(Anežka lights a candle in the quiet, dim chapel, arranging flowers at the altar. Suddenly, Pastor Ondrej enters, his shadow long and looming in the flickering light.)
Pastor Ondrej
"Anežka, my child, you serve with grace,
Yet burdened eyes and weary face—
Have you no shelter here in faith?
Or has some soul usurped my place?"
Anežka
(lowering her gaze)
"Father, I'm here to serve and pray,
To walk the Lord's and humbler way.
What brings this shadow to your tone,
What troubles thee when I'm alone?"
(Pastor Ondrej steps closer, his voice deepening, resonant with a dark insistence.)
Pastor Ondrej
"I speak of duty, yours to me,
A holy bond, our destiny.
Against temptation, stay not far—
'Tis holy will, my guiding star."
(He reaches out, his hands grazing her shoulder, lingering. Anežka instinctively steps back, her face pale.)
Anežka
"Father, please! Your words they twist—
A foul intent in shadowed mist!
I serve the Lord and not to yield
To desires that men keep concealed."
(Ondrej's face contorts, a cruel smile forming as his voice hardens.)
Pastor Ondrej
"Defy me not, for I am His—
The chosen voice, the hand that is.
You fight in vain; in me, you see
The sacred will, your destiny."
(With sudden boldness, he clutches her arm, drawing her close. She resists, her trembling voice fierce but restrained.)
Anežka
"Release me, Father! Do not dare
To taint this sacred house with scare!
I serve no lust, I walk with grace,
And cast no sins upon this place!"
(Ondrej ignores her pleas, his grip tightening as he begins to pull at her robes, his whispers now venomous.)
Pastor Ondrej
"You think you're free, untouched by man?
Submit, you cannot change God's plan.
What Kazimir stirs within your soul—
A puppet's game, a wretched goal.
For in his hands, you're naught but clay,
To mold and cast, then throw away."
(Anežka, summoning her courage, lands a hard slap across his face. She pulls free, rushing toward the door. Her voice, shaken yet resolute, rises as she retreats.)
Anežka
"I am no pawn, no man's decree—
I answer only to what's free.
My heart is clear, unbound by shame,
And I shall bear no twisted claim!"
(As she slips through the door, Ondrej shouts after her, his mask of piety now fallen, replaced with open scorn.)
Pastor Ondrej
"Run, then, foolish harlot, flee!
But think not you escape from me.
For in this world, to him, to me,
You're naught but dust, a memory."
(He grabs a chalice of wine for communion, draining it in furious gulps. The scene ends with the wine dripping down his chin as he watches the door close behind her, fury blazing in his eyes.)