History Fanfic / Unfamiliar

* AntiVillain: [[DiscussedTrope Discussed]] in Alex's internal monologue. He later gets to avoid dealing with this in the case of Count Jules de Mott, who is a complete scumbag and a sexual predator to boot.

--> '''Alex''': "I tear your arms off and use them as clubs to beat down the man next to you. By then the arms are getting pretty bruised and tender, so I simply tear the next man's spine out. Now, a spine is a useless weapon, no matter what literature would tell you. So from there, I start gutting your men like fish and feasting upon their delicious flesh. Perhaps I could even skip the gutting and start when you're alive." Mercer replied. "Either way, I proceed on to the rest of your gang and kill them too."

* CargoCult: In a way. [[spoiler: They are a bunch of descendants of the Blackwatch group that got stranded that are continuing the mission and protecting the base.]] Also they lampshaded it a bit.
--> "What do you think we are, superstitious barbarians who worship anything that's shiny?" The cult leader replied. "We may venerate our ancestors and respect them, but we know they were human just as we are today. And we know their weapons are mortal weapons, made by man to slay his enemies."

---> "You don't believe you can do it. That's why it's not working. Magic won't work if you don't believe you can do what you want."
--->--

--> "I like explosions. I like them a ''lot''."

--> "It'll be fun! In fact, let's go down there right now and introduce ourselves with a great big surprise stab! Like surprise sex, except even more fun!"

** [[spoiler: The duel between Mott and Mercer ends the same way. But this time with Mercer killing him slowly.]]

* DatingCatwoman: Jean Colbert and [[spoiler: Longueville/Fouquet]]. Mainly because Colbert is such an [[SingleWomanSeeksGoodMan unbeliavable nice, cuddling considerate guy]]... [[RetiredBadass who is]] [[EatingTheEyeCandy very well]] packed that [[spoiler: [[BrokenBird Fouquet had]] become very possesive of him and [[DevotedToYou him]] [[FlirtingUnderFire of]] [[HeartbrokenBadass her]] ]].

* DramaPreservingHandicap: Alex's semi-functional conscience. Both ways.
* TheDreaded: The viral monsters created by Redlight and Blacklight are scary in their own right, but after six thousand years they have become apocalyptic monsters of legend. [[spoiler:Siesta's]] reaction when she realizes that Alex is ZEUS says it all.

* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: "But, see, even [[SociopathicSoldier psychotic soldiers]] and [[MadScientist amoral scientists]] have families and people they care about. So I get it from both ends. Seeing them kill or experiment on innocent people, but also seeing that they're a husband, father, or son."

---> "And if they ban it in Germania of all places, it must be really sick."

--> "Should've brought the chopper," Mercer muttered, barely able to hear his own voice over the wind rushing all around him as he glided towards the enemy. "No, it's too obvious I said. I won't run into anything I can't kill myself I said. I should've known Murphy would screw with me."

** As said to [[spoiler: Cattleya]], ''"For instance, right now, I'm having to restrain myself from killing you. Not because I have anything against you, but because there's a big part of me that looks at you and sees fresh food. There's another part of me who wants to infect you and make you like me, but that's just the same as killing you. We'd end up with something that looks like you and has all your memories but isn't you."''

* IronLady: [[spoiler:Henrietta]]. Karin of the "Heavy Wind" is one of the strongest and most feared warriors in the land, her name told in awed whispers and her mere presence making even [[RetiredBadass Colbert]] sweat in fright. When she confronts [[spoiler:Henrietta]] thinking she was [[BerserkButton using her daughter]] as blackmail material, she not [[FascinatingEyebrow only was]] unamused, but completely derailed her opinion and called [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech out her nonsense]] while drinking tea.

* LackOfEmpathy: Probably the strongest thematic in the story. Just like in the original work, the Lack of Empathy is what can and did create some of the greatest brutalities in the world. And this goes not only for obvious monsters like Mott and the King of Albion, it goes for even the main and secondary characters: Louise and Karin's view of commoners, Siesta's view of nobles, and Mercer's view on humans in general. As stated by Mercer;

* ManipulativeBitch: [[spoiler: Henrietta]]

--> [[spoiler: Derflinger]]: "Then we kill it? Because I'm behind that. I'm so behind that I've warped around to being in front of that. And by in front of that I mean I'll stab the hell out of it. Stabbity stab stab-"

--> '''Kirche''': "Or find it on animals that have absolutely no business carrying money!"

** The difference with [[spoiler: Henrietta]] is that her ruthlessness is with people ''[[DecadentCourt in the game]]'', while Karin was content enough to let Mott act scot free as long it suited her goals. She was not amused by this.

* MurderIsTheBestSolution: No, it isn't and Alex at least tries not to immediately start killing people.
* MyCountryRightOrWrong: Karin holds this attitude.

--> "Excellent. A full quad of experienced mages," Osmond had an unsettling twinkle in his eye, "as well as [[GameBreaker Miss Valièrre and her familiar]]."

** Brutally mocked by [[spoiler: Henrietta]] to Karin, stating simply that there is no excuse for ''knowing'' what Lord Mott did and still protect him to advance [[ForGreatJustice her schedule]].
---> ''[[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech Your daughter seems to have the compassion for my people that you yourself lack. She, at least, had the proper horrified reaction to meeting a man like Mott, as opposed to accepting him as a... What did you call it, a "necessary evil?"]]''

** He also doesn't see anything wrong with [[spoiler: reassuring Louise with a hand on the shoulder after she commands him to kill Mott... while the hand was still a claw, covered in gore, and he was feeding on Mott's severed head with his free hand.]] Granted, he doesn't understand human behavior, but what's commonplace to him is often Nightmare Fuel.

* OffWithHisHead: [[spoiler: "Alex, be a dear and remove Lord Mott's head from his shoulders."]]
* OhCrap: Siesta's [[spoiler: "You're ZEUS. '''You're ZEUS.'''" after Alex does his face-transformation thing.]]

* PayEvilUntoEvil: Absolutely no one misses [[spoiler:Mott]]. No one in Louise's main group, of course... but also not his servants, his political allies, NO ONE.

--> "I'm here, aren't I? I didn't just appear for no reason. You summoned me. With magic." Mercer replied. "I think that disproves any delusions that you're not capable of magic. [[DissonantSerenity Because otherwise I'd be vanishing in a puff of contradictory logic right now, and you'd be plummeting to your death. Probably trying to grab ahold of nothing and watching as the ground rushed closer and closer with every second...]]"

--> "Wait. Wait. Dispel. That's what that brat and her pet monster were researching. Dispel. But that's a '''void''' spell. Oh that is ''bullshit''."

---> '''Alex''': "I survived the heat of a newborn sun! I survived a building collapsing on me! I've survived things you can't even ''imagine''! If that's your best shot, you better start running!"

---> '''Alex''': "Individuals can't win wars where I'm from. The wars are too big for that," Mercer leaned in, giving her a cold grin. "[[OneManArmy Unless that individual is me.]]"

---> '''Karin''': "Nobles have always policed themselves. Some abuses are the price we pay for the freedoms we cherish."
---> '''Henrietta''': "That must change. Justice is the word of law, not the perverse whimsy of men like Lord Mott. And change it will. My mother will not be queen forever.
---> '''Henrietta''': "Then, I will no longer have to hide in the shadows and sign minor reforms in her name. When that day comes, you will have two options. You can support me and secure the Vallière family's future... Or you can obstruct me, and I will grind you to dust underneath my heel."

* AntiVillain: [[DiscussedTrope Discussed]] in Alex's internal monologue. "Why was it that everyone always had to have sympathetic reasons for being his enemies? Why couldn't he ever have to kill someone who was just a raving murderer, driven by hate and evil and an urge to [[KickTheDog kick puppies]]?"
%%** Becomes HilariousInHindsight after Mott.

Sadly, it's a DeadFic, deceased since 2012. Now available and being updated on [[https://archiveofourown.org/works/45978043/chapters/117888580 AO3]].

* CargoShip: [[spoiler: In-universe, Alex shows a bit too much affection for the Javelin.]]
** And just like the [[Comicbook/{{Doom}} Doomguy]], [[spoiler: he ditches the Javelin when he stumbles upon a stocked Blackwatch base, complete with helicopter gunship]].
* TheChessmaster: [[spoiler: Henrietta]] is playing a long game. Time will tell if she becomes a full MagnificentBastard; she's too ambiguous to be a GuileHero by chapter 9.

There are many ''LightNovel/TheFamiliarOfZero'' fics where Louise summons a different person at the beginning of the story, providing dynamics parallel to or wildly disparate from those in canon. In very few of those stories, though, is the summoned being an unstoppable, betentacled monstrosity fresh from (literally) chewing his way through most of the U.S. Marine Corps.

Started in the wake of ''Fanfic/TheHillOfSwords'' on the [=SpaceBattles=] Fanfiction Forum, ''[[http://forums.spacebattles.com/threads/177288 Unfamiliar]]'', by Cpl_Facehugger, is a crossover between ''LightNovel/TheFamiliarOfZero'' and ''VideoGame/{{Prototype}}'', where Louise summons Alex. It's actually less unfair than the premise sounds (no [[RocksFallEveryoneDies Mercer Attacks Everyone Dies]], for example).

See ''VideoGame/{{Prototype}}'' and ''LightNovel/TheFamiliarOfZero'' for the tropes of those respective universes.

** [[spoiler: The D-Code Super Soldier being called a ''Hunter'' of God. For those of you joining us from the ''LightNovel/TheFamiliarOfZero'' side, D-Codes were created to kill Hunters.]]

-Sadly, it's a DeadFic, deceased since 2012.- Now available and being updated on [[https://archiveofourown.org/works/45978043/chapters/117888580 AO3]].

Sadly, it's a DeadFic, deceased since 2012.

** Becomes HilariousInHindsight after Mott.

* AuthorityEqualsAsskicking: King Albrecht Wales, who takes positively ridiculous amounts of punishment. [[spoiler: Hinted that he's not fully human.]]
** [[spoiler: Henrietta]], showing that one can be the most Badass person in the realm without being a OneManArmy
--->"Allow me to promise you this, Karin: If you cross me, I will break you. I will use your family as an example of those who oppose me. There are but two options. You can join the tsunami or you can be crushed underneath it. I'll drag Tristain into the future whether you like it or not."

* NamesTheSame: InUniverse:
--> "Just following orders? That excuse went out of style at Nuremberg," Mercer muttered.
--> "What does a Germanian township famous for its crab apples have to do with such things?" Cattleya asked, now thoroughly confused.

* UncannyValley: InUniverse, Karin's reaction to Tabitha.

* UpToEleven: The duel with Guiche [[spoiler: is turned into a four-on-one battle]], Fouquet [[spoiler: is a Square-class mage]], the Staff of Destruction [[spoiler: is an FGM-149 Javelin missile launcher rather than a LAW]] etc.

* {{Asexuality}}: Alex doesn't care for human notions of romantic love; [[spoiler:viruses, even humanoid ones (presumably), don't reproduce that way, after all]].

* NotSoDifferent: Louise realizes this after she learns Alex's true nature and compares his own struggle with himself to her desire to prove she isn't just "zero".

* WordOfGod: Cpl_Facehugger has provided some in-depth analysis of how this version of [=ZnT=] came to be, including history, technology, personal history, military doctrine, the works. He's [[ShownTheirWork shown his work]] quite extensively.

* NamesTheSame:

'''Kirche:''' This is serious, Vallière. You remember that sound it made? I know you heard it because you looked up. Your familiar's face changed. ''[[VoluntaryShapeshifting It started wearing your face]].''

---> '''Henrietta''': "Then, I will no longer have to hide in the shadows and sign minor reforms in her name. When that day comes, you will have two options. You can support me and secure the Vallière family's future... Or you can obstruct me, and I will grind you to dust underneath my heel."

--> "Excellent. A full quad of experienced mages," Osmond had an unsettling twinkle in his eye, "as well as [[GameBreaker Miss Valièrre and her familiar]]."

*** Cf Elizabeth Báthory.

She almost expected some hideous and reptilian voice to call out "I am," but that only happened in clichéd stories.

'''Kirche:''' This is serious, Vallière. You remember that sound it made? I know you heard it because you looked up. Your familiar's face changed. ''[[VoluntaryShapeshifting It started wearing your face]].''

---> '''Henrietta''': "Then, I will no longer have to hide in the shadows and sign minor reforms in her name. When that day comes, you will have two options. You can support me and secure the Vallière family's future... Or you can obstruct me, and I will grind you to dust underneath my heel."

--> "What do you think we are, superstitious barbarians who worship anything that's shiny?" The cult leader replied. “We may venerate our ancestors and respect them, but we know they were human just as we are today. And we know their weapons are mortal weapons, made by man to slay his enemies."

** “I wanted to punish [[spoiler: the Flame Snake]]. ... But seeing him here... Any punishment I dole out is just going to be weak next to what he's already doing to himself. The cruel thing will be to let him live."

* GlasgowGrin: When Kirche meets Alex she assumes he's human and in the same breath insults Louise. There are some tearing noises and…

--> "Excellent. A full quad of experienced mages," Osmond had an unsettling twinkle in his eye, "as well as [[GameBreaker Miss Valièrre and her familiar]]."

---> ''[[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech Your daughter seems to have the compassion for my people that you yourself lack. She, at least, had the proper horrified reaction to meeting a man like Mott, as opposed to accepting him as a... What did you call it, a “necessary evil?“]]''

** "That's heresy! That's – that's why, that's extra heretical!"

*** Cf Elizabeth Báthory.

She almost expected some hideous and reptilian voice to call out "I am," but that only happened in clichéd stories.

** The difference with [[spoiler: Henrietta]] is that her ruthlessness is with people ''[[DeadlyDecadentCourt in the game]]'', while Karin was content enough to let Mott act scot free as long it suited her goals. She was not amused by this.

* MentorShip:
--> Though [[spoiler: Wardes]]'d have to make sure that damn sword never met Karin. Because he just knew it would start teasing him about having a teacher complex, and how Louise was clearly just a stand in for his mentor, despite that being just as foolish as the idea that he somehow liked undeveloped girls.

Yes, seriously.