(Nakia Waters)

Nakia arrived at the Thunderbird Warehouse, early in the mist of the sunrise. She had been training hard, refining her punches, sharpening her grapples, and perfecting every move she picked up during her MMA career. Most of the other girls didn’t take training as seriously as she did. The only one she rarely saw around the facility was Ravina Hawk.

“Nakia?” a voice called out.

Sha Warpony approached her with Desirae Bear and Citana Star flanking her sides. Nakia pulled out her earbuds and glanced up.

“I was just telling Bear and Star about your amazing championship reign back in your MMA days,” Sha said with a grin. She looked tiny between the two towering women, like a pencil between two mountains.

“That must’ve been impressive,” Desirae added, her deep, growling voice living up to her nickname. “Becoming a champion at such a young age.”

“It was,” Nakia replied curtly. She never said more than she had to. Socializing wasn’t her thing.

“Anyway,” Sha Warpony continued, “we’ve been talking, and we think you’d be a great addition to our group.”

“Group?” Nakia asked, her punch freezing mid-air, a breath from the heavy bag. The sudden stillness made the chains rattle softly.

“Back in Indigenous Wrestling, Citana and I were supposed to start a faction,” Desirae explained. “But plans changed when we found out we were being sent here.”

“We’re calling it The Council,” Sha said with excitement. “All of us are heels, and we want to build something powerful.”

“Isn’t it too early to form a faction?” Nakia questioned, resuming her strikes on the punching bag. “We haven’t even performed in front of a crowd yet.”

“We’ll wait a few shows before debuting officially,” Sha replied. Her optimism was always bubbling in her mind.

“Team, faction… that’s not my thing,” Nakia said. With one strong punch, the bag swung enough to make Sha Warpony step back. “I prefer to stay solo.”

“All the greats had factions,” Citana chimed in, shooting Nakia a sideways glare. “They helped each other rise.”

“Yeah! Like the Three Sisters, the Warrior Twins" Sha Warpony began rattling off faction names, going on for nearly ten minutes.

“MMA doesn’t do factions,” Citana interrupted with a smirk. “So maybe you wouldn’t understand.”

Desirae nodded, still silent but imposing at Citana’s side.

“It all sounds great,” Nakia said, “but I’d rather stay on my own for now. Maybe we can be allies… nothing more.”

Sha Warpony’s face fell, a heavy, silent sigh escaping her. The disappointment was obvious.

“What happened in MMA anyway?” Desirae finally asked, “Why’d you leave?”

“I didn’t quit,” Nakia said, her voice firm. “I left to take care of my sister and my mother.”

She resumed hitting the bag with rhythmic force, the sound of her fists thudding echoing through the facility.

“Did they let you keep your championship belt?” Desirae asked.

The questions were starting to wear on Nakia, but she kept her cool.

“They gave me a replica with my name on it. It’s collecting dust on a shelf. My sister adores it… But to me, it’s just a shiny reminder of a past chapter.”

“So how did the three of you get signed to Thunderbird?” Nakia asked.

“I was with a Canadian promotion,” Sha Warpony said. “They promised me a championship run in my contract, but it never happened. My husband was the one who found Thunderbird. He talked to someone, and here I am.”

She turned to Desirae. “And you? I’m guessing someone your height probably had it easy getting scouted.”

“Marvin Crow found me,” Desirae replied. “Said I looked like someone who belonged in the ring. I wasn’t doing much, just bouncing between jobs. He had to beg me to join. I figured… why not?”

“I trained under Marvin too,” she added. “Had three matches in Indigenous Wrestling before they paired me with Citana.”

All eyes turned to Citana now. She looked uncomfortable under the attention. Shifting her weight.

Slowly, she opened up

“It started in middle school. I used to have a collection of photocards of wrestlers, organized by the era they came out. I kept that binder hidden, mostly from kids on the bus.”

“Why do you watch that? It's fake! You will get crushed like a frybread and do mud matches.” “The worst was  It's not our ways. . . You're not native if you're not traditional.”  

“I picked up a newspaper. The front page was about the native women first going into space. And on the contents page, there was this article about a guy named Mr. Vega who opened up Lucha Promotions in Mexico.”

She took a slow breath. “I joined after high school. Wrestled in useless matches for a while. The native women going to space and the luchadores, that’s what inspired the character. inspired me to make my character. A luchadore who went to space, caught a bug, and now wears a mask for life.” Citana reached up, pulling off her mask to reveal her face. She held the colorful fabric in her hands.

Nakia, Sha Warpony, and Desirae stood silent, truly shocked by the depth of Citana’s story.