OOZIZI: Farewell, lady.
[The QUEEN gazes out rapturously towards Aether Mountain. Then she walks back and embraces Oozizi.
QUEEN: Farewell, Oozizi.
OOZIZI: Farewell, great lady.
[The QUEEN turns, then suddenly she runs swiftly and nimbly through the door and disappears.
[At once there is a murmur of voices from the Hall of the Hundred Princes.
VOICES (off): Ah, ah, ah.
[OOZIZI stands still weeping.
[Enter the Princes, exquisite and frivolous. They crowd past each other.
MELIFLOR: And where is our little Queen?
[OOZIZI answers with a defiant look through her tears, which has its effect on them.
MOOMOOMON (foppishly): There, there.
XIMENUNG: Gone!
MELIFLOR: Come! Let us follow.
MOOMOOMON: Shall we?
SEVERAL: Yes.
MOOMOOMON: Come.
[They stream across from the side door R to the door in back, OOZIZI regarding them haughtily.
OOZIZI (menacingly): It is Aether Mountain.
[Entranced, silent, last of all ZOON follows. Exeunt all the Princes. Sounds as of rough protest heard from the workers off. The grim brown heads of two or three peer round the door by which the Princes entered. Many come on, dumb, puzzled, turning their brown heads, searching. At last they cluster round OOZIZI. "Er"? they say.
OOZIZI: Aether Mountain has called her.
[They nod dumb heads gravely.
CURTAIN.
SCENE III
On the base of Aether Mountain.
Right, heather sloping up to left, which is rugged with tumbled grey rocks.
Further left all the scene is filled with the rising bulk of Aether Mountain.
Low down, far off and small in the background to the right appears a little palace of pure gold.
Enter right the QUEEN running untired and nimble, unchecked by those grey rocks.
Following her the tired PRINCES come.
ZOON is no longer last, but about fourth, and gaining.
MELIFLOR leads.
MELIFLOR: Permit me, great lady. My hand over the rocks. Permit ...
[He falls and cannot rise.
MOOMOOMON: Permit me. (He falls too.) These rocks; it is these rocks.
XIMENUNG (going wearily): Great lady. A moment. One moment, great lady. Allow me.
[But ZOON does not speak. Exeunt L. the Queen and those Princes that have not fallen. The curtain falls on stragglers crossing the stage.
CURTAIN.
SCENE IV
The Summit.
On the snow on the pinnacle of Aether Mountain, with only bright blue sky all round and everywhere, recline QUEEN ZOOMZOOMARMA and the PRINCE OF ZOON.
THE QUEEN: You had known no love before, First of a Hundred?
PRINCE OF ZOON: There is no love on earth, O Queen of all.
QUEEN: Only here.
ZOON: Pure love is only here on this peak lonely in heaven.
QUEEN: Would you love me elsewhere if we went from here?
ZOON: But we will never go from here.
QUEEN: No, we will never leave it.
ZOON: Lady, look down. (She looks.) The earth is sorrowful. (She sighs.) Cares. Cares. All over the wide surface we can see are troubles; troubles far off and grey, that harm not Aether Mountain.
QUEEN: It looks a long way off and long ago.
ZOON (wonderingly): Only to-day we came to Aether Mountain.
QUEEN: Only to-day?
ZOON: We crossed a gulf of time.
QUEEN: It lies below us, all drowsy with years.
ZOON: Lady, here is your home, this peak that has entered heaven. Let us never leave your home.
QUEEN: I knew not until to-day of Aether Mountain. None had told me.
ZOON: Knew you never, lady, of love?
QUEEN: None had told me.
ZOON: This is your home; not Earth; no golden palace. Reign here alone, not knowing the cares of men, without yesterday or to-morrow, untroubled by history or council.
QUEEN: Yes, yes, we will return no more.
ZOON: See, lady, see the Earth. Is it not as a dream just faded?
QUEEN: It is dim indeed, grey and dream-like.
ZOON: It is the Earth we knew.
QUEEN: It is all dream-like.
ZOON: It is gone; we can dimly see it.
QUEEN: Was it a dream?
ZOON: Perhaps. It is gone now and does not matter.
QUEEN: Poor Earth. I hope it was real.
ZOON (seizing her hand): Oh, Zoomzoomarma, say not you hope that Earth was real. It is gone now. See; it is so far away. Sigh not for Earth, oh lady, sigh not for Earth.
QUEEN: Why not, King of Aether Mountain?
ZOON: Because when you sigh for tiny things I tremble for your love. See how faint and small it is and how far away.
QUEEN: I do not sigh for Earth, King of the Mountain. I only wish it well.
ZOON: Oh, wish it not well, lady.
QUEEN: Let us wish the poor Earth well.
ZOON: No, lady, no. Be with me always wholly, living not partly in dreams. There is no Earth. It is but a dream that left us. See, see (pointing down) it is a dim dream.
QUEEN (looking down): The people move there still. See, there is Prince Ximenung. Something down there seems almost unlike dreams.
ZOON: No, lady, it cannot be.
QUEEN: How know you, Lord of the Mountain?
ZOON: It was too unreal for life. Love was not there. Surely it was a dream.
QUEEN: Yes, I knew not love in the golden palace of Zoorm.
ZOON: Then indeed it was unreal, Golden Lady. Forget the dream of Earth.
QUEEN: If love be real ...
ZOON: Can you doubt it?
QUEEN: No. It was a dream. Just now I dreamt it. Are dreams bad, my Prince?
ZOON: No. They are just dreams.
QUEEN: We will think of dreams no more.
ZOON: This is where love is, and here only. We should not dream too much or think of dreams, because the place is holy.
QUEEN: Is love here only, darling?
ZOON: Here only, Golden Queen. Do any others elsewhere love as we.