Share the Hate

…

Movies were rare for the Grand Sails crew, especially since the captain had banned projectors from the ship after the last company-bought projector had been destroyed. Handling movies was particularly tedious because if the airman assigned to man the projector was sick of the movie, he would more likely substitute the movie with shadow puppets. Not that the rest of the crew would be interested in it, either; while airships in the company would exchange reels with each other, the Grand Sails would have the misfortune to put up a movie night even without exchanging the movie because it was frequently their luck that they had moored the ship to an island with no other Skyrider ships docked. The last projector had been taken out by a duo of airmen who were sick of Tassels and Trumpets, a blend of romance and comedy that the crew had been watching for five months straight.

This time, however, an airman with connections purchased a cheap projector after the Grand Sails' last stop at Forge Island. They were sitting in port at Center Island with the projector set up so that it shone on the fore surface of the main topsail, creating a large if somewhat dim screen. Link and Line were among the airmen lying on the deck, watching a color film (a first) called Mineshaft. It was a murder mystery taking place in an active mine, but Link had lost track of what was going on halfway through. Having to read long lines of deductive dialogue was too much of a strain on his tired eyes. Line had fallen asleep while the lead detective was questioning the deceased miner's mistress, and his snoring was not helping Link keep track of the story. He would look over to nudge Line back into semi-consciousness, missing vital title cards in the process. Link himself was beginning to nod off toward the end and missed the detective naming the killer. Groans of disappointment when all of the relaxing crew realized that they had guessed the wrong suspect caused Link to stir back to life just in time to catch the end credits. He watched for a bit, but it became a pain to recognize any of the actors when the airmen around them were standing and blocking his view.

So Link stood up. Then he prodded Line with his foot. "Hey, Line," he said. "C'mon, let's go get some sleep."

Line snorted and spoke as he dragged himself to his feet. "I was getting some sleep. How was the movie?"

"I don't know; I couldn't watch the whole thing. I don't even know who did it."

"Who did what?"

Link sighed. "Never mind. Let's ju—"

"You've gotta be kidding me."

Link blinked in confusion at Line's statement, partially because Line suddenly seemed more awake. He realized that Line was looking up at the sail/screen, but he did not think that there was anything left up there to look at. However, Link looked anyway. And up on the screen was a shaky image of Link and Line conversing in the hold.

While wearing dresses.

Airmen around them started chuckling and drawing their friends' attention to the screen. Link stared horrified, and Line oozed hatred as he glanced back towards the projector sitting on a tripod under the fore-mast. Airman Robert, whom they had known might have taken pictures of them during their day of wearing dresses to replace their missing clothes, stood holding a miniature slide in front of the projector while carrying more slides in the other hand. Both boys turned and watched as he put another slide in front of the projector, a look of glee on his face with his tongue hanging out as part of his perverse smile.

"I've just figured out what I'm gonna shave next," Line told Link.

Link had to take a minute to figure out what Line was talking about. Then he started fighting through the crowd of airmen to catch his best friend. "Line!"

Line had just broken through the crew when Link reached out and grabbed the back of Line's tunic. "Let me go, Link!" Line shouted. "I'm gonna shave his skin next!"

"Line, just calm down!" Link shouted as he wrapped his arms around Line. Line started jumping, and Link had to keep his feet moving so both of them would not fall to the deck. "Line!"

Robert started cackling at them. "You kids really don't get how bad I can screw you up," he told them. "I'm bigger and smarter than the both of you combined."

"You just think that because you're drunk again, Guay-face!" Line hollered back.

"Hah! That's the best you got, rat!?" Robert replied. "If it upsets you so much, why don't you crybabies fly back to your mommy!?"

Line tried to tear Link's arms from around his stomach. "Let me go, Link!" he shouted. "I'm gonna teach this fat-lipped jerkface how to swan-dive!"

"I told you boys!" Robert said. "I told you not to tell anyone about the festival! So now look what it's gotten you!"

To Link's surprise, Line suddenly stopped struggling. He loosened his hold, but he did not release in case Line was trying to bluff him. Then Line said in a voice that was almost laughing at Robert, "So this is just revenge because people found out? You made us put on dresses because people knew about 'Guay-face the Superbeer'? And I thought we were supposed to be the kids…"

Robert's face quickly changed to an angry scowl. "You're not turning this against me, you little puke," he said in a level, if angry, voice. "I'd just planned on passing around the pictures of you like you passed around rumors about me. If you hadn't…" He paused and, having put all of the picture slides in one hand, passed his free hand over his bald head. "If you little bastards hadn't shaved my head, that would've been that." He stepped forward and dropped the slides on the deck. "You made me do this."

"Yeah?" Line asked. "Who's being the crybaby now?"

"Line," Link said after finally releasing him. He stepped beside Line and put a hand on his shoulder. "Line, let's just go. We've got duty in the morning."

Robert put on a smug look. "Why don't you listen to your girlfriend, Line? She seems to get the hint."

Link suddenly felt a rush of emotion. While he was usually aloof with what other airmen considered the standards of being a man, one thing he could never get over was being accused of being a girl. This was mostly the result of the kind of taunting he received years before, among which included such remarks. Link had generally ignored it. However, Robert had crossed the line by calling him Line's girlfriend.

Line felt Link's grip tighten on his shoulder. "Link?" he asked, confused by the odd silence and neutral face his friend had taken.

Link glanced at Robert, seeing that there was still a fair amount of distance between him and them. He then looked back at Line. "I go high, you go low," he told Line.

Line grinned. "Deal."

"AAAAAAAHHHHH!" The boys' battle cry left Robert confused. This gave him little time to react when they charged at him. Link took a leap and tackled Robert around the stomach while Line dove for his legs. Robert hit the deck instantly, unable to react since the slam to the deck had also caused Link's bony body to crush his groin. He did not have time to protect himself before Link swung a fist, busting him across the cheek. Robert's adrenaline now running high, he laid half a roundhouse across Link's own cheek, mowing him over and off Robert's chest. He attempted to get up, but he found that Line had wrapped his arms around his legs. So he bucked his legs, flinging Line's body into the air. Line kept his hold, and the full weight of Line's body came back down and caused Robert to shout in pain when his foot was twisted in an uncomfortable manner.

Shouting suddenly sounded from the crew, and Link, standing after regaining his senses, was suddenly held from behind by another airman. Two more airmen ripped Line off Robert's legs. Robert made to stand, but found himself hauled to his feet and restrained by a pair of airmen.

"Enough, all three of you!" Link, Line, and Robert stopped struggling at the sound of Lieutenant Luke hollering at them from across the deck. All attention turned to the lieutenant and the captain as the crowd of airmen parted.

The captain looked at Link, and Link became wide-eyed when he saw the anger suddenly flare across Alfonzo's face. For a moment, Link was afraid that the captain might throw him overboard, whether the dock was there to catch him or not. He strode forward, and Link shrunk in the grip of the airman holding him.

"Lieutenant Luke!" the captain bellowed, his eyes still locked with Link's.

"Captain!" Luke replied, stepping up behind Alfonzo. Alfonzo gave pause, and Link felt like he knew where this was going. Link had started the fight, and the general rule was that the one who starts the fight finds another job.

Then Captain Alfonzo turned and pointed a finger at Robert. His voice was hauntingly low and probably much scarier than when he was shouting as he told Luke (his voice barely audible to the boys), "Get him off my ship."

"What!?" Robert declared, his expression a mixture of disbelief and outrage. "You can't do that! I—"

"SHUT UP!" Alfonzo shouted at the top of his lungs, causing Robert to flinch in fear. He made a single, large step toward Robert and spoke to him in that low voice again. "You pathetic. Ugly. Piece of shit, you just shut the hell up. Right now, you have no idea what I can do to you. And believe me; firing you is the least I want to do to you. And if I ever see your face again…" He pointed a finger at Link. "I'll do more to your face than that to make sure neither one of us have that problem a third time. Luke will get your gear. Get the hell off my ship now."

"Take him," Luke told the airmen holding Robert. Robert had lost the desire to argue, his face a perfect picture of complete shock as he was dragged away.

The captain then turned and looked between both boys for a moment. "Take them to my cabin," he ordered the airmen holding them. "Hold them until I get there."

Link looked down at the deck as the airman holding him led him away.