Kendra dragged a chair over and sat beside Fiona, crossing her legs as she settled in. For a few seconds Fiona’s partner remained silent, her lips slightly pursed as she considered what to say next.

“Look,” Kendra began, “you’ve never been in a steel cage match before. But this is just the first day of training - [i]the first few hours,[/i] actually. And I’m not just trying to reassure you when I say I can already see improvement.”

Kendra knew her words might not sound particularly comforting, but she hoped Fiona could hear the practicality in them. Behind the casual cadence of her speech Kendra’s message was clear: she believed in Fiona’s potential. And while it was easy for Kendra to say all this while Fiona was the one being thrown around inside the cage, she knew it was true.

“Hey, try to remember something,” Kendra said, nudging Fiona in the arm. “You’ve faced some pretty heavy odds before. Don’t throw in the towel yet. I mean… have you forgotten [i]Molly Mims[/i]? Raven Veyn may be tough, but she’s not [i]Molly Mims.[/i]”