Ia and the Collector

Ia and his companions had traveled long through the countryside when they came upon a city. It lay behind high walls of yellow stone and its gates were tall and strong and made of wood and steel, and they were guarded well by serious men who watched Ia's passage with suspicion. They entered it to refresh themselves and to spread word of Ia's teachings to its populace, many of whom would be swayed by Ia's words. They walked along the tight, crowded streets in search of lodging, and as they wandered the streets, Ia and his disciples came upon two men talking excitedly with each other.

A merchant who owned a stall overflowing with trinkets and baubles made of precious metals and stones engaged with another man over what seemed to be a simple coin of silver. The man who desired it had his hands outstretched, and their palms were full of golden coins which he offered to the merchant in trade for the silver coin. 'Please, I must have it! Ten good gold coins for it, I beg!' he shouted in a voice reedy with desperation.

The merchant, no fool, made the exchange in but a heartbeat, and his expression belied the giddiness he felt despite his attempts to hide his feelings at having taken such shameless advantage of another man's folly. But the first man was quite distracted by his purchase, and he overlooked the smugness on the merchant's face. He turned his back on the merchant and walked away, cooing and whispering reassuring words to the coin as though it were his beloved before he placed it with reverance into a money pouch which hung at his waist.

Preston, one of Ia's disciples, spoke then, and he asked, "Holy One, what would drive a man to trade one thing for another, even losing ninety-nine parts of its value in the exchange?'

'When we face questions, all we need do is ask the proper questions to attain their answers. Let us ask this man of his reasons, and thus shall we learn,' Ia replied, and he approached the man and said to him, 'Good stranger, I noticed the zeal with which you exchanged ten coins of good gold for a single, meager silver one. Might I look upon this coin to see for myself if it deserves so eager a treatment?'

The man who had fervently hidden away his treasure looked upon Ia and scowled, but when Ia repeated his request the man did as bade. He drew the coin out with a braod smile and held it up for Ia to view. Ia gestured to his disciples, and they gathered close to study it. It was a silver coin not unlike any other, though its stamp was strange and foreign. None of Ia's disciples had seen its like, despite coming from disparate lands.

Ia nodded to the man, and the man replaced the coin in his pouch as Ia asked, 'What thoughts went through your mind in making this trade?'

'I have treasured coins like this for ever. I am a wealthy man, it is true, but I would give up all my wealth to gather all coins stamped like this. There is a legend which holds that if one gathers all coins minted with this crest, he shall receive a wish of his choosing!' The man chuckled triumphantly. 'Once I have done this, I will have recouped my wealth many times over!'

Ia thanked the man for his candor, then turned and walked away with his disciples following. Destair said to him, 'That man is a great fool. Why would he not keep what wealth he has and use it in ways to attain what he knows to be true and real and safe, rather than chasing dreams based on hearsay and legend which are unlikely to be attained?'

Ia replied to him: 'Foolishness in pursuit of a fantastic goal is always excusable to one's self, yet remains apparent to all others,' and the matter was ended.