Top Wing - A New Addition

5 - Checkmate

Summary — As the cadets continue with their investigation, they run into a dead end. But luckily, Speedy is willing to give hints about the type of person the cadets will be working with.

a/n: This chapter takes place on the same day as the previous chapter, some of the events in this chapter aligns with the events in the previous chapter.

'Alright, let's sit down and discuss our observations,' advised Penny, as the cadets dropped down to the floor.

'Well, I think it's safe to assume that the cadet's signature colour is purple,' said Brody. 'Most of of their belongings are.'
'Purple? Oh no, what if Baddy is joining our team?!' Rod gasped.
'It'd be kind of awkward between him and Swift, considering that Baddy thinks he's the best pilot of Big Swirl Island ...' muttered Brody.
'I don't think Baddy wants to be a cadet. But, do you think he likes painting purple watercolour pictures?' Penny asked.
'Not sure that I've heard him boast about it before. Betty might?' Rod suggested.
'Maybe. But I'm not sure if she's fond of purple crystal roses,' said Penny.
'What about Shirley? She could like all of these things!' Rod pointed out.
'I think Shirley would've immediately told us,' sighed Penny. 'Is the cadet really on Big Swirl Island?'
-----
Swift had returned from his mission, and walked into the sleeping quarters, only to see Penny, Rod and Brody sitting on the floor with disappointed expressions, whispers amongst themselves.
'What's up?' Swift sat down with them.

'Well, we've been reading over our notes and we think the cadet doesn't live here because they don't match the description of anyone here,' huffed Brody. 'Well, that's the end of this investigation! We can't possibly know who the cadet is if they don't live on Big Swirl Island?'
'Well, now that I'm back, could you send the notes you all took?' Swift asked. But before they could, a knock came at the door.

'Come in!' Penny called out. Bea then walked in.

'Hello cadets! Sorry for interrupting, but I need you to stay out of here for a while.'
'What? Why?' Rod posed.
'I need to install the cadet's new bed compartment! It'll be somewhat loud and I'll need to take in a lot of equipment to ensure that it's safe and secured,' explained Bea.

'But the bed compartment can't fit through the door,' Brody pointed out.

'All I got to do is press this special button that can expand the door along with the wall and then I'll put it back to normal. You cadets should have your bedroom back in a couple hours!' Bea asseverated.

'Wait Bea ... does that mean you know when the cadet is arriving?' Swift signified.
'Of course! I did help pass their qualification after all,' smiled Bea.
'So you could tell us about her?'
'I'm sure Speedy will tell you if you asked,' Bea walked out the door to fetch her tools and supposedly the bed compartment.

'Let's go then!' Penny was first to caper out of the room.
-----
The three boys walked in, it seemed that Penny had already asked Speedy.
'Ah, you're here! Penny just asked me about the cadet and I've actually been wanting to tell you more about the cadet you can know what type of person they are. Do you have any particular questions?'
'Is the cadet a girl?' Rod halted.
'Yup,' Speedy nodded.
'Could you explain everything that we should know?' Swift adjured.
'Yeah, good idea! That'd be easier,' asserted Speedy. 'She's the eldest of seven brothers, her signature colour will be purple, she lives on Montane Boscage—'
'Montane Boscage?' Swift interrupted, before realising what he did. 'Oops, sorry ...'

'... I wanted her to be recruited at the same time you all were, but I wasn't able to get in touch with her after the assessments.bI tried my luck and managed to reach the cadet's father, and I then got permission to have the cadet attend our academy.'

The board behind Speedy rung. A notification alerted: 'The cadet has accomplished "map reading badge"!'
'She's earned it right now ...?' Brody had his eyes on the banner notification before it disappeared.

'It appears so!' Speedy chuckled. 'I'm sure she'll get her tasks done in no time. Why don't you cadets go hang out at the Lemon Shack? You cadets deserve it! Just make sure to come back in time for training, okay?'

'Thanks Speedy! Will do!' Rod lauded.
-----
'Swift?'
'Huh?'

Swift snapped out of his daydream, turning to see Brody with scrunched up eyebrows.
'Are you okay? You haven't even touched your sunflower seeds! It's not you to have your head in the clouds, and mentally, not physically!'

Swift couldn't help but smile. 'Ah, yeah. I'm alright! It's just ... something seems familiar about all that information Speedy gave us ...'
'In what way is it familiar?' Penny asked.
'Everything Speedy told us about the cadet, it's like I know someone exactly like that, when really, I don't ...'
Rod was silent, before saying: 'Maybe you have amnesia and don't remember the cadet.'

'What? Say that again when it's actually true.' Swift shook his head. 'I'm absolutely sure that I don't know anyone like her.'
-----
The cadets walked into their sleeping quarters to find that the recruited cadet's bed compartment was already propped up on the wall above Swift's.
The bed compartment had been lined with a pillow and blanket, which were both an accent of purple rain — a deep, subdued, monarch purple with an indigo undertone. The blanket had a pattern of lavender clouds, and the bed sheet had been smoothed out, not at all crumpled up like how the cadets' beds would be like if they didn't make them.

'Hey, wait a minute ...' Penny began. 'The cadet's belongings! All of them have to be there, shouldn't they? I think we might've missed some. I think I saw Sandy's plane today, maybe she delivered the rest of the cadet's belongings!'

'Ok, Swift, Brody, how about you describe what you see? If there was a ladder maybe Penny could climb up ... or, I could jump up onto the bed compartment if I tried hard enough!' Rod looked like he was readying himself to actually attempt to jump up onto the bed compartment, when Swift placed a hand on Rod's shoulder.

'It's okay, I can do it! I wouldn't want you to get hurt! After all, we don't want to crumple the sheets,' Swift told Rod, before flying up to the compartment.

'Hm, there's some purple watercolour paintings. I wonder if the cadet painted them herself?' Swift wondered. 'I think you can see them from here, but in case you can't, there's star fairy lights adorning the rim.'

'I don't know anyone on Big Swirl Island who likes watercolour paintings and fairy lights, but I like their style!' Rod said.

'There's a photo bunting, and I think all these photos are of the cadet's brothers!' Brody said.

'They're all black capped chickadees, so, I think it's safe to assume that the cadet is one!' Swift nodded.

Each photo had a caption underneath. The first one that Swift saw earlier that day — with the boy black capped chickadee who had unruly, wavy, ash blonde feathers on his head holding a card and was being chased by another bird had the caption.

A second Polaroid featured another boy black capped chickadee, who instead of his ash blonde feathers wavy like Timothy, was fluffy instead. Swift knew his name was Theodore - as it only had him in the photo, and the caption was: 'Theodore's first time skiing!'

'I have to say that I agree, these should be all of her brothers, no?' Rod stated.
'Hey you two, you'd might want to get down now in case Speedy or Bea decide to come in and inform us about something,' apprised Penny.

But there was one photo that caught Swift's eye. A girl black capped chickadee with her face obscured with a scarf and glasses, riding a snowboard in mid-air. Nothing felt real because he couldn't make sense of it, everything felt like a lie all of a sudden. For a second — it seemed as if Swift could predict accurate responses the cadet would make to a certain remark she received, how she would interact with people, the certain way she'd do something specifically or how she'd react to situations and boost morale. However, Swift just dispelled it and tried to act as nothing happened as a method to ignore the discomfort.

And the feeling disappeared, just like that, and Swift couldn't remember why he was so bothered in the first place that he felt stupid even thinking about it.

The caption wasn't written in what Swift thought was the cadet's handwriting. No, this handwriting was different, the words reading:

'Way to go Taz.'

'...'
'Taz, huh?'