Lyall turned his attention to the voice coming through the speakers. The voice was sinister sounding, making Lyall begin thinking that one of these guys would not be willing at all to come to his side. That was troubling, he needed all of those powerful duelists of their kind to complete what he was planning back in Aria City. Turning his attention back to his brother, Lyall saw that Ryu was offering him a handshake before their duel started. Lyall accepted it with a grin. Ryu might have spotted the Iswarm crest on the back of his right hand, but the owner of the Iswarms had taken care to cover it up using hand wrappings. It sometimes acted up when in intense duels.
"A good old fashioned normal duel if you'd please," he told Ryu. "The other two types of duels didn't exactly end well for some other guys back in Aria City."
With that, Lyall walked over to his spot and activated his duel disk. Its main colors were black and golden, obviously designed to mimic the carapace of a Steelswarm creature. Near the lifepoint counter was the crest of the Iswarm, and it flashed orange as the duel disk activated. Taking his dueling stance, he waited Ryu to do the same
Ryu nodded and walked to his starting point. He had been waiting for a chance like this for a long time. While observing Lyall he readied his own Duel disk, Ryu's was silver and gold in color intending to replicate the armor of the Lightsworn.
"A normal duel it is then." He said while drawing his cards. "Let me know when you're ready. Oh and if you don't mind I would like to go first." He added with a small grin. Ryu knew all to well that his brother knew most of his deck, but he wasn't about to let that stop him from beating him.
"First, huh? Fine, go ahead."
It made little difference who went first even if Lyall couldn't set up for the next turn now that he was going second. Now though, he could see what Ryu could be planning and answer accordingly with the hand that he drew. His first five cards were pretty good, and hopefully his sixth card would add more efficiency to them. Ryu best pray he could get out that dopey looking dragon of his, or maybe even that Archangel wannabe. Either way though...
Lyall would not make this easy for him.
(Turn 1)
Ryu smiled as he drew his card. This duel may be one of the best he would ever have.
"Alright first off i summon Jain, Lightsworn Paladin!" He said as his spirit partner took on a more solid form in front of him.
"Next I set one card face down and call it a turn. And since its the end of my turn Jain's effect sends the top two cards of my deck to the graveyard." he said as a spell and trap card were sent to the grave.
"Your move Lyall."
(Turn 2)
Lyall smirked at the Lightsworn's version of Joan of Arc in front of him. It was obvious the mosnter had a distaste for him and the monsters that resided within his deck, but he'd be making her see the true glory of the Iswarms in just a few seconds. Drawing his sixth card, he began to set up his play.
"I'll begin by setting two cards face down on the field, and now I'll follow up with a summon! Meet Steelswarm Caller, a fiend feared for its ability to attract Steelswarms for miles around to overwhelm enemies!"
A humanoid insect rose up on the field from a murky ripple created in the ground. It hissed at Jain and began buzzing its wings, calling out to another of its allies.
"Now that Caller is on the field, I can special summon my Steelswarm Diebefly from my hand," Lyall explained as he played the card on his duel disk. Attracted by the buzzing call of Caller's wings, a new Steelswarm flew from a rift in the air onto the field, greeting its brother before turning to face Ryu's Lightsworn monster. It let out a shrill and loud cry as it snapped the claws on its spiny, four arms at her.
"My monsters are eager to fight, but its unfortunate they'll be struck down by the blade of Jain if they do."
Lyall observed his side of the field. Everything was set up well enough for the next turn, so he signaled for his brother to go on with his next turn.
(Turn 3)
Ryu grinned at the weaker monsters on Lyall's field.
"I thought you used stronger monsters then that." He said as he drew his card.
"Alright i'll set one more face down card and summon Lumina, lightsworn Summoner!" He said still smiling as the blonde sorceress appeared from a small ray of light.
"Im a little too warry of those face downs to attack just yet so its your move and this time Lumina sends the totop three cards as well for a total of five." He added sending the cards and grinning when he sees the third monster. "Before you start your turn, wulf, Lightsworn Beast gets special susummoned from the grave after he was sent there from the deck." He says as a tall werewolf with white fur rises from the ground and roars at the small insects.
"Your move."
(Turn 4)
Lyall raised an eyebrow at his brother's hesitnce in attacking, but his face broke into a grin seconds later.
"Sometimes caution can be preferable over great zeal," Lyall said as he referenced an old French poem, all while drawing his next card. It was one of his key monsters, but he didn't want to use it this early in the tournament. Because of that, Lyall waved his hand over one of his face down cards, activating one a trap card.
"Infestation Infection," he called out as the deceased husk of a Steelswarm Cell emerged from the card. Lyall then showed the card he had drawn, revealing it to be Goliath, the First Steelswarm. An eerie smoke erupted from the husk of Cell, snatching the card from Lyall's hand and shuffling it into the deck before granting Lyall a newer card.
"Evilswarm Castor was my choice," the duelist said as he placed it into his hand and shuffled it around to keep Ryu from knowing where it was. It was kind of useless though, because moments after he did this action, Lyall summoned Castor to the field in attack position. The Evilswarm materialized from thin air, emitting a distorted, robotic rumbling sound as it pointed its two-edged spear at its enemies.
"I do indeed use stronger monsters, and you're about to meet one of them!"
When Castor had been summoned to the field, he had let out a beacon of the Iswarm symbol towards the sky. It began to glow brighter as it created a portal of itself, indicting Lyall could now summon one more Iswarm monster.
"Castor allows me to summon one more Iswarm monster to my field, and I think I'll summon this one! Come to the duel, Steelswarm Moth!"
From the fiery crest in the air, Steelswarm Moth descended as Lyall tributed Steelswarm Caller. Lyall paid a total of 1000 lifepoints to use its effect, one that would blow back two cards on the field to Ryu's hand. Moth began to beat its wings in the air, targeting Jain and Wulf...
Ryu grinned and waved a hand over his facedown card.
"I may not be able to save them but i can still activate Needlebug Nest. This sends the top five cards of my deck to the graveyard." He said with a smile as all five were Lightsworn monsters.
As the gusts of wind created by Moth increased in fury, Wulf and Jain were violently thrown back towards Ryu, returning to their card forms when they were inches away from crashing into him. Moth finally touched down on to the field, but he looked up to the still burning Iswarm crest in the air. Still flying towards it, the tributed Steelswarm Caller began to buzz its wings to call forth one more of its allies. As it passed through the portal, another Steelswarm Caller came through, after which the portal closed and the crest faded away.
"Whenever Steelswarm Caller is tributed for the summon of another Steelswarm monster, his effect activates, allowing me to summon one level 4 or lower Steelswarm monster from my deck!"
The new Caller fell in line with the rest of its allies, all of which stared forebodingly at the lone Lightsworn before them. They could sense it was weaker than them, and even though her face tried to remain stern and resolved...
They could smell the fear. Facing four Iswarms alone without sufficient power was not a position anyone would ever want to be in. It either meant death or infection, of which death would be most preferable within the Duel Monsters realm.
"I'll now begin my onslaught! Steelswarm Caller, attack Lumina now!"
The Steelswarm dashed forward towrds Lumina, grabbing her by the neck before it carried her up into the air and forcefully slammed her into the ground. Lumina now destroyed, Lyall smirked as Ryu took 700 damage to his lifepoints.
"That's not all for you though... Moth, Infection Stream! Diebefly, Toxin Pierce! and Castor, Javelin Slash!"
Steelswarm Moth to the air as Castor began charging forth with Diebefly taking the lead with its quicker speed. As Diebefly drew nearer to Ryu, it circled around him to latch onto him from behind, "stabbing" Ryu in the neck with its deadly proboscis. Holding him in place, Evilswarm Castor slashed his weapon across the Lightsworn Duelist's body, lowering his lifepoints further. Lyall smiled as Steelswarm Moth gestured to his allies to move away from his target, to which they gladly complied and returned to Lyall's side. Gathering dark energy, Moth released a stream of purple energy which struck Ryu directly.
"How do you like that?" Lyall asked as he watched his brother's lifepoints drop lower. The total damage done by the Iswarms was 6750, leaving Ryu at 1250 lifepoints total, far below Lyall's high 7000.
"I do hope that's not all you had to bring to the table," Lyall remarked as he crossed his arms. "I remember you being a bit stronger than this, but then again, that was when I used unreliable, overgrown lizards as my monsters! Your move!"
