The light of dawn shone upon Rome’s marble buildings, quickly illuminating the darkened streets and waking up those who were asleep. Lightning Bolt was no exception. With the soft morning light that poured into his temple, it gently nudged him awake. Wiping the sleep from his eyes, he grudgingly rose up from his oversized bed and headed towards the leftover offerings from the previous night.
After his uneventful breakfast, he began putting on his armor before a knock on the huge metal doors interrupted him. “Who is it?” the pegasus asked, slipping on his back-armor.
“The Emperor of Rome and Senator Cato Felix wish to gain an audience with you,” the High Priest announced. Bolt gave his permission to enter while he strapped the armor across his withers.
Both of the brass doors swung open, in which Titus and the bird-like Senator walked in, both of whom saluted him. “Hail Jupiter!”
The pegasus rolled his eyes. “Good morning, now what do you want?”
“Well,” Cato began, “we’re here for two reasons. Firstly, how you are doing this morning?”
“I’m fine, I suppose,” Bolt started to step into his golden boots, “but I think I’ll need a bath sooner or later. I don’t know when the last time I bathed was.”
“That can be taken care of,” Titus informed him. “If you like, I can offer you my private baths for you to cleanse yourself.”
“Thanks, and what was the other reason you’re here?”
“I’m glad you asked.” The Emperor gestured over to Cato. “You see, since you were in somewhat of a foul mood yesterday, Felix here suggested a great idea that would make you feel more welcomed in Rome. Perhaps helping you have some fun while showing off the best customs might help you recover.”
“So in other words, you want me to go around doing stuff, like what?”
“Well, since you asked for a bath,” the skinny human suggested, “perhaps we’ll let you do that first, and afterward we could take you out to see some of the games here in the city.”
Titus snapped his fingers. “And I know just the thing! An old-fashioned chariot race in the Circus Maximus should do it. After all, since it’s now spring, it should be the perfect weather to watch. Although, since there are still a few petitions I need to hear first, how about we go to the games after lunch?”
Lightning Bolt finished by putting on his helmet. “Since I’m not really able to go anywhere, I’ve got nothing better to do.”
The Solar Guard followed the two men out of the temple, seeing that the Emperor’s guards were keeping his worshipers at a reasonable distance to make a clear path to the Imperial chariot. As Bolt trotted over next to the chariot, his eyebrow was raised at the two large equines that were strapped to the yoke of a carrier. There were two of them that were as tall as the Princesses he knew, only both of them had brown coats and charcoal black manes.
“Good morning,” he said to them. The two horses turned their necks to them but said nothing, “It’s kind of a bit refreshing to find someone familiar faces amongst this crowd. So who are you two?”
Again, they didn’t say anything.
“Not much for talking, aren't ya?” the Captain asked, hearing the Emperor laughing behind him. “What?”
“What are you doing?” Titus chuckled as he hopped on the chariot.
“I was trying to have some small talk with them.” He turned to the horses. “Apparently, they don’t really say much.”
“Lord Jupiter,” Cato chuckled as well, “surely you jest. Everyone knows that horses don’t talk.”
The pegasus blinked. “They don’t?”
“Of course not!” The Senator walked into the chariot. “They’re just beasts of burden after all, as well as tamed animals.”
Lightning Bolt was completely taken aback. Never in his life did he expect to encounter a member of his own species that wasn’t as intelligent as he was. They were… animals, and the fact that Cato had said that they were “trained” sent a chill down his spine.
“Are you going to get into the chariot or will you be flying?” Caesar asked. Bolt spread his wings and hovered next to the Imperial chariot, following them through the marble streets.
“Titus,” Bolt asked, “would you mind if I asked you about something in this place works?”
“Of course, what do you want to know?”
“Slavery.” Both Caesar and Senator looked up at him, asking what brought this up. “Last night, I made a friend of a musician who said that she and her family were in deep debt and that the only way that any of them could get out of it is to sell themselves.”
“So?” Cato inquired. “It’s not unusual for someone to find themselves as slaves whenever their debts are due. It’s rather noble to settle them through hard work.”
“But in my friend’s case, she’s been separated from her family because of this. Where I come from, ponies don’t go into slavery because they find themselves short in paying someone. They work at a job until that debt is fully paid. At least no one gets sold if they wanted to or not.”
“How ineffective,” Titus shook his head. “It’s like you’re telling me that slavery is a bad thing.”
“It is,” the pegasus urged them. “There’s nothing right about enslaving anyone against their will.”
“If that were true,” Cato commented, “and everybody in the Empire believed that Rome would collapse overnight. A civilization needs many people to do its dirty work, and having them work as cheaply as possible ensures that it will grow. Throughout history, it has been the only way for any nation to survive and develop.”
“Such wisdom spoke Cato,” Titus nodded.
“But at what cost?” The Solar Guard flew up to their faces. “Sure, innovation is important, but not giving somepony the same dignity as anypony else is unforgivable and unfair.”
“Neither is life, but we all must do our duty to adapt,” the Senator folded his arms.
“Just because life isn’t fair, doesn’t mean that we have to be.”
“Mighty Jupiter, get to the point,” Caesar Titus said. “I grow weary of this conversation.”
Lightning Bolt sighed. “This friend of mine, I was hoping you could settle her debt and give her freedom to her.”
Both of the men looked at each other in surprise. “Free her?” they asked.
“Yes, I made a promise that I would get word to you,” he pointed at Titus, “to help her settle her debt so she may return to her home.”
“It’s of no concern of me or the Empire to care about a woman who has been working to pay her debtors honestly,” the Caesar scoffed.
Lightning Bolt grew frustrated but quickly got an idea. “You all think that I’m Jupiter, right? The very King of the Gods themselves and Lord of the Empire?”
“Yes?” Titus raised an eyebrow.
“So if I were to tell you that this slave’s debt should be paid, and you say ‘no’, that would technically mean that you’re going against the will of the gods, right?”
“W… what?”
“And if you go against the will of the gods,” the pegasus grinned, “that means that you’re going against my worshipers, and therefore, your own people of the Empire. So logically, as long as everyone, including you, believes that I am Jupiter, that means that I have a much bigger say than you. Am I wrong?”
Caesar Titus looked over to the scarecrow-like Senator for a comeback to this line of reasoning. However, Cato was just as dumbstruck as the Emperor.
“Besides,” Bolt continued, “I’m not asking you to reverse the plant’s axis, I'm just asking you to give this lady some cash so she can go free. By the looks of this place, I think it’s safe to say that you’ve got to have some spare change lying around. So,” he grinned, “what do ya say?”
The Emperor paused. “What is this slave’s name?”
“Fortunata.”
“Very well,” Titus said with a concerned sigh. “I shall make it a priority on behalf of the people of Rome.”