The glaive stopped an inch from my head. The massive Codexer standing in front of me said, “Relive your memories of Salome.”

  I blinked and found myself back in the clearing last night. Nimbus was back in the red mana bubble while all of the bandits—including Jezebel—were alive and well again. Only this time, the memory felt far briefer than before, as if someone was picking through my thoughts and increasing their speed against my will. I couldn’t focus on any of the finer details because the Codexer forcing me to relive my memories didn’t care about any of it.

  So I saw Jezebel take my portable again, mock me, try to kill me, and then saw Salome show up and slaughter Jezebel and the bandits, including the part where she spared that last bandit and told him to deliver a message to Wolfbrand. The memory also included the part afterward, where Salome healed me and warned Nimbus and me about her actual enemies, though without naming names, of course.

  But again, it felt like I had no control over my memories. Certain parts looped repeatedly—like the moment Salome blew up Jezebel’s head. The other part that played over again was when Salome was telling me about her enemies and comparing our Disciplines. It felt like the Codexer was looking for something, attempting to pick out important details for some reason.

  But what?

  I had no clue. I had no way of even asking. All I could do was helplessly stand there as the mysterious Codexer combed through my memories again and again against my will. It was easily the most invasive thing anyone had ever done to me, and I couldn’t even speak out against it.

  I wasn’t just reliving my memories, though.

  I was also reliving the fear, the sense of helplessness and weakness, and every other emotion I’d dealt with last night. And because I kept reliving the same memories over and over again, the negative emotions became stronger and stronger, threatening to overwhelm my mind if it continued.

  And right now?

  I didn’t see an end to it.

  Then, without warning, I felt a surge of power, and the Codexer grunted.

  Then I blinked and found myself back in the real world, the hot rays of the late afternoon sun poking through the treetops overhead. I was on my hands and knees, even though I’d been standing mere seconds ago, and I had no memory of falling. Nimbus lay next to me, half-curled into a ball, shivering and shaking like it was freezing out despite the heat of the day.

  A black notification showed up in my vision:

  Submission loop disrupted! Mana Negation Field disrupted! All debuffs and side effects of the previous two debuffs have been dismissed.

  I blinked and looked up at the massive Codexer, only to realize that someone was standing between us.

  It was Isaac. He stood between me and the mysterious armored Codexer, holding a wooden staff I’d never seen him wield before. He looked small and frail beside the massive Codexer, yet his grip on the staff was firm, his stance unshaken.

  As for the armored Codexer, he gazed down at Isaac with his glyph-covered helmet. “Codex Keeper Isaac Nabor. You have exceeded the limits of your authority in the North Forest area. Stand down or suffer the consequences.”

  This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

  The armored Codexer didn’t sound angry. He didn’t sound like anything at all. He spoke like a Codex automaton, without one hint of emotion behind his words.

  That was somehow much scarier than if he had been fuming at Isaac.

  But Isaac stood his ground. Gripping the wooden staff topped with a glowing silver blade, Isaac said, “You are wrong, Herod. As the Codex Keeper of the North Forest Codexium, this entire area is within my jurisdiction. Therefore, I have every right to participate in any investigation that any SNA-recognized Guild, such as the Obsidian Order, might perform in this area. As it is, you didn’t even alert me that you were going to be making this investigation. I have every right to ‘interfere’ as much as I want.”

  Isaac sounded far less drunk than usual; in fact, he didn’t sound drunk at all. He spoke clearly and plainly as if he were repeating a chant he had memorized.

  The armored Codexer, whom Isaac had called Herod, paused. His glaive didn’t waver in his hands, but he didn’t seem likely to attack us. It was as if he were actually listening to someone, though who, I couldn’t tell. His horse, maybe?

  Finally, Herod lifted his glaive away from us and took a step back. He gazed down at Isaac and me without mercy. “This is a dangerous game you are playing, Codex Keeper Isaac. If the Obsidian Order decides that you are an obstacle rather than an asset, then you may find your days as an officially recognized Codex Keeper limited.”

  Isaac spat on the ground. “That’s a wordy way of saying I was right and you have no jurisdiction here. But go cry to the SNA in Hebron. I’m sure they will be sympathetic to an agent of the Obsidian Order invading the mind and memories of a newly minted Chapter One Codexer against his will. Especially when they find out you didn’t even have a warrant to do that.”

  Herod grunted. “The Shinar Node Authority is well aware of the Obsidian Order’s activities in the First Kingdom in general and the North Forest area in particular. King Amraphel has already permitted us to scour the entire Kingdom in search of the Shadow Scribe.”

  Isaac shrugged. “That may be true in general, but you’re still missing the point that you don’t have a warrant or a Kingly Decree allowing you to do what you were trying to do to poor Aaron here. And since I’ve gone this long without attracting Hebron’s attention for neglecting my duties, I really don’t want to end that streak if I can help it.”

  Herod rested his glaive on his shoulder. “I was told you were too drunk and feeble to get in the way.”

  Isaac smiled. “Drunk, yes. Feeble? No. Though I wonder who told you that. Caleb?”

  I had no idea who ‘Caleb’ was, but Herod grunted again and turned away from us. “Never mind. I already found what I needed to find in the boy’s mind. He knows nothing, less than nothing, and Salome told him void. This was mostly a waste of time, other than confirming that Salome was indeed in this area recently. She is close.”

  Herod raised his open hand into the air and snapped his fingers.

  The Shadow Steed suddenly bounded toward us from the other side of the clearing, flying through the air like an arrow and landing right in front of Herod. The impact of Darkspike’s fall made the ground shake underneath us. I didn’t lose my balance because I was already on the ground, but Isaac had to lean on his staff for support. Nimbus, meanwhile, just curled into a ball even tighter, doing his heavy breathing that he did whenever he was stressed.

  But Herod paid us little attention. He mounted Darkspike in one smooth motion and grabbed the Codex Beast’s reins before looking down at us again.

  This time, however, Herod was looking directly at me. It was hard to tell, of course, thanks to his featureless helmet, but somehow, I could tell he was staring at me.

  “If you are wise, young one …” Herod paused, as if carefully considering his next words. “Then you will avoid Salome and her schemes at all costs.”

  With that, Herod whipped his reins against Darkspike’s neck, and Darkspike took off, running far faster than any horse should have been able to. And when they crashed into the treeline, they vanished as if they had disappeared into thin air, leaving no sign or evidence of their presence other than Darkspike’s inch-deep hoofprints in the ground.

  Isaac sighed and slumped. “Drama queen—every one of those Obsidian Order guys.” He then looked at me. “But we should get you and that rabbit of yours to the Codexium. These woods aren’t safe anymore.”

  I didn’t argue with Isaac’s assessment. I had so many questions about Herod and the Obsidian Order, but all I could do was shake—just like Nimbus beside me.

  And while I couldn’t tell what might be going through Nimbus’s mind, I was thinking the same thing over and over again:

  I need to get stronger.

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