Laughing Shall I Die
There was little that needed to be said in the next few hours; in fact, no utterances were had between Rinnan and [member="Dahlia"] that fell outside the throes of passion. In his subconscious, as Weyland Wynn consorted easily and eagerly with Gemma Burton, Rinnan could not deny that he enjoyed it. It probably made his false identity seem more real. But throughout the feverish kisses and melding of bodies which started in the shower and spilled into Gemma's bedroom, desperately crash-landing on her ample bed, Rinnan could not shake the foreboding solitude that lingered like a familiar grim reaper in the back of his mind. Rinnan knew that this, too, would pass. Indeed these moments would all pass without a trace of having ever been lived, when he relinquished his memories to the Security Bureau. The companionship he found in Gemma's warm, naked contours, the comfort of the soft fabric of her bedsheets alive with body heat that contrasted so sharply with the battleship-grey apartment that incarcerated him back on Dosuun, were to be experienced once like a fine bottle of Corellian brandy, and never again. Nevermore even remembered.
The lights were out in Gemma's bedroom now, the only light from the night cityscape barely sneaking through the tighty-drawn window shades. Gemma was next to him, turned to her side, apparently sleeping. Rinnan felt like he had been awake for ages; it felt like an eternity had passed between now and their foray on the nightclub rooftop several hours earlier. He stood up and delicately slipped out of bed to continue his work. If she noticed, he could always make the excuse of a trip to the bathroom. Rinnan moved lithely out the door and past the bathroom where their strewn articles of clothing remained, and made his way to the front entrance of Gemma's apartment where his coat still hung. Inside the inner pocket, next to his concealed slugthrower pistol, Rinnan found what he was looking for - a small computer chip the size of a pin.
He saw that there was a holocomm in the kitchen. Rinnan crossed towards it and picked it up, ducking below the center island to pull it apart as fast as he could. Bugging holocommunicators was almost second-nature to him at this point, as most were made with the same interface and internal structure. He placed the chip where it needed to be and quickly replaced the holocomm back in its spot on the kitchen. From there, he found his way back to the bedroom and slipped between the covers again, watching to see if Gemma's shoulders were still delicatel rising and falling. He wondered if she had noticed him get up. He wanted to join her in sleep, but instead he laid with a hand on his bare chest, staring into the dark abyss of the ceiling. Rinnan wanted to reach out and touch her again, but thought better of it. Instead his mind drifted alone through the bleakness of space, and RInnan felt as if his body would follow and being floating away, too.
The lights were out in Gemma's bedroom now, the only light from the night cityscape barely sneaking through the tighty-drawn window shades. Gemma was next to him, turned to her side, apparently sleeping. Rinnan felt like he had been awake for ages; it felt like an eternity had passed between now and their foray on the nightclub rooftop several hours earlier. He stood up and delicately slipped out of bed to continue his work. If she noticed, he could always make the excuse of a trip to the bathroom. Rinnan moved lithely out the door and past the bathroom where their strewn articles of clothing remained, and made his way to the front entrance of Gemma's apartment where his coat still hung. Inside the inner pocket, next to his concealed slugthrower pistol, Rinnan found what he was looking for - a small computer chip the size of a pin.
He saw that there was a holocomm in the kitchen. Rinnan crossed towards it and picked it up, ducking below the center island to pull it apart as fast as he could. Bugging holocommunicators was almost second-nature to him at this point, as most were made with the same interface and internal structure. He placed the chip where it needed to be and quickly replaced the holocomm back in its spot on the kitchen. From there, he found his way back to the bedroom and slipped between the covers again, watching to see if Gemma's shoulders were still delicatel rising and falling. He wondered if she had noticed him get up. He wanted to join her in sleep, but instead he laid with a hand on his bare chest, staring into the dark abyss of the ceiling. Rinnan wanted to reach out and touch her again, but thought better of it. Instead his mind drifted alone through the bleakness of space, and RInnan felt as if his body would follow and being floating away, too.