Act IV

Scene as in Act I.

1st Scene

MAURICE (sitting on a chair in front of an oak table. To a servant):
Did you knock on the countess's door?

SERVANT: Yes, Count, very loudly. But the chambermaid only came on the third knock.

MAURICE: How did the countess spend the night?

SERVANT: After her walk, the countess had a fever, but when she learned that the count had returned, the fever subsided.

MAURICE: Does the countess wish me to visit her in her room?

SERVANT: The countess is getting dressed and will be here shortly.

MAURICE: That's fine, thank you.

After everything that has happened, I would rather not see Fulgence again, but it must be done, as it is Lucile's wish. What a terrible night I spent, the most frightening of my life. An hour in hell, followed by a heavenly dream. — But was it all real? I doubted it during my sleeplessness, when the parts of my being were torn apart, unable to come together. — How could I leave Lucile alone at the Morgane spring in the middle of the night? Ah, she imposed her will on me through some kind of magic; her gentle farewell left me with sadness, but also with a completely new kind of cheerfulness. - And yet, a terrible fear weighs on my heart... I obeyed her and believed her blindly like a child! But, dear God, will she come, my guardian angel, who holds my fate in her hands?

2nd Scene

SAINT-RIVEUL (appears in the background without being seen by Maurice. Pulls a portfolio out of his pocket):
My goal has been achieved. I am in control of the situation. My future lies in this magic bag (opens it and rummages through the papers). Here: two-thirds of Lucile's fortune, her land, her sold jewels. Everything has been arranged with the London banks. I can attract the most charming faces around me as I please, I can build myself a palace, open a gambling house, throw sand in the eyes of the great, ruin the small, oppress the weak. I can have everything, servants, dancers, soldiers, and even priests! There is only one god—gold—and the bill of exchange is his prophet! A temple must be built for him; the fools who do not believe in him are mad! And yet, there is a shadow in this picture... Lucile, my wife... whom I have plundered... is the only being who defies me and instills fear in me... That cursed day when the Bastille was stormed, Lucile, with her Cassandra-like appearance, her hair disheveled, made me shudder. — But the more I fear her, the more I want to possess her. I, who play with everything and everyone, have been her plaything. When I wanted to possess her against her will, she threatened me with a knife. And when I took the knife away from her, her eyes and her voice frightened me. In front of a duchess, in front of noblemen, she treated me like a worm she could crush with her stupid prophecy. But this cannot go on! I would be a coward if I did not overwhelm her. Before I leave for London, I will be my wife's husband, even if only for once. Honor demands it! But where is she? Maurice must know; I will find out (approaches Maurice). Good day, my brother-in-law.

MAURICE (surprised, without standing up): Ah, Monsieur de Saint-Riveul? How long have you been here? I thought you were in England.

SAINT-RIVEUL: And I thought you were in Paris, with the Jacobins. I am happy to find you at the Château de Kernoët, which proves that you still have aristocratic blood in your veins.

MAURICE: If your blood is so pure, why are you not in Versailles with the king, who trembles before Paris and before France? He would need you.

SAINT-RIVEUL: The king is planning to retreat to Metz with all the true nobles. I hope you are among them.

MAURICE: I will go where my destiny calls me, not you.

SAINT-RIVEUL: I have no doubt that it will take you on long and strange journeys. But you will admit that it is my duty to look after your sister Lucile; that is to say, my wife, for she is my wife, have you forgotten that? I have never asserted my legitimate rights, which are confirmed by office and church. You cannot deny that I was a model husband to your sister, a true gentleman. What freedom she had in the duchess's boudoir and in this revolutionary Paris, or wherever you chose to roam! Did she read Fenelon or the poems of Ossian with me? Did she visit the clubs and the countess's masked balls with me? I let her have her experiences; you were her guide. But this sudden disappearance after the storming of the Bastille, this mad flight in the stagecoach, followed by yours, without my knowing what had become of my wife... Mrs. Kernoët thought you had gone with the duchess. All these complications, I confess, are a very complicated novel. These are things that can worry a man more accustomed to adventure than I am. — But I bet you know where Lucile is. I'm sure she's not far from here, in a hiding place. Do you have the keys to this Trianon? Trust me! I want to know before I leave. I will be discreet. There are always ways to communicate, with secret words... between gentlemen.

MAURICE: Be careful, Monsieur de Saint-Riveul! Do not speak to me in that tone! For I could tear off your mask of politeness and tell you what you are! You have robbed my sister of all her fortune and are now taking it abroad. Oh, fear not for your wallet, which you press so tenderly to your breast! This marriage was nothing but a good business deal for you. Don't look for anything else! You seem to know my secrets; I know yours better. Contrary to your promise, you invaded my sister's bedchamber one night and would have treated her like a street girl... if she had not defended herself with a weapon. On that day, Monsieur de Saint-Riveul, you were not a nobleman, but a scoundrel.

SAINT-RIVEUL: You will give me satisfaction for that remark immediately!

MAURICE: The Count of Kernoët, officer of the king, pioneer in free America, citizen of France, will not fight the Knight of Saint-Riveul. This knight is too much trouble for me.

SAINT-RIVEUL: I now know what I wanted to know, your stupid anger makes it certain: you are Lucile's lover! Be it so! — You insult me and refuse to fight me! Very well, when we return victorious, I will punish you as you deserve. Beware!

MAURICE: Be careful that the Rennes militia doesn't arrest you as a spy. Your wallet doesn't speak well for you. And after all, it's all that's left of Count Saint-Riveul's countship.

SERVANT (from the background):
An envoy from the city of Rennes wishes to speak to Monsieur de Kernoët.

MAURICE: Bring him in.

Third Scene

MAURICE: To whom do I have the honor?

VOLNEY: My name is Volney, sergeant in the Royal Navy, citizen and member of the Rennes administration. I earned the title “Protector of the People” by defending Brittany against the soldiers of the court.

SAINT-RIVEUL: And I, sir, had I been in Rennes, would have had my lackeys beat you up.

VOLNEY: That is what your noble friends wanted to do. They summoned us to the field of Montmorin under the pretext of negotiating with us. But we did not go. And so your lackeys beat each other up.

SAINT-RIVEUL: Oh, I would have punished you myself.

VOLNEY:: Really! I would have disarmed them, and to punish them, I would have freed you from the hands of the police. I did that with one of your own. We have won the right to fight you or let you go as we please. Today, the world is free! All for one and one for all! Omnes omnibus.

SAINT-RIVEUL ([aside]): Not to mention how these people defile us with their Latin.

MAURICE: Sir, I will gladly listen to them!

VOLNEY: Monsieur de Kernoët, the city of Rennes has entrusted me with a message (points to a document in his hands) signed by our chief magistrate. The representative of Rennes in the National Assembly has just died, and our city is demanding a new one. Your name is famous; you fought in America for the king and for France. A member of the old nobility, you were just and alleviated the suffering of the people. Your noble sister, Lucile de Kernoët, abolished serfdom on her estates and gave the people land and freedom. You yourself publicly uttered the following words in Paris: “The new France will only emerge from the ruins of the Bastille.” " This prophecy has come true. Your words, Count, have always preceded your deeds, and your deeds have been the consequence of your words. You come from granite Brittany, the birthplace of great hearts and strong wills, which today unite with the fatherland (hands him the letter). Would you agree to represent the city of Rennes in the National Assembly?

MAURICE: Your message honors and delights me, Mr. Volney. But today I have a very serious family matter to attend to. I can only give you an answer later. Be my guest for today, stay at the castle. When I have fulfilled my duty, I will inform you of my decision (accompanies him to the castle and returns).

SAINT-RIVEUL: Who knows, Lucile may be hiding in the park. I will surprise her (exits).

Fourth Scene

MAURICE: That was the call of France... but when will Lucile arrive? ...

FULGENCE: The Count of Kernoët wishes to speak to his wife? That really surprises me. Here I am, what is it?

MAURICE: I have come to discuss some very important business matters.

FULGENCE: Business? Send for a notary. I don't concern myself with your business. Are you interested in mine?

MAURICE: And then... I heard that you were ill last night and wanted to know if you were feeling better?

FULGENCE: I'm perfectly fine! Really, Count, you're meddling in things that are none of your business. You leave me in Paris, in the middle of the Revolution, disappear with your duchess and leave me alone to wander the streets. And then, one fine day, you inquire about my health—I don't understand you anymore!

MAURICE: You are right, but our break was so deep and complete, and you said goodbye to me in such a way that I did not think I would see you again. Forgive me, a remnant of our friendship compelled me to speak to you once more. But calm down, I am only here for one more day!

FULGENCE: Ah, you want to see her again?

MAURICE: Perhaps.

FULGENCE: Cruel, ungrateful man! For your beautiful duchess with her cold smile and false eyes, you could forget the past weeks you spent with me in this castle, and forget your vows and your passion! Don't you remember our walk to the sea three days before our wedding? Don't you remember how we got lost in the wild cave, the same one where I almost died tonight when I followed the light of your ship that was to carry you away with your new lover. I was not alone then! You held me in your arms and kissed me. You spent the next day in Paris and wrote me a letter from there... Ah, have you forgotten it... could you? ... Today you would be amazed at what it says. (Pulls out a letter) Take it, read this sentence... signed by you... read it... just for fun, read it!

Maurice (takes the letter, reads hesitantly):
“How could I live without you? Nature formed your soul on a day of pride and your body on a day of glory...” I wasn't lying when I wrote that, it was true. Yes, Fulgence, you are even more beautiful today than you were then... But I forgot to read the rest of the letter (reads): “And my desires are only slaves to your will...” I was able to write something like that?! Well, I don't want that anymore! I want to live my own life, under the rule of my thoughts, and you wanted to force me under your proud whims, your mundane fantasies. You are the despotic daughter of a falling world, and I am the child of a new, rising world. You belong to the court, I to France. We cannot go together.

FULGENGE (ironically):
Do you prefer a woman from the country? Would you like to have a servant? Will she follow you like a slave, the woman you prefer to me?

MAURICE: Does one think of obeying or commanding when hearts are set on the same goal, when souls are one? As she inspired me, I sought it without knowing it; what I strove for with boundless energy was her unspoken dream. What one thought, the other did. When one sacrificed himself for the other, he multiplied his powers. We walked hand in hand toward an ever-growing light, toward ever-new horizons, and one will surpass the other only to carry him higher.

FULGENCE: Will she follow you everywhere, your masked wife? Betray her king for you and leave France?

MAURICE: A hundred thousand kings for the Atlantic... and France for a new world!

FULGENCE: And you, would you do the same for her?

MAURICE: With joy and without hesitation. You cannot understand what she means to me. She is the embodiment of my desires, the star of my hopes. Besides, I am expecting her.

FULGENCET: She's coming here?

MAURICE: She promised me she would come, and she keeps her promises. If she didn't come, I would die.

FULGENGE (nervously): So, is the ship ready! Is it leaving tonight? ... Listen, Maurice, don't drive me crazy, there's still time to prevent a great misfortune. If you loved me, if you still love me—perhaps I would follow you to the ends of the earth!

MAURICE: It's too late now.

FULGENGE: Too late, so! Know that I saw your masked wife. She certainly didn't tell you that. I saw her the moment she threw herself into your arms. I stood face to face with her and confronted her with this infamous betrayal. She didn't dare to answer a word. She had to cling desperately to the mantelpiece with her black, deceitful mask, and she trembled like a leaf. I cursed her, and what comforts me is that this curse will also fall upon you. Ah, wretched women that you both are, you have turned me into a demon! Nothing moves him, nothing touches him; he is made of iron. What superhuman power does this woman have, even from a distance? Must I reveal my secret to him? Yes, it is my last hope. Maurice! ... What would you say if you had a son? Would you abandon him too, just as you are abandoning me?

MAURICE (without looking at her, lost in thought):
A son? I too have longed for a son. He would be the child of my dreams and the fulfillment of my innermost thoughts. He would carry on the work that fate has denied me!

FULGENCE: And what if I told you that this son of your dreams, this pledge of your former love, whose seed I carry in my heart, is alive!

MAURICE: Is that true?

FULGENCE: As true as I love you—despite your betrayal—more than any other person on this earth (Maurice reaches out his hands to her). Well, then, will you love me more now than the other? Ah, I am sure that if Lucile were here, she would be on my side.

Maurice (shudders at the name Lucile): Why are you talking about Lucile?

FULGENCE: Wasn't it she who gave me to you? And isn't she the guardian of your soul, as you say?

MAURICE: Yes, that's true...

FULGENCE: Why don't you answer? Are you always thinking about the other one?

MAURICE: The other one? Yes. Why isn't she coming? Has she broken her vow? (visionary) And yet it seems to me as if I can see her before me, so beautiful, so majestic.

FULGENGE (fearfully): Well... if she came, your mysterious lover... would you leave me to follow her? ... Would you abandon me and your son, whom I carry under my heart?

Maurice (after an inner struggle): Yes, if she wants me to... for she rules my soul!

FULGENCE: Then farewell, Count of Kernoët. Farewell forever, this time. I will no longer follow you, neither you nor your ship. Be happy. I will live for my son (about to leave).

(Funeral song from afar, growing closer. Voices of peasants behind the scene.)

FUNERAL SONG: Requiem dona eis aeternam — Et lux perpetua! ...

MAURICE (starting): Where is that song coming from? A funeral song so close to us!

FULGENCE (returning): What horrible sounds! They make my heart freeze.

MAURICE: Oh God, what has happened? A deathly chill has come over me!

FULGENCE: If I saw the masked woman coming, I would also shudder... A funeral procession... a dead woman on a bier... completely covered with flowers... Who is it?

Fifth Scene

Four peasants carry Lucile in on a bier, she is completely covered with ferns and flowers. Behind them are Evoanik, Ulliac, and Gaïd, weeping. The bier is set down, and everyone kneels except Ervoanik.

MAURICE (at first petrified, then approaching the bier, recognizes his sister): Lucile! My beloved! Is it you? Is it possible... you're only sleeping! (falls to his knees, kisses her) Lucile, Lucile, wake up! - Cold as marble... dead. - She promised to come... and she came... this is how she came! On her chest, on her heart that never grew cold, here is this lily, the sign of victorious love! ... Lucile, my Lucile! ... So you kept your promise? ... (begins to sob, then to Ervoanik) How did she die? Tell me, Ervoanik!

ERVOANIK!: She fell asleep at the spring of Morgane ... I had warned her that one never wakes up again when one sleeps at the enchanted spring. - She wanted to die ... Why? God knows ... But I, ... you know, my lord, that I will not survive her, my dear, dear mistress ... the queen of our flowery land ... (slowly sinks down on the bier) Morgan, ... Morgane ... is calling me too (dies).

MAURICE: O faithful shepherd, you have chosen the better part! ... How I envy you! Oh, if only I could follow you! ... Here, this red lily, this holy torch, the immortal love of Lucile compels me to live. I promised my guardian angel.

GAÏD (to Ulliac): I told you she was a fairy, my good mistress. She predicted it to me in my sleep, whispering: “My shroud will become your bridal veil.” (weeping, kneeling between the dead bodies)

ULLIAC (throwing away his sailor's cap): No more voyages on the Emerald! No more joy! The mistress of the ship is dead (kneels beside Gaïd). Pray for us, our dear Lady of Kernoët.

FULGENGE (who has been following the scene with great emotion, throws herself into Maurice's arms): Lucile dead? Why? Why? ... Can you solve this mystery for me?

MAURICE: The solution to the mystery ... do you want to know it?

FULGENGE: Yes.

MAURICE: Well, it wasn't the duchess I love.

FULGENCE: The masked woman you kissed? Sixth Scene VOLNEY: This is a victory, a joy for united Brittany. You will lead the youth of France to the altar of the fatherland! MAURICE: My word as a Breton confirms my promise. Here is my hand, Mr. Volney.

MAURICE: It was my sister... not my sister, because she was not my father's daughter.

FULGENCE: The one who ran away with you?

MAURICE: It was Lucile!

FULGENGE (shocked): How... she and you?

MAURICE: No, never... I wanted to, I... but she didn't want to... that's why she died!

FULGENCE (with a stifled cry): Ah!

MAURICE: She died so that I could live with you! ... Yes, she died for us! ... (looks at the dead woman) Beautiful as a lover and pure as a saint! She is, and she is not. Her motionless face is now nothing more than a cold image of her living face, which lives on in me. Your soul has soared, Lucile, you wandered through this world like a mysterious angel. All who saw you loved you, but no one recognized you... and a shining path follows you...

FULGENGE: I too must say that I did not recognize this great soul. And now she has returned to nothingness.

MAURICE: No, that's not how it is! Such souls cannot die. She breathes, she shines in the ethereal world, and I feel her love, more powerful than ever, trembling in the depths of my heart. One day, Fulgence, you will understand: what we have lost in the temporal world, we possess in the eternal. (To the peasants) I alone will keep vigil over Lucile de Kernoët. Take her body to the chapel. I will follow shortly.

(They do so. Ervoanik's body is taken to the village.)

VOLNEY (approaching): Count. The great loss that has befallen you also affects my hometown, and compels me to leave you now.

MAURICE: Just a moment. Tell the city of Rennes that I accept their appeal.

(Volney exits.)

SAINT-RIVEUL (entering from the park): To which France do you now belong, Monsieur de Kernoët, the old or the new? To the nobility or to the peasants?

MAURICE: To both. New times, new duties. I belong to the true nobility.

SAINT-RIVEUL: So you are a sans-culotte after all. Nobility is not created overnight. It is a child of its time.

MAURICE: There is an eternal nobility, that of the soul and the heart. It has the duty to act and the right to command when storm clouds gather over a people. Unfortunate is the people that has no such nobility and does not follow its sign. I am going to Paris to defend France and freedom—even if it means fighting against itself!

FULGENCE: In Lucile's name: Do you want me, Maurice? Then I will follow you anywhere!

MAURICE (embracing her): Fulgence, it is as if I were seeing and possessing you for the first time!

SAINT-RIVEUL: How delightful. But your heads will soon fall under the guillotine.

MAURICE: Better to die for the truth than to live for chimeras! Seventh Scene

SAINT-RIVEUL: Yes, my beautiful lovers, I will take the first ship to England, but before I leave, I would like to see my wife.

FULGENCE (quietly to Maurice): He doesn't know anything?

MAURICE (in the same manner): Let me speak... (to Saint-Riveul) Did that thought really occur to you?

SAINT-RIVEEUL: Yes, she is my wife, after all!

MAURICE: Well, never has a thought come at a better time. At this moment, Madame de Saint-Riveul is there in the chapel. She is waiting for you. Go! Go!

SAINT-RIVEUL: What's wrong with you? (walks uncertainly toward the chapel)

FULGENCE: What will he do?

MAURICE: Fear not! He will receive a shock that he will feel until the end of his days.

FULGENCE: Now he's coming out again!

SAINT-RIVEUL (like a madman, without noticing Maurice and Fulgence): Lucile! It's her, under the flowers! She seems to be asleep... beautiful... like the day I wanted to surprise her... but a corpse... And in her hand... I thought I saw... (hands to heart, with a cry) Ha! - But she can't hit me anymore... she's dead... and I, I'm alive, really alive (laughs) ha, ha, ha, but what madness! ... in her hand, as white as wax ... I saw the knife ... and that hand rose as I approached (screams) ha, am I mad? The dead cannot threaten the living ... This Lucile, whom I have desired all my life and never possessed... this Lucile still frightens me? The soul, yes, the soul, can it float around in the air and pursue us... and murder us?! The soul... if it existed... and matter, would it be nothing? ... What you see, what you can touch... my body, me, me, me... would that be nothing? Ha, ha, ha, what madness! I am strong, me, me, I have defied everyone, I am made of iron... there are theaters and girls in London. .. They exist, they move, they laugh ... far away from a white corpse and cemetery flowers (a scream) ha, the knife ... (grabs his heart). But no, she's no longer there, I'm outside the chapel. How stupid I am! And then, ... I forgot ... (pulls out his wallet and squeezes it in his hands) That, that exists! ... That is matter ... Gold, yes, living gold! ... Now off to England, ... Gold, ... yes, gold! (flees through the park).

FULGENCE: What a terrible spectacle!

MAURICE: The air is purified now that he is gone. He will not return. Let us forget him, he is dead before his grave, he is already no more.

CHORUS OF GIRLS IN THE CHAPEL:
Ave, stella maris
Ave Maria!

MAURICE: Do you hear this pure singing, floating above everything and seeming to call us to higher spheres? (She takes his hand.)

FULGENCE: Maurice, am I now your wife?

MAURICE: Yes, before God and before Lucile.

FULGENCE: Let us pray that we may love as you do! ...

MAURICE: Yes, that we may live and die as the guardian of souls!

(The curtain falls as the Ave is sung again.)