"Family Tree" - The Way of the Wizard, edited by John Joseph Adams, Prime Books, November 2010     A month later Simon stood and regarded the tree of Victor Archimagus.     It was gigantic, its trunk as wide around as a castle wall. A good way up, the trunk split into a great V -- the two branches that had grown upon the births of Victor's sons, Franklin and Atherton. From there the branches continued to climb and divide -- one for each legitimate male heir -- and now over a hundred descendants of the late wizard resided within the tree's luxurious chambers. (Female children were married off and sent away -- Victor had never been a terribly enlightened sort.) The tree was a virtuoso feat of spellcraft, the first of its kind, and upon its creation Victor had been so impressed with himself that he'd taken the surname Archimagus -- master wizard. Simon was the only one to have successfully replicated the spell. Families that possessed the rare gift of magic seemed always to be afflicted with low fertility, but the fact that Victor's tree grew larger and grander depending upon the number of offspring had ensured a frenetic effort to proliferate his adopted surname, and had also -- perhaps inevitably -- led to a rivalry between the descendants of Franklin and the descendants of Atherton over who could produce the greatest number of male heirs. At the moment it happened that the two halves of the tree were in perfect balance. Today's presentation ceremony for Bernard's infant son would change that.     The tree-dwelling Archimagus family is bitterly divided between the descendants of Franklin and the descendants of Atherton. Simon, the Franklin clan's most talented wizard, long ago separated himself from his troublesome relatives. But when he hears that Meredith, the Atherton side's greatest sorceress, has returned home, Simon finds himself drawn back into the tangled web of family politics. As schemes and rivalries swirl around him, Simon must ask himself: Can he defeat Meredith? And does he want to?       The Way of the Wizard includes over twenty stories of sorcery and wonder, by authors such as Neil Gaiman, George R. R. Martin, Peter S. Beagle, Simon R. Green, and Kelly Link. Art by Michael J. DiMotta. Click to enlarge The Way of the Wizard at Amazon.com