Defy the Odds
For the first sixteen years of Nico MacKeltar’s life he was not what you would call a rebellious child. At five he gave up his status as an only child but instead of raging against the dying of the light, he embraced it. Maybe it was because his new sibling was a girl, or maybe it was just who he was at his core, then again it might also have been the fact that his parents were amazing parents. Even at five, they took the time to make sure, emotionally, he had everything he needed. He never once wondered if he was going to lose the love of his parents to his little sister. Never even considered it. The truth was, the way they explained having another child made him excited to have someone else to share this life with. His world was expanding and he was about to have a partner in crime.
After his parents died, when he was still living out the middle of his teen years, he didn’t turn to rebellion then either. Instead, Nico MacKeltar grew defiant. In the same situation, anyone would like to say they were wise beyond their years, but Nico was more of a realist. It wasn’t some self aware, oddly wise for his age, part of him that colored his decision to stand against the statistics and overwhelming emotion that tried to cripple him. He didn’t turn to his pain or let it swallow him when his parents were ripped away from them. Instead, he clung tight to the defiance that burned deep and fought. Fought to build a life that could sustain himself and his sister and when he was confident he had that, he fought to get custody of his sister.
Defiance was a great motivator, not just to keep the survivors guilt away, but to propel him forward. It was defiance that stiffened his spine when a young, tattooed eighteen year old became the majority shareholder, then sole owner of an import export company. It was defiance that had him standing proud as he found an ally that would be the face of that company while he pulled the strings and restructured. It was also defiance against the world that fell in love with the ‘get rich quick’ mentality over honor and integrity that helped him stand strong against the opinions of men and women that advised him against his decisions. Rebellion was a way to flip the bird to the world, but didn’t ever end beneficially for the rebel. Defiance was a way to stay true to yourself while fighting the flow of the river, and Nico was nothing if not his own person.
