Ellida.
[Throws herself before Wangel.] No, no—do not kill him! Rather kill me!
The Stranger.
Neither you nor him; be easy on that score. This is for myself; I will live and die a free man!
Ellida.
[With increasing agitation.] Wangel! Let me tell you this—tell you in his hearing! I know you can keep me here! You have the power, and no doubt you will use it! But my mind—all my thoughts—all my irresistible longings and desires—these you cannot fetter! They will yearn and strain—out into the unknown—that I was created for—and that you have barred against me!
Wangel.
[In quiet grief.] I see it clearly, Ellida! Step by step you are gliding away from me. Your craving for the limitless and the infinite—and for the unattainable—will drive your mind quite out into the darkness at last.
Ellida.
Oh yes, yes,—I feel it—like black soundless wings hovering over me!