It was completely by accident that Maddy found the article. She had been doing research for a term paper, and a friend sent a link to an extranet site that would help. One of the articles on the site mentioned something about the memorial at the crash site of the first Normandy, on the planet Alchera. Being who she is, she had to click on it. She was reading how the memorial had seen a steady decline in visitors, and government officials on the planet wanted to move the memorial inside of a museum, when she saw the words, thrown in like it was nothing. The crash, the result of a Collector attack initially believed to have killed Systems Alliance Commander John Shepard, hero of the Reaper War, and then nothing mentioning it again. It sounded so ridiculous, so crazy, yet before she knew it Maddy was searching the extranet for every bit of info on the SR1's crash. After reading the articles initially following the attack, she began to cry. The idea was crazy, yet every article reporting the crash when it happened said the same thing. Her father had died in the attack on the Normandy SR1, yet he was alive now. Was it all a lie, his death faked for some reason? Further research suggested that one day, John Shepard had simply returned, six months before the mission to destroy the Collector base and seven before the Alpha Relay incident. There was no mention of where he had been, it was like there some random two year gap in her father's life, that just happened to have occurred after his death was reported by every single media outlet in the galaxy. Even the Alliance itself did not release an official statement until three months after the Dad's apparent return, and it was some halfhearted, completely fake sounding statement saying he had been a part of some classified mission.
That weekend, the first opportunity Maddy had, she was on a shuttle heading home. She had questions that needed to be answered, and had decided that she would not take no for an answer. Her resolve wavered as soon as she stepped out of the shuttle, and she met her father's eyes. Damn him, she thought, as she hurried over to give her parents and twin sisters hugs. Damn him to hell. She was ready to chicken out the moment she saw him. After all the hugs and pleasantries were over, they left the spaceport and piled into her parents' skycar. All the questions were directed at Maddy, never allowing her a chance to ask what she came to ask, and she actually found herself relieved at the delay. Anna and Jennifer somehow looked completely different, even after only three months away from home. Taller, prettier, wearing more grownup clothes. Not for the first time, Maddy realized they would probably be more attractive than she ever would be. They talked and talked and talked about school, for the most part enjoying the second grade it seemed. It was not until after dinner, when Anna and Jennifer were over Maddy's return and off doing whatever they did these days that Maddy again worked up the courage. She was bringing the dirty dishes into the kitchen, where both her parents were washing them. "Mom, Dad, can I talk to you?"
Mom, of course, immediately became serious, and Maddy could see she thought it was bad news they were about to talk about. Dad was aloof as ever. "Sure, let us finish loading these dishes and we'll be over after."
"I'm not trying to be rude, but I'd rather talk right away, before I lose my nerve."
That made her father take the request more seriously. The three of them headed outside, at Maddy's request, and took a seat in the lawn chairs on the back porch. Maddy's resolve began to waver again. "Go ahead, whatever it is you clearly need to get it off your chest," Mom said.
"Well, I was doing research for a paper, and I found something kind of disturbing. About the first Normandy." Realization appeared in both her parents' eyes, all the answer she needed. Still, she needed to hear it spoken. "Dad, everyone seemed to think were dead. What exactly happened?"
"Are you sure you want to hear this?" he asked. He seemed willing, only asking to make sure she was sure.
"Yes." There was complete certainty in Maddy's tone, and she felt nothing but that certainty. Now that the question was out there, her doubt was gone, replaced by the need to know exactly what had happened.
"So how much do you know already?" Dad asked.
"Just what I found on the extranet. The Collectors attacked and destroyed the Normandy SR1, and you were one of the casualties. Two years passed where the galaxy believed you were dead, and then suddenly you reappeared, six months before the SR2 passed through the Omega 4 relay and destroyed the Collector Base."
Dad chuckled, of course he would chuckle about this. "You know more than I thought you would."
"So its true?" He nodded, the humor leaving his expression. "How are you here then?"
Maddy listened intently as her father told her everything. The attack on the Normandy, suffocating above Alchera, waking up in the Cerberus lab two years later. He told what he knew about the Shadow Broker retrieving his body, Liara's efforts to take him back, and her role in turning his body over to Cerberus. He told what he knew of the Lazarus Project, which was not much, and how Miranda led the project. When he was done, Maddy could only stare, mouth agape as she tried to speak, but not knowing what words could possibly be spoken at that moment. "Jesus, Dad…"
"Was that too much for one sitting?" he asked, genuinely concerned. "Sorry. To tell you the truth, I would have preferred to never tell you or your sisters about this, but you seemed determined. Besides, you already knew I died. The details couldn't have been worse than knowing that."
Maddy had to disagree with that. Its one thing to know your father died and was brought back, its another to hear that he was a slab of meat reconstructed over the course of two years. She still was unable to do anything but stare in shock, trying desperately to come to grips with what she was told. She simply did not expect it to be that serious. "I thought maybe you were brain dead, but kept alive while you somehow were treated for it. I never expected to hear all this." A realization came to Maddy. "I've always wondered why you worked with Cerberus, and figured there was more to it than them being the only ones trying to stop the Collectors. Owing them your very existence is a pretty damn good reason."
Dad shook his head. "I was not lying when I told you I worked with Cerberus because they were the only ones concerned with stopping the Collectors. I certainly did not work for them because I felt I owed them my life. Actually, I was bitter towards them. You know I'm not the most religious person in the world, but to this day I feel like what they did was…unnatural. Even with all the good that people will argue came from me coming back, I still feel like I don't belong sometimes." Tears formed in Mom's eyes, and she grasped one of Dad's hands.
Everything hit Maddy in that moment, overwhelming her. "I'm sorry, can we continue later," she choked out, holding back her sobs the best she could. Dad nodded, and she hurried away to one of the bathrooms before anyone saw the tears streaming down her face.
The next morning, while Mom was cooking breakfast and keeping her sisters preoccupied, Maddy and her father returned to the backyard to continue their discussion. "What happened when you died? Did you, you know, see anything?"
Dad smiled evasively. "It was no different than sleeping," he said. "When I woke, I had no idea I had died. I remember blacking out in space, and then nothing until I woke up briefly while my body was still in awful condition. Then I was put under again, until I woke up for good on the Cerberus station." He rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "I can't say for certain if I was ever truly dead, despite what Miranda insists. Maybe I never truly died, or maybe I wasn't a good enough person to make it into heaven, so my soul lingered until I was brought back. I just don't know."
The idea of her father not being a good enough man to get into heaven was absurd to Maddy. "Or maybe God needed you to stay here and defeat the Reapers."
"I would never be so egotistical as to think something like that."
"But maybe its true," Maddy argued. Her dad shrugged. Deciding it was time to change the subject, she asked, "How do you handle being told you were dead? How can anyone handle something like that?"
"How does anyone handle it?" Dad said. "I can't really say it hit me just what I came back from until I saw your mother on Horizon. Until then, I was able to keep fooling myself into believing nothing had really changed and everything could go back to the way it was. After that, I got violent. I don't know any other way to put it. I became a completely different person. Stopped believing in anything, stopped caring about anyone. I put my crew into danger I never would have, before or after. I put myself in even worse danger. I ignored my friends ignored all advice, lashed out at everyone. Basically, I was the exact opposite of the person you know."
Maddy could not imagine her father acting that way. He had never been anything short of the most selfless, caring person she had ever known, determined to keep anyone he loved from feeling any pain or facing any danger. "What helped you stop feeling so angry?"
Dad appeared puzzled, as if he never thought about this before. "I guess, I don't know I guess I would have to say time and the support of my friends. They refused to abandon me, refused to stop listening, no matter how I tried to push them away. It was gradual, but I got better. I can't really point to any one thing."
After breakfast, Maddy decided to talk to Mom. "How did you take it when you found out Dad was still alive?"
"Awful," she admitted. "About as badly as I could have. When I saw him, I screamed and yelled and accused him of every awful thing I could think of. Then, when we departed, I barely managed to hold myself together long enough to make my report before breaking down."
No matter how she tried, Maddy could not imagine her mom that way. "I'm having a hard time with what he told me about dying. The idea that there's nothing after we die, its really troubling me."
"I know how you feel," Mom said. "I had my own doubts when I spoke with him about the same thing. It took me a while to come to terms with him seeing nothing."
"What reaffirmed your faith?"
Mom smiled. "Everything your father did afterwards. What he did was a miracle, something no one else could have done. I fully believe it was fate, God's plan, that he be brought back to lead us against the Reapers."
Maddy had to smile at how similar her mother's thoughts were to her own. "I thought the same thing. That's what I told Dad when I talked to him about this."
"And I'm sure he said it was crazy."
Maddy giggled. "No, not that far. He sure doesn't believe it though."
That night, after Maddy had purchased her shuttle ticket for the next morning, her parents came to her. "We want to make sure you're okay," Dad said. "This is far from a normal thing to find out about any loved one, let alone your father."
"I'm…not exactly okay, but I'm dealing with it. Its not like he's been gone for two years, like when you found out. Its just…Jesus, Dad. You were dead? Dead dead? There's nothing I can say that rationalizes that. I might end up calling and coming home more often, just to make myself feel better, if that's alright."
"I'm not going to complain if my little girl comes home more often."
"I'm not a little girl, Dad."
He scoffed. "Bullshit, you'll always be my little girl." When Maddy laughed at his language, he added, "Dads are allowed to call their eighteen year old daughter their little girl and curse in the same sentence."
"Skipper…" Mom said chidingly. "How about we go out somewhere tonight? Our treat."
Maddy shook her head. "That's okay. I promised Anna and Jennifer I'd spend the night doing what they want." When she saw the grimaces on her parents' faces, her smile disappeared. "Uh oh, should I be worried?" They just laughed. "By the way, I'd suggest telling them about this when you think they're old enough. They aren't as calm as I am, and if they find out on their own it would probably be much worse then how I reacted."
Surprisingly, they seemed to consider it. "You're probably right. I'm shocked you are taking this well at all," Mom said.
"I'm not taking it well," Maddy insisted. "I'm just managing not to totally freak out, somehow. You're here, you're fine, and I don't have to worry about that happening again, do I?" Dad rubbed his chin thoughtfully, as if he was seriously considering the question. "Dad! That's not funny!"
He laughed, the asshole. "I know, I'm sorry." He put one arm around Maddy and kissed her forehead. "I love you, Maddy."
She hugged her father back. "I love you too, Dad. Just don't go anywhere, okay? You and Mom aren't allowed to die until I'm old and have grandkids."
I wasn't planning on writing about this, but I've had a few requests for it now, and I'm pretty sure I never covered it before, so I'm giving the people what they want. I try my best to make sure there are no inconsistencies with the game or previous chapters, and if anyone spots a serious one themselves let me know. I'm also open to expanding if there's something people felt I should have covered, besides the twins finding out. You can basically consider that as going the same way this did, since they are too young to find out now. Hope you enjoyed!
