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OF HOW IMBAUN MET ZODRAK
The prophet of the gods lay resting by the river to watch the
stream run by.
And as he lay he pondered on the Scheme of Things and the works of
all the gods. And it seemed to the prophet of the gods as he
watched the stream run by that the Scheme was a right scheme and
the gods benignant gods; yet there was sorrow in the Worlds. It
seemed that Kib was bountiful, that Mung calmed all who suffer,
that Sish dealt not too harshly with the hours, and that all the
gods were good; yet there was sorrow in the Worlds.
Then said the prophet of the gods as he watched the stream run by:
"There is some other god of whom naught is writ." And suddenly the
prophet was aware of an old man who bemoaned beside the river,
crying: "Alas! alas!"
His face was marked by the sign and the seal of exceeding many
years, and there was yet vigour in his frame. These be the words
of the prophet that he wrote in his book: "I said: 'Who art thou
that bemoans beside the river?' And he answered: 'I am the fool.'
I said: 'Upon thy brow are the marks of wisdom such as is stored
in books.' He said: 'I am Zodrak. Thousands of years ago I tended
sheep upon a hill that sloped towards the sea. The gods have many
moods. Thousands of years ago They were in a mirthful mood. They
said: 'Let Us call up a man before Us that We may laugh in
Pegana.'"
"'And Their eyes that looked on me saw not me alone but also saw
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