(Benedictus and Maria retire a little way; Strader remains alone; the soul of Theodora appears.) THEODORA'S SOUL: And Theodora in the worlds of light Will make warmth for thee that thy spirit-sword May keenly smite the foes of thine own soul. (Disappears. Exit Strader. Benedictus and Maria come to the front of stage.) MARIA: My learned teacher, ne'er yet did I hear Thee tell disciples, who had reached the stage Of Strader, in such tones the words of fate. Will his soul run its course so speedily That these words' power will prove of use to him? BENEDICTUS: Fate gave the order, and it was fulfilled. MARIA: And if the power should prove no use to him, Will not its evils also fall on thee? BENEDICTUS: 'Twill not be evil; yet I do not know In what way it will manifest in him. My gaze at present penetrates to realms Where such advice illuminates my soul; But I see not the scene of its result. And if I try to see, my vision dies. MARIA: Thy vision dies,--my guide and leader, thine?-- Who stays for thee thy seership's certain gaze? BENEDICTUS: Johannes flees therewith to cosmic space; We must pursue;--for I can hear him call. MARIA: He calls,--from spirit-space his call rings out; There sounds within his tone a distant fear. BENEDICTUS: So from the ever empty fields of ice Our mystic friend's call sounds in cosmic space. MARIA: The ice's cold is burning in my self, And kindling tongues of flame in my soul-depths; The flames are scorching all my power of thought. BENEDICTUS: In thy soul-depths the fire doth blaze, which now Johannes kindles in the cosmic frost. MARIA: The flames fly off,--they fly off with my thought. And there on distant cosmic shore of souls A furious fight--my power of thought doth fight-- In stormy chaos--and cold spirit-light-- My thought-power reels;--the cold light--hammers out Hot waves of darkness from my failing thought. What now emergeth from this darkling heat? Clad in red flames my self storms--to the light;-- To the cold light--of cosmic fields of ice. Curtain SCENE 5 The Spirit Realm. The scene is set in floods of significant colour, reddish deepening into fiery red above, blue merging into dark blue and violet below. In the lower part there is an earth-globe which has the effect of being a symbol. The figures that appear seem to blend into a complete whole with the colours. On the left of the stage the group of gnomes as in Scene 2, in front of them Hilary, and in the immediate foreground the soul-forces. FELIX BALDE'S SOUL: (Seated at the extreme right of stage, having the form of a penitent, but arrayed in a light violet robe girdled with gold.)