"So the approaching fleet was given orders to attack this Manor." Yes." And are you here to stop it?" Make no mistake, Overlord. If I did believe that...you were engaging in military operations, I would indeed see to it that you were shut down permanently," Vortas said firmly. "But there are ways to do such a thing without incurring needless loss of life." There are no military operations here, Lord Admiral. The Emperor is delusional if he thinks otherwise."Vortas looked back towards his men for. ”I shrugged. “I was ready to get away from home and all of the people accusing me of things that didn’t happen. I certainly didn’t expect to end up facing the same thing again.”Radcliff never blinked. If anything, she acted as if she expected my indignant retort. “I have not accused you of anything, Mr. Connors. If I had, you would have been read your rights, put in restraints, and escorted to a cell.” She paused for a second, settling into her chair. “What I am doing is establishing exactly. Occasionally, Amanda would ask me to turn _just_so_ for emphasis. If it wasn't for all the handling (and sometimes mis-handling) of my poor tool, I'm sure I would've gone soft pretty damn quickly.But I didn't, and after only ten minutes of clinical description and analysis, Lori was ready to try touching it on her own. Unfortunately for both of them, I was feeling a bit uncooperative. "Why don't you two do each other? Lori'd like that a whole bunch better..."So they did. Rather, they didn't. "An inch or two," you say.And leaning closer to me, now you show me: Index fingers held an inchapart."This much?" you ask.And, already knowing the answer, you reach still farther, stretchingyour two fingertips towards the crown of my head. I feel you leaning,looming over me. Feel you though our bodies still don't touch.Tensing, I try to press my back firm to the sheet beneath, backingaway, backing away. I close my eyes. "This distance, the space between my two fingers," you say.And touch my.