A royal guard unicorn manged to track me down -- or at least, I suspect Twilight informed him of my location. Solar Court could not proceed without my presence, so I was being summoned. I smiled at Luna, grinned sheepishly yet again, and muttered "Duty calls" under my breath as I left her bedchamber.
"We request thou makest a habit of bedding with us, Amethyst," she said softly, returning my grin.
"I shall consider your request, Luna," I replied through my chuckling as I left her chamber and trotted to the throne room to conduct the day's business. "Have somepony bring me something to eat, please," I requested of the guard escorting me.
"Yes, your Majesty," he replied tersely.
"Please also have a courier relay information to Las Pegasus City Hall that the Visage casino has been awarded to Chocolate Sweetness and that I will be personally overseeing the transfer of the deed to the new owner," I added.
"Yes, your Majesty."
I took my position on the throne and allowed the day's business to commence, addressing the needs of various nobles, foreign dignitaries, and various others who sought an audience with me. The daily rigors of Solar Court had begun to weigh heavily on me and the banality of many requests had pushed me beyond a point of annoyance and almost to the point of contempt for the ponies.
I'm the Solar Regent, for Celestia's sake! Such petty concerns are the province of local courts, not the Royal Court of Canterlot!
I called the court to recess for lunch and decided to check on Twilight before getting some more food. I managed to find her looking after Garnet, Jade, and Marina.
"Twilight, I need to go to Las Pegasus to take care of a title transfer," I offered. "Would you be kind enough to cover Solar Court for this afternoon? I shall return soon to resume my duties."
"I'll do it this time, but please be sure to make your absence as short as possible -- Summer Song tells me she is getting tired of watching the foals all the time," the lavender Alicorn replied, a hint of annoyance in her voice.
"I will attempt to make this as quick as possible, but I cannot make any guarantees."
"Just be sure you're back tomorrow, Amethyst."
"I'll try, Twilight. Perhaps Celestia might return and resume the business," I offered optimistically.
"Yeah, right. She's been gone for so long, I sometimes wonder when she'll return," she muttered.
A blinding flash of light and a golden POP ushered in the arrival of the Solar Princess, who seemed a bit perturbed.
"Amethyst, I have been watching you from the shadows," Celestia began.
"Really?" I asked, sarcasm dripping from my voice.
"No, I just wanted to see your reaction. I have sources all over Equestria who keep me informed of events which transpire in my realm. I have been informed that you caused your wife extreme displeasure," she averred.
"Yeah, I did. I'm sorry. Look, Celestia, I have some personal business in Las Pegasus and I need to leave as soon as possible -- and since you've returned, I'd appreciate it if you would resume your duties as the true Solar Regent of Equestria," I stated matter-of-factly.
"Amethyst, I entrusted you the care of my realm --"
"Spare me the lecture until I return, Celestia -- I've got to go," I interjected. Considering the distance to Las Pegasus from Canterlot, taking the train would prove too time-consuming, and flying by myself was out of the question, as was using a royal chariot for that purpose. This basically left me with the prospect of using my automobile to perform a teleport.
"I'm not done with you, Amethyst," the Solar Princess intoned, annoyance coloring her words.
"I'm using my car -- I'll be back fairly soon," I responded, matching Celestia's annoyance with that of my own.
"He's getting too big for his hoof-guards," Twilight whispered into her mentor's ear. "Thinks he can control everypony and make them do what he wants. He's even trying to do it to you!"
"Agreed. We will have to do something about that," she concurred.
I didn't hear this exchange as I teleported to my car's location and used my magic to unlock it. I had to make myself smaller to fit inside it and sat in the driver's seat, inserting the key into the ignition and starting it up. The cheery female voice greeted me once again.
"Good afternoon, Michael! Where are we going today? It has been so long since you've been here!"
"My name is Amethyst Flame, TS. We're going to Las Pegasus, City Hall, please," I replied flatly.
"Recalibrating data. Driver information corrected. Acquiring target destination. Preparing to teleport," TS stated in quick succession before the purple aura enveloped the car, the blinding whiteness of the teleport causing me a little disorientation before we rematerialized in front of the requested destination. I exited the vehicle and turned it off, resuming my normal size and appearance, then trotting up the steps and into the building. Everypony milling about gawped at me as I slowly trotted to the Mayor's Office, a grim expression on my face. I knocked three times on the door but was intercepted by the secretary.
"The Mayor is attending a fund-raiser and is not in," the secretary offered. I heard a noise from behind the door and motioned her aside.
"I don't think you're being honest with me," I said somewhat sternly and used my magic to open the door. The Mayor was sitting at her desk, a worried expression on her face.
"Y-y-your Majesty," she stammered.
"I have a special order for you, Mayor. I have decreed, along with Princess Luna, that the deed to the Visage casino is to be transferred to a pegasus mare by the name of Chocolate Sweetness," I stated matter-of-factly, placing the scroll on the Mayor's desk. "I trust you will take the necessary measures to transfer the title."
"Y-y-yes, your M-majesty," she stuttered, taking the scroll into her hooves and unrolling it to examine it closely. "Consider it done -- you realize by doing this, you're endangering her -- the owner of this casino has certain agents --"
"If any harm comes to her, I shall see fit to personally visit the former owner and mete out an appropriate punishment for him. You can tell him that that is not a threat, but a promise," I hissed through clenched teeth.
"Y-y-yes, y-your M-m-majesty," she stuttered, her eyes trying to avoid making contact with mine. I narrowed my eyes at her, thoughts of certain political connections giving me an inkling that this Mayor might very well be in that casino owner's pocket.
"The way you're acting tells me you might be on the take," I intoned flatly, giving her an accusatory glare. I watched the color drain from her face. "Yeah, I thought so. This whole town is corrupt to the core and I think I ought to do something about it. You know what? I think I'd better pay that owner a visit to deliver a very special message to him in pony."
A look of terror crept across her features for a brief moment before she regained her composure. "Please, your Majesty, don't go to any trouble --"
"Oh, it's no trouble at all," I stated confidently. I turned and left the Mayor's office, hearing her shout angry curses at my retreating form as I made my way outside, returning to my small form and entering the car.
"Where to, Michael?" asked TS, her voice still sounding quite cheerful.
"The Visage casino," I offered.
"Estimated distance, twelve point four miles. I will chart your course and you can drive there if you wish," came the voice from the speakers.
"Just teleport there, please," I requested. "I'm in a little bit of a hurry here."
"Very well then, Michael. Preparing to teleport."
In the blink of an eye, the car materialized on the strip in front of the Visage casino. I saw Chocolate Sweetness sitting on the concrete walkway leading to the front door of the casino, a sight which shocked me, as I hadn't figured on her getting to Las Pegasus for awhile yet. I trotted up to her to find out what was going on.
"Sweets, what's up?" I asked softly. She looked up at me tearfully.
"Mah scroll was torn up by security when Ah tried to tell them Ah was the new owner," she replied. Tears streaked her face.
"You should have waited for me. I shall address this issue at once," I responded, anger tinting my words. "Follow me, please."
The mare rose to her hooves, though it took a little effort for her to do so, and she followed me to the front door. I called for security immediately, and they showed up quite promptly. They bowed before me as I was still wearing my regalia.
"You do well to bow before me, my little ponies," I stated flatly. "This casino is under new ownership -- the dark brown pegasus mare behind me is the new owner of this casino. You will still retain your jobs, but your owner has been effectively fired from his position."
"Your Majesty? How can you do this? You don't have the authority --" one of the security officers began.
"I am the acting Solar Regent of Equestria! I have all the authority I need to award ownership as I see fit!" I bellowed in my magically-enhanced voice, a shade or two lower in volume than RCV, but still quite impressive nonetheless. The security officers and other employees of the casino who were present stumbled backwards or fell to their hocks in amazement at my outburst before the concierge called up to the owner's office for assistance. It took a moment or two for security to regain their composure, and several of them surrounded us.
"We don't care who you are, you can't just come in here and tell us you've fired the owner!" one of them shouted at me. I noticed the torn shreds of a scroll and used my magic to retrieve them and piece them together.
"You see these signatures here on this scroll? Mine, Princess Luna's, and Chocolate Sweetness? This document effectively awards custody and ownership of this casino to the pegasus mare who accompanies me!" I thundered, causing the assembled security forces to slowly back away. Another contingent of security ponies arrived with the pony who claimed ownership, who was none too happy about being called to the front vestibule.
"What is going on here?" he asked indignantly. "I'm trying to run a business here, not answer the call of --" he interrupted himself when he saw me. "You! What are you doing here?!" he practically shouted at me. This was the same pony who had come to visit me in Solar Court several days ago requesting another casino permit.
"Well, well, well," I chuckled. "So it's you who is the former owner of this casino!"
"What do you mean, 'former owner'?" he asked almost nervously.
I showed him the document. "You are no longer the owner of this casino -- the title and deed have been transferred to Chocolate Sweetness here," I said, motioning to the pegasus who seemed to be cowering behind me, a nervous smile on her face.
"You don't have the authority to do that!" he shouted at me.
"Check the signatures. I've already been to the Mayor's office to make it official," I said softly, flashing a menacing grin at him.
He scowled at me, then at the pegasus. "You're going to regret this, mark my words! I have connections --"
"I don't respond well to threats, little pony," I growled.
"I don't make threats -- I make promises!" he shouted.
"So do I," I said, matching his stridency with measured anger. "If any harm comes to her, you will wish you had never crossed me." I tuned to the security chief. "You are to escort him out of this casino, which is no longer his. The casino now belongs to her," I stated, motioning to Sweets. "Sweets, welcome to your new casino!" I grinned at her.
"You're dead! You hear me? Dead! Dead! Your children are dead! Your grandchildren are dead! You hear me? DEAD!!" he shouted as he was shoved out the front door by the security chief.