Rite of Passage

For Elena Ochoa, this was quite a 21st birthday. She had been training to become a professional wrestler since she turned 18, but overall, this had been a dream for her since she was six. Elena had a few matches in the indies, but the bout she had was the perfect definition of the phrase, "baptism by fire."

Elena's opponent was definitely not an easy one. She faced off against the notorious La Malévola, a seasoned veteran who had terrorized numerous wrestling promotions for four decades, and had even hurled taunts and threats to Elena leading to the contest. Despite the jitters she had, Elena stood strong against La Malévola, fighting for 20 minutes and going on to win against a legendary villainess in women's wrestling.

With that behind her, Elena only had one thing in her mind: calling her grandmother, Fabrizia. Ever since she started her wrestling journey, Elena had a huge fan and supporter in the form of her maternal grandmother, who always attended Elena's developmental shows, and while Fabrizia wasn't there for Elena's big debut, Elena felt that Fabrizia's good vibes were present as she faced La Malévola. Elena visited Fabrizia and told her the news, it was met with huge praise and a big hug.

"You've made me so proud, Elena," said Fabrizia. "I know you'll be a huge star."

Later that night, Elena slept well at her apartment after her big match, while Fabrizia was at her own home watching Elena's match online. The grandmotherly pride was there, but there was something else that overcame her, a steely-eyed glint that looked somewhat devious. Fabrizia removed her robe and suddenly unveiled the gear of the villainous La Malévola, after which Fabrizia went to her secret room, which had photos of her decades of competing as the notorious masked villainess. Elena had sensed that Fabrizia's good vibes were with her in her big debut, and that was because Elena's greatest opponent was her own grandmother. Fabrizia donned the gear and faced off against Elena, and she was behind the taunts that led to their one-on-one encounter

"Mi nieta," Fabrizia said in a sinister yet warm tone, as she looked at a photo of herself and Elena, "you made me so proud. I had to put you to the test, unleash my dark side against you, and you passed. Just remember, there are villainesses--rudas--even more ruthless than I am, and they will look to take you down. I will guide you, mi nieta. Or maybe, just maybe, I might be your ultimate ruda!" Fabrizia gave a wicked laugh that had a bit of warmth inside, as she was pleased with guiding her granddaughter to a path in wrestling, though, unbeknownst to Elena, Fabrizia could become Elena's greatest in-ring foe yet. Regardless, either as a loving grandmother, or as a notorious and lethal heel in the world of women's wrestling, one trait remains in Fabrizia: she is immensely proud of Elena, and hopes to see her succeed in wrestling.