Should we focus a future story on a like "sacrifice," or

"The tree is dying because we have become separate branches," she shouted. "The roots cannot drink if the leaves do not shade the ground. The leaves cannot grow if the roots do not send up water. And none of us have a home if the trunk collapses." Desperation finally broke the pride of the guilds.

The used their silk-weaving skills to create massive funnel-nets, stretching them across the highest peaks to catch the morning mist—moisture too thin for a single person, but massive when gathered together.

Finally, the Great Tree itself began to lean. Its leaves turned gray, failing to provide shade to the roots below. The ground cracked, and the Root-Tenders found themselves baking in the very earth that used to protect them.

The built a network of hollowed-out bamboo pipes, a vertical veins system running from the canopy to the soil.

But soon, the dry heat caused the wood to shrink. The homes began to crack. Without the Root-Tenders’ moisture to keep the bark supple, the very stairs and halls of the village began to crumble.

It was Elara, a young Trunk-Keeper, who stood in the central plaza where the three levels met.

The village of Oakhaven was built around a tree so large its roots served as the town’s foundation and its canopy as the sky. For generations, the village was split into three distinct guilds: the , who lived in the dark soil and managed the water; the Trunk-Keepers , who carved homes into the bark and built the structures; and the Leaf-Watchers , who lived in the heights, harvesting sunlight and rain.