Trumpets sound. Enter Antony and Eros, meeting Scarus
SCARUS The gods make this a happy day to Antony!
ANTONY Would thou and those thy scars had once prevailed
To make me fight at land!
SCARUS Hadst thou done so,
The kings that have revolted, and the soldier
That has this morning left thee, would have still
Followed thy heels.
ANTONY Who’s gone this morning?
SCARUS Who?
One ever near thee. Call for Enobarbus,
He shall not hear thee, or from Caesar’s camp
Say ‘I am none of thine’.
ANTONY What say’st thou?
SCARUS Sir,
He is with Caesar. (4.5.1-10)
Into battle mode, or so it seems: trumpets, and here’s Antony and Eros, encountering a soldier (named by the Oxford editors as Scarus, but it could simply be a random soldier, as other editions and the Folio have it; there’s clearly a problem as later on the folio gives some lines to Eros that don’t make sense coming from him). The gods make this a happy day to Antony! Good luck! Antony’s rueful: would thou and those thy scars had once prevailed to make me fight at land! If only I’d pursued a land battle last time, rather than that disastrous encounter by sea at Actium! Everyone advised it, and the scars you bear reproach me with it now. All Scarus can do is agree: hadst thou done so, the kings that have revolted , and the soldier that has this morning left thee, would have still followed thy heels. Well yes, if you’d fought on land last time, you wouldn’t be suffering this endless stream of desertions, by both the petty kings who were backing you, and the men too—but—the soldier here seems particular, and the detail that he left this morning is specific. What’s going on? Antony perhaps senses something’s up, or else he’s used to this, used to hearing bad news, even making a joke of it: why, who’s gone this morning? who’s buggered off now, then? Scarus can’t believe he doesn’t know already: who? one ever near thee. One of your closest mates, your right-hand man. And a chill must start to run through the audience: he’s actually done it? Scarus confirms: call for Enobarbus, he shall not hear thee, or from Caesar’s camp say ‘I am none of thine’. It’s Enobarbus, go on, give him a shout. He’s gone, he won’t hear you, and if he does, he’ll say no thanks, I quit. We are officially no longer friends.
What say’st thou? Antony can’t believe it, is clearly shocked, devastated—Scarus changes tack or at least tone, it’s not just a confirmation, it’s a clarification which could be mocking (did you not hear me the first time? did you really not know?) or else suddenly gentle, seeing the devastation (hell, did Antony really not know?) and being polite, formal, respectful: Sir, he is with Caesar. Enobarbus has gone, deserted, betrayed his leader and his friend.