Rome has received a duplicate of a form.
When Rome sends forms, it has heavier wax forms sent afterwards. This prevents destruction of records.
The wax tablet has news that threatens all of Roman Africa. It has news that should have been the highest priority for the governor of Africa.
The wax was somewhat damaged, but the context was mostly intact.
What reached Gallienus was a diplomatic landline.
A Roman citizen in Africa was struck by his son breaking patria potestas.
It could be argued the son was acting in defense of a foreign dignitary. However, that brings internal unrest.
You support the son; you are against Rome. Support the father, or you might start a war with the Garamentes.
The Senate called an emergency session.
The Senate is thick in debate.
"Gallienus is in northern Italia; it will take him too long to reach this Tanit-Zana."
"What do you suggest we let war come to Africa?"
The consul raises his right hand.
"This matter concerns Africa; I believe the honorable Marcus Magon should speak.
As one of the Curia turns, look at Senator Magon.
"From what we can deduce, this Tanit-Zana is the daughter of a very influential Garamente noble."
"While the exact number of wells they control isn't known, any amount larger than none is dangerous."
Titus of the gens Claudii interrupts, spurred on by curiosity and genuine concern.
"The daughter of some well owner isn't Rome's largest concern. Whoever intercepted the original form is. My cousin owns hundreds of wells on his lands, and he isn't a possible usurper."
Senator Magon sighs and grits his teeth before a lecture on basic geography.
"Honorable Titus, your cousin owns several estates in Italia, not the Sahara. If he owned wells in the Sahara, he would rival Crassus in wealth."
"Wells are a matter of life and death; they tell you where to travel in the desert. The true danger isn't missing forms; it is war with the Garamente."
Others agree and oppose Magon.
"Rome can defeat these nomads; we have Palmyran cavalry."
"Rome has enough problems; we should just give the well master some slaves and be done with it."
"I say we make this an internal dispute and have the court ignore the whole foreigner aspect entirely. We take no sides and anger no one."
Senators begin yelling at one another as the Curia descends into bickering.
Antoninus rises.
"Conscript fathers Titus and Magon both raise important issues. War in Africa is ruinous, and a lost form is dangerous. We depend on these forms to govern the provinces. Whatever absconded with the original form from our records must be addressed."
The Senate calms down; men sit with hands no longer waving about.
The consul, seeing this, decides to call another senator for clarification.
"The issue then is, as Quintus Meno, you are the main architect of these forms. What say you?"
Quintus stands; his toga follows the heavy wool, a burden and a symbol of his rank.
"Conscript fathers, when a form of such monumental portents is sent, the ship does not go on a lone clipper. It is accompanied by triremes or at least guards. The form's disappearance isn't accidental. The sea is no longer ours."
The silence that follows is louder than the Colosseum. War in Africa is bad; losing control of the sea is catastrophic.
Quintus sits down, his knowledge spent.
The Senate debates how to solve both problems.
"We must delay it; it will take months for Gallienus to reach Carthage. By the time he gets there, it will be too late."
"We have a series of bribes sent to the Garamantes."
"Have someone investigate where the original ships went."
The Senate still debates when Marius enters.
Now Marius is an elder statesman, so entering mid-session isn't odd. Some of the less aware elders arrive much later.
What isn't standard is Zenobia draped not in eastern silk but in a senatorial toga.
She stands rigid as if she were carved from marble.
Her toga is worn just like every senator's in the Curia.
Marius wanted her to be a proper senator.
Zenobia wanted to make a statement.
Her toga was the perfect blend of both their desires.
For a moment the worries of the empire are forgotten. Here stands Septimia Zenobia, not foreign, not mocking, and stoic.
The Senate watches as Marius takes a seat, leaving Zenobia in the middle of the Curia.
"Conscript fathers, I stand before you a servant of the empire. I will serve the republic to the best of my abilities."
The senate is still quiet when Zenobia takes out a wax tablet.
"In Palmyra we have several copies of the same petition sent in wax."
"The east is dangerous, and the desert can devour the inattentive."
"I implemented these wax tablets to ensure the voice of the people reaches the emperor."
"Should Rome desire it, I shall fund the expansion of wax tablets."
Before anyone can respond or ruin the moment, the consul stands.
"I call a discussion on the matter."
At first, no one moves. Some out of spite ingrained in them as children. Others are unsure, scared to support a woman.
The Senate is frozen until one brave soul tired of the waiting walks to support theax motion.
"I may hold to the beliefs of my ancestors, but we need a failsafe for lost forms. If it comes from the lips of an Eastern woman, so be it.
One by one, the senators rise up and walk to either oppose or support the motion.
Some senators vote against wax simply because Zenobia is a woman.
Others vote for the motion to curry favor with the wife of Odenathus.
Some vote against the motion, worried the state cannot afford wax copies.
Some vote for it out of a belief their empire would be better served in the long term with WAX.
Zenobia stands there and sees her motion passed.
Triumphant, she marches to vote for her own motion.
It is slow, painfully slow for her opponents. However, it isn't for her; she basks in the moment. She is the first female senator, and her first motion was accepted.
If she could, she would just for joy.
Carthage
Down in North Africa, the desert doesn't care for the slow reforms of the Senate. The governor has to mediate between two very powerful factions, the citizens and the foreigners.
The poor judge, Celer Norbanus, is hounded by the governor, the legate, and letters from the Senate. All of which boil down to, if you make the situation worse, you die.
On one side is Tiberius Pulcher, a veteran, respected member of Roman society. The other is his son Clarus Pulcher. The facts of the case are as follows. The father has the right of Patria potestas; the son brought a foreign girl, and the father, within his right, admonished the son physically.
The son, meanwhile, acted in defense of a foreign woman who is not subject to the Roman laws regarding fatherhood. Furthermore, the petition was defamatory of the woman in question. Beginning with the fact her name isn't Tanit Zana. It is Taznit n-Znat, and she is no desert wench. She is daughter of Gurzil n-Znat master of the three wells.
The courtroom is a marvel of Roman engineering. The architect made a small villa for a Roman senator inside the city. After many, many sales it was converted to a courthouse.
The trial is held near a rectangular pool of water, the impluvium. The courtroom itself has the defendant and prosecutor on opposite sides of this pool.
The room itself is much cooler than Africa's climate usually allows, a boon from the room's design.
This room is only ever used for high-profile cases that can never be seen by the public.
The matter isn't forms or wax; what matters to everyone here is whether or not the father will stop this marriage.
The judge couldn't give two dead slaves who wins; all he wants is to prevent a war.
If he could, he would scream.