This is my first Star Ocean fanfic! I've written other stories though, anyways, this is an Alphia (AlbelxSophia) fanfic so people who don't like this pairing should turn away. Other pairings include FaytxMaria, CliffxMirage, and NelxMackwell, if you ask why? It's because I want Nel to be with someone too! I don't mind PeppitaxRoger but I'm not too into it because right now as kids they are cute, but eventually Peppita will grow up and won't remain short unlike Roger. So, if anything does happen between them, it will be friendship related.

It's also been a while since I played the game so if I get any facts mixed up please tell me.

Disclaimer: I do not own Star Ocean 3: Till the End of Time. I love the title hehehe.


"Hey Fayt, how've you been?"

"Hey Sophia, I'm doing pretty well over here, how about you?"

"I'm fine. My jobs been killing me though, I'm thinking about quitting."

"You don't sound fine to me Sophia. If you're stressed I think maybe you should quit."

"But if I do, what will I do then?"

"You just graduated a month ago, you've got plenty of opportunities out there. You should do what you want."

"That's the thing Fayt, I don't know what I want...."

"Don't worry, I'm sure you'll think of something."

"Thanks. I have to get back to work now, my breaks over."

"All right, I'll talk to you later."

Sophia hung up the phone and put it back into her bag. She stuffed her bag back into the locker and headed back out.

After high school, Sophia found a job working as a waitress. She worked night shifts 5 days a week for minimum wage. Money was not an issue for Sophia, but staying home was. Two years ago, after the "creator incident" she lost her parents and nothing ever went back to the way it was before, not even her and Fayt.

Fayt changed. She smiled.

He became more confident and wise because of the whole ordeal. She had watched him grow since they were toddlers and also witnessed his emergence as a man. He continued to change as time went on but the Fayt she knew was also still somewhere there deep inside.

But I didn't. She was still the sweet girl that everyone knew her to be. But deep down, her heart was slowly wallowing up in insecurities, more than ever. Everyday she came home, there would be no one to come home to just like before when her parents were always out at work or overseas. But she had Fayt, then, but not anymore. He continue his studies in college and Maria enrolled as well, hoping to live a normal life, like any other teenage girl. Maria also had a lot to go through, but she seemed fine now, happier even.

Fayt and Maria often studied together and competed against each other which lead them to grow closer. Sophia felt jealous at first, seeing her "older brother" take care of someone other than herself, but it sunk in that anything she and Fayt may have had or could have had, was over. Her feelings did not reach him. Even so, she gave them her best regards and sincerely wished for their happiness even if it meant giving up her own.

Sophia went home after her shift. She unlocked the door and went inside. The room was dark, cold and quiet, she couldn't see anything, but she knew where everything was. She didn't bother to turn on the lights because she was tired and wanted to sleep. She headed towards the couch and dropped herself on to it and sighed.

"It's so dark and cold here....just like my heart." She mumbled. She closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep. Unbeknownst to her, a tear rolled down her cheeks, like every other night since she came back.

It's lonely....


Ring! Ring! Ring! Sophia tossed and turned. She could hear her phone go off but was too tired to pick it up.

Ring! Ring! Ring! She groaned. Her phone wouldn't stop so she eventually gave up on sleeping and grabbed her phone and groggily answered it.

"Hello?" She asked not even glimpsing at the caller ID.

"Rise and shine sleepyhead! How're you doing?"

"Cliff, is that you?"

"The one and only! Listen we're gonna drop by in lets say, 5 minutes so get ready."

"What? Why didn't you call sooner?!"

"You shouldn't be worrying about that right now, if I were you, I'd get my cute butt off that bed and start making myself look presentable."

Geez, was this guy a perve. Same ol' Cliff. She smiled.

"All right, I'll be done in bit, just wait for me to let you in." She hung up the phone and darted towards the bathroom. There wasn't enough time to shower so she just washed her face and combed out her hair. After that she ran to her closet to find a fresh set of clothes to wear. She pulled out a pink tank top and a white short sleeve hooded vest to cover herself with. She also took out a navy blue ruffled skirt and her white cat printed black over knee high stockings to pair with. After dressing, she raced back down the stairs but stopped when she saw movement. Someone was in the dark living room.

All of a sudden, she felt someone grab her shoulder. She screamed.

The light turned on.

"Woah, woah, easy there. Sorry for the scare." It was Cliff. Sophia breathed hard.

"How did you get in?" She crossed her arms and gave him a glare.

"Fayt gave me the keys. I'll go get him." and then he ran out the door and reappeared dragging a giant mass with blue hair.

"Fayt? What are you doing here? What are you guys doing here?" After Cliff entered, Mirage followed shortly behind along with Maria and Peppita.

"Hi Sophia, sorry for barging in like this." said Mirage.

"It was Cliff's idea!" exclaimed Peppita.

"None of us knew what he was planning" shrugged Maria.

"But you still let him."

"True."

"Anyways, lets just sit and straighten things out, shall we?" Cliff let go of Fayt and they sat oh the couch. The others followed.

Sophia sighed. What a morning.

"So...what brings you guys here, to Earth?" asked Sophia.

"Oh right, I've been meaning to tell you. Clair is getting married. Adray was so happy he already started planning the wedding. It's a month from now." said Fayt.

"What? Already? How are they going to get everything done in just a month?"

"That's why we're here" said Maria.

"They asked us to help plan the wedding, especially the girls." pitched in Mirage.

"With that said, we're in a hurry, so pack whatever you need in 10 minutes. We need to head out as soon as possible. Nel has been on a rampage because of how limited time is. They're expecting us to be there in like, an hour."

Sophia was shocked.

"You should hurry Sophia, we don't have time to waste." said Fayt.

"Right, I'll start now."

"We'll help you" offered Mirage.

"Me too" said Maria.

"And me!" piped Peppita.

They all got up and went to Sophia's room. Sophia didn't have much she wanted to bring. She packed her clothes, shoes, and some accessories. She glanced at the wall wear her staff lay. For some reason, something was nagging her to bring it, so she did. The girls helped with packing and the boys were made to carry. After that they got onto the Diplo and set off.

After Maria resigned as captain, Cliff reclaimed the spot and made all the decisions. If they were going to make it in one hour, they need to leave now and no second later.

Mirage was helping Cliff, and whenever she wasn't she would come and chat with the others. Fayt and Maria stayed and chatted with Sophia for a while but left for some privacy. It was okay since they were together now. Sophia didn't mind as much, she was use to it now.

"Hey Sophia watch me dance" said the younger girl. Sophia smiled.

"Sure"

Peppita started off slowly, yet gracefully. The girl was very beautiful and stunning. When she grew older, she would definitely catch a lot of attention and hearts. As Sophia watched on, she couldn't help but also wish she was passionate about something.

While everyone was busy doing their own thing, the alarm set off and the ship began the shake.

"Warning. Warning. The engine has malfunctioned. Evacuate immediately."

"What?! We checked the engine before we left!" cried Cliff. He gritted his teeth.

"Dammit! Everyone evacuate to the escaped pods now. Do not run. There are enough pods for everyone."

After hearing that, Sophia ran to her room and randomly grabbed one of her bags. What am I doing? I need t get out of here!

"Mirage, you make sure that everyone gets there safely."

"What about you?" she was concerned about him.

"I'll be fine, I'm the captain remember?"

She nodded and left. She knew he was going to try keep the ship up as long as he could and eventually make an emergency landing but he didn't want to risk the lives of the others. Everyone of the members had gathered to the escape room with the exception of Cliff.

"What's going on?" asked Peppita.

"I don't know, but there's something going on in this ship. There's no way this could be a coincidence" said Mirage.

"I'll stay and help." said Fayt.

"Me too, I've been through worser situations. I'll help handle the situation." said Maria.

"Then I'll help too" offered Sophia.

"No, you won't. You and Peppita have to get out of here. We need someone to watch Peppita and also notify Nel of our situation and prevent as may casualties as possible." Sophia bit her lips, but nodded. Am I really that useless?

"I don't want to!" cried Peppita.

"Please Peppita, we're in an emergency right now, don't worry about us. Just make sure you're safe, you have your own priorities." said Mirage.

"We're counting on you, Sophia, Peppita." said Maria.

"But!"

Sophia put her hand on Peppita's shoulder.

"Trust them." The younger girl clenched her fists but reluctantly let go. "Okay"

They each entered their own escape pod and waited to sortie (?). Before they left, she saw Fayt smile at them reassuringly.

She felt the pods release and soon all she saw was pitch black and white twinkling dots.

She set the destination for Elicoor II; Aquaria and hoped she would make it in time. She needed to warn the people and clear out space so they would be able to land without worrying about anyones safety. Either that or form a search party. While she waited, she soon noticed that her destination had not been locked in. Sophia tried again but it didn't work. She tried once more but nothing happened.

The machine's lights set off just like the ship. She saw the computer screen flash and glitch. It had hit her, someone had sabotaged the ship and rewritten the programs. But how?

She tried her best to reconfigure the settings but to no avail. The pod had just passed through the atmosphere and plunged through the sky. Sophia knew it was too late to do anything and braced herself for the worse.


That's all for the first chapter and I will start on the second chapter immediately.