In a land far away, there was a thick forest with many great trees. The trees would keep the order in the forest, and protect it from outsiders. Every few years, the time would come for the eldest tree to return to the earth. The mantle leadership would fall upon the tree which was now the eldest.
Within this forest, different tribes of monkeys lived. These impetuous creatures lived in chaos amongst the intertwined branches. Every time the chaos threatened to get out of hand, the elder trees intervened and established order among the monkeys. Sometimes, the monkeys asked the trees to bring order. At other times, the eldest tree decided it was necessary for the trees to deliver order themselves.
There also lived within the forest a dark and wily fungus. The fungus was older than the forest itself, and it remembered a time, not too long ago when there was no forest, where it lay mushrooming spores. It recalled that in place of great trees, there were only stunted growths of wood covered with its mycelium. It reminisced how the fungus had ruled the land and decided what was right for the monkeys. It remembered when the fungus was order itself.
Only a few years after the trees brought order to the forest, there emerged a particular monkey. It could swing from the branches quite adeptly. The fungus found this monkey and felt the time had come for a change.
The fungus made this monkey a crown of its spores and called it a prince. It spoke to the monkey and told him that he was right and every other monkey was wrong. The fungus told him that order should flow from him, a prince, and not from the trees. So the monkey took the crown of spores and wore it proud. But as he did so, he allowed the fungus to grow within him.
The fungus told the monkey prince to take its spores and plant them in the heart of the elder trees. The fungus grew rapidly within the trees, and many grew sick with disease. Their desire for order weakened, and their ability to see right and wrong diminished. They started to fight amongst each other, teaching the monkeys how to make fire and encouraging them to attack other trees.
Then the great tree felt the younger trees, who had the elder spirit in them, ought also to be punished for having dared to tell him what order should look like
Then, some of the elder trees decided to attack one of the eldest, a great old tree with a great old story. The elder trees spoke to the monkey prince, who brought them the fungus and agreed to help take down the great old tree. It was a great battle, but somehow, the great old tree won. Many monkeys worked to protect his branches and roots. In time, it became his turn to become the eldest.
The old tree bore several wounds from his battle with the other elders, and he knew he did not have long to live and to lead with order. Then, the fungus came to him and repented. It promised that it would forever know its place; it sang many songs about how great the old tree was. As a peace offering, it filled the great tree’s wounds with the parts of itself that it killed and offered as a sacrifice to the tree. The great tree felt itself grow strong. Then, the tree went about trying to bring what he saw as order.
He started by trying to bring order to the monkey prince, deciding that it was, after all, his fault that the elder trees became diseased in the first place. He ordered many monkeys to be exiled and many more to be punished. Throughout this period, the fungus spoke to him and agreed. It took away the prince’s crown as repentance and laid it at the great tree’s roots.
The great tree decided that the monkeys, who had fought to protect him in the great battle, did not have the capacity to decide who would be the next prince, and the fungus spoke to him and agreed.
Then, the great tree decided he was to be worshipped. The fungus spoke to him and agreed, lifting the crown higher up the great tree’s branches and sending poisonous mushrooms to any monkey who dared doubt the great tree’s orders.
Then, the great tree decided that the other elder trees should be punished for waging war against him, and the fungus spoke to him and agreed.
Then the great tree felt the younger trees, who had the elder spirit in them, ought also to be punished for having dared to tell him what order should look like. The fungus spoke to him and agreed.
Then, the great tree felt his own limbs were unnecessary, and the fungus spoke to him and agreed.
When it was time for the great tree to return to the earth, he realised that there was no elder tree left to pass the responsibility of order to. All around him stood stunted younglings, diseased by the fungus that had grown out of his own wounds. Then, the great tree looked at himself and saw only a battered old trunk, overgrown with spores. The fungus no longer spoke with him, but it agreed.