Ada Milton

* Casual
* Writing

## Introduction

**Ada Milton né Clara Wallace** landed in the State of Odessa for many of the same reasons others have - freedom, a new life, inspiration. A writer at heart, Ada dreamed that the land of opportunity would one day give her the chance to start her own publishing company and help others actualize their own aspirations.

## Biography

#### Early Life - "Clara Wallace"

Before Ada Milton called herself as such, she was known as Clara Wallace. The Wallace family - a moderately noble family in England - was facing financial turmoil by the time her parents had formed their union. As such, the only saving grace they had when Clara's mother birthed three daughters was that they'd each marry off to other wealthy, stable families to guarantee the house's security. Clara grew up learning all types of skills that would make her a competitive prospect in the social season, including proper etiquette, the piano, and stitching. Clara learned early on in life that her real aspiration lie with writing; however, due to her family's circumstances, she was only able to ever pursue it as a hobby. Though her mother was sympathetic to her goals, she simply told Clara that she could write all she wanted to so long as she had secured a rich husband.

Clara's older sister by 3 years, Beatrice, was married off first. In the following years it took until Clara was set to debut in the social season, she saw just how miserable her sister became. Though Beatrice was always the optimist, Clara could see how a loveless marriage wore down her older sister's shine, and she dreaded that outcome for herself. What good was the freedom to pursue a career if it cost her happiness?

The social season had only just started when her mother informed her that a match had been found. Overwhelmed with joy, her mother described her suitor as an older gentleman who's fortune was nearly triple her own family's. When Clara pressed for more information on her soon-to-be husband, she was appalled to find that he was over twice her age. When she voiced her concern - or, rather, disgust - about this fact, her mother coldly told her to make the sacrifice for the betterment of the family, and to think of the opportunities this could open up for her youngest sister, Mabel.

#### The Flight - "Ada Milton"

Wrought with guilt, Clara mulled over her options for weeks. In that time, she met with her fiancé, and found him to be utterly intolerable. Their age gap was undeniable in person, and when she discussed her love of reading and writing, he dismissed her passions with an insulting statement on how the best type of woman is a quiet one. Abhorred by the man she was soon to be married with and fully observant of the way her older sister's marriage had treated her, Clara made the decision to pack her bags and flee in the middle of the night. Though she felt guilty that she could not make the same sacrifice Beatrice did for their family's stability, Clara ultimately knew she could never be satisfied with the life her parents had laid out for her.

At first, Clara's only plan was to make it to London - a city big enough to hide her. She sold jewelry and accessories to pay for nights at various inns along the way, and when she ran out of sellable items, she sold some of her finer clothes as well. A few greedy pawnshops tried to buy her items for far less than what they were worth, and Clara unknowingly let them. With her available funds dwindling fast, Clara was lucky enough to find herself in the company of a kind innkeeper within London who, after hearing out her story, let her stay for free. Ada, the innkeeper, gave Clara valuable advice on how to survive as a young woman traveling alone - especially since she was running *from* somewhere. Ada advised Clara to seek out the New World, as it was rumored to be rife with opportunity and would be a good place to start fresh. With some provisions from the inn, Clara set off on the next ship to the West, and began her new life.

Thus, Ada Milton was born. Masquerading as a moderately successful writer from London, Ada used her story to describe how she paid for her passage to Odessa. She also claimed that her reasons for traveling all the way to the New World was for inspiration, as well as to tap into the publishing business with what little expertise she had.

## Odessa

#### Beginnings in Blackwater

On Ada's entire journey from home, she only had one goal in mind: go as far west as she could. She hoped that putting as much physical distance from home as possible would make it easier for her new life to flourish in Odessa. She was told by many of those she met that Blackwater was as far as she should go, and that is where she finally allowed herself to settle in. With little money left to her name, and her available funds dwindling fast, Ada was inspired by one of her new friends, Charles Hudson, to start up a poem commission business. Though her cover of being a successful writer back home was false, she was surprised to find that there were many folk around Odessa who used her services, and were satisfied with her work.

After acquainting herself with the residents of Strawberry, Ada was also directed to Mr. Charles Adams of the Odessa Times. The two met just as Ada managed to afford herself a humble office within Blackwater, and he offered her a job as a writer for the Times. She was tasked with reporting on occurrences out West, and wrote her first story on a local game and fight night in the town of Blackwater itself. A framed copy of the first paper she wrote for is hung in her office.

#### Tommy Winston

During a trip up to Strawberry, Ada had a chance meeting with a man named Tommy Winston. The two got into an intriguing conversation over local cryptids that eventually lead to them staking out a possible location of the Headless Horseman. Though they didn't get to see any physical proof of the infamous Horseman, their adventures didn't stop there. The pair traveled around Odessa, and the new sights and outings Ada was exposed to fully brought her out of her shell. Furthermore, Ada began to experience something she hadn't ever felt before - romantic feelings for someone else.

His suave and witty demeanor was what initially drew Ada to him, but as they spent more time together, she realized that his respect for her as an individual and his constant support of her endeavors was irresistible. Luckily, her feelings were reciprocated, and the two began a whirlwind courtship. They would spend almost every waking minute together whenever they could, and never tired of each other's presence.

When Ada's sister, Beatrice, showed up in Saint Denis, Ada feared that the life she'd built in Odessa would fall apart completely - but, most of all, she feared that she would lose Tommy. Though she managed to have a discussion with her sister about keeping her past life quiet to everybody else, Ada knew she couldn't continue her relationship with Tommy if he didn't know the truth about her. The conversation they had on top of the Bastille Saloon was the most difficult one Ada had ever had in her life, and she very nearly feared that things would be over between the two of them. Yet - to her very, *very* real surprise - the couple walked away from the conversation with an engagement.