The life of Zacarias Poncho

[Zapp]

Sixteen years ago....

It was a routine run down to Cali to pick up some supplies that had just been raided off a BMM depot. Zacarias wasn't doing it for the profit of trading; he was given the supplies for free and would drop them off for free. It was a personal favor to a certain Don, and he was being rewarded not only with the Don's good will (which any Outcast would tell you is worth way more than mere credits) but an Armor Upgrade VIII.

He was stretching his legs while docked. The usual bustle of most pirate space stations was there; the regular recycled air, the sound of forklifts moving large cranes, only amplified about a hundredfold by the confined spaces. Then he saw the most beautiful woman he had ever seen.

He nudged the man standing next to him, Jorge Valdez, by name, and pointed her out. He smiled to himself and shook his head.

"Friend, you'd have better luck if you asked a Don's wife out. She's a loner; no friends, no wingmen, no family as far as anyone knows."

Zacarias thought for a moment, and then asked a hypothetical question: "Would two loners make a good couple?"

His resolve was stronger than it had ever been, and he walked over to ask her out. He dodged a few forklifts, walking tall and confident. The two years he had been flying had given him a newfound backbone. He had used to slouch, now his back was straight. His eyes used to shift, constantly observing everything. His eyes still observed everything, but they no longer appeared to do so. He was a different man than the man that had left his home those two years ago, and the knowledge of his father's identity had proven to be a strengthening aid to him. It proved that, while pure Outcast in spirit and heart, he would forever be an outcast among the Outcasts. His motto since that day has been,"A man alone is stronger than any known force in the universe."

He got within four feet of the woman, when she said, over her shoulder, "No."

That gave him pause, but he took the few more steps and stopped. Let it be known that Zacarias has always had a way with women. Even as a loner in school, with no friends, he had. For whatever odd reason, women found his silence charming and intriguing. He had never had to ask a girl out, they always seemed to ask him out. He wasn't exactly sure what to do, but she repeated herself.

"No."

"No what?"

"No whatever you want. You've walked over here, like some sort of undersized rooster, heading for me the entire time. Whatever you want, I say no."

"What if I wanted to leave you alone?"

She glanced up from what she was doing--it appeared to be inventorying something--and the faintest form of a smile appeared.

"In all the years of me saying 'no' right off the bat, no one has ever said that."

The corners of his mouth turned upwards with the start of a smile, and she invited him back to her place for dinner.

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