“I don’t get it,” I said as we walked through the wide and clean streets of Hebron, with Nimbus sitting on my shoulder as he scratched his ear.

Ruth, walking on my right side, looked at me curiously. “Don’t get what?”

I gestured down the street ahead of us at Jonah, who was walking quickly and authoritatively ahead of us. “What makes a Grand Codexium different from a minor Codexium like the one in North Forest? Other than the size.”

“You mean you don’t know the difference?” said Nimbus, giving me a surprised look. “It’s pretty obvious. Even I can explain it.”

I looked at Nimbus with a hint of trepidation. “Oh yeah? What is the difference?”

Nimbus cleared his throat. “One is called a Grand Codexium and the other is called a minor Codexium. Very simple.”

I now better understood Jonah’s desire to dropkick Nimbus into the next Kingdom. Fortunately, Ruth answered before I could get violent with the rabbit.

“Nimbus’s answer is a bit silly, but not entirely wrong. Both Grand Codexiums and minor Codexiums have a similar purpose of housing Stationary Codex Nodes and being sources of magical power for a given town or city or area. But whereas minor Codexiums—like the one from your hometown—are considered extensions of the Node Network of Shinar, each Kingdom has at least one Grand Codexium, usually located in the capital, and it is usually the center of the local Node Network.”

I thought about that. “So the Grand Codexium of Hebron is the center of the Shinar Node Network?”

Ruth nodded. She wiped sweat trailing down her forehead due to the heat of the late morning. “That’s how it works in all of the other Kingdoms. Every other Codexium within a Kingdom is connected in some way to the Grand Codexium. Should anything happen to the Grand Codexium of a given Kingdom, the entire Node Network of that Kingdom is in danger of collapsing or going offline permanently. Conversely, if a minor Codexium is destroyed or damaged, the rest of the Node Network is not usually affected.”

I considered that as well and frowned. “Hang on. If minor Codexiums are that unimportant, then why did Wolfbrand think that his plan to take down the Node Network by destroying the North Forest Node would work?”

Ruth pursed her lips and stepped over an apple that had fallen out of an apple cart being driven through the city. “From what I understand, the loss of a minor Codexium can sometimes create instability along the greater Node Network that it is connected to. We know that Wolfbrand and his bandits were using forbidden magic, so maybe Wolfbrand had a plan to use the North Forest Codexium to overwhelm the Shinar Node Network or something. Hard to say, especially since he’s dead now.”

I nodded, but I hesitated to agree with Ruth’s last statement. I thought about the nightmare I had had recently, along with the fact that I had somehow stolen the glyph structure of Wolfbrand’s Discipline, and wondered if he really could be considered dead.

But that was a question I knew Ruth definitely didn’t have the answer to, so I switched to a different line of questioning that I hoped Ruth would be able to answer. “So that means that if the Grand Codexium of Hebron were to go offline or get destroyed, then the Shinar Node Network itself would fall. What makes the Grand Codexium different from a minor Codexium? Why is it so important?”

Ruth brushed a strand of dark hair out of her eyes. “My understanding is that Grand Codexiums are built on top of powerful collections of Stationary Nodes that produce more mana than the average Stationary Node. They are also built on top of cross-sections of ley lines that connect all of the known and unknown Nodes in a given Kingdom or region. That is why they play such an important role in the stability of the Node Network. There are nine Grand Codexiums across the Nine Kingdoms, and if all of them were to fall, then the entire Node Network would fall.”

I stroked my chin thoughtfully. “Is that how the original Collapse happened? Did all nine Grand Codexiums collapse at once or something?”

Ruth shrugged. “Scholars are still debating exactly what happened, but everyone agrees that the Grand Codexium in the Tenth Kingdom, which no longer exists, exploded, which caused a chain reaction that caused the entire Node Network to collapse. So in a sense, you are correct. Though like I said, there is still a lot of debate about what exactly happened back then. That’s just what I learned in school.”

I nodded again. That matched up with what I had heard growing up, first from my older sister Miriam, and then from Isaac, the Codex Keeper of the North Forest Codexium. In fact, North Forest wasn’t that far from the ruins of the Tenth Kingdom, now called the Codex Ruins, though I had never visited them myself because they were too dangerous for all but the strongest Codexers to visit. Even Codexers avoided the Codex Ruins, though I didn’t know the exact details why. “Do Grand Codexiums have better security than minor Codexiums?”

“Most do,” said Ruth as she nodded. “But I doubt the security at the Hebron Grand Codexium will be much of an issue. In my experience, Grand Codexiums are only difficult to enter if you intend to harm them. Otherwise, they tend to be about as easy to enter as their minor counterparts, though I guess that might vary from Kingdom to Kingdom.”

I stepped aside to let a woman holding a very large bag of clothing step out of a clothing shop, though I also glanced over my shoulder at her immense amount of clothes, wondering what she could need them for. “That’s good to hear. And I’m sorry if I’m asking one million questions. It sounds like this is stuff that most people learn in school, or at least most Codexers, anyway.”

Ruth flashed me a smile. “It’s really not annoying at all. I like getting to teach people things and share knowledge with other people, and I already know that your education as a Codexer hasn’t exactly been conventional. I admire the fact that you are willing to ask questions that a lot of people wouldn’t in your situation because they would probably feel embarrassed or ashamed by not knowing information that most people do.”

Nimbus nodded. “Exactly. That’s what I’m for. I feel all of the secondhand embarrassment and shame for Aaron that he is seemingly incapable of feeling.”

I swatted at Nimbus with my hand, but he phase-stepped onto Ruth’s shoulders and snuggled against her neck. She just laughed and scruffed the top of his head, causing me to smile, though it was a bit forced because I really didn’t appreciate Nimbus’s jabs at me. Sometimes, I wondered if being synced with Nimbus—even just in our current temporary state—was actually worth it.

In any case, I was distracted when Jonah said, “Ruth, you can play schoolteacher with Aaron later. We need to get to the Grand Codexium of Hebron before it gets too crowded.”

Ruth raised a questioning eyebrow in Jonah’s direction. “Are you expecting a whole bunch of Chapter One, Page Ten Codexers to show up and demand to take their Chapter Two Trials all at once?”

Jonah grunted without looking over his shoulder at us. “I’m mostly just tired of delaying my Chapter Two Arcane Simulation. If this were Bela, I would have gotten into Chapter Two a long time ago now.”

I raised a questioning eyebrow myself. “You’re from Bela? The Ninth Kingdom?”

Jonah glanced over his shoulder with a rather exasperated expression. “Yeah. Didn’t I tell you that before? I’m pretty sure I mentioned it at some point.”

“No, I don’t think you ever did,” I said with a shake of my head. “That’s a pretty far way to travel. Your family must miss you.”

Jonah sighed as we walked. “The feeling isn’t mutual.”

I considered pressing the question further, but Jonah’s tone indicated that his family was a subject he really didn’t want to talk about, which was unfortunate. Even though Jonah had been with us for a while now, he seemed to have trouble actually opening up and talking to us about his family and history. He didn’t even tell us what kind of urgent deadline he was seemingly on—a deadline, I noticed, that he hadn’t mentioned much since the Verdant Seal. For whatever reason, Jonah still didn’t seem to trust us as much as we trusted him, but I had learned the hard way that trying to make Jonah open up was like trying to calm a storming sea.

And anyway, I had to admit I was partially distracted by the opulence of Hebron, which was grander and much more beautiful than even Greenwood had been.

For one, the streets were paved with stone, making them easy to walk on. For another, there were tons of people and shops and places to go and things to do everywhere I looked. If I hadn’t been with Ruth and Jonah—who both seemed a lot less impressed by Hebron’s size and urban design than I was—I probably would have gotten lost just wandering the city’s alleys and streets.

But Jonah certainly wasn’t lost. He was using his portable Node to locate the Grand Codexium of Hebron, which was located near the center of the city. One could use one’s portable Node to locate the nearest Codexium in any city or town they visited, even if they had never visited that town before. We didn’t even need to ask any of the locals for directions, which would have been my first instinct. Or face the City Guards, who left us alone unlike the Greenwood town guards, who didn’t let us into the town until we told them our reasons for visiting.

By contrast, Hebron was open and free, and there did not seem to be any particular people we could ask for directions. I suppose we could have asked the City Guards who came by to pick up the bandits we captured, but none of them had been particularly talkative or friendly. Their chief constable had simply asked us a few questions about the bandit attack and our role in it before putting them inside a strange floating machine and taking them away to wherever they kept criminals in this city. Presumably, it was some kind of prison, but I didn’t see any prisons around here.

After we handed the bandits off to the City Guards, Jonah had immediately headed straight for the Grand Codexium of Hebron, using his portable Node as his guide, as portable Nodes could apparently automatically detect the nearest Codexium. He had been serious about not wanting to waste time unpacking at Thomas’s mansion, but Thomas had promised to have his servants take our belongings and put them in each of our rooms at his mansion. That way, when we returned from our morning outings, everything would be waiting for us in our rooms already.

In the meantime, Jonah was walking so fast and was so focused on going straight to the Grand Codexium that we had no time to enjoy anything else that Hebron might have to offer. We passed quite a few Codex merchant shops, in particular, that caught my eye, though I suppose I couldn’t blame Jonah. If I was at Page Ten and ready to do my Codex Trial, I would be just as impatient as he was.

And that reminded me that I needed to figure out a good way to grind Words if I was going to keep getting stronger. That was the reason why I wanted to attend the Adventure Calls Academy—or at least visit the Guild. Both Ruth and Jonah had told me that the various Codex Guilds had ways of training and advancing their members as Codexers, ways that were more reliable than just wandering around the wilderness killing random monsters or accepting countless low-yield Codex Quests from the local Stationary Node. Though I had the impression that the Nodes in the Grand Codexium typically gave out better Quests with better rewards than the Nodes in Greenwood or even North Forest.

In any case, we reached the Grand Codexium of Hebron quickly. It bore a strong resemblance to the North Forest Codexium, but on a much larger and nicer scale. It was even bigger than the Greenwood Codexium—at least twice as big, if not bigger—with what appeared to be multiple floors. Two towers spiraled out of the top of the Codexium while its fresh stone surface gleamed under the late morning sun.

A constant stream of people went in and out of the Codexium, a truly massive crowd of people, though it was not quite as big as I had feared. Maybe it would get busier later in the day, but for now we were able to blend in with the crowd of Codexers and Uninscribed and make our way toward the entrance. I kept a hand on the cord of my portable Node just in case somebody in the crowd tried to steal it off me, though nobody made any attempt to do so. I just didn’t want to accidentally lose it.

The entrance to the Grand Codexium itself was a marvel. Twin golden doors, inscribed with complicated and detailed runes I struggled to comprehend, stood wide open, yet there was a clear and orderly line of people going in and out of the building. A couple of tall poles with shining crystals on them—kind of like lamp posts—on either side of the entrance. The shining crystals flashed green every time someone passed by them, though I didn’t know what they were or what that meant.

“Security Nodes,” said Jonah as if reading my thoughts. He pointed at the lamp posts as we got nearer. “Pretty typical in most Codexiums, at least where I’m from.”

“They aren’t typical here,” said a young woman’s voice nearby. “They were only installed recently.”

I looked behind us to see a young woman, probably in her early twenties, right behind us. She was short but had extremely long hair that went down to the middle of her back, and she was staring at the Security Nodes with a disapproving frown.

“They aren’t?” Jonah looked at her in confusion. “Where I’m from, every Codexium—from the minor to the grand—has Security Nodes.”

The young woman huffed. “They were recently installed by order of Mayor Caleb because of a recent sighting of that Salome woman in the area, as well as reports of increased Nullifier activity. I also heard rumors about a Nullifier attack on a minor Codexium somewhere on the outskirts of the Kingdom that nearly brought down the Shinar Node Network, but I think they just did this to increase their control over the city.”

I frowned. “Not to argue with you too much, miss, but I think the reasoning is sound.”

The young woman glared at me. “What would you know? Hebron is supposed to be a city of openness. How is installing these intimidating Security Nodes consistent with our values? If I didn’t have to go to the Grand Codexium today …”

The young woman’s words trailed off as she started mumbling to herself. She seemed less like she wanted to have a conversation with us and more like she had just been looking for someone to vent her political frustrations on. I decided I would just keep my questions about the Security Nodes to Jonah. I didn’t even inquire about the Salome sighting, as I didn’t want to interact with that woman any more than I had to.

I gulped. “What do Security Nodes do?”

Lowering his hand to his side, Jonah glanced at me. “If you are a Codexer, they scan your portable as you pass and make sure that you aren’t a wanted criminal or have any kind of contraband or forbidden spells on you. If you are Uninscribed, it does the same thing, minus scanning your portable because obviously Uninscribed people don’t have portable Nodes.”

Nimbus was still sitting on Ruth’s shoulders and nervously looked at the Security Nodes as we drew closer and closer to the entrance. “What exactly do the Security Nodes do if they think you are unauthorized or are doing something potentially against the law?”

Jonah shrugged. “Depends on the model. Cheaper models—which appear to be what Mayor Caleb went with—are really just glorified alarms that alert actual Codexers that you need to be examined. More advanced models are basically self-operating golems that will actually arrest you if they deem that you are a criminal or a threat in some way.”

I gulped again as we drew closer to the entrance. “Golems? Like the Verdant Keeper?”

Jonah shook his head. “Much smaller, but also a lot smarter and way more dangerous. You can tell that that lady was probably being honest about these being a recent installation, though, because if Hebron had always had Security Nodes, they would have forked over the crowns for a few of the more advanced models. I imagine Caleb—or whoever ordered these to be installed—probably doesn’t think that the Grand Codexium is actually a target and is just doing it to make some people happy. Typical politics.”

“We have the semi-advanced models in Admah,” said Ruth thoughtfully. “Though the one time my class and I took a field trip to the Grand Codexium in the capital, we saw one of those advanced Security Nodes. They’re pretty scary, even if you aren’t a wanted criminal.”

“You should only be afraid of them if you are actually a criminal or planning to commit a crime inside a Codexium,” said Jonah with a dismissive wave. “Personally, I think they’re pretty cool, but like I said, it’s clear to me that Hebron didn’t think about spending the money on those ones. If these Security Nodes fail, maybe they will fork over the crowns for more advanced models. But for the sake of your Kingdom, Aaron, I hope they don’t need to.”

I agreed with Jonah. I also felt a lot better about the Security Nodes after hearing his explanation of them. Seeing as none of us were criminals or plotting to commit crimes inside the Grand Codexium, I fully expected the Security Nodes to flash their green lights of approval for all of us as we passed.

Jonah was the first through and both Security Nodes flashed green. Then Ruth, who also got green lights, and then finally me and Nimbus, as Nimbus had returned to my shoulders while we were standing in line.

So you can imagine our surprises as the Security Nodes flashed red and set off loud alarms.