If I owned Godzilla, I'd do more with it.

If I owned Familiar of Zero, I'd address that runes work too effectively to not be considered mind control.

Off the coast of Japan, deep in the waters of the Yamato Basin, a monster slept. The aquatic creature spent most of its existence in deep slumber, only waking when drastic disturbances forced it rear up from its ocean bed. When roused, the marine titan would leave its domain to seek out the fool who woke it.

In the many years, decades, centuries, eras the monster had lived, never before had its sleep been disturbed so frequently. The first disturbance was as clear to the monster as if it had only happened yesterday. The earth, sky, and oceans trembled. A cacophonous sound, not quite like a roar, not quite like a screech, ripped its way into the earholes of the sea monster.

But the sound was not an empty one. No, it heralded a surge of power that shook the earth to its core.

The monster, who had been sleeping soundly long enough to almost become one with the earth and sea, took the full brunt of the unnatural force. The energy flowed into the body of the marine monstrosity, burning jagged scars into its scaly hide. The bony plates that grew from the monster's spine began to glow with radiant power.

Several changes had occurred in the creature's body since that incident. Several times it had wandered into the world of man, seeking to annihilate its rude awakener. Several battles it had fought against the little human creatures who lived on land. Several other monsters—worthy challengers in their own rights—had it defeated.

Only the truly brave or foolish—mostly the latter—would dare encroach on this monster's domain. After all, even in the age of deadly weapons and formidable goliaths, who could rival it? Beat it? Subdue it?

Many had tried.

And just as many had failed.

For no one could claim superiority over the King of Monsters.

Louise was not sulking.

The petite female noble girl was not sitting in an isolated corner of the cafeteria, poking at her lavish lunch with the appetite of lazy kitten. She was not letting her long, curly pink hair fall in a curtain over her face to hide her watery eyes. She most certainly was not upset because she had made another explosion in class earlier in the day and was thinking about the very important exam that she definitely could not afford to fail tomorrow.

And she was absolutely not lying to herself or anyone else when she said she wasn't bothered by anything.

"Stupid Zerbst," she muttered as she stabbed at her salad like a serial killer torturing their latest victim.

"Stupid classmates."

Another stab

"Stupid test."

A fiercer stab.

"Stupid explosions!"

The plate, having faithfully performed its service for many years, but never being designed to receive that level of abuse, finally shattered. So did the various conversations in the dining hall, as all eyes turned to Louise, who was glaring down at the remnants of the plate with a murderous expression on her face. The owners of the once curious eyes immediately turned back to whatever they were doing, and voices returned, though only in hushed whispers.

A maid with short, raven-colored hair cautiously approached the visibly fuming Louise. Nobles in a foul mood were like disgruntled elderly neighbors. Sometimes they would act dismissive and ruder than normal, but their attitude would stop there. Other times, they would take out their anger on the nearest vulnerable target. In this case, a humble worker of the academy.

For this reason, the maid made sure her tone was nothing but polite as she asked, "Would you like me to take that from you, m'lady?"

"Yes," Louise replied curtly. In the presence of a commoner, it was easy for her to regain her imperious façade. It was almost second nature to her at this point. "In fact, take away the whole tray. I have lost my appetite."

The maid nodded demurely as she followed Louise's orders. Once the servant was far enough away, the noble girl let out a small sigh. It was unbecoming of her to lose face in a public area, especially with both commoners and nobles around. Commoners would get uppity if they saw a noble act without grace. Other nobles would scoff and mock, sometimes privately, but the ill-bred ones would openly do so. It was disgraceful, but Louise could little to change their ways.

After all, Louise's very existence was little more than a disgrace.

"My, my, do I see the great and boastful Louise de la Valliere sulking in a corner?" a haughty voice said in exaggerated whisper.

"How far the mighty have fallen," said another, less haughty, but just as mocking, voice.

Louise allowed herself to briefly scowl before schooling her expression into indifferent neutrality. She turned around slowly and greeted the approaching girls. "Zerbst, Montmorency," she said politely. "Gallia," she added, noticing the third girl silently trailing behind the two. "To what do I owe the pleasure of your company?"

Louise's tone made it clear that the trio's company was anything but pleasant, but her classmates played along. "We couldn't help but notice you seemed a little, high-strung," said Montmorency de Montmorency, a blue-eyed water mage with a talent for portions. Her long blonde hair rivaled Louise's in length, and was styled in large ringlets. A large red bow tied up her hair at the back of her head.

"What did that poor plate do to deserve such a fate?" Kirche von Zerbst lamented, dramatically throwing a hand to her forehead. The tanned germanian had an amused twinkle in her exposed brown eye, the other being covered by the wild expanse of ruby-colored hair that fell freely around her upper body. While such an unruly hairstyle might be considered unbecoming of a noble lady, it fit perfectly on the tall, busty seductress.

Tabitha de Gallia turned a page in the small book she held in one hand. In the other, she held a staff that resembled a shepherd's crook. Her aquamarine eyes peered through her red-rimmed glasses, never once looking up from her book. Her blue hair, short, unlike her comrades, framed her stoic face in a way that made her seem older than her small stature suggested.

"The plate was likely already cracked anyway," said Louise defensively. "An incompetent servant probably forgot to inspect it probably before setting it out."

"Of course," said Montmorency, words running as dry as a desert in the noonday sun. "It was entirely not your fault."

"Very true," Kirche said with equal sincerity. "After all, being a Zero is beyond your control. You shouldn't beat yourself too much over it."

Kirche and Montmorency exchanged stifled giggles as their Louise silently fumed. The linkette's hand trembled in fury as she tried to keep her emotions under wraps. "I will not be a Zero for much longer," she said coldly.

"Oh?" Kirche questioned. She teasingly placed a single manicured finger to her bottom lip. "How so?"

Louise knew that she was being goaded, but at this point, she didn't care. "At the Familiar Summoning Exam," the young mage declared. "I'm going to summon the best familiar the world has ever seen!"

"Really?" Montmorency deadpanned. "How are you going to do that, when you can't even cast a spell as simple as levitation without blowing everything up?"

"Face it, Louise," said Kirche. "You'll always be Louise the Zero, and once you fail the easiest exam in the entire academy, you won't be able to deny it anymore."

"Just you wait!" Louise retorted, shooting up from her seat in a fit of passionate indignation. "My familiar will be so amazing that no one will dare call me a Zero ever again!"

Kirche made a scoffing sound and leaned closer to Louise. "I believe the entire cafeteria heard you that time, so hopefully you can live up to your words," she whispered in the smaller girl's ear. "Ta ta, Zero!"

Louise watched as Kirche and Montmorency stalked away. After a moment, Tabitha turned a page in her book, looked up, and followed after them. Louise let her arms fall limply to her sides.

She wasn't embarrassed by the stares and whispers of the other students.

She wasn't retreating when she returned to her room.

She wasn't bothered by anything.

Anything at all.

To say that the Familiar Summoning Exam was a big deal was like saying that the ocean was large.

Despite its importance, the Exam itself was not complex. While it was called an exam, it was more a coming-of-age ceremony. The ceremony had been created six thousand years ago by Brimir, the Founder of Halkegenia and all that was known of magic. Using a special ritual, a mage summoned a creature perfectly suited to match them so they could bind it as their familiar.

No mage in the history of Halkegenia had ever failed the exam. Louise, who had failed to cast any spell successfully in her life, stood a good chance of being the first. To fail where even the weakest of mages had succeeded would damage her reputation far beyond repair. Already, her parents had made plans for her to be married off to a viscount. If Louise failed here, even her engagement was at risk. Her family would be ashamed of her. Her future… would be nothing.

Louise had to pass this exam.

She had to summon a familiar.

She had to.

"Mrs. Valliere, please step forward and summon your familiar."

Louise's eyes snapped open as she came out of her thoughts. The girl walked forward with a confidence that she did not feel. Every eye was trained on her as she stepped out of the ring of students into the center of the courtyard. With the mindless slowness of a golem, she drew her wand. The words of the ritual came to her mind, but as she struggled to form them, they failed to reach her lips.

"Mrs. Valliere?" Mr. Colbert, the proctor for the exam, asked questioningly. His blue bespectacled eyes were laced with concern as he watched the girl freeze. Louise's lips trembled, but no words were coming out.

"My apologies," Louise finally managed to say. She took a deep breath to steady herself and sort out her thoughts.

The sounds of her classmates whispering about her inevitable failure…

Ignored.

The knowledge inside herself that she couldn't cast a proper spell…

Ignored.

The willful hope that she would finally cast aside her plagued namesake and rise to become a proper mage…

Focused.

Raising her wand, Louise began again. This time, she did not try to recall the tried and true words that every student used. Instead, she spoke straight from her heart.

"My familiar that exists in this vast universe!" she pronounced.

The other students looked at her in bewilderment.

"That's not the right words," said one.

"What is she doing?" another asked.

"My divine, wise, beautiful, powerful familiar!" Louise continued, unburdened by the mutterings around her.

"Is she seriously that conceited?"

"It will be even more embarrassing when she fails."

All the mental fortitude in the world could not shut off Louise's ears. Practically in a rage, she declared, "By the power of the five elements, answer my summons and appear before me!"

There was silence.

Then, there was an explosion.

Finally, there was an earthquake.

In an instant, a shadow came over the Academy as the ground trembled violently. Staff, students, and faculty alike struggled to hold their balance. Many fell to the ground as they failed to remain on their feet.

Down in the kitchens, a head chef cursed up a storm as plates and serves clattered to the floor, ruining an entire meal.

"How do those noble brats expect me to cook for them when they keep making such a ruckus!" Marteau ranted as he threw his chef's cap to the floor.

Up in the Headmaster's office, an old man and his secretary were startled from their seats, and only due to their rigorous training were they able to keep their balance.

"What in Founder is going on?" the white-haired headmaster muttered. "Where did the sun go?" He peered to the window, and then jumped back. "By Brimir's bronze bollocks! What in blazes is that!"

His secretary, while not understanding the nature of the situation, was able to quickly recognize the danger it posed. She immediately grabbed her employer by the arm and began hauling him out the door.

Out in the courtyard, Louise at first assumed she had summoned a mountain. The grey surface in front of her had the texture of worn, cracked stone. It smelled of strong, salty brine, and was dripping with sea water. The girl looked up, hoping to get a better understanding of why she had summoned a large sea rock as her familiar.

As her gaze rose upwards, so her heart fell into her stomach.

What she had first assumed to be an immense rock was actually a leg. A large, scaly leg that was thicker than the base of the Academy's central tower. The leg connected to a massive torso that was large enough to blot out the sun's light over the academy. A tail, as thick as the leg at its base, stretched out over the academy's walls and out of the girl's sight. The thickness tampered off slightly, but the amount of sheer mass that rested on the Academy's outer wall was impressive.

Further up on the creature's body were two stubby arms. The term "stubby" being relative, as one arm was roughly the same length as the dragon Tabitha had summoned. Serrated plates, each as tall as a grown man, ran along the gargantuan creature's spine and down along its tail. It was hard to tell where the creature's torso stopped and its neck began, but its head was distinctive. The creature's head was small—proportionally to the rest of its body. The head was lizard-like in shape and had a furrowed brow.

The creature's head slowly turned to one side, and then rotated back to the other side. All of the students held their breath as one, trying not to attract the attention of the creature. Then, someone sneezed. It was a small sneeze, hardly one that would be noticed in a public environment. However, in that moment, it was the loudest sound in the courtyard.

The towering creature's gaze was drawn to its feet. There it spotted one of the pesky humans that were usually responsible for its rude awakenings. With a roar that could be heard from miles away, the lumbering sea creature turned around. Or at least, it attempted to. Stone towers, layered with enough enchantments to survive even a square class mage's attacks, halted the creature's tail as it tried to turn around. Hallway connectors between the central tower and the five outer towers of the academy made it difficult for the creature to find its footing.

With a roar of frustration, the gargantuan marine monstrosity stopped trying to move gingerly. A slow swing of the its tail demolished one of the outer towers, leaving only the lower two floors intact. A lumbering step crushed one of the connectors, giving the monster enough foot space to make a proper rotation.

Down at ground level, far below the monster's attention, Professor Colbert was desperately herding the students to safety. "Don't run! Keep your familiars with you! Stay calm and try not to attract its attention!" The words were delivered with urgency, but not panic. The balding bespectacled man had learned better than to panic in stressful situations. However, nothing could have prepared him for this. A student's familiar was normally a common animal or a relatively harmless magical creature. Few mages summoned dangerous creatures as their familiar, and never before had something such as this behemoth had answered a mage's summon.

"Professor Colbert!"

Turning and seeing the girl who had summoned the creature not running to safety, Colbert immediately waved her along. "There's no time, Miss Valliere," the professor urged. "Please, get to safety."

"No!" Louise refused. "I haven't completed the ceremony with my familiar!"

While the ritual was used to summon the familiar, the ceremony was only complete after the Master kissed the familiar and bound it to their service. While Colbert was normally a stickler for rules, he felt an exception had to be made in this case. "Miss Valliere, this is not the time!" he said sternly.

"We don't have any time!" the student shot back. For all of Louise's temperamental issues, she had never yelled at her teachers before. This took Professor Colbert aback, giving Louise an opening to press on. "That creature is my familiar, and as its master, I am responsible for anything it does wrong. A familiar that is bound to a mage has never attacked its master before, so if I finish the ceremony, I can calm it down!"

It was a tempting suggestion, but Colbert shook his head. "That's not a guarantee," said Colbert gravely. "You could be hurt, or at worse."

"That's a risk I'm willing to take."

Colbert was going to argue further, but as the creature continued its slow rotation, another tower was casually smacked into rubble. The professor knew that it was only a matter of time before the entire academy was destroyed. However, could he risk the life of one his students on the off chance of the runes successfully taming the creature. The pragmatic choice would be "yes". Yet, Colbert hesitated. He already had the blood of so many innocents on his hands. Could he really add another person—one of his students, no less—to that list?

In the end, the choice was taken away from him. In a blur of pale blue, Louise was picked up from the ground and carried into the sky. The professor jumped and drew his wand, but lowered it when he saw that the abductor was none other than Tabitha's wind dragon familiar.

Louise, who was slower on the uptake, was struggling in her captor's grip. "What are you doing!" Louise screamed as she struggled to free herself. "Release me this instant!" To her surprise, her order was followed, and she started to fall to through the air.

Understandably, Louise's first reaction was to scream in panic. However, her screams gradually died as her fall had gently come to a stop. She was still in the air, but she was levitating, rather than falling. Tabitha, riding her newly summoned familiar, flew down to Louise's eye level. In her hand, she held her staff pointed at Louise.

"Let's go," Tabitha ordered. "Hold on." Without giving Louise time to respond, the bluette flicked her staff, lowering Louise onto her dragon's back, and they took off. They circled around the back of the scaled monster, watching as yet another wall and tower were rendered asunder.

"What are you doing?" Louise asked.

"Helping," Tabitha replied without turning around. "You can stop your familiar."

"But why?" Louise asked. "Aren't you scared?"

At this, Tabitha finally turned around. Her eyes, normally cold and indifferent, now reflected the fear in Louise's own pupils. It was more muted, but was unmistakably present. She took hold of one of Louise's hands in her own. The pinkette could feel the trembling in the smaller girl's limb. Then she realized that her own body was trembling like a leaf from head to toe.

"We are all scared," Tabitha stated. "But we do what we must."

Louise took a deep breath as she tightened her grip on Tabitha's hand. "Yes, as nobles we cannot shirk our duties," Louise declared. Her voice was still shaky, but her determination burned in her eyes. "Let's go tame my familiar."

Their dragon ride had now reached the back of the behemoth's head. All that was left was reaching the face to complete the ritual. Louise blanched. "Tabtiha," she said questioningly. "How do I get to its face from here?"

"Jump."

"Jump?"

Tabitha sighed and kicked Louise in her midsection.

The pink haired girl screamed as she fell off the dragon, only to realize that she was slowly floating towards the head of her familiar. She sent a hateful glare at Tabitha, who only shrugged in response as she continued to direct Louise closer to the head of the massive creature.

Aforementioned creature was now aggravated. Not only were the stones it had stepped on much harder than they appeared, but it couldn't smell the ocean anywhere. And above all, there were the pesky sounds of those annoying humans running underfoot. It was trying not to crush them, but they were running every which way, and there wasn't a lot of space to maneuver. The creature considered blasting them aside, but decided against it. After all, despite all the annoyance they caused, they hadn't attempted to attack it.

The sound of beating wings caught its attention. Rotating its head, the creature spied… well, it wasn't a bird. But it was flying, and it had one of those humans on its back. Perhaps it was a fake bird? But it wasn't made of metal either. The blue-scaled not-bird was a living creature. Curious.

The not-bird dove away from the monster's gaze, forcing the behemoth to constantly rotate its head. Eventually, the not-bird came to a stop, allowing the sea creature to look at it straight on.

"Pentagon of the five elements. Bless this creature, and bind it as my familiar!"

The creature was not unable to communicate. While it could only produce growls and roars, it understood the concept of language. However, this was the first times that words carried so much meaning. The meaning wasn't entirely clear, as some of the words carried concepts that were foreign to the creature, but it was the most direct communication it had ever received.

A spike of pain erupted from a scaly hand, but the monster did not flinch. After all, the invisible flames that had burned into its scaly skin all those years ago had been more painful than any scratch that was receiving now.

Then, it heard the voice again.

"Stop destroying everything!"

The monster stilled. The meaning was understood, but the situation was unfamiliar. It knew that humans didn't like having their rocky dens being destroyed, but this was the first time the sentiment had been expressed so clearly.

"You dare challenge me?" the monster rumbled in response.

It could not speak. It lacked the proper vocal cords to do so. However, it instinctively felt that the voice it had heard would understand it.

"You are my familiar, and I am your master! You must listen to me!"

"I listen. I do not obey." The monster was not offended. In fact, it was amused. The voice of the other end spoke not with the fervor of a challenger or the authority of a usurper, but with the naivety of a child.

Frustration was evident from the other end of the connection. "My name is Louise Francoise le Blanc de la Valliere! And by my authority, I order you to stop destroying the academy!"

"You have no authority." The reply was plain, factual, but it stung all the same. "You are young. You are weak. You are nothing."

"No! I'm not a Zero! I summoned you! You're supposed to be my familiar! You're supposed to prove to everyone that I'm not a failure! But instead you're destroying my school! Hurting my classmates! People might have died because of you, and everyone will blame me for it! I'll be less than a Zero! I'll be a murderer!"

The monster had expected the child to throw a fit, but the passionate response came as surprise. The monster stilled its movements. Many eons had passed since it had been a child, but it could recognize the plight of one. While it lived for itself, untethered by weaklings that surrounded it, it was not without empathy. "Child, you are not me. My actions, are not yours. My life, is not yours. I am me. You are you."

As the monster idly tilted its head down, a small dot of pink and black rolled past one of his eyes before stopping at halfway down its snout. The monster was amused as it watched the odd-looking human struggle to its feet. "I will go back to my slumber, child," the creature said. "The water is my domain. You and your kind can continue to live, if you do not disturb me."

The human child—Louise—rose to its feet. "…Will you not destroy us all?" it asked.

The aquatic titan snorted. "Child, your kind are nothing. Why destroy what barely exists?"

A feeling offense traveled through the connection, but the emotion quickly smoothed into acceptance. "North is where Tristan's waters are," the child directed. "If you remain far enough from the shore, no one should disturb you there."

A scaly hand rose up the creature's snout. The pink and black child trembled, but the hand merely opened up next to her. It took a few moments, but she eventually got the hint. Slowly, shakily, the child climbed into the scaly palm. The sea monster lowered her down to one of the holes in the tallest stone, allowing the child to step inside.

The monster had one final word of advice. "To challenge me, you must grow strong, child. For now, I rest. When you are grown, you may try again."

The monster could sense something in the child. No human has ever given it a feeling quite like it was experiencing. It was not facing a tiny, insignificant creature. It was facing a creature that could easily grow to rival one of the many titans it had faced in the past. To fight someone so small yet powerful, it was a challenge the old monster would eagerly await.

The child's head bobbed up and down. "I, Louise Francoise le Blanc de la Valliere, will make you acknowledge me as your master one day. As a noble of Tristan, I give you my word."

The fancy words meant little to the sea monster, but he understood the intentions behind them. "I need no name. But your kind call me Godzilla. I am The King of Monsters."

Godzilla bellowed, spewing a stream of energy that ignited the air around it in rainbow-hued flaming geyser. Clouds were violently ripped apart as the glowing spew shot straight into the sky. The spines on the monster's back began to glow as its body expanded.

The central tower, which previously reached right under Godzilla's chin, only looked smaller as the monster rapidly increased in size. Godzilla's feet, which each used to take up a third of a courtyard, now almost filled each triangle section.

With slow, lumbering steps, Godzilla stepped over the now miniscule wall of the academy. Light returned to the Academy as the leviathan's shadow no longer obscured the sun's warm rays. Students, staff, and faculty alike watched in awe as the monster, now easily twice its original height, peaceful trudged away to the north.

While the damage was severe and there were several accounts of injuries, a few of them quite serious, no one had died from the monster's destruction. Despite half the academy now being little more than rubble, the movements of the creature had been slow enough to give everyone time to get away from the immediate vicinity of the monster's feet and tail. Thanks to water and earth mages that were commissioned throughout the country, all injuries were eventually healed, and the Academy was rebuilt within a few weeks.

Louise quickly shed her moniker of being a Zero. Unfortunately, her new title was Louise the Destroyer. Not only did she have the ability to destroy anything she pointed her wand at, but she had also summoned the most destructive familiar the world had ever seen. The monster's journey had been documented by the spies of every country in Halkegenia. Within days, the entire continent knew about the deadliest summoning in known history.

The plans of entire armies were changed, as no one wanted to challenge the country who had the closest equivalent to a force of pure destruction. Tristan, the Valliere family, and Louise in particular were suddenly being offered many ludicrous alliances with everyone from the Germanian emperor, Gallia's Mad King Joseph, and even Cromwell, the leader of the Reconquista.

The world never be the same again.

One day, Louise would make good on her claim. She would wake the monster from its slumber and challenge it to determine who the true master was.

The whole world could only pray that the day would not come any sooner.

I like taking suggestions from people, but recently I've been getting a lot of suggestion to have Louise summon large, impractical monstrosities of her familiar. So... I decided to take the best of them and actually write a story. I liked how this turned out, but it would be hard to make a longer story. Godzilla is too big, too strong, and too lazy. This was a fun story to write, but I prefer using familiars that are easier to interact with. Psuedo-telepathy through familiar bond is limited.

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this story. If you did, tell me why. If you didn't, guess what? Also tell me why. I try to reply to as many reviews as I can. Audience interaction is one of the best things about this site. (Also, tell me if this the first of my stories that you've read. I'm curious.)

EDIT: I forgot to include a list of Godzilla's abilities for this fic:

Atomic Breath - It's rainbow-colored and not killing everyone in the area for aesthetic reasons

Monstrous Strength/Durability - Godzilla can crush square-class enchanted walls with ease

Water Breathing - An aquatic monster can sleep underwater for years, go figure

Energy Absorption - This ability is the reason Godzilla woke up in the first place

Size Changing - My way of explaining how Godzilla is always changing height, sometimes in mid-movie

Telepathy - Only usable through runes; not a purely Godzilla ability

Remember, reviews are food for a writer's soul!