The Deep Root

Antiaris the upas tree — the poison tree of Java legend — commands the shade with total, quiet authority. His keepers: Manzanilla the manchineel (most dangerous tree on Earth, given a wide and respectful berth), Taxus the yew, the faction’s historian, Rhiza the red mangrove, ambassador to the wet dark, and Durian, infamous and unapologetic, enforcer of the smell treaty. This faction keeps the Missing Ring’s ledgers and has never shown them to anyone outside. The dendrochronologists cross-checked all eight factions: the year with no ring is identical everywhere. The ledgers confirm this. The ledgers confirm nothing else.

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