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~~Christmas Day Special - (page 20 of 24)~~

Slowly, the ardor at the edge of his senses was becoming clearer. He tried to press onward, to "move closer," but it was a deceptive process. He couldn't expect the desired change to be immediate or even obvious. It would appear when it appeared. Hopefully.

To perceive memory, he would first need to perceive the ardor's flow. Information was often found within disturbances there, sometimes referred to as "whirlpools" or "knots." Without a clear view of that flow, they might as well have been invisible.

Oh, goodness. Yes, the ardor was coming into focus.

But there was so much here.

He'd expected a lake, but this was a sea.

Just how old was this thing? Had it been created this way? Or had it been accumulating ardor over time? Already, this seemed to dwarf the amount of soul power that had existed within the Earth Cruncher.

That didn't necessarily mean it was more powerful, however. With a machine of creation, what truly mattered was the creative potential that had been poured into it--and the skill of the person who hoped to use it, of course.

...But yes, this was surprising. Why was there so much? And it was so dense, too. Streams layered upon streams, so close together that they almost appeared to be flowing through each other.

Almost. Because, of course, that was impossible. If the flow was disrupted to such an extent, the ardor would clash and begin to leak, eventually dissipating.

This was simply a masterful use of space. The efficiency with which these flows had been pressed so closely together--Abbas had to admire the craftsmanship. If he survived long enough and reached the point where he could create a Forge of his own, he would have to remember this technique.

Unfortunately, this density was also going to make his search more difficult. Oh, and gods forbid if he had to make repairs. That already sounded like a nightmare.