-1The Photo

One of the corners had been torn off, the remaining were dog-eared and ratty. The photo was crinkled, crumpled and bent. A large crease snaked down the very centre of the photograph. At first glance it seems that this photo was a well loved memory or a discarded fantasy that never was. To Nosedive it was neither of these. It was something special to him. He kept the old piece of gloss in his inside jacket pocket or under his armour, close to his heart. Nosedive would take out the photo whenever he was alone or was upset with something or when he wanted to remember. The photo showed two people, a man and a woman, Nosedive and Wildwings parents. Their father was leaning forward on one knee with a big smile on his face, the mother, leaning on his back, also with a big smile. The crease had, mercifully, avoid both of their faces. The father wore a hockey shirt and thick trousers, complete with a pair of ice-skates. The mother had a hockey shirt on like her husband but it was far too big for her. She wore a pair of figure hugging trousers and skates. Behind them the city of DuCaine Metropolis spread out under the darkening sky, the cities lights reflected on the surface of the ice, making it sparkle like a million diamonds. The sky slowly turned from a crimson red to the black of night as they merged in a wonderful display.

Nosedive collapsed on the sofa in his room back at Pond, exhausted. The team had finally put an end to Dragaunus and his Raptor gunship but at a cost. At first Nosedive had laughed it off and tried to pretend it wasn't happening but the encroaching dread soon got to him as it had the rest of the team. They couldn't get home. They had to destroy the only gateway to stop Dragaunus from calling in the whole saurian fleet and taking over earth to use a forward attack base. His brother, as the leader, had to make maybe one of the toughest choices he had ever made, and he knew the guilt would weigh heavy on him. But Dive had other feelings at that point in time. He reached into the inside pocket of his jacket and withdrew the old photo. He stared at it as he ran his fingers over the two images, filling his feeling of hopelessness wash over him. A small tear escaped his eye, to land on his jacket. He knew he couldn't deny the fact that he and his team were stuck here and he would never see his parents again. He wasn't even sure if they were still alive and that feeling tore him up inside. This photo was all he had left of the home and life he'd left behind.

Wildwing trudged through the large corridor of the living quarters. His mind abuzz with so many different things. He had condemned the whole team to limbo, stuck on this planet with no way home. He knew he wasn't the leader they all looked up to. No leader would strand his own men. All the team seemed to be coping with the situation in their own way. Grin was meditating, Tanya was busy in her workshop, Mallory had gone on a mall crawl and Duke was passing the time between fencing and writing. He knew that his baby bro was badly affected. Wing knew Dive was in denial, how he always laughed and smiled about the problem, probably hoping it would all go away. Wildwing knew his priorities as a leader but his own priorities lay with his younger brother. He stopped outside his bros room and knocked on the door. Inside, Nosedive was distracted by the rapping on the metal door.

"Who is it?" he asked, sitting bolt upright, clutching the photo to his chest.

"Hey bro. It's me."

"Come on in Wing." Nosedive called out.

The door hissed open and shut as Wildwing entered. Dive looked up at his older brother, still clutching the photo.

"What's that Dive?" Wing asked.

Wildwing knew what it was but in the midst of the situation he had forgotten.

"Just a photo of mum and dad." Dive replied.

"Mind if I have a look?" Wing asked, as he sat next to his brother.

Dive gently released the photo from his breast and held out for Wing to look at. At the sight of the photo, a series of emotions welled up in Wildwing, but he forced them back down. He had to stay strong for his brother's sake. He handed the photo back to Dive who turned his eyes back to it for a second before looking up at his brother. Wing noticed the small beginnings of tears in his eyes and he placed his hand on Dives shoulder and smiled reassuringly at him. Nosedive could feel his sorrow rising. He tried to keep it under control but he was rapidly losing. He didn't want to trouble his brother with anymore problems but soon he lost. He threw his arms round his brother and cried into his shoulder. Wildwing gently encompassed his arms around Dive, gently patting his shoulder to calm him down.

"I wanna go home." Dive sobbed softly.

"Me too, Dive. Me too." Wildwing spoke, his voice breaking.

Nosedive then flung his arms round his brother and sought solace in his brothers shoulder. Wildwing gently held Nosedive, gently stroking his shoulder with his thumb, trying to calm him down. Wing couldn't help but shed a few tears himself.

"I'm sorry Dive. I messed things up." Wing sobbed.

"Bro?" Dive asked, stopping his tears for but a moment.

Dive was confused but only for a moment before his brother answered his silent question.

"I promised you, and the team that we would get home but I couldn't keep it. I'm sorry."

"Hey bro, don't cry. You'll set me off again." Nosedive tried to joke.

Wildwing squeezed his eyes shut as he tried to stop the flow of tears as he started to weep for Nosedive as well as himself. He wanted to give his brother and the team something to look forward to after the labour camps, landing on earth, the trouble of fitting in, the fighting. Wildwing gently held his brother closer. Nosedive was the only family he had left that he could hold on to and he was afraid that his brother would be crushed about being stuck. He kept telling himself that they would get back home, the promise he had made to himself for his brothers sake was what had kept him at the helm of the team all this time. But now that he couldn't keep the promise, he had lost faith, in both himself as a leader and a brother.

"Wing, it wasn't your fault. You had no other choice. Don't kick yourself." Dive sobbed as he tried to comfort his brother.

"Dive…." Wings words never came.

This upset Nosedive even more. It hurt him to see his brother like this. Nosedive idolized his brother, wanting to try and make his stressful position as leader a bit less stressful and it always hurt when he couldn't help his brother. Dive returned his head to Wildwings' shoulder, now with a new pain.

"Dive, I promise you that I will make the best for you that I can. I know we can't see mum and dad ever again but I promise you, I will be there for you bro no matter what." Wildwing spoke, finding the strength to speak the words that were lost in his distress. This was the first time Dive had heard him call their parents mum and dad. He usually referred to them as mother and father.

"Wing, thanks." Nosedive enunciated as he held his brother close.

"No prob's Dive, no prob's." Wing replied through his tears.

The sound of muffled music started up somewhere deep in the Pond. Wing silently made the promise to be there for all the team. The team was his new family now.

"Bro. I'll stand by the decisions you make. No matter what they might be and what might come about, because of them."

"Thanks Dive." Wildwing said smiling slightly, hugging his brother in response. Nosedive returned the hug.

The hug seemed to do the job as both of them some good as they had both stopped crying, but the tears still flowed but these weren't tears of sadness and pain. They were ones of happiness and loved. Both brothers thanked DuCaine that they still had each other. They slowly parted, with Wing playfully ruffling his brothers hair.

"Wanna go to the arcade?" Wildwing asked.

"Hell yeah. You bet." Dive answered.

"Ok then, get your cash together. I'll be back after I grab a quick bite to eat." Wildwing said as he stood up, wiping his eyes.

Dive wiped his eyes as Wing left his quarters. Nosedive picked up the photo again but this time with a smile on his face. He might not have mum and dad anymore but he had his big bro. Placing the photo in his jacket pocket, he got up off the sofa and turned to his bedside cabinet. Opening up the drawer he pulled a couple of dollar bills from a small box that Wing had gotten for him. He stopped as his eyes drifted to another photo that he kept in his drawer, this one of his bro.

"Thanks bro. For everything." He uttered to the piece of gloss. Before he closed the drawer, he wondered if he could convince his brother to stop off at Captain Comics on their way to the arcade. Deciding to take a bit more just in case he was about to dip into the box when he stopped for a moment, his eyes once again drawn to his bros photo. Quickly taking out the photo of his parents, he replaced it with his brothers one. Just this once he promised himself, just this once.