Hannah Shepard was aboard the MSV Yerevan in the process of a repairing the idler pulley on their Kodiak. She cursed loudly as she realized that one of the screws was stripped, and as she was reaching down into her bag to look for the correct attachment for her ratchet her omni-tool pinged. Captain Papadakos was calling for her.
"Captain," she said, standing straight and saluting to his hologram dutifully.
"Shepard, I need you up in the communications room. There's an incoming message marked urgent for you."
Hannah returned her ratchet to its case and briskly made her way up the three flights of stairs to the communications room. She ran up the last of stairs in panic, her mind laden with concern for her on-duty husband.
When she reached the door, she took a deep breath before it opened before her, revealing her brightly smiling Captain.
"Someone wants to talk to you, Shepard. Someone you haven't seen in a while."
Hannah rounded the corner, her knees buckling when she realized she was facing the holo of her daughter.
"Zoey!" she cried, running forward to get as close to the holo as possible, tears springing into her eyes. "Oh, Zoey."
Hannah saw Zoey's lip tremble with emotion as she gazed fondly at her mother. Papadakos left the room quietly, the door closing behind him.
"Zoey, I've missed you so, but we were told you were dead! What happened? Where are you? When can I see you?"
Despite the thrill coursing through her, Hannah felt an eerie chill at the slight changes in her daughter's face. It was akin to speaking to a poor impression of her. But her voice, her expression, the way she faintly scrunched her noise before smiling, it was all Zoey.
Her daughter blinked hard to hold back tears. "They brought me back, mom. Brought me back from the dead. I was spaced." Hannah could see pain in her daughter's eyes. "I don't know how to feel about this, mom. This seems against the laws of nature. I'm not complaining but... we die for a reason right? We're not meant to come back from the dead. They spent billions on me. It's so much pressure, I..."
"Zoey," Hannah said in a stern voice. "I'm so proud of everything you've accomplished. But there's a force in the universe that knows that they need your talents again. This is just a sign for you. A sign that you need to cherish every second you have, because you are more aware than ever that those seconds can be cut short at any moment. Cherish your time with those you love, those you care about."
"I love and care about you, mom. I want to see you and dad as soon as I can."
"Next time we're on shore leave at Rayingri, I'll send you a comm wave. I just hope you'll be able to meet us there."
"I'll make sure that I can. I love you, mom."
"I love you, Zoey."
The comm link closed, and Hannah broke down on the floor, weeping tears of joy.