"I beg of you… My slave who lives somewhere in the universe! Oh sacred, beautiful and strong familiar spirit! I desire and here I plead from my heart! Answer to my guidance!"

For such powerful magic words they are quite vague are they not? The universe has long since been proven to be far more massive than can be measured and the reflections even more infinite. Beautiful and strong can be defined in numerous ways and differ by one's own views of strength and beauty. However, a plea that comes straight from the heart fueled by a desire created from years of emotional torment by one's peers? That is a voice heard by any who are willing to listen.

The Familiars of Zero is a series of one-shots featuring a plethora of what-if's consisting of a large cast of characters ranging from the unique to the downright bizarre. However, while the cast of familiars will be diverse a few key little details will remain in effect. All familiars will be sentient and will, at the very least, be chaotic neutral. I may include an "evil" familiar or two but I'm not really into writing horror all that much…

All one-shots shall be followed by an explanatory note regarding the new familiar (the who's, the why's, and the what's), a brief summary of what could continue, and finally explanations towards an "OCness" on the pre-established characters. With that said, I hope you enjoy reading:

The Familiars of Zero

By Corvus no Genmu

"The Ultimate Lifeform"

The leaves of the tall trees are swaying to the tremors of massive footsteps. A herd of leaf-chewers rumble past in their daily migration, keeping close to the island's shores where the larger predators scarcely hunt not for lack of trying mind you rather that a hunter large enough to challenge the herd could not stalk prey when the only cover available was a large sand dune and the occasional odd-shaped boulder. The leaf-chewers knew this and exploited this as often as they dared for while the larger predators had difficulties in hunting them, the smaller ones, like the poison-spitters or the sickle-claws, were far more frequent near the sandy shores of the beaches. Of course, the matriarch of the herd was planning, as best as one could with a brain the size of a walnut, for familiar hunters and had little experience with what newcomers had since emerged from the hatching grounds of the Ancients.

Terror came from the sky as sickle-claws dove down with newly feathered wings spread, their titular claws ready to rend flesh from bone, fangs flashing to rip flesh and sinew, a serpent's tongue slathering with the deliciousness of blood soon to be drunk. The herd, frightened and confused by a pack of predators they have never seen, did as all leaf-chewers of their ilk are to do; they charged horns first back into the safety of the tree-line where the sickle-flyers could not reach them.

They hoped…

The airborne predators landed just at the forest's edge and ran with wings held close to their bodies, racing after the prey that had gotten a momentary reprieve from bloodied death. Trees fell like dominos against the panicked herd as they plowed down everything in their path, their matriarch at the forefront. Though frightened for their very lives, the herd trusted her instincts and had complete faith in her instincts and gladly followed her straight to their doom.

The last thing the matriarch saw was a horned one bearing fangs upon her, its scales red like blood with eyes of wicked yellow before the world became naught but dark oblivion…

"I beg of you…"

He kept one foot pressed against the carcass, his tail waving in open threat as he carefully watched the carrion-eaters as they flittered anxiously about high in the canopy above, clinging almost pitifully to the trunks of the trees as they glared hatefully down upon him. Thus far, none had dared to try and steal from his kill and he was glad of it. He had tasted their flesh before and it was disgusting to the palette. He'd kill them, yes he would chew their twittering heads right off and then some, but he would never swallow.

"My servant who lives somewhere in the universe!"

He tore another chunk of thigh muscle free, swallowing it in a single massive bite when the earth rumbled faintly, a series of tremors to the sound of footsteps. A hunter or challenger, one that did not care to mask their presence from him and his head rose to sniff the air but it was a futile effort.

It stank of blood.

"Oh sacred, beautiful and strong familiar spirit!"

The carrion-eaters fled en-masse to the sanctuary of the sky as he turned slowly to face the intruder upon his territory. He lowered his head to keep his piercing horns at the ready as the intruder smashed through the forest with all the grace of a frightened three-horn. She bore a great resemblance to the tyrants that once ruled these lands but this was only in shape. He could smell it in her just as he could in the carrion-eaters, diluted though it was in them, stronger it was in her… Perhaps, even just as equal in strength as his.

The Chaos…!

"I desire and here I plead from my heart!"

He ignored the whispering winds and charged with a roar just as the chaos tyrant responded back in kind. He bowed his head down in an attempt to force her back but she leapt impossibly high over him, trying to attack at his hindquarters but a smack of his clubbed tail knocked her with force enough to shatter bones in smaller prey. At best she was momentarily stunned but that was enough for him to make another lunge, his fangs aimed for her throat. She stumbled back and twisted, mimicking his tail-strike with a more powerful sweep of her own tail that sent him tumbling back to the ground.

"Answer to my guidance!"

Louise's expectations of her summoning spell were not all too high to begin with though she had said otherwise the previous night. True, she had boasted that a mage of her caliber would summon nothing less than awe-inspiring, a rare species of dragon perhaps even a manticore. In all honesty though, she had really expected something more mundane, a specialized breed of dog maybe or some exotic cat. Never in all her worst nightmares brought about by another long day's hardships and cruel mockery of her peers, would she have ever expected something the likes of what she, the Zero, had unwittingly wrought.

The summoning spell, by its own design, was meant to summon all that was present upon the chosen familiar. Meaning that if the familiar were garbed in some manner than those same garbs would be dragged along with the familiar. The only limitation was that whatever was to be dragged alongside the familiar need be touching it as well. Hard to believe that in six thousand years of use, no one had ever thought of the impossibly rare circumstance that a familiar would be summoned in the midst of something rather important.

Mortal combat for example.

"ROOOAARR!" A massive form came tumbling backwards through the smoke, titanic jaws snapping the air angrily as pathetically small arms scrabbled for balance. Another came charging forth, a trio of horns bowed to impale the tyrant-beast straight through the heart but the tyrant-beast was already moving, leaping atop the horned-beast's back, talons digging to try and pierce the thick armor of its hide before leaping again, nearly squashing several students too stupid to move away as the behemoths battled.

The horned-beast growled, head still kept low and massive horns at the forward, one sickle-shaped claw on its foot tapping at the earth. The tyrant-beast met the growl with another loud bellow and charged jaws wide to try and clamp down upon the back of the horned-beast's neck only to meet a spiked clubbing from the horned-beast's tail. Bone snapped, ligaments shredded, and the massive monster hit the ground with trembling force. The tyrant-beast's lower jaw flapped uselessly as it screamed, the appendage held only by the monster's tough hide. It screamed one final time before the horned-beast's tail-club came crashing down upon the its head, crushing it like a melon and sending shattered bone fragments and splattered pieces of brain flying.

Seeing its opponent well and truly dead, the horned-beast stepped forward, placing a foot atop the remains and tilted its head back to proclaim its victory to the heavens before dipping its head down to—

Louise turned away, her stomach long since empty of its contents but still attempting to empty itself as the monster ate its adversary. Was this monster to be her familiar, this demonic beast? She carefully glanced up at it. A head and feet colored like blood with fresh droplets of the stuff falling from fangs longer than a man's arm? Leathery scales of charcoal and armor plates of obsidian falling along its back and down its generous length of tail to end as a massive spiked club. The dominant claws on its feet resembled the scythe of Death, and its obsidian horns, two far larger on the brow with a miniscule third atop its nose, bore an uncanny resemblance to the Devil. Especially when those empty eyes fell upon her with the yellowed skin around the orbs pulsing to the beast's adrenalin-filled heart, it was truly a frightening sight to behold.

Wait, what?

Thump…! Thump…! Thump…!

The monster was walking straight towards her, lips curled and head held high. He, she didn't know for sure if was male but she assumed as such, didn't perceive her as a threat but something about her was interesting him enough to tear him away from his meal. She stumbled away, realizing too late that she had dropped her wand during the battle between him and the tyrant-beast. She tripped and fell to her behind, quivering in fear as the devilish monstrosity stopped and stood towering over her. He turned his head to the left, staring down at her with one blazing yellowed eye that nearly melded completely with the same colored markings on his otherwise red face. He repeated the gesture by turning his head to the right before facing her with both eyes; blood dripping from his fangs as his mouth opened wide, breathing in her scent through nose and tongue together.

The club of his tail slammed into the earth and a fireball went flying wide of its target. He turned and roared at Professor Colbert, a sound of warning but not of aggression. The beast turned his attention back upon Louise. His jaw was closed now with his head slowly approaching with nostrils flared. He sniffed her once, twice, a third time and then snorted derisively. He rose to his full height and turned back towards his meal, unaware of what his reaction had done.

Louise's eyes were wide not with terror, oh no. They were wide with a rage born from a lifetime of constant dismissal and disregard towards her and her feelings, a crime committed time and time again by everyone she had met, even those whom she loved dearly. A crime that a monster had committed however unknowingly, a monster that was to be—NO!—is to be her familiar! She didn't know how her wand was suddenly back in her hand but she knew that it felt right.

"My name… is Louise Françoise Le Blanc de La Vallière!" She yelled, rising to her feet. The beast turned his head but kept his back to her still. "Pentagon of the Five Elemental Powers!" The tip of her wand exploded with unearthly green light and the beast's eyes widened in surprise for the sheer force of her presence that drove the weaker-willed animals to submissive postures. "Grant your blessings upon this being and make him my familiar!"

Now, in most circumstances, the sealing of the contract would require a kiss from the mage upon the familiar. Not in any specific location mind as most mages aren't quite comfortable kissing animals on the lips, if said beastie possesses such things to begin with, but one must remember that in most circumstances, the mage is glad of the familiar though disappointment is not too terribly uncommon when one receives a mouse instead of a lion. But Louise was not happy, not sad, and certainly not angry, oh no.

She was pissed.

So really, was it all to surprising that the contract was sealed with a blast of magic so powerful that it knocked a fifty-foot long behemoth right off his feet?

No.

No, not really.

The beast fell flat on his back with a startled roar and lay there stunned for several moments before the magic started to take effect. His blood began to boil and he screamed from the agony as the magic assaulted his body and mind from every possible angles before the sensation was gone as quickly as it had started, leaving him immensely confused as to what had happened and realizing he likely wasn't going to be getting an answer on his own, rolled to his feet and glared with freshly greened eyes upon his so-called "master".

"The hell was that?"

"… Do you mind?" He growled, glaring at the little winged not-quite-kin out the corner of his eye. Little hatchling was rather fixated on him regardless of the fact that he had been in a bloody battle-for-the-death a few hours ago and had even tried to devour the carcass of the she-tyrant. A fact that he was trying so hard to rectify now but was finding it rather hard to enjoy a meal with so many eyes watching his every move, particularly those of one whom had not yet blooded her claws with her first kill. At least his "master" had sense enough to leave him to his meal before he made another out of her.

She reminded him of others like his ilk, those with the Chaos coursing through them at any rate, but he could tell that what little of it she possessed was different somehow. He and those others on that lost island of the Ancients, or humans as his pink-furred master insisted that they were called, were born of Chaos' Design and Its power coursed through them like blood. She too was a part of that same design but it was… younger… How he knew this, he could not even begin to comprehend just that she and the majority of scaled-skin familiars gathered around him like he was something to admire was beginning to get rather bothersome.

The fire-tailed not-quite-kin at least had the decency to look properly chagrined and the winged hatchling was delightfully embarrassed. Those that had the littlest spark of Chaos in them seemed even more awestruck that he had spoken to them.

"Forgive us, Noble Ancestor," hissed the fire-tail, "but the stories… few of the Songs remain and the legacy of what once was is all but forgotten."

"The Songs…" he muttered. Yes… yes, the Songs of Life & Death that which every hatchling hears within the hardy barriers of the egg, protected from the vices and virtues of the world until they could learn them properly. The difference between predator and prey, that which is kin and which is but a seeming, the difference of earth, sky, and sea…. Wait, what did the fire-tail call him? "Why do you call me Ancestor?"

"Because that is what you are." The fire-tail looked over the assembled group of reptilians. "Though the blood is weak in some, stronger in others, it is the blood of the Ancestors that course through our veins. The blood of the Thundering Footsteps, the Encompassing Wings, the Terrifying Depths, & the Innumerable Fangs…"

It came to him then, in an instant from the now glowing runes of his right hand. "Dinosaurs. We are called dinosaurs." More information came to him as he looked over the crowd of familiars, the magic of Windalfr allowing him to identify each and every one of them by the name of their kind and yet, that wasn't quite right. "What does your… master… call you, salamander?"

The salamander blinked at the question and seemed almost embarrassed by it. "I am called Flame, Noble Ancestor."

"Hrmmm." He was going to regret this but… he turned to his left. "And you, little dragon?"

"Kyuuu!" the dragon hatchling squealed excitedly, tail thumping excitedly on the ground. "Irukukwu is Irukukwu but only when Irukukwu isn't Sylphid!"

"I… see…" He didn't really but he knew from experience that it was better to not try and understand a hatchling's sense of logic, or lack thereof. He looked at the other reptilians and found them unwilling to even look at him now, that the very idea of speaking to him instead of merely listening to his words was beyond what they could accomplish.

"What's your name, Noble Ancestor?" asked Irukukwu, stretching her neck forward to look up into his emerald orbs. He frowned and looked away, not answering.

"Irukukwu!" snapped Flame, fearing that she had offended him. "You don't just ask a Noble Ancestor for their name! It simply isn't done!"

"But it hasn't been done because no one had the chance to ask," argued the dragon hatchling. The salamander puffed a cloud of smoke and looked away, unwilling to concede to the argument. Runes started to flash and inspiration came with another memory of strange carvings, letters, upon a cold surface…

"Regardless, you be thankful for the opportunity to speak with a Noble Ancestor and be satisfied with that! If he wishes you to know of his name then he will simply—"

"Loki. My name is Loki." The newly named familiar rose to his feet and turned towards the academy, particularly the massive tower that served as the dormitories of the students and headed that way, clubbed tail gesturing at the remains of his adversary. "You can have what's left." He did not address any one particular familiar but it didn't matter, Irukukwu and Flame fell to the carcass first with a hungered frenzy and once their fill had been taken those remaining familiars who were brave enough, or strong enough, to challenge the others took to their fill none of them knowing the consequences of what they had devoured would be both their doom and their salvation but then, isn't that just how evolution works?

"Come with me."

That was all he had said.

"Why?"

That was all that she had asked.

He did not answer.

The forest that surrounded her family estates was by no means the oldest of woods in Tristain though it was by and far the most well cared for of them all thanks in no small part to Louise's beloved elder sister Cattleya and her unmatched love for all creatures big and small. Though her illness had weakened her magic it had not weakened her resolve, the self-same resolve that earned their mother the runic name of "Heavy Wind", the exact kind of resolve that was in each of her three daughters though it was uniquely shaped to each of them.

Cattleya's resolve was to let her heart always guide her actions be they foolishly selfless or selflessly foolish while her elder sister Elèonore followed the path of the mind, letting common sense and cold, unforgiving facts to guide her. Louise's resolve was to never allow her true feelings to show, to always wear a mask of bravado and superiority no matter if she was afraid for her life or lost within the deepest depths of despair.

Only now, alone with her familiar, did that mask come off.

Loki stood amidst the trees, still and silent with only his luminous green eyes moving to watch her as she stumbled across bumpy earth and ducking beneath low branches. He brought his tail down and she gratefully climbed up, being mindful of the sharp spikes of his armor. Once she was properly situated upon his back did her familiar march forward, through the trees with a surprising grace for one of his stature. Louise thought he would have simply leveled them, knocking whole groves down for a clear and uninterrupted path.

"…Where are we going?" Louise asked, looking back and seeing her family home grow smaller in the distance.

"Away." Loki answered simply and the young mage felt a familiar throb of pain in her forehead.

"Away to where?"

"Some place far enough where that scary thing of yours won't interfere but close enough I may return you when it is over."

Louise felt a strange sense of dread knowing full well who her familiar was referring as "scary thing" and hesitantly asked, "When what is over?"

"We're here." Loki answered, stepping into a large clearing of tall grass filled with strange stones that were a smoothly polished black and cut in rather odd shapes, as though a blade of wind had been used against them long ago… "Here is where you'll prove your resolve."

"My resolve?" He crouched down and Louise slid off to stand atop a smooth, flat surface of stone while Loki stomped forward, eyes on the slowly descending sun.

"If you truly mean to go to war, and to drag me along for the experience, then there's nothing for it." He turned and glared down at her with cold, reptilian eyes. "You faced a merciless thief for glory, you slew a man who would take you as a mate by force to regain your honor, and yet, when faced with those things you call sister and mother, you cower like a frightened rabbit. Sweet and succulent rabbit…" Loki shook his head rapidly, remembering not to let his stomach get him off topic. "Alone and armed only with words, they made you reek of fear. You've faced death for glory, killed for honor, but in the presence of the thing you fear most, you are small, weak.

"I will not have a weak thing for a master. I refuse." He slammed his tail into the ground, causing a small tremor. "So, to see if you can truly go to war, you will face the one thing you fear as much as that thing."

Louise frowned, trying to imagine something as frightening as her mother and only came up with one thing even remotely her equal. "No. No, I refuse!"

"Refuse all you like, it won't change what happens next. See, I learned this nice trick in being the Windalfr. As I am a familiar myself, I can give myself unbreakable orders so long as I look into something reflective enough to see my eyes and these polished stones make excellent mirrors don't they?" His gaze locked onto his reflection in the stone beneath her feet. "Revert to what once was until such a time as Louise proves her resolve to enter a war." The runes on his right hand flashed and his once intelligent green eyes fell away to primordial amber; hungry eyes that slowly rose up to meet those of live prey.

"Oh Founder…"

"ROOOAARR!!"

On the next Calling...

"A Second's Choice"

AUTHOR'S NOTES:

Alright, show of hands now, who saw this familiar coming? Now, to be honest, I do have plans for a SEGA character to be summoned as a familiar but that character is not one of the rapidly multiplying hedgehogs. Now as to Loki and his title of "the ultimate lifeform" it's actually rather simple. Back when Jurassic Park kick-started the "age of dinosaurs", a time where nearly everything featured something from the dawn of prehistory, there was a unique but poorly handled toyline from Jurassic Park called "The Chaos Effect". The basic premise of the "Chaos Effect" is that Dr. Ian Malcom (the chaos-theory guy) and Roland Tembo (the hunter guy) and a couple of other people decided to go back to one of Jurassic Park islands. While they were there they decided to mix together DNA from dinosaurs with other dinosaurs or, in some cases modern animals, for shits and giggles.

No, sadly, I am not kidding. That was the storyline for the toys. Sad or pathetic, I don't know which but the toys themselves were rather interesting to say the least, particularly the specimen I featured in this one-shot. Created from the mixed D.N.A. of velociraptor, stegosaurus, tyrannosaurus rex, ankylosaurus, and triceratops this-is-ULTIMASAURUS! The Ultimasaurus was a toy that never made the shelves but so what? He's literally the perfect prehistoric predator optimized entirely for killing. That was one of the reasons why I chose him in the first place. The other is… I've been on a dinosaur kick after a recent "Jurassic Park" marathon, sue me.

As to his name… Marvel movie marathon. 'Nuff said.

Now, I've done a beast as Windalfr before with Grimoire but I was inspired by a recent conversation with a friend of mine. We were discussing the powers and abilities that the various Void familiars can do and he mentioned the idea that if, Windalfr's powers revolve around the control of other familiars, can Windalfr not also control the other Void familiars?

Plot potential just reached critical mass from that idea but then he had to go on further by commenting that I could have had Grimoire use the runes to set himself "back" to a primordial state. Unfortunately, Grimoire is not willing to even consider the idea of reverting back to being nothing more than a feral animal so I had to come up with something similar but also "tamed" enough that it wouldn't kill Louise outright and one search down memory lane later, here's the Ultimasaurus.

I admit, I tweaked the Windalfr runes a bit further by adding in the idea that, like Gandalfr, Windalfr can "master" any animal by instantly learning all about it, its strengths, weaknesses, etc. but really, wouldn't you think that Windalfr, as the "Sword of God", have some kind of instant-knowledge technique like its brothers (except for the Heart of course).

Loki and Louise would have a strained relationship. For Louise, she knows that Loki is fully capable of killing her and anyone else he perceives as "food" despite the fact that he is now sentient. Sentiency, in Loki's own words, is merely a state of holding conversation with one's food and rarely is it anything worth hearing. That's not to say that Loki would devour everything in sight it's just that he has no problem eating anything he perceives as prey and… well, he is the top predator in the foodchain so there's that. As for Loki, he just doesn't like Louise's weakness of character in certain situations. He admires her strength of determination and loaths her childishness.

Honestly, this was just another test story than anything else though I admit, I'd like to see someone try a hand at Louise summoning a dinosaur just… Please, for the love of my sanity, don't have her summon a character of "Land Before Time"? That one Halo crossover was weird enough… Also if anyone's curious as to the other "Chaos Effect" mutants, I suggest looking up "Chaos Effect Collection" by the deviantArtist IRIRIV. His renditions are the best I've ever seen, and the most realistic to boot.