

[Mysteriousmr]

Supernatural colds are such a nice idea. Hopefully there's a way to pay Nazalimia back in the same coin. (Now, what exactly could make a ghost need to sneeze?)

[Likesn]

Thanks for the comments everyone. I know it's been a while, but here's the final part of the story:

Part 8:

The supernatural cold plagued the city. Weird side-effects accompanied sneezes all around. However, the moment people really started to panic was when the giant character appeared. It looked like a human, but it's head was so high up and concealed by clouds you couldn't see it's face. The character roamed the city saying nothing, but it frequently let out what sounded like thunder. As a matter of fact, it was laughter. People ran away in terror and the character just laughed.

^^^^^

Ramona looked like she was about to pass out. Four ridiculously sick women dragged themselves into the building, sniffling and blowing their red noses.

"What are you doing here?! You should be home in bed!" Ramona almost shouted.

"Dot so loud! By head is killig be" said Velma.

"We deed to fidd a way to stop this superdatural cold" said Elizabeth.

"You need to get over your own cold first" said Ramona. "However, since you're already here, I'd be more worried about stopping that giant monster".

"Giadt bodster? What are you Haaa Tshoooooo! talkig about?" Elizabeth asked.

"There's this giant character roaming the city" said Ramona. "Did you not see it on your way here"?

"Dazalibia!" Elizabeth called. "Dow I kdow what she's beed up to. She sedt the beidgs frob her dibedsiod idto ours so she could cobe here herself".

"But why did she wadt to cobe to our dibedsiod id the first place? Isd't she like the Hi Ip Choo! queed of her owd dibedsiod?" asked Becky.

"She already rules ode dibedsiod, dow she wadts to rule adother ode" said Luisa. "That actually bakes a lot of sedse".

"Luisa's right" said Elizabeth. "I'b sure we cad all thidk of edough exabples for hubad rulers actig the sabe way".

"The ibportadt questiod is - how do we stop Dazalibia Hui Shi, I Tshi, Tshi, Tshi!" sneezed Luisa.

"I thidk I kdow where we cad fidd the adswer" said Elizabeth.

The four of them went to Elizabeth's office. There, Elizabeth gave them some books she believed could be helpful. They spent some time going over the books. Elizabeth told them to search for ways to stop a hostile invasion.

"Baybe this cad help" Becky said sometime later. She was reading out of a 13th century book: "The weapod of the edeby bust be used against hib".

"But what does it bead?" Luisa wondered.

"Idverse streabs!" Velma called, tapping her forehead in a gesture of revelation. She immediately regretted that gesture, since her head was aching from congestion. Sitting back down on her chair, she let out a whimper.

"Care to elaborate, Velba?" Becky asked.

"The edergy streabs we use to trap beidgs frob other dibedsiods" Velma explained. "I cad idverse theb add use those streabs to expel Dazalibia".

"Add odce Dazalibia is expelled *sniffle* all the other beigds should follow her" said Elizabeth. "Velba, that's gedius"!

"Wait, what does that have to do with the whole 'weapod of the edeby' thig?" Becky asked.

"Hetsh Cha!" Velma let out a snotty sneeze, spraying the room.

"That's it!" Elizabeth called. "Dazalibia uses cold sdeezes, so we should use theb as well. Velba *sniffle* is there ady way you could hardess our Ha Ha Haaa Tshoooooo! sdeezes add use theb"?

"Baybe I cad use theb as a trigger to activate the idverse streabs" Velma replied.

"Thed get to work. We dod't have buch tibe" said Elizabeth.

"Ha Esh Choo!" Velma sneezed and headed to the lab. The other three women followed her.

As sick as she was, Velma managed to work pretty quickly. With the help of the other women, she adjusted their equipment so they could use it to expel Nazalimia. Small tubes were inserted to their nostrils, allowing them to activated their equipment by sneezing at the right moment.

"Bake sure to keep the equipbedt turded off udtil right before we use it" Velma instructed them. "Who kdows what could happed if we trigger it before".

"Hu Itshoo, Tshi, Tshi, Ishi, Ha Ha Tshi!" Luisa let out a fit of sneezes.

"See? That's what I bead" said Velma.

"Dow we just deed to cobe up with a portal to sedd Dazalibia back to her owd dibedsiod" said Elizabeth.

"Why dod't we Hip Choo! use 'the aquariub' for that?" Becky suggested.

"Yes! That's ad excelledt idea" said Elizabeth. "I'll go tell Raboda to stadd dext to 'the aquariub' add bake sure our plad works".

^^^^^

Nazalimia laughed as the people fled, sounding like a thunderstorm. Suddenly, she noticed a vehicle heading towards her. It wasn't like all those vehicles with sirens and flashing blue and red lights, which tried in vain to stop her. The vehicle was white and had no sirens, but somehow Nazalimia still noticed it. Her laughter stopped. The vehicle stopped and out of it came four characters she met before.

"Well well well" Nazalimia's voice came through the clouds, distorted and terrible. "Do you really think you can stop me now"?

"You gave us your word, Dazalibia" said Elizabeth. "We had a deal".

"A deal with inferior beings is nullified from the start" said Nazalimia.

"We're godda bake you pay for this" Elizabeth said and turned towards the other three women. "Light theb up".

"Pathetic" there was a soft crackle of thunder as Nazalimia chuckled.

The four women turned their equipment towards Nazalimia.

"Ready! Aib! Sdeeze!" Elizabeth called.

Nazalimia simply continued to chuckle.

"Hi Pchishoo!", "Hui Tshi!", "Ha Esh Cha!" "Haaaa Tshoooooooo!" Becky, Luisa, Velma and Elizabeth sneezed at the same time.

Four rays of energy hit Nazalimia.

"What is the meaning of" before Nazalimia could finish her sentence, she exploded.

The explosion didn't make too much noise, but the blast from it caused the four women to fall to the ground. When they got up, they saw that the buildings all around were covered with goo.

"Whoa! Look at this bess" said Luisa. "I'b dot cleadig that up".

"The ibportadt thig is that Dazalibia is gode" said Becky.

"We should head back to the base" said Velma. "If the tradsitiod did't go sboothly it could be covered with goo as well".

"Wait, this beads..." Elizabeth's jaw dropped.

"Raboda!" the four of them called. They rushed back to the base, finding their secretary covered with goo from head to toe.

^^^^^

"He He He TchShoooooooooooo!" Ramona sneezed the thermometer out of her mouth.

It's been three days since the "Snot Busters" defeated Nazalimia and ended the supernatural cold. The four of them all got over their own colds, but they had to take care of Ramona. Even though Ramona's cold had no supernatural side-effects, it was still a very messy one.

"I ab defiditely dot gettig payed edough for this" Ramona said, clutching an ice pack and holding it against her aching head. She was home in bed and her four employers were serving her hand and foot.

"Well, you can't say you're not getting any health-care benefits" Luisa laughed.

"Very fuddy He CheShoooooooooooo! I feel biserable" Ramona whined.

"You're gonna feel great when you get over this cold, trust me" said Velma. "It'll almost be worth having it".

"I'b dot sure I'll He He TchShooooo, TshChShoooooooo, Hu EchTshoooooooooo! live that lodg" said Ramona.

"Poor Ramona" said Becky. "Don't worry - we're gonna help you get over your cold in no time".

"He AchShoooooooo, Hue Tshoooooooo, He TshChShoooooooooooo!" Ramona sneezed into the tissue Becky handed her and gave her nose a gurgling blow.

"Yeah... it's probably gonna take some time" Elizabeth said and everyone laughed, except for Ramona.

The End

[JohnnyOxn]

A nice way to wrap the story up. Really enjoyed reading it.

[jke1995]

Poor Ramona. This was such a cool twist on a classic movie! And a perfect ending as well. Nicely done!