Tony and Cleop Act Zero Scene Five

 

Act Zero

Scene Five

Another letter

 

‘Hello Octavia,

My name is Cleopatra Thilo of Egypt. You may have heard of me as the Queen. The namesake or rank was given to me because I was the surviving daughter of a crime lord in Egypt. Funny how that stuck with me, but my close friends called me Cleop.

If you take away the rank and the works of Egypt, I am just a woman like you. We were all entrusted to this realm by our association with the crime world. It is also ironic that I called it a crime world, for we are just a minute too small to constitute a world. A township or an organization perhaps.

Okay, here goes.

We were born to the ones who were associated with it. We lived a life where our fathers and brothers fought with their lives to make sure we were alive. I was a young girl when I was told how to use a gun. They say to take it, aim it, and shoot it. I did, and a few weeks later, I shot the boy peeking through my window. Anyway, I lived my life with boys; we do not have many girls in the families; either a gene mischief here or our father’s wish for boys.

When I was older, I got to know more about the others——what they do and how they do it. It was then that then that I was told of Rome. I got all excited then; it was new to me to know there were others like us, and I was scared because I hardly knew what Rome would do to us. In the end, I did.

The previous Caesar came to my home and told us that we needed protection. I was not sure what it what it was, but I felt I needed it. It was not my idea to be presented to Caesar, as said by many. I was an innocent child, but innocence was as good as our virginity; it just needed to be taken off with one thrust. Soon, I was the Queen; I was Queen; I was young and bitchy but I loved the adoration given. I was with Caesar and then Mark Antony.

That is the reason I am writing to you here.

After Julius, I was still the Queen, but without a leading man in my life, I was bound to be overthrown. You should know for you were married to a powerful man when you were, then another, and finally Mark, at the request of Caesar. You could have stayed away but do we really have any say in this organization??

I did not marry Mark Antony. I merely ‘wed’ him; I performed all the rites of marriage except uttering the vows of matrimony. It was a simple arrangement. Did I know he was married? Yes, I did, but again we were not married in Egypt. And whatever happens in Egypt remains in Egypt.

Mark Antony affirmed my rank as Queen, and I will skip the lessons we learned. Men are so manageable for us, the women. I guessed they never learned how to detach themselves from the milk we held in us. In Egypt, life was as usual until he was reminded that he had a wife named Fulvia (before you were one). We had our arguments and he left. No woman wants to share her lover.

Soon, he told me, or rather I was told by others, that he married you. Frivolous of men to just get married when they fancy one My contention was that that I was never married to him. He never proposed to me but claims to love me as his dear wife. I am a dumb woman and I accepted his word or shall I say love?? A wedding was all we had.

Ever since you got married to him, he has come back to me. Why? I guess we all know why but inside of me, there was this hollow feeling that I was not his wife at all. I was not Julius either, although I bore him a son. With Mark, we never did, though we enjoyed the carnal activities. (Oops, that should stay in Egypt.)

For the understanding between us, I am not his wife but one of his many lovers. You can still call yourself Mark Antony’s widow. I am just the bitch he fucked. And the wedding has been over since he died. In death, we may part but some legacies do live on beyond that.

Your husband’s bitch.’

Octavia read the letter and tossed it in the fireplace. Her comment was, “Bitch.”

 

Tony and Cleop Act Four Scene Fifteen Sub-Act One

 

Act Four

Scene Fifteen

Sub-Scene One

Last words

 

At the tomb, the Queen locked in with her maids was upset. She was making comments on the décor. It was designed by the builders and for whatever purpose, it was to be a tomb.

“Where are the paintings? No, Vermeer. Her works of daily life were inspiring.” The Queen was parading in the small chamber. She explored the shelves.

“Green Cans? Who placed them here? I am not Pop-Eyes to eat them.” The Queen tossed the cans. “Corned Beef? Gracious me. What do you take me for? A soldier on iron rations.”

“Oh Charmian, I will never leave this place.” The Queen looked at the door.

“Be comforted, my Queen. Queen. We could leave anytime. All you need to do is open the lock.” The Queen held the key on her belt.

“No, I will not. Mickey could be out in rage. I can welcome all strange and terrible events, but I despise discomfort. The size of our sorrow is proportionate to the cause of our sorrow, equivalent to this chamber, and so it must be as great as the cause.”

Then they heard the call from Demetrius from outside the tomb.

“Queen, It is me, Demetrius. You asked me...”

“What is going on? Is he dead?” The Queen asked.

“He is injured and death is approaching fast, but he is not dead. Look out from the other side of your tomb. His guards have brought him there.” Demetrius says to the Queen.

“Mickey ……” Cleop rushed to the door and inserted the key. She opened the door just as Mark Antony was carried there on the stretcher.

"Oh, Antony, Antony, Antony! Help, Charmian, Iras, help! Help, anyone. Let us draw him up here.” The Queen cradled Mark’s head.

“Be at peace, Cleop. Caesar's bravery did not overthrow me. I conquered myself with my own bravery.” Mark whispered to her.

“That is how it should be:: that no one should conquer Mark Antony except Mark Antony himself... ... What did you do?” The Queen examined the bandages. It was covered with blood.

“Who shot him?” The Queen shouted.

“I am dying, Cleop I just ask now that death hold off for a short while, until I lay the poor last kiss of many thousands of kisses on your lips.” Mark smiled. Cleop leaned over to kiss his tired eyes.

“I dare not come down to you, dear Mickey. My dear Mickey, forgive me; I dare not, for fear I will be captured. I will never serve as an ornament to adorn the triumphal procession of Caesar, for all his good fortune. If I am here, no knives have edges, serpents have teeth, or drugs have power, I will be safe from him.”

Your wife, Octavia, with her modestly lowered eyes and her silent judgments, will get no honour from gazing upon me.”

“Cleop, she would not. She is a gentle lady. I fear my words have made you......“

“Mickey, I love you.” The Queen wept. “I will hold you close to my heart.”

“Oh, be quick, or I will be dead.” Mark smiled. He could hear her heart beats.

“Do not die just yet. yet. Do so after you have out lived out my love once more. Let kissing bring you back to life. If my lips had the power to do that, I would wear them out like this.” Cleop kissed Mark on the head.

“I am dying, Queen of Egypt, dying. Give me some wine and let me speak a little.” Mark whispered.

“No, let me speak. I will complain and rant so bitterly that deceitful, treacherous Fortune will be so provoked by my insults that even the Grim Reaper will give up her power. She is a bitch like me.”

“One word, Cleop. Ask Caesar to protect your honour and your safety. Oh my head hurts.” Mark groaned in pain. “Do not trust any of Caesar's followers.”

“I will trust my determination and my own hands. I would not trust anyone around Caesar. Or himself.”

“Do not lament or be sorry for the miserable turn that my life has taken. Rather, please yourself by thinking about the great fortunes we enjoyed in the past, when I was the greatest and noblest prince in the world and you the Queen of all beauties.”

“I am a Roman who has been bravely conquered by another Roman. Now my last breath is leaving me. I cannot speak any more.” Mark smiled. “Lady Death calls for me.”

, “Mickey, what of me? Are you dying? Do you not care about me?” Cleop looked at the dying man’s eyes and saw how sad and tired they were. “Can I remain in this dull world, which will be no better than a pigsty when you are gone from. Oh, look, my maids, the greatest monarch of the earth is fading away. Mickey, my love!”

Mark Antony died.

“Oh, be calm, my Queen!” Charmian pleaded with the Queen. The Queen slumped onto Mark’s body.

“She is dead too, our Queen?" Queen?" Iras asked.

“Peace, peace, Iras. I am not dead yet.” Cleop looked at the maids.

 “I am no longer a Queen but just an ordinary woman. I am overpowered by the same unworthy emotions as any milkmaid who performs the humblest chores. It would be more fitting for me to hurl my sceptre at the gods who have injured me and tell them that this earthly world was as good as their divine world until they stole away the greatest man I ever loved.”

“Everything else is worthless. It is idiotic to be patient and endure things calmly, and to become impatient is quickly to become like a rabid dog.”

“Suicide is awfully sinful; one that rushes towards death before death comes to us naturally? Lady Death smiled at me.” 

“The Queen is mad?” Iras asked Charmian.

“I am not mad, Iras. I am just myself. A woman like all of you. How are you, my woman? woman? Do not cry. Not yet for we are all alive.” The Queen smiled. “Mark is dead but he is not a woman. Do not cry for him. him. His pains are over.”

;“How are you doing there, Charmian?” The Queen looked at Charmian. And then to the other maids “My noble ladies! Sisters by bond. Look, our lamp has run out of oil; it will be out. Good ladies, take heart. We will bury him, and then, whatever is brave or noble, we will do it in the noble Roman style; he is a Roman alive and even in death.”

“Come, away. The body that contained that great spirit is now cold. Ah, women, women! Come. The only thing that can help us is determination and the quickest possible death.” The Queen offered Mark’s body to the maids. “Heave him up and be gentle, as we women are taught to be from the day we were born. Our love, our care, and our milk shall nurture them all.”

 

 

 

 

Tony and Cleop Act Four Scene Fourteen Sub-Act Two

 

Act Four

Scene Fourteen

Sub-Scene Two

Oops….

 

“The boss is hurt.” The calls went out in the palace. The guards heard the shot and rushed to the chamber. They saw Eros dead, and the boss was slumped over the body. His head was bleeding.

“He is alive.” The one who examined Mark’s body called out. “He is coming to.”

Mark was led to the seat while Demetrius and Philo attended to him.

“What happened, Boss?” Demetrius looked toward the dead body of Eros.

“I am not dead.” Mark reached with his right hand to the wound on his head.

“Boss, the bullet grazed your head. Did Eros shoot you?” Demetrius examined the wound. “Get some bandages here. Get the doctor here.

“The gun misfired; I think.” Philo examined the gun barrel. “Bad bullet it was.”

“Leave me.” Mark called out. “I want to be alone. Take care of Eros well. He is a hero.”

The boys took Eros’ body and left their boss after bandaging his head. They took away the guns. Dem

“How could you deceive me now, God? I was going to die. Now, how can I ever see Cleop?” Mark was delirious. Outside of the chamber, Demetrius, and Philo were discussing it with the doctor.

“Boss’ wound is fatal. It was not deep but it snagged part of his blood vessels there. I could not stop the bleeding but... he may be in shock and not have much time.”

“Why can he not shoot his own balls and bleed there?” Demetrius was upset. “Where’s the bitch?”

“The Queen is in the so--named tomb. tomb. She is hiding there.” Philo sighed. “One to die and one dying......”

“Fuck it. Tell her maids that Mark Antony is dying.”

Words said and spoken are at times, exaggerated.

“I will tell him of the Queen.” Demetrius walked back to see the boss.

“Why are you here? Did the Queen send you?” Mark asked.

“The Queen is locked in her tomb. She was afraid of what she foresaw might happen.”

“The tomb? Is she dead there, as I was told?” Mark asked. “My head hurts.”

“The Queen is alive. She was in fear when you suspected her of plotting with Caesar ……something you will never find to be true.” Demetrius made up his own words. Only dead men do not lie.

“Your rage could not be overcome; she sent you a message that she was dead. But then she became afraid of what effect the news might have on you, and she sent me to tell you the truth. Now I am afraid that I' have arrived too late.”

Too late, good Demetrius? No, you are on time. Call my guard, please. Take me to her please.” Mark was pleading. “My head hurts.”

 

 

 

 

Tony and Cleop Act Four Scene Fourteen Sub-Act One

 

Act Four

Scene Fourteen

Sub-Scene One

Regrets, I held a few...

 

Mark the book off the shelf. He opened the page marked by the Queen.

It's almost morning. I would have them gone.
And yet, no farther than a wanton’s bird,
That lets it hop a little from his hand,
Like a poor prisoner in his twisted gyves,
And with a silken thread, it plucks it back again. ,
195 So loving and jealous of his liberty.

Romeo and Juliet Act 2, Scene 2, Line 180.

“Cleop, I will follow you into death. Mark spoke out. “I will weep until you forgive me. It must be like this, since any more time spent alive is torture. Since the light of my life is gone, I will end my life and go no further. Now, anything I tried to do would only make matters worse. Yes, even strength defeats itself in what it tries to do. Let me end it, then, and everything will be done.”

Mark Antony was a man defeated in battle and love. Like Romeo, he was in love with Juliet, and without her, he would rather be dead.

Irony: that love makes us sinners at times. (Just my thought.).

“Wait for me. In that place where souls sleep on flowers, we will walk hand in hand, and ghosts will gaze at us because of our cheerful demeanour. No one will pay attention to Mickey and Cleop, and the place will be ours.” Mark smiled.

“What do you want, boss?" Eros appeared.

“My Queen is dead, and my life has had such dishonour that even the gods hate how disgraceful I am.” Mark sighed. “I, who divided the world into quarters and drove across the green pastures to the high trees and to lay on the river bank, had disgraced myself by having less courage than a woman.”

“Eros, I fear living on. Her death tells Caesar that she is a Queen and no one may conquer her. Julius never did, and in comparison, I shared her life. None of us conquered her at all.”

“Eros, you have sworn your loyalty to me, right?” Mark looked at Eros. “I am your boss.”

Eros nodded.

“You would kill me on my command. Do it. The time has come. It is not me you strike at, but Caesar who haunts me. His soul darkened mine. Shoot me and end Caesar’s soul too.”

“I cannot, Boss.” Eros wept.

“Pull yourself together. Be the man before me.” Mark shouted. “Take my revolver and shoot me.”

“I am a man, boss. I …… May the gods prevent me! All of Caesar’s bullets missed their target and could not kill you. How could I kill you instead? You are my boss.”

“Eros, would you rather look down from a window in Rome and see your master displayed like this, with his arms tied, bending his neck in submission, his face subdued by penetrating shame, while lucky Caesar's drove by, indicating to everyone that the man who walked behind was disgraced?”

“No, I will not look at it.” Eros tears came down his cheek. “I love you.”

“Draw your gun. Shoot me now. You will have done me a great service.” Mark offered the revolver from the holster. “Point it at my head. Do it, like a man.”

“No, Boss. I cannot.” Eros took the revolver and then took a few steps back.

“Do it immediately, or all your previous service to me was nothing but an accident, not something you intended to do. Draw the gun and shoot.” Mark shouted. “Be the man for once.”

“Boss, turn away from me, please.” Eros said.

Mark looked away.

“My dear boss, my love, and my... God, before I strike this deadly stroke, let me say goodbye to you.”

“And it is goodbye from me too.” Mark smiled. The shot came, but there was no blood on Mark’s face. He turned and saw Eros dead. He shot himself in the heart. He committed suicide for his shame not to shoot the boos.

“Why? Why?” Mark rushed towards Eros, but the other was dead.

“You are nobler than I am. You are a better man than me... over many others.” Mark cried. "Oh, brave Eros, you taught me how to do the things that I should do and that you could not do.”

“To these brave deeds, Cleop and Eros, you are forever in my heart. As you have done, I will embrace death as willingly as a bridegroom embraces his bride and seek it as eagerly as a lover's bed.”

Mark grabbed the revolver used by Eros. Come then. Eros, I was once your master, but now I am your student. I learned how to do this from you.”

Tony and Cleop Act Four Scene Thirteen Sub-Act One

 

Act Four

Scene Thirteen

Sub-Scene One

Love quotes

 

The boss and his trusted lieutenant entered the library at the palace. He paced to the shelves of books and smiled.

“I bought those books for her. She was not a good reader, but she read them all to me.” Mark Antony took one of the books out. It was the Great Works of Shakespeare.

“She loved Romeo and Juliet.” Mark Antony smiled.

“These violent delights have violent ends.
And in their triumph, die, like fire and powder,
Which they kiss consume. The sweetest honey
Is loathsome in his own deliciousness?
And the taste confounds the appetite.
Therefore, love moderately; long love doth so;
Too swift arrives as tardy as too slow.”

Romeo and Juliet; Shakespeare.

“I much prefer Othello. "It was rare for a Moor to be the lead, and for his jealousy, he was destroyed.” Mark Antony smiled.

“O, beware, my lord, of jealousy.
It is the green-eyed monster that mocks
The meat it feeds on.”

“I was jealous …… no, envious …… that Cleop then fell for Julius. She was more beautiful than most ladies, and she still is. I loved... no, I lust after her as others were then. I was married to Fulvia, but sometimes lust can dribble out of your ears when confronted.” Mark Antony confessed. “Like pus out of an infected wound.”

“Darn it, Eros. I love her.” Mark placed the book back.

“Eros, do you still see me as your boss?”

“Yes, Boss. Does Romeo see Juliet? I love you too.” Eros smiled.

“Sometimes we see a cloud that looks like a dragon, and sometimes a mist that looks like a bear or a lion, like a fortress with towers, an overhanging rock, or a mountain with many peaks. Or clouds that change with every breeze.” Mark smiled.

“Sometimes we see a blue rock with trees on it that shake before our eyes and make mockeries of our sight since they are made only of air. You have seen the signs. They are the apparitions that tell us night and death are coming.”

“Yes, Boss, but I also believed in turnaround. Nothing is as seen.” Eros said, but the boss ignored him.

“We see a shape that now looks like a horse, and even as we think about it, the cloud dims and makes the shape indistinct, like one drop in a body of water.” Mark continued his ramblings.

“It does, Boss.” Eros affirmed what his boss wanted to hear.

“My good man, Eros, your boss' mind behaves in just the same way now. I am myself for now, but I cannot maintain these thoughts for long, my boy. I went to war for the sake of Egypt and the Queen. I fought Rome for her. I wanted Egypt to be on its own.”

“No more looking for Caesar for protection. I thought I had the Queen's love, for she had mine, and when I did love her, I also had the love of a thousand more people—my boys, which I have now lost.”

“Now, she has concocted a plot with Caesar and Eros against me. She betrayed me so that an enemy might defeat me and destroy my glory. Her betrayal was deep inside me too. She cut my soul with it.”

“No, do not weep, gentle Eros. We still have enough of our own power to put an end to our lives.” The boss smiled. It was then that Mardian arrived.

“Mark Antony, I heard you there. To be true, my Queen loved you, and her fate was inseparable from yours.” Mardian said.

“Get out, you shameless eunuch! Speak one more word, and I will remove your prick. Be quiet! She has betrayed me, and she will die as she deserves.” 

“A person can only die once, and the Queen has done that. What you intended to do for her, she has done for you.” Mardian sighed.

“The Queen... is Cleop dead?”

“The last words she spoke were, "Mark Antony, most loving Mickey!" Then she broke off in the middle of saying your name to let out a heart-rending groan. She spoke half of the word; the other half remained in her heart. She died with your name buried inside her.”

“She is dead, then?”

“Dead. My Queen is dead.”

“Go. I will... just go.” Mark dismissed the eunuch. “Go.”

“Eros, take off my guns. It will not protect me from the pain in my heart. Oh, if only my sides would burst open! I wish my heart were stronger than the weak body that contains it and cracks open.” Mark pulled at the straps.

“Quickly, Eros, quickly. I am no longer a soldier. Let these damaged pieces of the holster and the guns be cast aside. I wore them nobly. Eros, leave me alone for a while.”

Eros leaves the boss.

 

 

Tony and Cleop Act Four Scene Twelve Sub-Act Two

 Act Four

Scene Twelve

Sub-Scene Two

Bitches’ weeps

 

The Queen in her anger, had reached her chamber. She saw her maids preparing her next meal. Mardian was there to make sure the Queen was safe. It was aa time of turmoil and the Queen must be protected. He has yet to tell her that the fleet had returned, but the sailors were in the heat to do a mutiny. a mutiny. They are upset at their Queen for sending them to a battle in which they may not have returned.

“The swallows were a bad omen.” The sailors are brave men, but when they served the ship on the sea, the one other fear of theirs was to die there at sea.

“Neptune is kind to us and provides us with passage through his realm. If he is upset, he will raise the waves with the strong winds, and the sharks will come around. Even the crocodiles will emerge from the mud and watch with green eyes.”

“We worship Neptune, and he gives us the warnings. The birds carry his message far. The seagulls are his messengers, and if ignored, the other birds will take offense upon us and rain us with pelts on the heads.”

“The Queen had ignored the warnings.”

The captains had held back their anger with their words, but words are as good as the breeze. It may be felt, but it does not move their anger. They ditched their oars and sat on the decks.

“Help me, my maids! Oh, he is angrier than... the sun when it refuses to rise. at dawn.  He mouths profanities and more rage.” The Queen sat down on the seat. “How could he do that?”

“Defeat on the second occasion had derailed his mind.” Alexas said. “You must avoid him.”

“Go to your sacred tomb!” The Queen had designed a secured room for her to seek shelter in if the palace was ever invaded. It was built of steel and was only accessible from inside when locked. It held her personal gifts, and the supplies there were for a month. There was a secret passage to the river if she ever needed to get out.

“Lock yourself inside and send him a message that you are dead.” Alexas said.

“When a great man loses his greatness, he falls lower than anyone. “Iras said, and then looked at Mardian.

“His greatness goes farther from him than the soul goes from the body in death.” Mardian added. “Only the stronger ones may overtake that greatness and be the man he was.”

Wise words of a man who was unmade of that, but then he stood taller than most in his works.

“Yes, to the tomb I must go!” The Queen was in panic, and then she looked to Mardian.

“Mardian, go tell him I have killed myself. Tell him the last word I spoke was "Mickey," and please fill your voice with pity when you say it.”

“My Queen.” Mardian dropped to his knees.

“Get going, Mardian, and tell me how he reacts to the news of my death. I shall listen from the tomb.”

 

 

 

 

 

Tony and Cleop Act Four Scene Twelve Sub-Act One

 

Act Four

Scene Twelve

Sub-Scene One

You bitch!

 

“But are they are still not fighting. I will go over to where that messenger stands.” Mark rushed to the observation point overlooking the sea. His fleet had engaged Caesar’s fleet, but the Queen’s ships were staying away from the battle.

“Where are the other ships?” Mark was upset. “The Queen told me her fleet would join us in attack.”

On the ships of Egypt, the crews were looking at the sails. The swallows that nestled there were in a frenzy, some of them attacking the nests there. The superstitious ones lament that it was a bad omen.

“The swallows fight among themselves. They are killing the other nestling.” The crews ran to their captains. captains. “It is a bad omen.”

On the flagship of the fleet, Captain Ojumbo was consulting the soothsayer on the ship.

“Maria, what does the sign say?’

“The birds rebelled and killed their young. It is aa sign that the parents were in a fight; the children suffered. We are the children here. We are to suffer. Let us withdraw for the children we are now; we; we need not get involved.”

It was then that the captain received a letter from the Queen. He then turned to the sailor who was manning the signal flags.

“We go home.”

On land, Mark was depressed. His fleet was shot and sunk in the sea.

“All is lost! That foul Queen of Egypt has betrayed me. My fleet has surrendered to the enemy, and down there, they throw their caps in the air and drink together like long-lost friends.” Mark was in a rage.

“That whore, who betrayed three men! Julius, me, and Octavius, poor young Caesar. It is you, Cleopatra, who has sold me out to this boy Caesar, and my anger is directed only at you.”

Scarface approached his boss.

“Tell all my forces to flee, for all I intend to do now is take revenge on this woman who bewitched me. Tell them all to flee. Get going!”

Scarface rushed off.

Mark looked at the setting sun. It was a splendid view but with the defeat of the fleet, it was a sign of his failure.

His new setting is Rome.

"Oh, Sun, I will never see you rise again. This is when I lose all my luck; at this very moment, I bid it goodbye.”

“How has it all come to this? Those ones whom I called my boys; fawned on me with all their hearts, whose wishes I granted, fall away from me and fawn now on Caesar with his growing good fortune, and I am destroyed even though I was once greater than all of them.”

“God, I am betrayed. Oh, this treacherous Queen of Egypt! This deadly enchantress, who decided when I went to war and when I brought my armies home, whose love was my main goal and greatest glory, has cheated me like a true gypsy and tricked me until I lost everything.” Mark once knew the agony of being defeated.

The Queen then appeared before him.

“Mickey.” Cleop called him his nickname

“Witch! Get away from here!”

“Why are you upset? Mickey, are you angry with our love?” Cleop asked.

“I am not Mickey. I am Mark Antony to you and to all who wish to speak to me.” The man was upset. He looked toward the Queen.

“Get away, or I will give you what you deserve and diminish the glory of Caesar's triumphal procession. His father did with the others: Madame, whores, and their daughters.”

“I am not a whore.” The Queen shouted.

“You act like one. Let him take you and display you in public in front of the screaming boys! Follow his vehicle as they lead the parade Yours will be the most disgraced woman that has ever lived. Be displayed like a spectacle for fools, for the common people to stare at, and let long-suffering Octavia scratch your face with the nails she has sharpened for you.”

“I bear the dungeon within me; within me is winter, ice, and despair; I have darkness in my soul.” The Queen quoted from the Hunchback of Notre Dame.

In The Hunchback of Notre Dame, people are primarily judged on their appearances rather than their internal characters. Victor Hugo argues, however, that appearances can be deceiving and that judging people based on how they look can often cause people to be treated unfairly and even ostracized by society. (https://brainly.ph/question/30532722#:~:text=Answer%3A,and%20even%20ostracized%20by%20society.).

“Do forth with yours. You do not belong here.” Mark shooed her off. The Queen in her anger, spat at the others and left. left. Mark Antony sighed in relief at watching the Queen leave. leave. His thoughts were towards her well-being.

“It is good that you are gone if you wish to remain alive, but it would have been better if you had fallen prey to my anger. Then your death and mine might have prevented the deaths of many others.”

Mark then called on Eros. “Where are you, Eros?” 

“I feel as if I were carrying the world on my shoulders, as Atlas had then. We are alike, cast away by our leader, and banished to hold the burden.” Mark Antony gave out his thoughts.

“Julius, my Caesar, Rome was created hugely by you in seven years, and yet you were taken of it with your life extinguished by those who stole from it. I pray that you will show me how to show my anger as you should.”

“If there are any more Brutus, let me destroy them, and with my own hands...... My bare knuckles that were bloodied from the flesh of the enemies, I once wielded the heaviest weapons——guns that killed many.”

“That Queen, she is indeed a witch... ... ...... Cleop will die. She sold me to that young Roman boy Caesar, and I am destroyed by her plot. She will die for it though I loved her so much. so much. Our deaths will be the end of our lives, but our love will carry on. Let Lucifer suffer alone; we will rejoice in suffering together.”

“Eros, hey there! Where are you?” Mark called but no one appeared.

 

 

 

Tony and Cleop Act Four Scene Eleven Sub-Act One

 Act Four

Scene Eleven

Sub-Scene One

 

Caesar had retreated outside of Dodger City, regrouping his boys. He had not anticipated the strength of Mark Antony then. He had banked on the ex-boys to do their best on the front, but they retreated under pressure or surrendered to Mark Antony. Agrippa had escaped but he was wounded in the left arm.

“We were not outgunned, but we lost the battle because the ex-boys were just not in the mood to fight. Our own boys fought but due to the limited weapons … most of our guns were all sent back to Rome.”

“Whose orders were those?" those?" Caesar asked

“Your, Caesar. You said you needed it there for storage.” Agrippa looked at Caesar.

“Let Lepidus out. He will know how to handle Mark Antony.” Agrippa told Caesar.

“No, Lepidus stays there.” Caesar walked away.

“Return to Rome.” Caesar shouted out. “We will fight the next battle as we did before. I still have my surprises.”

Meanwhile, across the land, the Queen returns to Egypt. She had a meeting with Mardian then.

“You were there. Tell me your assessment of the battle.”

“My Queen, Caesar had relied on the previous boys from Mark Antony but those were cowards or lack of focus to fight. They ran when they saw their previous boss. There is still a fear for Mark Antony.”

“Mark Antony is a God to them.” The Queen said. “I am impressed.”

“A mad God is how I see it.” Mardian cut in.

“Do not be rude, Mardian. He is still my lover.” The Queen looked at the others. others. “Till he is not, he remains the God of love.”

“My Queen, a messenger arrived from Caesar.” The messenger told the Queen.

“I am...”

“I do not care who you are. Tell me the message.” The Queen cut off the messenger’s words. “I am busy.”

“Caesar sends over a letter.” The messenger handed the letter toto the Queen. Queen. Mardian intercepted the letter and then handed it over. He was concerned about the messenger harming the Queen. The messenger left soon after. The Queen read the letter and then looked at Mardian.

“We have to discuss something important.”

 

 

Tony and Cleop Act Four Scene Ten Sub-Act One

 

Act Four

Scene Ten

Sub-Scene One

Second naval battle

 

“They're preparing to fight by sea today. They are not happy fighting us on land.” Mark studied the reports. “Caesar is grouping off the coasts. He sailed his ships from Sea Port to here. And here.”

“They are on land too. I read the reports earlier. They are preparing to fight by both land and sea, Boss.” Scarface promoted to senior lieutenant, was the adviser then. 

“I wish they had fought in the air. Like those flying cardboards. They are not, but we will fight them there too.” Mark was in the mood for a fight. “Our boys up on the hills beside the city will stay with us. They will drive the T-Ford on my call.”

“The seamen; I picked them well. Good men, and this time, they know to battle at sea. I have given the orders for our preparations at sea. The ships have left the port. Let us go up higher to get a vantage view, where we can better observe their battle plans and watch what they are doing.”

“The Queen’s ships will join us here. We will do a pincer move on Caesar this time.” Mark laughed.

 

 

Tony and Cleop Act Four Scene Nine Sub-Act One

 

Scene Nine

Sub-Scene One

The death of one

 

The infirmary at Caesar’s camp in the nearby town of Amsterdam, a small town of five thousand then, had a huge hall there and was furnished to be the nursing centre by Caesar for the wounded. On that day, it was filled to the brim by the wounded brought there by the trucks.

“Get me some bandages, nurse.” Doctor Goodwin called out while he tried to keep the wound from losing more blood. “Hurry up there.”

The good doctor was a veteran of the Romans’s battles, and he was used to the sight of many dying boys. He had done his share in the numerous battles, or drive-by shootouts. He was not even dressed in the white coat, but the overall red colour served him well. He had on his rubber gloves and resorted to using his elbows to rub the itch on his chin.

“Bandages, Nurse.”

“Coming, Doctor. I am looking for some.” Nurse Gray called back. They were short of nurses, bandages, and everything else needed by the doctor. Even the black coffee.

“Where is my coffee?” Doctor Goodwin called out. “I am seeing double here.”

“I have double tits, if you are looking.” Nurse Gray said. “Your coffee is... Fuck, someone poured it over that guy’s wound. We ran out of clean water.”

“It will work. The coffee is cleaner than the... Who poured my coffee?” Doctor Goodwin was experiencing withdrawal symptoms from caffeine.

“Doctor, the old man needs care.” Nurse Florence called out. The nurse led the older man to the nearest chair. “Stay here, and we will attend to you.”

“Thank you, Nurse.” The one who sat was Enobarbus. He was holding his chest with his hands. He saw the wounded boy; it was familiar, but he could not place the name.

“Son, were you in the battle?”

“Yes, Boss. I was. If the others do not come to pull us out, we will have to return here in wooden boxes. They brought us out and then told us we were to go back in the morning. It was then that I got shot.”

“That last attack was a bad one for us.” The other boy on the far side spoke. “Peter got it in the chest. Me? I was shot in the butt.”

“Boss, are you hurt?” The first boy whom Enobarbus spoke to asked.

“I am……. Please bear witness to my words. …... Bear witness to me, oh you blessed moron: when the time comes that those who rebelled are remembered with hatred, remember that poor Enobarbus repented before you for rebelling.”

“Confession, Boss?” The first boy asked. “I may say it better. Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff comfort me.”

“Oh, you moron, I am telling you that royal mistress of genuine melancholy, pour down the poisonous mists of night upon me, so that I may no longer live, now that I no longer wish to.” Enobarbus struggled to speak. “She poisoned me to betray my boss.”

“I …….” The first boy was cut off by Enobarbus.

“Take my heart and throw it against my sin. which is weak from grief. It will burst into pieces, and all my bitterness with the thoughts will end with my death.” Enobarbus felt his spirit was leaving his body.

“Mark Antony, your nobility is even greater than my fault, which is terrible. I wish that you would forgive me for those sins that I have committed against you, but I want the rest of the world to remember me as a deserter and someone who abandoned his master. I…….  Oh Antony! Oh, Antony! “Enobarbus collapsed on the seat.

“He is asleep. The first boy said, “Or I think he fainted. No one ever said such a despairing prayer to lull themselves to sleep.”

“Wake up, sir, wake up. Speak to us.” The second boy limped over. “Can you hear us, Boss?”

“Death has struck him down,” Nurse Florence said as she approached the dead old man.

“Come on, then. He might still wake up.” The first boy protested.

“Do you want someone to attend to your stomach? You are spilling your guts there.” Nurse Florence looked at the boy. “You are still young and may still live. He is gone. Heaven or Hell will take him, but here I am to take you to the doctor.”

“Who the fuck throws my coffee away?” The nurse heard the doctor.

“That doctor will see you soon. Then make him a cup of coffee. He deserves it or you will die regretting not doing it.”