Now the blackeners returned. They expressed their astonishment and discomfort over the white bright world of the
woods and immediately started their craft of blackening everything. Thus all the bright luminosity faded again - the brightness of the moon too; all beings sank into deep sleep again, and Mani too was overcome again by a deep tiredness.

Then the blackeners opened the mountain again with their burnt-out mandrakes, passed the dark-blue scintillating dragon once more and entered the yawning gap where they turned the cave, and all the white men sitting there in restful alertness, black again.

When they touched the first of the luminous heroes with their black colour, the deep-blue valkyries came chasing again on nightly ways, entered the dark mountain, followed by their wind-fanners, and again gave the restfully alert men the deep-blue potion from their dark-blue tumblers. Thus the men sank into dark sleep again. After the deep-blue eagles had once more fanned the dark winds in the whole cavern, they turned into dark cocks, sat down on the same high places and watched over the sleep of the heroes.

After some time the cocks turned into crows and proclaimed to the blind the means by which to attain their eyesight again.

Then the valkyries rode away again like shadows, followed by their wind-fanners - like they had come.
And wherever the hooves of their horses touched the ground, dark healing sources sprang up again, on which deep-blue water-lilies grew. And no sooner had the blackeners left the dark cave than the deep-black gap closed again behind them.