Ia and the Initiate

Ia and his disciples came upon a frail old man sitting cross-legged upon a flat stone. The man seemed at utter peace with the world, smiling cheerily and looking about in wonder and bliss, seeming to be without a single care, and he was unaware of the arrival of Ia and his disciples.

'Holy Ia,' asked Ia's disciple Creassin, 'how can a man be so joyful despite living in a world rife with hardship and despair, in which one's life is only the means through which one dies?'

'He is unaware of this manner of insight,' responded Destair before Ia could speak. 'His ignorance of the Truth which has opened our eyes maintains his happiness. If he were to learn of the secrets we have and keep, he too would grow sober in light of Destruction's inevitability.'

'If you believe this to be so,' Ia said to Destair, 'then go and speak with this man, but know that you take responsibility for bringing those pains into his life, and for ushering him to stand before the Gate.'

'Is that not our calling, Holy One?' asked Preston, and Ia replied, 'Indeed, it is so. But this does not allay the weight you carry for shattering the delusions other hold. To tell others what is true, despite it being true, is a cruel thing, for most are not prepared to accept their previous errors, and they will find themselves in greater despair than the fortunate wretch who never enjoyed a single fine or foul day.'

Destair girded himself for what he must do, then he did as Ia bade, and when he finished his task the old man's expression had been darkened and never again regained its past luster.