Savannah Payton was a doomed soul from the start. She was born on October 4, 2017 in Sunset Valley, Texas to 19-year-old Samantha Payton. Samantha had left an abusive household in Round Rock at 17 and was working multiple jobs to afford her modest apartment in the Valley. She worked the shelves by day, and worked the streets of Austin by night. It was one of those lying assholes that ended up giving her Savannah in the first place. Samantha kept the baby because it was nice to think there was at least one person in the world who would love her no matter what. She was right, for a while.

Samantha tried to go straight, tried to make the Walmart job work, but it just never brought in the cash to lead the life she was accustomed to. So Samantha went back to the streets, often leaving young Savannah at home by herself for hours at a time, trying to make due with Nickelodeon cartoons as her parents. Spongebob was a poor father figure. Eventually, Samantha was busted trying to take her business to some clients at South By Southwest and that resulted in Savannah entering the foster system at age nine. She didn't take to it well.

She never trusted any of the parents had her best interests at heart. They tried to encourage Savannah to use her natural talents. She was a smart kid, she could do great things, but Savannah didn't believe them. Why would they care about her when her own mom clearly didn't? Savannah was very rebellious and she learned that if she wanted something, she was going to have to get it for herself. She bounced around Texas homes for a few years before she was arrested at age 13 for shoplifting a Nintendo Switch 3 from a Walmart in Elgin and was sentenced to a year at the Travis County Juvenile Detention Center. Savannah would become very familiar with this place.

While serving time there, Savannah met an older girl, a 16-year-old pickpocket named Alexis "Chapolita" Delgado who she finally was able to find some level of trust with. Alexis knew the life Savannah had led and was able to quickly empathize with the homeless girl. When Alexis was released on her 17th birthday, she was able to secure a cheap apartment in one of the few rundown sections of Austin remaining, and she made it clear that her place was open to those of her sisters who needed it. When Savannah was released, she wasted no time moving in to Alexis' place. The truth was, Alexis was no more rehabilitated by the system than Savannah. She intended to break into some other illegitimate businesses with the help of her extended family and the girls who joined her from TCJDC.

As the youngest member of this new crime family, Savannah was often chosen for the high-risk missions, because if she was caught, who cared? She'd just go back to juvie. She enjoyed the challenge of acquiring cash and cars by any means necessary, and her blossoming beauty gave her some leeway in situations that called for it. Chapolita was very fond of Payout, as Savannah became known, partly because of her nearly abandoned last name, and because whenever she came back to the apartment, she paid out like a slot machine with her elicit gains. When Savannah turned 17, Alexis finally told Savannah just how fond she was, and that's how Savannah discovered who she truly cared about.

However, that joy was short-lived. Travis County detectives had been building a case against Delgado for months and in February 2035, they were able to make their move. When they busted down the apartment door, Alexis was nowhere to be found. She got a tip prior to the raid and hightailed it towards El Paso. However, she neglected to inform Savannah, who woke up to the sounds of the cops screaming at her to put her hands above her head and explain the ton of cocaine in the apartment.

Despite Alexis' disappearing act, Savannah was still willing to protect her Chapolita, and refused to give up any potential leads. Having now graduated past the age of juvenile detention, Savannah was threatened with a lengthy stay in grown-up jail. She still refused. However, before the paperwork could be drawn, Detective Harrels was approached by Drs. Wayman and Hagerty asking for candidates for an experiment they were set to run in New Mexico. The detective smiled and offered Savannah a choice: head to a boarding school in New Mexico designed to offer her a chance to save herself, or do 10 years in jail on drug charges. Miss Payton chose the former, not knowing what exactly was in store for that end of the deal. She just knew she wasn't going to be caged in, and that sounded pretty good. She could get back to her usual life of stealing and wheeling later.