Background

On a cool Spring morning in the year 1970, Paige Turner was born. Raised by a single working mother struggling to make ends meet, the young girl did not have much to her name. Living in the city of Louisville in Kentucky only added to the financial struggles. But Paige’s mother, although burdened with her current circumstances, loved her daughter very much. If she couldn’t buy things for her little girl, she’d find other means to bring life and light to her world. So at a very young age, Paige began to make trips to the local public library with her mother. The girl was captivated by all the books and activities that the library provided. It was a place of wonder and filled with boundless knowledge. Young Paige constantly looked forward to these wonderful visits, going multiple times a week. There were so many fascinating tales that she could get lost in. As Paige grew older, she was able to visit the library by herself. Fiction and fantasy still entertained her, but her curiosity grew tenfold, and she wanted to dive into the wealth of knowledge before her. History, science, biographies, anything and everything she could get her hands on she’d consume with her passion to learn and understand. In particular, she discovered an interest in learning how gadgets and small electronics worked. She enjoyed the challenge and ‘puzzle’ of figuring out how to repair broken watches and other small devices. Being a frequent and devout library attendee, the librarians who worked there suggested that Paige could work as a library assistant if she was interested - and she certainly was. The teenage girl started to learn what it meant to be a librarian, and knew that’s what she wanted to do with her life. Being incredibly intelligent and having a natural love for learning, Paige graduated early from high school. In order to make her way into college, she did her research and applied for as many scholarships as she could, which helped pay her way through her education. Whatever she couldn’t afford or the scholarships didn’t cover, she’d take out student loans and continued to work as a library assistant during her university years. Nearing the end of her PhD, she met an intriguing man by the name of Dylan Truett. They shared a similar love for learning, as he wanted to become a professor. A deep friendship eventually blossomed into love. The two were inseparable and about a year after Paige received her PhD, the two mutually decided they wanted to get married. With her connections with other libraries, it didn’t take long for Paige to get employed at a public library in West Point. Her significant other, Dylan, managed to find a job at Louisville State University as a professor. The two decided to get a small fixer-up home in-between the two locations. With a new millennium just around the corner, the two finally decided on a date to get married - January 1st, 2000. However… fate had different plans. Several years of working at the library, Paige began to notice occasional news and reports of daisies growing in large quantities and in locations uncommon for them. Finding this interesting, the librarian, during her free time, would read and research books on wildflowers, daisies, and other nature-related information. It was truly fascinating how nature could adapt to the changes of the world. But by the spring of 1999, that fascination would turn to fear. At first Paige was concerned, but as time progressed, so did her fear. Along with the news of the rampant, dangerous illness, her fiancé began to grow ill. It started first as coughing and sneezing - typical allergies. But he grew worse, his sickness becoming more severe, his mood even began to deteriorate. In the Summer of the same year, she learned of the Quarantine Zones being formed. Dylan was reluctant to go, snapping at her. But eventually he agreed, the deep-rooted love still being able to give him some sense, for now. So the pair left for the KQZ and after a long journey, eventually arrived at the entrance. Paige began to feel a sense of safety and relief… but that didn’t last long. Their belongings needed to be checked, but Dylan was against it, protesting loudly. Paige attempted to calm and reason with him, but that just made him more angry, more aggressive. At this point, a couple of the guards attempted to detain him physically, and that was the breaking point. Dylan lunged at the nearest guard, biting and clawing at him. Instinctively, the other nearby guard raised his firearm and pulled the trigger, shooting Dylan in the head… killing him instantly. Paige’s love, her life, was shattered in a blink of an eye. After a week or so after the incident, Paige had been cleared to enter the QZ. The guards wanted to make sure she did not share the same affliction as her departed fiancé. It took Paige a long time to heal… and even then, she never truly felt whole. As months grew into years, Paige’s feelings of loss and hopelessness began to change. She saw so many others facing similar tragedies, and could feel the despair in the air. She had to do something... and so she did. She made an effort to collect books, art, games, whatever she could get her hands on through trade, scavenging, and dumb luck. The small living space she now called home was converted into a makeshift library. Paige would invite others to read and relax. It wasn’t long before the word traveled across the QZ, and her library became fairly busy. The librarian eventually offered more services, such as teaching lessons, having book readings, game nights, and more. To this day Paige continues to run her library, doing what she can to help the people in the QZ have some life and light brought to their lives, just as she did when she was a small girl. In Spring of 2009, she went out to go scavenging. Knowing it would take a few days, she locked up her library and went off on her trip, leaving the KQZ. Not knowing what fate had in store for it.