Hey all Hazor here. As some of you have requested through either PMs or reviews, this is an upload of the original story up to chapter 7. I have also included the first chapter of my other crossover idea with Alex as the main character which I dropped before even uploading. Two stories would have been suicide for me to write.

I left the original author notes as well, anything besides this section was written months before.

I am aware of the rule saying:

Multiple entries of the same material. There can only be one copy of any unique story on the entire site. No exceptions.

However I believe that my rewrite and this are different enough to not fall under this category. Added the extra chapter as a precaution :P.

I will probably not be updating this so I'll leave this as completed.

Disclaimer: I do not own Prototype or Familiar of Zero

Infection in Halkeginia

Prologue

Red lights bathed the corridor in an eerie red glow while warning sirens blared. "Attention all blackwatch personnel. Zeus had infiltrated the compound. Base is compromised. All combat troops are to delay Zeus while package is secured."

Collin sprinted down the corridor, away from the gunfire and explosions. His breathing was laboured; his lungs burned and only the thought of what lay behind him spurred him forward even as the desperate shouts and dying screams of soldiers could be heard over the chaos. The usually orderly military corridors were in disarray as black clad soldiers pounded down the opposite direction hefting heavy machine guns and rocket launchers. True professionals they didn't hesitate as they headed towards their deaths. For all the horrendous acts Collin had seen them commit he couldn't help but admire their sense of duty.

"Quickly! We don't have much time!" The corporal leading yelled at him to speed up, frustrated at how slow they were moving.

Too winded to answer Collin nodded, not for the first time he regretted skipping his Physics Ed classes. He spared a glance behind to check on his father. For a man pushing fifty Professor James Shepard was doing quite well, his breathing only slightly laboured.

An earth shattering explosion rocked the base to its very foundations. Clapping his hands over his ears Collin winced as the sound wave nearly tore his eardrums apart; eyes closed in pain he lost his footing and tripped only to find himself held up by strong arms.

"You okay son?" Shepard asked, tired and worried eyes framed by crow's feet met Collin's.

Collin nodded, panting deeply. "I'm alright. We should continue." Damn if they would get killed because of him.

The corporal leading them yelled back, "That must have been the thermobaric ammunition! Shit! We were hoping to use that against Zeus."

Collins father grimly agreed with his assessment," In that case there is no way we're stopping Zeus. Not here at least. Is Red Crown sending reinforcements?"

"No. We're on our own. Primary objective is to evacuate you Professor Shepard and your family to Alpha base to continue your research." The corporal swept his rifle checking their front and rear. They were alone. For now. "We have to move. Now. I think we're nearly out of distractions."

They continued towards the evac point with renewed determination. Collin felt extremely uneasy; the base had gone eerily silent and Collin couldn't shake the feeling that something was watching them.

True to his prediction the corporal's radio buzzed. "All forces in the main base are neutralised. I repeat, all forces in the main courtyard are neutralised. Base is completely compromised, remaining forces are to evacuate immediately. Status on the package."

"Package is secure. En route to evac point. ETA 3 minutes." The corporal said into his shoulder radio.

"Copy that. We have a bird waiting in the air. Prepare for a hot pickup." Collin heaved a sigh of relief. They were going to make it. However the next few words chilled him. "Warning. We are picking up a signature near your position. Recommend you get your ass out of there ASAP."

Hearing this Shepard stopped running. He turned back with a determined look, shouting as he did. "You head on to the evac point. Corporal you get my son out of here. I won't have him dying for my mistakes. Zeus wants me and me alone."

No no no no, he wasn't going to lose anyone else. "DAD! We're getting out of here together no matter what! The evac point is just ahead!" Collin desperately pleaded grabbing onto his dad's arm. He could feel his father trembling under his grip.

The corporal chose a more aggressive persuasion. "Professor I WILL get you out of here even if I have to carry your unconscious body out of here like a sack of potatoes." The corporal growled. "Your son is not the priority here. I have my orders."

A slow dramatic clap sounded from behind them.

"And here we see the fanatic mind-set of the Blackwatch Dogs."

Everyone whirled around to spot the Monster of Manhattan leaning casually against the wall as if he hadn't just massacred his way through 200 blackwatch personnel. He stared at them from eyes peeking out beneath a black hood. Just the sight of him chilled Collin to his very bones. It wasn't so much as his appearance, a blood stained black hoodie and jeans, but his eyes. They were cold, and dead.

"Zeus!" The corporal exclaimed and raised his rifle only to receive a hole through his chest courtesy of Zeus's whipfist. He went down in a spray of blood. Collin stared in horror as the corporal's twitched on the floor, blood bubbling out of his mouth. The metallic stench of blood assaulted his nose. The attack had been so fast he didn't even have time to register the projectile before Zeus retracted it, he watched in morbid fascination as the tendrilled appendage with deadly spikes at the end morphed back into a human arm.

"Now then Shepard, you have something I want." Zeus growled menacingly, stalking towards the father-son duo as a predator would do to its prey.

Collin stood frozen. This was it. There was nothing they could do. What hope did they have against such a monstrosity? He could only stare helplessly as the very embodiment of death drew near.

"Stop!" Shepard ordered holding a Beretta up to his temple; though his voice was strong his hand trembled. "One more step Mercer and I blow my brains out. Good luck getting information out of me then."

"Dad! What are you doing?" Collin exclaimed.

Alex Mercer halted his advance and glared menacingly at Shepard. "You aren't getting out of here you know."

Shepard ignored his son. "Let my son go…let him go and I'll give you whatever you want."

"…deal…" Mercer conceded.

With his free hand Shepard roughly shoved Collin away. "Get to the helicopter and get out of here."

"But dad…"

"GO! There's no way I'm walking out of here." Shepard said, eyes locked on Mercer. "Stay strong Collin. You have to live on."

Collin knew the truth in his words. With a final "I love you Dad." Collin quickly took off down the corridor, tears threatening to spill from his eyes.

Collin only made it to the end of the corridor before he heard his dad scream in agony. The sound cut through Collin like a knife. He turned around only to nearly pass out from what he saw. Mercer left hand had morphed into extremely lethal looking claws, three sharp blades and a short blade in a morbid mimicry of a human hand sprouted from the end of his limb. Zeus had impaled his father's body and tentacles were ripping flesh off his body. Blood splashed everywhere as Zeus proceeded to consume Shepard. The sound of ripping flesh thundered in Collin's ears.

"NO!" Collin's common sense gave way to his anguish. Against his better judgement He picked up the corporal's fallen M4A1 assault rifle and shot Mercer in the head. He felt a sense of elation as Zeus's head exploded.

However elation gave way to horror as Mercer merely turned his head, missing face and all, towards Collin. Even without his eyes he seemed to be looking right at him. Finishing his meal he stalked towards Collin ignoring the desperate shots that were smashing into his torso even as his head reformed.

Shit. Shit. Shit. Die already! Collin panicked firing full auto at Mercer, backing up as he did so. His arm went numb from the constant kickback of the rifle as he struggled to keep his aim. Brass shells clattered onto the floor as he slowly back up against the wall. He ran out of ammunition and reached to pull out his sidearm, a Springfield with extended clip. Why won't he DIE? He felt the powerful kickback of the handgun as the larger calibre bullets ripped holes in Mercer. However like the tide Mercer continued inexorably onwards.

Mercer's right arm morphed into a huge curved blade. "You boy, are either very dumb or very brave." Mercer said appraising before plunging the huge blade into Collin's gut. "I like that."

Collin gasped in pain as the weapon invaded his body. He felt a burning sensation in his abdomen. Grasping at the weapon he futilely tried to pull himself off the ridiculously massive blade. The pain was excruciating and he felt the edges of unconsciousness creeping over him.

As the last moments of his life passed Collin wondered how everything had gone to hell over the past few days. 6 days ago he was an above average student studying at King's College. 6 days ago life had been proceeding as normal and he had been relaxing with his friends. 6 days ago his father arrived home with a whole contingent of soldiers to pick up his mom and himself. And not the normal marines, they were dressed in full black body armour. They immediately creeped him out and gave off aura that warned him to stay clear of them. The aura of someone who has done things so horrible they would make you puke. With the words "it's happening again" his whole world was torn away.

Collin chuckled. It was like final destination. His family had survived the last outbreak by being out of town. Now the outbreak had returned to take their lives.

There was darkness.

And a flash of light.

Xxxxxxx

Louise Françoise le Blanc de la Vallière was on the verge of panic. She despised herself for feeling that way but she couldn't help it. It was the day where she would prove that she was a real noble. Prove that she deserved the name of Vallière and wouldn't bring shame to her family. If she succeeded today she would be able to keep the title of mage and noble, if she didn't…well she didn't want to think about it.

It was a fairly pleasant day in Vestri Court. The sun was shining beautifully and the sky was clear. The court was kept as immaculate as usual thanks to the servants of the school. However Louise couldn't focus on its beauty. It was the first day of spring and as a second year student it was the day of the Summoning Ritual, where the students would summon their lifelong companions.

She cursed herself for shooting her mouth off at Kirche the day before, swearing to summon the most impressive familiar of the entire school. She face palmed and groaned into her hands. She would be happy with even a mouse at this point.

Just then the source of her misery decided to show up. "Why if it isn't Louise the Zero. Why haven't you completed your summoning ritual yet? Weren't you so confident of your abilities yesterday? Though I doubt you could outshine MY familiar. Isn't that right Flame." Kirche cooed as she rubbed her cheek against the huge fire lizard half her size. The salamander agreed, purring as he rubbed back.

"Leave me alone cow. I'm not in the mood." Louise murmured from behind her hands, eyeing the flame on the happy salamander's tail warily as it swished dangerously close to her skirt.

Just then there was a flash of light followed by a roar. Louise looked up and her jaw dropped open in awe. Someone had just summoned an honest to god dragon. And not just any dragon, she had never seen one with blue scales before. The dragon reared her majestic head and cast an intelligent eye over the assembled students who were equally wowed. Dragons only appeared for the most talented of mages seeing as they were practically imbued with magic themselves. A student with hair as blue as the dragon's scales stepped over and completed the sealing ritual, kissing it atop its snout. The dragon cooed happily and snuggled its head against its new master. If a dragon could be described as cute this fit the bill perfectly.

"Why it looks like Tabitha has outdone herself again. No surprise there though. Hey Zero think you can summon something that beats a dragon?" Kirche taunted Louise.

Louise fumed at Kirche's obvious attempts to push her buttons. Just as she was about to retort a voice called out," Is that everyone then?"

"Not yet Mr Colbert. Louise has yet to complete her summoning ritual." Kirche called out waving towards the balding teacher in blue robes, shoving Louise forward with her free hand.

Louise stumbled forward with a yelp as she was suddenly pushed forward. As the students sniggered she turned and glared at the buxom redhead who smirked back at her.

"My apologies Miss Vallière. Please step into the summoning circle." Professor Colbert instructed.

By the Founder I'll kill her one day. Louise though darkly as she stepped forward into the summoning circle. Alright this is it. I've prepared for months just for this day. I won't fail now.

"Whenever you're ready Miss Vallière." Mr Colbert informed her, smiling kindly as he did so.

Louise smiled back, grateful for the encouragement. She liked Mr Colbert more than any of the other teacher, if only because he didn't treat her like a failure as all the other teachers at Tristain Academy did.

"Should we look for cover?"

"She can't even light a candle how can she summon a familiar?"

"I hope she doesn't cause another explosion, these are my favourite robes."

She took a deep breath and forced everyone's snide remarks out of her head even as Professor Colbert called for them to be quiet.

"I beg of you…" Louise began voice resonating with magic. Everyone silenced themselves, waiting with bated breaths. "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!"

Silence settled about the court. Some started sniggering. No…No…No… I failed. I'm not a mage. I'm nothing but a Zero. Louise felt tears threatening to leak out. My parents are sure to disown me now. A noble shouldn't be crying she told herself, and then laughed coldly. I'm not a noble anymore am I?

Then the largest explosion she had every cast erupted from the centre of the summoning circle, blowing everyone else backwards with its force. As the closest she was literally sent flying only to be caught by Mr Colbert who had braced himself with his staff. The students began shouting in panic as they looked about and the familiars added their cries of surprise to the din.

The smell of scorched earth filled her nose as the acrid smoke spread outwards. Louise thought she saw movement and peered through the smoke, her eyes burning. She gasped as she looked towards the centre of the circle. She could vaguely make out a silhouette in the smoke. I did it! She cheered. "I did it!"

Mr Colbert waved his staff and a gust of wind blew away the smoke, revealing a teenage boy dressed in jeans and a blue hoodie standing at the origin of the explosion, surrounded by scorched grass. Louise's heart fell. A commoner? If she had to guess he was about Kirche's height. What was with that weird clothing? She had never seen such an oddly dressed commoner in her life.

"A commoner! She summoned a commoner!" Someone laughed out.

"As expected of the Zero!" Someone else agreed.

"It appears you did succeed at the summoning ritual Miss Vallière. Congratulations! You are a mage." Mr Colbert smiled reassuringly down at the pinkette holding him tightly, he was well aware of the little girl's insecurity. On the inside however he was extremely puzzled; there was no precedent for a human summoning.

"But… can't I redo the summoning ritual? I've never heard of anyone summoning a commoner before." Louise begged looking up at Mr Colbert with puppy eyes.

"I'm afraid not." Mr Colbert grimaced, feeling a pang of sympathy for his little charge. "The summoning ritual is a sacred tradition and allowing a redo goes against all the teaching by the Founder himself."

A student interrupted them. "Professor something's wrong with it!"

They looked towards Louise's summon and froze in shock. A puddle of dark red liquid was quickly pooling around his feet even he began swaying dangerously. Mr Colbert rushed forward in time to catch him as he collapsed forward.

Turning him over Colbert looked for the wound and grimaced as he saw a giant shard of something embedded in his abdomen. "Montmorency! Come here quick!" He called out to the blonde even as his hands become stained with blood.

"Y-yes professor?" She asked running over, an orange frog balancing precariously on her head.

"I'm going to pull out this shard; can you repair the wound with your water magic?"

"I can heal cuts but such a large wound is beyond me." She replied shaking her head sadly, feeling useless.

By the Founder. He's going to pass away if we don't stop the bleeding. And the infirmary is too far away. What to do. What to do. Of course! The sealing contract!

"Miss Vallière, I'm going to pull out the shard and when I do I want you to complete the sealing contract ritual." Mr Colbert instructed to the girl kneeling next to him who looked as if she was about to pass out. It was probably the sheltered girl's first time seeing blood.

"What! With him?" Louise wailed.

"Yes! Him! Or would you rather be known as the mage that let her familiar die one minute into summoning him?" Mr Colbert stated cruelly. He regretted being so harsh but he needed her to follow his instructions.

Louise looked at her familiar's face. Up close she could see his pale face clearly. He was much younger than she thought. He seemed to be about her age. She couldn't possibly let someone else die, not when it was in her power to save them. Her father had drilled into her and her sisters that it was the duty of the nobles to protect the commoners. "Alright then…"

She took out her wand and waved it chanting, "Pentagon of the Five Elemental powers, grant your blessings upon this creature and bind it as my familiar."

Just as she completed the ritual Mr Colbert yanked out the shard with all of his strength. He was surprised at how heavy it was. It felt warm and strangely alive, quelling his curiosity he tossed it aside; there were more important things to do. Louise completed the spell, sealing the contract with a kiss on the stranger's almost colourless lips.

Nothing happened. Louise felt fear grip her. Was it too late? Had her hesitation killed him?

Then the stranger started shouting in agony as his wound lighted up with unknown magic, closing up on itself. After convulsing for half a minute he stilled. A bright light shined from his left hand as the familiar runes were etched onto it.

Mr Colbert was curious as to what they meant but pushed it aside for later. The familiar was still in danger, he wasn't sure as to what extent the sealing contract "restored the familiar to a state fit to serve its master".

"Is he alright now?" Louise asked in a small voice peering at her now familiar's pale face as colour slowly returned to it.

Shaking his head in uncertainty Professor Colbert waved his staff and levitated the familiar. He started carrying it towards the infirmary with Louise in tow. He dismissed the class who was crowding about them in curiosity with a wave, praising them for successful summoning. "Congratulations everyone. You have done well today as I was sure you would. Please take the time to familiarise yourself with your familiars and rest up. I'm sure it's been a tiring day."

The students dispersed, chattering about the day's events and its strange conclusion.

Just as he was about to leave the court Professor Colbert thought to instruct a student to collect the shard for further study but when he looked for it all he found was a single crow standing in the middle of the charred court. He shrugged it off; there were more important things to attend to.

Xxxxxxxxx

The crow stared intently at the retreating teacher and his students. Ruffling its dark feathers it gave a loud cry before flying away.

A/N

Hey guys the name's Hazor. I've been skulking around fanfiction for over a year now and though I'd finally post something. This idea has been floating around my head for a while now and here it is. This is my first time writing and I would be happy to receive any constructive criticism and suggestions on my writing. I'm not sure if my disclaimer is up to standard; please inform me if it is!

Well…I'm not sure what else to add so thanks for reading and please leave a review!