Parnasso in festa his own love life, when, enamoured of the nymph Daphne, he pursued her with lustful intent, but she prayed to the gods to be spared and was transformed into a laurel tree. As if embarrassed by this story, Apollo invites all to join him in drinking in praise of Bacchus. Mars, god of war, leads everyone in a drinking song, and Clio joins in the spirit of things so much that she begins to feel inebriated, much to the amusement of Orpheus' mother, Calliope, muse of epic poetry, and the chorus. The muses sing in turn in praise of Orpheus'
Poetry and the Gods "to blend into one glorious whole all the beauty that the world hath known before, and to write words wherein shall echo all the wisdom and the loveliness of the past." This consummate poet is to be the harbinger of the gods' awakening. He was chosen not only by the gods themselves, but by select poets whom Zeus and Apollo granted immortality and honor. In turn, these six poets come forth and contribute lines of verse: Homer, Dante, Goethe, Shakespeare, Milton, and Keats. They continue until just before dawn, and Hermes carries Marcia back to her house. Years later, Marcia