A/N: This is going to be another sad chapter so get your tissues out everybody! I'm not going to be responsible for tears on the keyboards, k?
Disclaimer: I really wish I owned some Star Ocean characters. I'd love to make that kind of money.
Fifteen Years Later…
Fayt woke up in a good mood. Today, he was finally graduating from Vanguard's elite research academy. For fifteen years, he had endured boarding school, selective preparatory school, and finally elite university schooling. The shy, quiet boy had transformed into a confident scholar. Of course, he had to sacrifice all his free time to get his PhD by the time he was twenty-two, There were no summers away from school, no friendships outside the research program, no contact with the outside world except occasional visits from his father.
But it was finally graduation day. As a present, his father had presented him with his own spacecraft and a year to freely explore the galaxy before he started work as a research assistant at his father's lab. Fayt planed on traveling everywhere. His father had suggested that he take Sophia Esteed with him for company. She had been a classmate and was also going to work in Mr. Leingod's lab. It was obvious she had a crush on him and Mr. Leingod didn't hide the face that he thought they would be a good match. But Fayt was not taking her on his year-long trip. He had already pledged himself to another girl.
Fayt slipped out of bed and took one last glance around the tiny dorm room that was little more than a cubbyhole. It fit a twin-sized bed, a dresser, and a tiny desk. Even the closet was barely big enough to hold a week's worth of clothes. It didn't matter much. Fayt had no time to spend in his room except to sleep.
Fayt dressed for the day in blue slacks and a white collared shirt. He pulled a suitcase out from under the bed and set his pajamas and all the rest of his clothes inside. He had no other possessions to pack except his letter. Fayt slipped open a desk drawer and cradled the letter against his chest.
He had only been able to write to Alabella once, to tell her how much he missed her and to tell her that once he started school, he wouldn't be able to write anymore. His letter had been delivered by Federation post within a week and Alabella had been able to write a reply back before Fayt had been enrolled in school and forbidden to contact anyone. He treasured her response. Written in a messy scrawl, Alabella had repeated her claim over him and insisted that she would be his only best friend. He smiled. He could still her voice even now, fiercely demanding that he stay away from Sophia because he belonged to her. Alabella had no reason to worry. Sophia was girly, whiny, and overly talkative. Fayt hated spending even a day with her.
His thoughts again drifted to what Alabella must be like now. She was probably exceptionally beautiful. Her mother and older sisters had all been attractive and Alabella would be no different. Fayt remembered a little girl with perfect, pale skin and gorgeous ruby eyes. Was Alabella still as bloodthirsty as she was back then or would she be using her womanly beauty to get what she wanted instead of using her fists? Fayt had little doubt that Alabella could wrap men around her fingers if she wanted. But perhaps that would be too easy. If Alabella was still as violent and imperious as she had been as a child, she would still be single. It was unthinkable that someone so pretty wouldn't attract men, but perhaps Alabella's hostile nature would be to Fayt's benefit. But maybe she had changed. Hopefully she still wanted to marry him. Hopefully she wasn't married already.
Fayt folded up the letter and tucked it under his pajamas. Zipping up his suitcase quickly, he was soon out the door. His father was set to pick him up and take him by shuttle car to the field for graduation. Fayt was anxious to graduate as soon as possible.
His father smiled warmly and ushered Fayt into the waiting shuttle car. "My son is finally on his way to becoming a symbological researcher." His pride in Fayt was clear.
"In another year," Fayt said calmly. "In the meantime, I get to travel the galaxy."
"By all means, Fayt." He spread his arms wide. "See everything the world has to offer. But your place is with the research team. You'll see that soon enough. There is plenty of beauty in the world, but it all pales in comparison to the thrill of discovery. There is nothing out there for you."
"I doubt it," Fayt said stubbornly.
Mr. Leingod sighed. "You're not still holding on to that Nox girl, are you? From what I heard for you, she was willful, capricious, dictatorial, and arrogant. You're too good for a girl like that. She's holding you to a promise she has no intention of keeping herself. You'll throw away your chances waiting for her when it's doubtless she'll wait for you. It's been too long, Fayt. Forget her. An intellectual like Sophia would better suit you."
Fayt shook his head. "I waited fifteen years to graduate and get back to see here. I'm not giving up."
Mr. Leingod sighed and put a hand on Fayt's shoulder. "I guess you don't believe me. Well, you'll see for yourself that you've been wasting your time. Speaking of time, we better hurry up. Put your robe on in the car."
The rest of the day passed by in a hazy blur. It should have been a proud moment for Fayt, a time he would treasure forever. But Fayt sat in his crimson cap and gown and could only wait impatiently for his name to be called. Commencement seemed to be an eternity. Fayt barely listened to the speaker, thinking only of how he could avoid Sophia and make it to his brand new ship alone. He hoped his father wouldn't interfere and invite her on board. It would be awkward to try and get rid of her then.
Fayt dodged through the after graduation crowd and made it to the parking area quickly. His father's shuttle car was waiting in the lot. Fayt climbed into the backseat and ducked down, hoping no one would see him there. It was in the backseat that Fayt stumbled across a tiny package addressed to him. Fayt ripped it open and was delighted to find a piece of paper with the serial number of his ship and the ignition code. There was also an Ownership card Fayt to prove he was the ship's owner.
He scrambled over the seat, and hopped into the driver's side. He started the ignition sequence and plugged in the coordinates of the space port a few miles off. Once he arrived at port, he could send the car to return to the school parking lot to pick up his father.
When Fayt arrived at the port, he realized how truly sheltered he had been for the last fifteen years. He hadn't been to the Vanguard III Port since he was a child. In fifteen years, space-travelling technology had changed quite a bit. Fayt stepped out of the shuttle car and sent it back on its way on autopilot. He looked back only briefly to confirm it was heading back towards the school before his attention returned to the rows of docked ships.
There were usually few other ships since Vanguard was a small planet geared towards the education of the elite. The Vanguard III Port was near the college town and students were not permitted to have their own airships, so most ships belonged to teachers at Vanguard's academy. Today, though, the port was packed with the ships of proud parents. Fayt's very own craft was nestled between two larger ships. It was small, but with only one passenger, it didn't need to be huge. It would be quick and efficient, perfect for a lot of travel.
Fayt slid his Ownership card at the gate and was granted entry to his ship's private berth. He climbed aboard eagerly. As excited as he was, Fayt decided to put off exploring until later. He climbed straight into the cockpit. Using the computer terminal built into the dashboard, he began inputting commands. His first step was to set the computer to respond to his voice commands. When that was done, he began speaking out loud to the ship's main computer while he worked through the ignition sequence to get on his way.
"Computer, show me all recent news articles on the Nox family. Wait, start with all news articles from fifteen years back and move forward."
The computer screen filled with a list of several planets and their respective news sources. Fayt selected Hyda. Hopefully Hyda's news outlet could tell him whether the Nox family had moved.
The screen shifted to a small news article about Captain Glou Nox's battle achievements from fourteen years ago. So far so good. And then there was a wedding announcement for Aeryn. Fayt was delighted to see a picture of the wedding in the local paper. The three youngest Nox girls were dressed as bridesmaids, standing beside the bride. Everyone was smiling joyfully, except for twelve-year-old Alabella. Her smile looked a little forced and it didn't quite reach her eyes. Fayt suspected it was because of the frilly dress she was wearing. He grinned. It was nice to see she hadn't changed. He studied the picture closely. Alabella had put blonde streaks in her hair. Fayt concluded that blonde looked good on her. Probably anything looked good on her.
Reluctantly, Fayt tore himself from the picture and began browsing through the rest of the articles. There were announcements for two more marriages: Aramir and Araya. Unfortunately, there were no pictures for their weddings. And then the news coverage ceased. The computer screen went blank. Fayt anxiously scrolled through blank pages. That couldn't be it. Finally, he slumped down, defeated. Well, according to the last article, the Nox family had still been living on Hyda. But that was eleven years ago. He sighed. Well, that had been a waste of time. Eleven years was a long time. They had plenty of time to move.
Fayt attention was suddenly drawn back to the screen by the bright flash. Another news article, dated six years ago. Okay, that was a lot more recent. He frowned as he saw the grey data lock in one corner of the screen. The data lock kept the text unreadable. Odd. When Fayt attempted to override it, the computer insisted that only Robert Leingod could remove the lock and view the information. Fayt sighed again. Alabella had probably gotten married and his father wanted to protect him from the pain of rejection. But he was going to see her anyway and he would find out one way or the other. He was an adult and his father didn't need to be messing with his ships computer.
Fayt pulled out the owner's manual and studied it intently, familiarizing himself with the ship's design. When he returned to the computer, he was confident he could bypass the lock. A little hacking and he was through. He grinned triumphantly.
However, his joy was short-lived. As soon as he read the article's title, the smile was wiped off his face and his blood ran cold: "Nox Family Tragedy". Fayt's eyes widened and they darted quickly over the text.
It seemed that a gang of local killers had bypassed the Nox family security system by using Glou Nox's DNA. When Mrs. Nox went to open the door for her husband, she had instead found seven hardened criminals. They had raped and tortured the girls for several hours before brutally slaughtering them. Mrs. Nox and her son were apparently the only survivors of the horrible tragedy.
A single tear slid down Fayt's cheek. "Poor Alabella," he whispered. She would have fought valiantly, but as tough as she acted, she was no match for ruthless killers. He squeezed his eyes shut as a picture of the aftermath flashed on screen. No, he didn't want to see the bodies. He wanted to remember Alabella as the lively girl she was. There was really nothing he could have done, but he wished he had been there. He probably would have been killed too, but at least he would have seen her one last time. He had spent all those long years of school, desperately racing to finish so he could see her again and she had been dead all this time.
Numbly, Fayt processed the location of Mrs. Nox and her surviving son: Elicoor. He sighed. Alabella would have loved it there. Well, even if he had been too late to help Alabella in her time of need, he ought to at least go and see Mrs. Nox and pay his respects. Fayt inputted the new coordinates into the ship's navigational system and wearily sank into his chair, letting the computer do all the work. The thrill of flying his own ship was gone.