Chapter 3
Blast Fuel Is not Cool
Alfa woke up, wondering when their task would be complete. It had been three months since he had found out that he wasn't Alfa Hyrax, and that he had a twin brother. He and Ice had found out that Almia Castle was currently un-owned and had decided to buy and renovate Almia Castle into their home. That was, if they could find the title deeds. After three months of digging through old papers in the city hall every second night, they had only found out that its title deed was somewhere in Almia. 'That narrows it down quite a bit' Alfa thought sarcastically. He and Ice had still decided to live there after finding out through an old family journal left with Mrs. Frostover, that they hadn't been born there, but rather in Snowbelle, but they had however visited it when Alfa and Ice had been three years old.
Alfa groaned as the phone rang, expecting it to be Professor Hastings calling to inquire why the trio were late. Instead, he found an over-excited Ice speaking to him from the other end in such a rapid stream of words that he could barely make out a single word.
"Ice, slow down!" Alfa yelled down the phone, stopping the flow of words quite abruptly.
"Alfa, I've found them! The title deeds to Almia Castle! … Or rather, I've found out where they are." Repeated Ice.
"That's great news! Where exactly are they, I'll go get them on Latios." Inquired a now equally over-excited Alfa.
"It's a bit more complicated than I expected. Almia Castle's last owner left a document in the inner depths of Almia's property deed storage chamber. It says that whoever can solve the riddle and find the deeds, will own Almia Castle, the riddle isn't on that particular document but it has given the location of the riddle." Replied Ice, sounding slightly worried.
"And where might the riddle be?" asked Alfa.
"Um, it's supposed to be in the room with the blue gem in Almia Castle, but…." Ice stopped speaking.
"But what?" asked Alfa, beginning to worry that all their time and dedication was for nothing.
"Well, I already checked there, but it's not there. I asked around, and this local fisherman who had been fishing in the same spot in Almia Lake for thirty years said he had seen a man and a woman take a parchment from Almia Castle about seventeen years ago. I asked him if he could describe them over the phone to a sketch artist I had met in Fiore once, and he sent me the drawings. I referenced them in the union's data base, and well… The people who took the riddle were our parents." Answered Ice.
"What?!" exclaimed Alfa.
"Yeah, it seems that they themselves had been trying to acquire Almia Castle." Ice replied in a worried tone.
"Hey, I have an idea. Mrs. Frostover has the remaining stuff from the wreckage of our house right? Let's ask her if she found it!" suggested Alfa.
"That's brilliant! We'll both take days off tomorrow and we'll go to Kalos." Finished Ice. It was at the very moment that Alfa put the receiver down that Keith and Kellyn walked with big grins on their faces.
"What's up guys?" asked Alfa.
"Nothing really. Hastings wants us down at the union. Says we have to do some sort of extra duty." Answered Keith, his grin turning into a sour face.
"Let's go and get there before, to quote you Kellyn 'Professor Hastings blows a gasket'." Said Alfa as he grabbed the car keys as the boys flashed back to the day they met up in Vein-town. They raced downstairs and leaped into the cars, Kellyn calling shotgun before Keith remembered to, as usual. They were down at the union in a flash thanks to Alfa's high speed drifting mastery.
"We have to what?!" exclaimed Keith.
"Didn't you hear me the first time?" yelled the professor. "You have to try out for the union High rank team for football! It will consist of any union researchers capable of playing football well enough, most of the top rangers and maybe one or two top operators. Before the regional cup, there is the ranking cup. The Union puts out two teams of fifteen each. One of area rangers, and one of the staff of the union, rather the elite team. The gym leader circuit puts out four teams of eleven, and the elite four and champions of each region team up to produce two teams of fourteen. All in all, eight teams, and we must win this year!" declared the professor.
"Professor, when are the tryouts? Inquired Alfa.
"The day after tomorrow." He answered.
"Well, then I was wondering if Ice and I could have and off day tomorrow as we may have a lead on the location of the title deeds for Almia Castle, and you know that we plan to move there. By the way, if I may ask how Ice is doing as a researcher?" requested Alfa.
"Yes you may, and he is doing very well in the field of research about Ice type Pokémon. Who knew he was so enthusiastic about them!" The professor replied with a shine in his eyes. "Ice has discovered so much that we missed. Did you know that an angry Froslass releases snowflakes from its back? Kellyn, you might want to update the data on ice types in you S-Lens soon. And Alfa, I trust you will inform your brother about the tryouts."
"Yes sir, and thank you sir." Said Alfa.
"Well, this will be interesting." Said Kellyn as the trio raced along the road to the Chroma Highlands where they were supposed to test a new fuel for cars to see if it was safe to use for the public.
"Definitely." Replied Alfa, "By the way, do either of you remember the name of the company whose fuel this is? I don't want to pass a signboard saying that their labs were right there and we missed them."
"Something like Boom oil or something." Said Keith, frowning as he tried to remember the correct name.
"You're thinking of the name of their new fuel and even that's wrong. The company's name is Chroma Energy Sources, or CES. The name of the new fuel is Blast Fuel. Apparently it has a whole bunch of uses." Said Kellyn, before he started reading them of a summary he had been given.
"Number one: if your fuel is about to run out, you're in the middle of the road, and you don't have enough fuel to make it to the gas station, you can give an indicator three times then activate blast mode. Blast mode ignites the fuel in such a way that you go to a crazy speed and reach the station before you run out of fuel. Number two: Blast mode is good for racing. And number three: if somebody ever points a gun at your car and try's to hold you up. Use Blast Mode Physical. It fires a blast of sonic energy created by the combustion of fuel in blast mode at the person. To activate blast mode…. To be figured out."
"To be figured out? What's that supposed to mean?" asked Keith.
"I don't know myself." Replied Kellyn. "Oh wait, there's something here at the bottom. The test will be taken in a car that has buttons to activate BM and BMP. After that, of the test is successful, CES will make a contract with various car companies that will add a BM and a BMP switch on the dashboards of every car produced from that day onwards. Sounds reasonable."
"We're here guys." Yelled Alfa over the noise of turbines coming from the laboratory. He parked the car as they reached the building and the trio went inside.
"Welcome to CES, do you have an appointment with the director of the board?" inquired the receptionist without looking up.
"We're the test drivers sent to test Blast Fuel." Answered Keith.
"Oh follow me the please." Requested the receptionist as she stood up and headed in the direction of the racing track. They were received there by a large man in a white suit striking a golf ball off a miniature green to a hole in the middle of the track.
"You must be the rangers Hastings was talking about. I hear that one of you can drift the union turning at full speed. You must be pretty dang good." He said. "The cars are this way, now which one of you is which."
"I'm Kellyn, I'll be testing it as an everyday ordinary driver. Keith is the one with the red hair, he'll be testing as the driver who's new to the streets since he failed his driving test due to anxiety." he was cut off by the director.
"So I take it you're Alfa, the expert?" inquired the director, looking pointedly at Alfa.
"Yes that would be me." Alfa replied with a smile on his face.
"Ok then, the cars are over there. Each of you get in one and wear a headset. You'll be told when it's your turn to go." Said the director, pointing in the direction of three formula one style cars with open roofs and open fenders. The boys picked a car each and buckled up as Keith was given the green light. He sped forward and activated his Blast Mode almost immediately, and lost control as the car crashed into a barrier signifying a split turning as his car exploded and he was thrown into the air, crash landing in the pool in the middle of the track.
"Not that good of a run." Stated the director. "Next."
Kellyn shot forward as he started the engine. Sensibly, activated Blast Mode after he crossed the barrier, but was struggling from control and smashed into a wall at a left turning, his ejector seat launching him into the pool.
"An okay run." Commented the director. "Next."
"Sir, I have a request before I start my run. You're taping these runs right, then put an X-ray filter on my video so we can check how the engine responds later." Said Alfa as he started his engine. As soon as he was given the green light, he shot forward, activating Blast Mode after the barrier and he too nearly lost control, he hadn't lost control completely, but he was struggling to stop the car from flipping over. He activated the X-ray mode on his S-Lens and launched his Styler disc. Keeping one hand on the wheel and his eyes on the engine, he smashed the disc through one joint connecting two vital wires, shutting the engine down and stopping the car in its tracks.
"That is one messed up fuel source!" he exclaimed as he climbed out of the car. "Let's see that tape."
"You see, right there. The way those pipes are vibrating is abnormal in a car. That means that Blast Fuel messes an engine up. But still, let's try Blast Mode Physical." Stated Alfa as they reviewed the X-ray footage of his run.
Soon Alfa was sitting in the car again, after the wires had been reconnected. He was facing a hundred kilogram barrel. He hit the button and it blasted the barrel against the wall, breaking it and dropping out weights. All of a sudden, anguished cries arose from the area where the Pokémon used in the production of Blast Fuel were kept.
"Sir, what kind of Pokémon did you use to make Blast Fuel?" asked Kellyn, his styler in his hand.
"Fifteen Houndoom, seven Electivires and a couple of dozen Magmortars." He answered. "Why?"
"Oh hell." Exclaimed Keith as the agitated Pokémon burst forth attacking.
"We're not top rangers for nothing guys, so let's do this." Yelled Kellyn. Filled with determination, the three boys captured every last Pokémon, not stopping until they had all calmed down and been released.
"Blast Fuel is not cool man." Alfa said to the director before the trio turned around and headed for the car.