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He wanted to circle around the outside of the globe in order to perhaps find a better place to attempt this, but there were still branches all over the place, barring his path. Hacking through them didn’t seem worth the effort, and he supposed it wouldn’t make much difference, anyway. What did he expect to find? A hidden connection port somewhere in the globe’s base? Not likely.

This spot would have to do, he decided. And with one hand clutching the encased flame, he placed his other hand on the big orb.

He’d witnessed both Abbas and Agrian working with the Candle. This was how it was done. It was an entirely mental process.

Whether or not this would work for a non-integration user... well, he was about to find out. Technically, he’d done this before, with Abbas’ help while the Candle was still dormant. He hadn’t tried it since then, though.

He pressed his soul into the glass.

Instantly, he felt it. The full breadth of its physical volume. Like an extension of his own body, almost. And there was so much more, too, just waiting for him to push further.

But he was familiar with this feeling now, so he knew to hold himself back. To not walk off the metaphysical cliff in front of him.

But wow.

The Candle’s power was clear to him. A radiant ball of concentrated energy, filling his mind’s eye like a sun. Or a volcanic pit, perhaps.

It seemed quite tepid, somehow. Despite all that energy sitting there, it was still... quite calm. Maybe even... tired?

Ah. From creating a new object, of course. Right. It wanted to rest. The more he observed, the more obvious that feeling became.

Interesting. Thinking back to his observations of Agrian’s work, he didn’t recall the Candle ever appearing tired or drained. Which, he supposed, further supported his theory that Agrian had never really managed to summon the fullness of the forge’s power.

Either that, or Agrian had just been better at maintaining control. Rendering the Candle ‘tired’ wasn’t exactly a desirable outcome, nor was putting oneself into a coma, as Abbas had apparently done.

Hmm. But what of this weird new object? He could feel it there in his hand, radiating with that very same energy. And the metal band, too. It glowed just as brilliantly in his mind, making him feel... rather strange, honestly.

And quite powerful. Like the energy was also an extension of his body.

Like he could bend it to his will, maybe.

Whoa...