Jessica's expression shifts, her annoyance towards Sau slipping into confusion and then... hurt once his words register. Like she's been kicked in the chest. It doesn't immediately even make sense to her why it knocks the wind out of her so hard. She doesn't know this woman. Barely even knows anything about her. And what she does know hasn't exactly left a good impression. There's hurt for Yan Sun, sure, but there's something else,
#SunTower – February 18, 2026
too... It wasn't all that long ago that she was grieving her own mother. Or was it? Did she even grieve? Really? No. She didn't exactly have time to grieve. She was running on a time limit. If the Enforcers didn't find her, then the infections racking her body would surely finish her off. And that was just fine with her. She only needed to last long enough to settle a score anyway. Punch Cross' ticket and then fade to black
before she needed to really process any of it. So she just directed it all at Cross. Let it fuel her. And then... nothing. No grand finale. No going down in a blaze of glory. No curtain call. Just a pissed off woman past her expiration date. And all alone. She catches herself, self-consciousness settling in as she becomes painfully aware of the glassiness in her eyes and she swallows hard to try and dispel it. Her focus turns
entirely to Yan Sun. Unsure of what to do. Unsure of what to say. But her hand reaches out, seeking out Yan Sun's. More reaction than a conscious effort.
Yan Sun 's hand jerks away from Jessica's, curling up against her chest as she takes a step back. "Th-... no, that doesn't-...." A strained, empty laugh, the edges of it frayed. "You're lying."
Sau 's frown deepens at his daughters disbelief, and he shakes his head. "She fell ill. I tried to reach you. I tried." It's not an accusation, just an exhausted explanation, tinged with regret and sorrow.
Yan Sun 's eyes widen, churning dread settling in at the thought of blocked addresses and messages angrily deleted without a thought. She looks nauseous as she blinks back against the growing shine in her eyes.
Jessica doesn't follow up. She knows better. At least, she knows how she'd react. She just falls completely silent, watching Yan Sun and very much feeling like she probably shouldn't be here right now.
Sau reaches out for his daughter, but she brushes him off as well, her breaths coming hard and fast as she stares past both of them.
Yan Sun steps between Jessica and her father, walking off without a word, quick steps turning into a near-run as she rounds the corner into the left side of the corridor leading further into the penthouse.
Sau watches Yan Sun storm off with a pained expression, but says nothing else, just looking at the spot where she disappeared from view.
Jessica also merely watches Yan Sun disappear around the corner. She's too caught off guard to even think to follow and ends up just remaining where she is, trying to process what just transpired and ignore that pit in her stomach.
Sau 's shoulders drop, a heavy sigh slipping out as he continues to stare at the wall. He doesn't look much like the man Yan Sun described right now. More grieving husband and regretful father than the callous CEO concerned only with legacy, power, and appearances. As stillness descends on the antechamber, the only sound that of running water, his gaze eventually turns to Jessica, studying her apprehensively, like she's an alien creature
Jessica continues to stare distantly down the hallway. She doesn't immediately realize she's being watched but once she does her whole demeanor shifts, arms once more folding across herself defensively and scowl donned like armor.
Sau furrows his eyebrows and turns his attention upward, seemingly at nothing. He clears his throat before speaking. "Guang Huan, where is my daughter?"
"In her room, sir," the same synthetic voice as in the skycar says, coming from hidden speakers somewhere in the ceiling.
Sau nods to himself, attention lowering as his gaze sweeps across the room to the hallway. After a moment's consideration, he speaks. "Have the staff prepare one of the guest rooms for Miss Kaya," he instructs. Seems he knows Jessica's name.
Sau turns his attention to Jessica. "You are... welcome to stay." There's an obvious reluctance to saying the words, but an expectation that she will, nonetheless. That she should. Perhaps he recognizes that he is not in a position to comfort his daughter. Not anymore. "If not, Guang Huan will see you out."
Jessica's gaze lifts as the synthetic voice fills the air, weight shifting awkwardly from one foot to the other. She seems none too happy that Sau appears to have already dug into who she is, but it's not all that surprising given everything Yan Sun has said. His words garner a roll of her eyes. "Where her room is?" she asks pointedly, his offer going ignored.
Sau 's lips thin, but he looks off into the air again. "Guang Huan, show our guest the way to Yan's room," he instructs before heading off down the corridor himself, the opposite direction Yan Sun went, an increasingly distant frown on his face.
"Right away, sir," the voice says, before a white hologram of featureless humanoid figure materializes in front of Jessica. The figure stands with its hands behind its back, a featureless circle of light where the face should be. "This way, please," it instructs with a gesture towards the hallway.
Jessica glares at Sau as he leaves, shaking her head to herself once he's out of sight. She lets out a breath she had been holding, mentally patting herself on the back for being far more pleasant towards the man she's only heard bad things about than she had expected to be. But this was one of those situations that called for a certain amount of tact. Thankfully, she's overflowing with tact. She studies the hologram, brow lifting
Guang takes a second to reply. "Thank you. I am a state-of-the-art system, and my mainframe takes up an entire floor of this building, so that would be an accurate assessment. That kind of investment is necessary for something of my advanced level of functionality," it informs as it starts to move right after Jessica does, accompanying her into the hallway and adjusting its speed to stay just ahead of her as it leads the way.
The hallway soon opens up into a much wider space - to the left is a luxurious kitchen, all stainless steel and polished countertops. Multiple ovens, plenty of stove plates, a high tech fridge and freezer with holographic inventory displays on them, an island with more counterspace and a row of barstools, a coffee machine, and other instruments embedded in the furniture. There's no sign of a dishwasher - that must be sent off elsewhere. To the
right is what appears to be some sort of sculpture, a partial cylinder consisting of a series of arching slabs of intricately carved stone are floating in the air, orbiting around each other in several concentric circles. Behind the sculpture is a door that seems to lead out onto the balcony, and to the right of it, a lounge area and a bar with a dazzling array of bottles of all shapes and sizes behind it. To the left of the door is a living
room area, a curved couch that could probably seat a dozen people sunk into a pit with a massive coffee table, facing a corner that houses extensive shelves covered in various sculptures, decorative plants, and curiosities. It seems like there ought to be a TV there, but there's none in sight. Straight ahead is a dining room, featuring a long table that seems far too large for a family of three. The far wall of the dining room is taken up
entirely by floor-to-ceiling windows looking out over the city, while the right 'wall' separating it from the living room is actually a large aquarium, filled with colorful exotic fish from across the galaxy.
Jessica idly swipes her hand through the hologram a few times as it speaks, paying little attention to what it's saying. "Mm." she hums disinterestedly, far too preoccupied taking everything else in to care too much about what the VI has to say. She looks more annoyed than impressed as she takes in the kitchen that's nearly the size of the apartment she grew up. But when her head tilts to the right, she slows to a stop, brow furrowing
as she studies the strange sculpture. "Gwang Whatever-..." she calls out, indicating the sculpture with a nod of her head. "What is this?"
Guang 's holographic form blurs a little whenever Jessica messes with it, but continues unfazed. It slows as Jessica does, coming to a stop alongside her. "Ah, that is Eternal Pharos, a piece by renowned asari sculptor Sancisa Avis. Would you like to know more?"
Jessica continues to examine the sculpture with great interest, head tilting slightly, following the floating slabs of stone on their journey as she listens to the VI's description. She replies with a curt: "No." before turning on her heels and continuing in the direction they were going. "Why rich people always are having such stupid art? Mm?" she asks.
The slabs continue their orbits at a leisurely pace, each circle seemingly alternating between clockwise and counterclockwise. The stones are all engraved with stark geometric patterns.
Guang seems to judge the question rhetorical, judging by the lack of answer. As Jessica gets moving once more, the holographic form leads the way down another hallway between the kitchen and the living room. There's a door on each side, and one straight ahead, where the corridor also turns to the left and continues downward for quite some distance, with more doors on both sides. Huan comes to a stop at the door straight ahead, however,
standing to the side of it, hands once again clasped behind its back. "Miss Sun's room," the VI announces.
Jessica continues to follow in silence, merely taking in the layout of the place like a burgler casing a job. Once they reach the room she gestures the VI away, as if a wave of her hand might make it magically disappear.
As it turns out, a wave of her hand can make it disappear. Guang Huan's holographic form dissipates with a slight bow, leaving Jessica alone outside the door. Or, well, as alone as she can be considering the VI is no doubt watching and listening everywhere in the penthouse.
Jessica's eyes widen momentarily and she glances at her hand, clearly not having expected that to work. But she quickly reigns it in. Act like you've been there before. She nods confidently to herself and reaches out towards the door's interface, pausing briefly to swallow at the lump suddenly making itself known in her throat before giving it a tap.
The door slides open to a room that, much like the kitchen, is probably larger than the apartment Jessica grew up in. To the right are two doors with an armchair between them. To the left is a series of shelves absolutely covered in various collectibles and figurines, some of which Jessica might recognize from the games and movies that Yan Sun has shown her over the past months. There's all of the squadmates from Void Cause in statuette form.
Some of these are definitely Galaxy of Fantasy. And the top shelf appears to be entirely dedicated to a line of Knights of Calmare action figures still in their original packaging, including all limited edition and promotional exclusives. In the corner is a spacious desk with a bulky computer and an array of large monitors, as well as a workbench area with a toolbox, soldering kit, and fabricator. There's also a writing area with notebooks and
textbooks. The chair that sits by the desk looks like it'd be more at home in a high-end sports skycar. Her bed is next to the desk along the left wall, a very generously sized thing with gray-blue sheets, a plethora of pillows, and a padded headboard. Above the bed hangs a handful of posters. One is a signed poster for a band called Paradox Incarnate. Another is for Metallic VR Arcade. The largest one sits in the center, though, and is for
Knights of Calmare III: Allegiance. It is a limited edition character poster of the leader of the elven rebellion, armor half peeled off to clean her wounds after a fight. The far wall is entirely taken up by floor to ceiling windows that offer a dazzling view of the harbor, and the rest of the city across the water. It certainly hammers home just how high up they are. The corner opposite the desk features an L-shaped couch with a coffee
table. There's no TV, though, it just faces the window. There's no trace of dust anywhere, the room is spotless, but it's nonetheless obvious that Yan Sun's decor has been kept intact.
Yan Sun lying in the oversized bed, facing away from the door and curled up in a fetal position as sobs wrack her body. Her vest and boots have been discarded on the floor, leaving her in jeans and blue top.
Jessica leans against the doorframe, momentarily peering around the room. She's unable to take in much of the room before her gaze settles on Yan Sun, frown forming on her lips. "Hey..." she says quietly to announce her presence as she steps inside and reaches back to close the door behind her.
Yan Sun doesn't even react to Jessica's arrival, the sound of loud sobs and ragged breaths continuing to fill the room, shaking her body with each one.
Jessica's expression only seems to grow heavier as she observes Yan Sun's state, but she doesn't say anything more for now. She quietly crosses the room, looking around but not really taking much in, her thoughts distant. She settles onto the foot of the bed, doing her best not to disrupt the grieving woman.
The bed shifts slightly as Jessica sits down on the edge, but Yan Sun just keeps crying, at least until her lack of air turns sobs into gasping breaths and sniffles, right hand going up to wipe aggressively at her face.
Jessica brings her palms to the bed to prop herself up, gaze turning down towards her lap. What do you do in a situation like this? What do you say? Again she's reminded of how terrible she is at comforting another, and her thoughts return to places she'd rather they didn't. To night's filled with such blinding pain that she could barely discern what was real. To a constant image of blistering flesh that haunted her whether she was
awake or asleep. An image that still haunts her. One she'll never be able to unsee. But the worst part was facing it all alone. Martin had always been her rock, and she his. Their lives were never easy, but they always had one another to share the burden. And then... she was alone. Maybe there's nothing she can say to ease Yan Sun's pain. Maybe she just doesn't have the eloquence to provide that sort of comfort. No wise words to
offer. No special insight to share. But she can make sure that she doesn't have to be alone through it. That much she can do. She steps on the back of one shoe with the other foot to kick her shoes off before scooting further up onto the bed, quietly taking a position behind Yan Sun and bringing an arm around her midsection.
Yan Sun responds quickly, grabbing hold of Jessica's arm and pulling it tighter around herself, bringing it up to her chest to clutch it closer as tears continue to fall to the sound of ugly, choked noises.
Jessica tightens her grip on Yan Sun and gives her a squeeze once her touch is accepted, fitting herself behind her partner like a puzzle piece. She brings her forehead to the back of Yan Sun's, nuzzling against her neck.
It's hard to say just how much time passes as Yan Sun cries until her tears are exhausted. Rain smatters against the panoramic windows, the sky outside lightening just a little before she finally stills, quiet aside from drained breaths. Jessica's arm is clutched tight throughout, a few stray tears staining burnt skin. Physical comfort can be worth more than words sometimes. "I feel sick..." she mumbles hoarsely.
Jessica remains silent, unable to offer any more than the occasional gentle squeeze as a reminder of her presence. When Yan Sun finally speaks she finds herself torn from her thoughts. A welcome reprieve. She lifts her head slightly and presses a kiss against the back of her partner's neck.
Yan Sun wipes at her face again, clearing away the worst of snot and tears. Another sniffle slips out, she stirs slightly, but then she goes still again. And silent. Her breathing calms. Steady breaths, chest rising and falling against Jessica's hand. Her eyes have closed, exhaustion after a very long night finally overtaking her.
Jessica stays snuggled up against Yan Sun, quietly watching the sunrise through the windows as the woman in her arms begins to drift off. Alone with her thoughts, her shoulders shudder as a ragged breath escapes her and she closes her eyes tightly to fight back the tears threatening to break free. She traveled half way across the galaxy to get away from these thoughts and yet they're still right behind her. Guess you can't outrun