Deianira enters in a panic. She had wiped Nessus's blood on the cloak with a small piece of wool. When she threw that piece on the ground in the sun, it shrivelled, decayed, and brought forth from the earth a terrible bilious poison. She realized the centaur had been lying to her when he gave it to her-- and why would he do otherwise? He wouldn't offer her a tool to woo Heracles, his murderer; he offered instead a tool of revenge.
It was a trap the whole time.
The Chorus tells her to wait and see. Maybe it will all be OK.
Hyllus immediately enters in agony, though, accusing Deianira of murdering Heracles. He witnessed it himself: Lichas approached Heracles with the cloak as he was preparing a sacrifice to the gods. During the sacrifice, in front of the flames, the poison did its work. Heracles first accused Lichas of treachery, who tried to explain only what he knew. Heracles swung him by his ankle and smashed his head against a rock anyway. In great pain, Heracles called for Hyllas to carry him home.
Hyllas formally accuses Deianira of killing the best of men. Deianira slinks away.
The Chorus realizes the prophecy has come true in the bad way. It actually said that the twelve years would bring an end to the toils of Heracles-- and so they have. And done in by the jealousy of a woman! Looks like Aphrodite is behind it all.
Nurse enters. Deianira killed herself on her wedding bed, stabbed through with a sword. (When she pulled out the sword, the nurse ran to tell Hyllas. Instead of, you know, getting the sword out of her hands.) Having lost his mother and father on the same day to a murder-suicide, Hyllas is distraught, and partly blames himself for being so hard on Deianira.
The Chorus is looking for some good news among the misery, and not finding it. Finally, a throng of men carrying the body of Heracles enter, bringing him home at last.
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