Baited
"Infecto what? What the hell are you babbling about Rebecca?" Joey asked.
The young girl known as Rebecca simply snarled and laughed at Joey's question; the child rushed towards Joey and violently tackled him. Joey grunted as he tried to hold her back.
Rebecca snarled "Release me you disgusting meat thing".
Joey frowned "Calm down you brainiac brat, we've got to get that bug out of you pronto, and soon as Yugi and the others get here we can OW".
A stinging, burning pain suddenly shot between Joey's legs, Rebecca had just kneed him in the groin. The blonde duelist clutched his family jewels as he collapsed to his knees and groaned in unimaginable pain. Rebecca's soft, pillow like freckled cheeks flustered with anger as she rushed out of the hospital room and was quickly confronted by Yugi, Tristan, and Tea.
"Rebecca, did you see Joey, he came down to ask you about Mai's condition" Tea said.
"Were really worried about him" Yugi added.
"Don't you brain dead meat sacks have anywhere else to be but here?" Rebecca snapped.
The blonde girl shoved past them and screamed with drool dribbling from her snarling, peach chapped lips.
"Hey somebody stop her, she's gone wacko" Tristan shouted.
A few nurses tried to grab the fleeing girl, but Rebecca was too small and quick for them and she quickly darted down a hallway. Yugi and the others quickly followed, only to find Rebecca no where in sight.
CLANG!
Yugi blinked as he saw a metallic air conditioning grill be slammed against the wall……from the inside!
"Of course" Yugi said, snapping his fingers.
Tristan and Tea looked down and spotted a pair of white, stocking legs, squirming out of sight, it was Rebecca all right. The computer whiz had somehow managed to tear off the grill to the air ducts that supply the hospital with air conditioning, and was now crawling through out the ducts. Suddenly Joey appeared, his hands still desperately clinging to his private parts.
"Joey, what happened to you?" Tea asked.
"UGH don't ask, for Pete's sake just don't ask. Look you guys; I think there's something seriously wrong going on around here. I think Mai's brain dead too" Joey said.
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Joey and Tristan carefully lifted Mai's long, luscious locks of golden hair, shimmering like her curls were coated with sunshine. The young duelist sighed tearfully, as Joey had to watch his beloved Mai rest lifelessly in a hospital bed, while her attacker runs freely through out the hospital. Yugi, Tea, Professor Hawkins, and Dr. Greer were in the security room watching the surveillance video tapes. Greer gave them permission to view the tapes.
Yugi was hoping that through the recorded video from Rebecca's attack, they might find some sort of clue on how to find her, or stop whatever is controlling her.
"There, stop the tape RIGHT there" Greer said.
The video image flash froze, locked in a blurry image of a large, black, and insect like creature bursting from Mai's lips and attacking Rebecca. Tea groaned in obvious disgust and distaste.
"EW yuck, talk about nasty. Kaiba looks like an angel compared to that creepy, crawling thing" Tea said.
"It seems that the creature that came out of Ishizu didn't disappear after all, it must have entered Mai's body and simply waited for the right time to attack" Yugi said.
Greer nodded "I have no doubt that this monster is the organism responsible for erasing the other patient's brains and draining them of their memories and biological nutrients".
Tea blinked "But what is this thing, I mean where did it come from? It sort of looks like a duel monster but, there just cards, there not REAL".
Yugi replied "I don't know, but whatever this thing is, it's got Rebecca and if we don't find it soon, Rebecca is going to end up just like Mai and the others. We've got to find it and stop it before it escapes in Rebecca's body or worse, tries to take another one".
As the gang continued to rewind and replay the security videos, something slowly started to appear to the mysterious, soulful dark eyes of Yugi's other half, Yami. Yami suddenly switched with Yugi and leaned in close to the monitor screen.
"What's wrong Yugi, is everything all right?" Tea asked.
"Hold on one second, I think I found something" Yami said.
The spiky haired duelist slowed the video down and slowly cranked up the audio, Yami increased the camera's picture clarity as best he could.
"So sweet"
Yami gasped "That's it, that's the connection, it all makes sense now".
Tea, Greer, and Professor Hawkins curiously examined the tape as closely and intently as Yami did, all three of them shrugged their shoulders.
"I'm afraid I don't understand my boy. Please explain, what connection are you referring to?" Hawkins asked.
"The victims, the creature, his body switching, I understand it all now. This strange creature has some sort of affinity for girls and women" Yami said.
Tea's cheeks immediately turned a disgusted shade of blue, feeling violated and creeped out at the thought of being some sort of literal eye candy for this creature. The young girl shivered all over her white skirt and tan boots.
"Think about it, of the 5 victims, only two of them were male and both males were attacked directly after that report got out about the lighting storm. Every victim since then has been female. First Ishizu, then Mai, and now Rebecca" Yami said.
Greer blinked "I still don't understand how you came to that theory".
Yami explained "Think about it? That creature could have taken any one of our bodies back at the cyber café, but instead it chose Mai, it specifically picked her and risked getting caught or killed by going after Mai. And even now, out of all the countless possible bodies to snatch, it chose another girl, this time Rebecca. It seems to have some sort of liking towards women".
Hawkins asked "But if that's true, why did he attack your grandfather and the Ferris boy?".
Yami frowned "Maybe the creature was weak and needed a quick body, perhaps grandpa was the only body it could find after it took Ferris. After that, it chose specifically women. Joey and Serenity even said grandpa was acting strange, calling Serenity sweet and almost grabbing her".
Tea gasped "That's the same thing Ishizu said to Mai before she jumped out of her body and attacked Mai".
Hawkins nodded "And according to the surveillance tapes audio, Mai said the exact same thing before attacking my dear Rebecca".
Joey and Tristan slowly walked in, finally gotten Mai safely secured and comfortable in her hospital bed, along with the other victims. Yami and Hawkins quickly filled them in on their discovery with the creature.
"Okay so, even if you guys are right and this creepy crawler is eye balling pretty girls left and right, how does that help us now?" Joey said.
"It's an advantage Joey. We now know the creature's weakness and we also know that it's running out of time. It's almost been 3 hours and soon the creature will have to exit the air ducts and find another body to inhabit" Yami said.
Tristan smirked "Oh I get it, wait the little sucker out and then nab the creep once he scurries out of his little rat hole".
Hawkins sighed "But there's over 50 nurses and doctors located in this hospital alone, not including the patients and ourselves. I imagine it will be downright impossible to pinpoint the creature's exact exit location".
Greer said "If there was only someway we could draw the creature out into the open, something we know the creature will come after".
Silence slowly settled into the room, as Yami and the others pondered of a way to solve this little predicament. Joey's eyes slowly turned towards Tea, her brown, chocolate colored locks of hair suddenly drawing an idea in his mind. Tea bit her lip nervously as she soon saw Greer, Yami, Hawkins and everyone else staring right at her. Tea turned blue and growled bitterly.
"No, no, and I'll say it again, NO" Tea screamed.
"Tea, it's the only way. It stinks to high heaven, trust me I know, but you're the only one who can do this" Joey said.
"Has your brain taken an early lunch Joey, or did it skip your skull beforehand? I am not parading myself out there so some super slimy bug thingy can crawl out of his hiding spot and snack on my brain" Tea said.
Tristan sighed "Come on Tea, were your friends, were not gonna let anything happen to you".
Hawkins nodded "We simply need you just to draw the creature out into the open, we will be right there to capture and detain the creature as soon as it appears".
Greer added "I assure you, it will be completely safe".
"No way, not a chance in hell buddy. I don't care how safe you say it is. I happen to like MY body and MY brain right where they are, why can't we just turn up the heat and flush this thing out of the air ducts or something?" Tea said.
Hawkins explained "But if Rebecca can't get out in time, she could be burned or suffocate from the heat. Please you must do this, to save my daughter; she's all I have left".
Minutes passed and Tea remained sternly silent, her arms crossed as she refused to comply. But as Yami and her friends poured their staring eyes into her shapely form, the young girl sighed in defeat.
10 minutes later……
Tea grunted "I am SO going to kill you guys for this".
The young girl was standing in front of the exit door to the hospital. Greer had approved a security lockdown and managed to have the entire hospital locked and sealed off any windows, doors, or any other possible exits.
Yami nodded "Don't worry, with every exit sealed off but this one, the creature will have no choice but to come out".
Tea sighed "That's what I'm afraid of".
Yami, Joey and the others remained hidden through out the hallway, silently watching and waiting for the creature's arrival. Tea bit her lip and gulped.
CLANG!
Another loud sound echoed through the hallways, Tea looked up and gasped, Rebecca was dangling from the air duct vent! The young girl plopped down onto her scoffed, black shoes and dirty white stocking legs. Rebecca looked up to Tea with glowing red eyes and a drooling smile on her you face.
Rebecca laughed "Yummy, yummy".
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To be continued……