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From a dense forest of tall, dark, pinewood,
Mount Ida rises like an island.
Within a hidden cave, nymphs had kept a child;
Hermaphroditus, son of gods, so afraid of their love.
As the dawn creeps up the sky
The hunter caught sight of a doe.
In desire for conquest,
He found himself within a glade he'd not beheld before.
Hermaphroditus:
"Where are you my father
Give wisdom to your son"
(Narrator:
"Then he could go no further
Now lost, The boy was guided by the sun")
And as his strength began to fail
He saw a shimmering lake.
A shadow in the dark green depths
Disturbed the strange tranquility.
Salmacis:
"The waters are disturbed
Some creature has been stirred"
(Narrator:
"The waters are disturbed
The naiad queen Salmacis has been stirred")
As he rushed to quench his thirst,
A fountain spring appeared before him
And as his heated breath brushed through the cool mist,
A liquid voice called, "Son of gods, drink from my spring".
The water tasted strangely sweet.
Behind him the voice called again.
He turned and saw her, in a cloak of mist alone
And as he gazed, her eyes were filled with the darkness of the lake
Salmacis:
"We shall be one
We shall be joined as one"
(Narrator:
"She wanted them as one
Yet he had no desire to be one")
Hermaphroditus: "Away from me cold-blooded woman
Your thirst is not mine"
Salmacis: "Nothing will cause us to part
Hear me O Gods"
Unearthly calm descended from the sky
And then their flesh and bones were strangely merged
Forever to be joined as one.
The creature crawled into the lake.
A fading voice was heard:
"And I beg, that all who touch this spring
May share my fate"
Salmacis:
"We are the one
We are the one"
(Narrator:
"The two are now made one,
Demi-god and nymph are now made one")
Both had given everything they had.
A lover's dream had been fulfilled at last,
Forever still beneath the lake.
