Apinya is a bit of a rough specimen, preferring to keep her hair uncombed and her fashion plain. Although shorter than the average nomad, Apinya hardly feels like this matters. Although most of her fellow Thai nomads go around bare-chested or with sport bras, she sports a plain singlet most of the time.

One of her striking features are the tattoos she has engraved on both her arms, a striking mix of reds of all shades. When Ki energy flows through her, her tattoos glow with an iridescent light! Apinya can also be seen spotting a sweet-smelling frangipani in her hair, occasionally.

Apinya was born in a region with a tumultuous relationship with Nomads. While Ki warriors were once commonplace in ancient times, decades of colonial suppression and later government paranoia pushed Nomads to the fringes of society in the region. In countries like Vietnam, Ki usage is tied strictly to the armed forces, the concept of independent nomads remaining illegal to this day. Singapore outright prohibits all Ki usage; out of sight, out of mind. But while all the nations have Nomads in the fringes, Thailand remains a peculiar outlier. While technically strictly controlled, Ki suppression is hardly enforced. In fact, so long as Nomads do not engage in explicitly anti-government activities, the Thai government is simply too swamped or too uncaring to really meddle with Nomads.

As such, Apinya was born in a nation with a rich Nomadic culture (by the region's standards), with other Southeast Asian nomads moving over to pursue their arts unfettered by agencies and laws. While most do not engage in public battles in the middle of Bangkok, out of fear of accidently forcing the police to do something for once, many engage in fighting rings held in dark basements or at the edges of the countryside.

Born in a village far from the capital, Apinya was daughter to a local Nomad, famed for engaging in friendly tournaments with neighbouring villages. Apinya was enamored with her mother's feats as a kid, although her dotting father was worried about her daughter getting such a dangerous world. Her mother's reply was always a variation of the same phrase;

"If you didn't want her to be a nomad, why did you marry me then?"

While Apinya happily learnt how to harness her Ki in-between harvesting rice and learning how to cook, her family began to fall on increasingly hard times. Rent became higher and their rice had to compete in a crowded market. Her father became worried that they would not be able to afford a higher education for her. Apinya worried if her family would even be able to afford basic things if this kept up.

When Apinya was getting clobbered in a dingry, dark ring, in a basement in the heart of Bangkok, she felt pissed. She hated losing. But at least getting paid to get clobbered made it slightly worth it, and even though she was paid a pittance, she felt that even the paltry sums she was mailing home made it worth it. Apinya spent 2 years in Bangkok, living in a crowded tenement and eating awful food that made her miss home. It was necessary though, putting aside just a little each month so she could eventually afford her prize.

A one-way flight to Gold City.

Now *that's* where she'll make it big. Once she sends back a bag full of prize money back home from the States, it'll all be worth it.

Apinya practices Muay Thai, a very common martial art practiced by Thai Nomads. She frequently uses her elbows, shins and knees to fight off her opponents. She lacks the raw power that other Thai nomads possess, so she uses speed and dodging to try and evade attacks while getting quick strikes in. Unfortunately for her, her attacks lack much weight behind them, so she'll eventually lose the battle of attrition. One good slam tends to send her sprawling to the floor.

While she has been able to harness her Ki, so far she is unable to harness them in a way that really elevates her style. Sure, they make her quicker and light on her feet, but not much else. When her opponents can sometimes throw balls of pure Ki energy at her, what can she really do?

For many nomads, they may carry distinct weaknesses, but at least that comes with a developed, deeply personal style. Years of experience too. This is where Apinya lags behind, a newcomer to the world of nomads. Her style differs little from regular Muay Thai, and she wouldn't even be the best at the regular marital art. Add in her underdeveloped usage of Ki, and you have a fresh Nomad who's not very good at being a Nomad.

Her own attitude doesn't help, thinking that she is destined to never really be a true champion, that she'll mostly scrape at doing the best she can and work with what she's got. This unfortunately serves as a self-fulfilling cycle.

Did you know that Apinya is the latest in a long line of legendary badass Thai warriors?

Of course not, because that last line was complete nonsense. In fact, the art of being a Nomad only started with her mum. If she wants to make a name for herself, she'll have to earn it the hard way.

Art was drawn by me.