The Ellcrys is a sapient tree that resides in the center of the elven capitol, Arborlon. She was "created by the bonding of earth and life".[1] She appears in two novels of the Shannara series. She is the magical linchpin of the barrier that keeps the Demons that once overran the Four Lands trapped in an alternate world; this world and the barrier are both known as the Forbidding.[1] She is tended to by a group of young Elves known as the "Chosen", who are selected by the tree itself. The Ellcrys first appeared in the novel The Elfstones of Shannara, where the protagonists embarked upon a quest to attempt a "rebirth" of the Ellcrys before she died. The Ellcrys also plays a part in the Shannara prequel series The Genesis of Shannara.