Background
Zia grew up on the Nautolan homeworld of Glee Anselm - a beautiful world covered with oceans and tropical islands. After the fall of the Republic, the Nautolans, eager to please the new Galactic Empire and maintain their place in the senate, constructed military bases, spaceports, and docking bays on Glee Anselm. Because many of the foundations for these buildings would be constructed underwater - utilizing Nautolan laborers to do so because of their natural ability to breathe and swim underwater. This led to the rise of oppressive and often illegal slave labor syndicates.
Zia was kidnapped by Black Sun mercenaries and sold into one of these brutal labor camps at the age of 11. She spent much of the next 8 years working on underwater construction - specifically dangerous jobs in mechanical systems and controlled detonations. She was able to sneak aboard a shuttle during a riot and make it off-world.
Since, she has been working as a mechanic and mercenary in the outer rim to survive.
Motivation