It Came from Lucina's Head
Chapter 11: Meeting with Master Hand
"Open the door Lucina; there's something that you and I need to discuss."
Upon hearing the voice of the monstrous floating hand outside of the room, Lucina couldn't help but glance at Robin, who in turn gave her the same worried look. Ever since the nightmarish incidents started, she had been trying her best to avoid contact with Master Hand for fear that he would impose some drastic changes onto her lifestyle. Anyone would normally expect these kinds of changes to be for the better, but Master Hand had a habit for making decisions based on his own personal preferences. To him, everything was just business.
"I'll get it," said Robin hastily as he got up from the bed.
Numerous thoughts began to fill Lucina's head and she wondered what the large disembodied hand planned to talk about with her. His tone of voice from outside did not make her feel any more comfortable to say the least.
The young mage opened the door gently, revealing the floating white glove bobbing monotonously in the air.
"Good afternoon, Master Hand," greeted Robin politely. "How are you today?"
Although it was hard to tell, the larger being seemed rather unfazed by the friendly gesture. He did not expect to run into anyone else in the room besides Lucina.
"Hello, Robin," replied the hand casually. "I'm doing fine thank you. Do you mind if I step in?"
"By all means, sir," said Robin as he bowed his head slightly.
The two walked (well, Master Hand floated like he always does) back to Lucina's side of the room. Along the way, Robin gave the girl a look that didn't seem very reassuring. Lucina did her best to maintain her composure, but deep down inside she was feeling rather anxious.
"How are you doing my dear?" asked Master Hand as he approached the bedside.
Lucina was somewhat taken aback by his sudden casualness. Just outside the door he sounded like he was in a rush or in dire need to see her. Yet now, he was as calm as calm could be.
"I'm doing better," she replied plainly. "Dr. Mario is giving me one more night in the hospital wing before I'm released."
"Ah, good," he said, his constant bobbing still apparent. "I'm surprised at how fast you were beginning to recover considering the severity of your injuries from the other night."
"Yes, Zelda's magic was able to suppress most of the pain," she replied. "My wounds are healing at a quicker pace, but I can't feel a difference."
The hand nodded without saying anything, causing an awkward silence to fill the room for a few seconds. Lucina and Robin exchanged uneasy glances yet again, both of them anticipating Master Hand to say something about the "real" reason why he was here.
"Formalities aside, Lucina," said the hand all of a sudden, "there's something I need to discuss with you." The large white glove slowly turned to Robin. "Privately."
The tactician closed his eyes and nodded.
"As you wish, sir," he replied, collecting his books and making his way out of the room. He gave one last worried look to Lucina before exiting and closing the door behind him.
Lucina looked up at the hand with uncertainty. A part of her wanted to say something in question, to get a better understanding of what this was all about. Another part of her wanted to apologize for causing such a commotion over the last few days. She knew Master Hand was the busiest individual in the mansion and rarely took the time to meet and talk with his Smashers in person. The only times she ever recalled seeing him was when she first joined the company, or during special occasions like the Christmas banquet and New Year's.
It was pretty much an unspoken rule that if Master Hand wanted to speak with a Smasher during business hours, it never meant good news.
"It has come to my attention that there have been a number of incidents revolving around you recently," said the hand straightforwardly. "I have received word from several Smashers that you are having quite the difficult time falling asleep."
And the award for understatement of the year goes to…
"I will do my best to explain everything," said Lucina as confidently as she could. In the back of her mind, she was wondering just how severe the rumors about her had become, but she discarded the thoughts for now. If there was anyone who should be informed on the truth about the nightmares, it was Master Hand.
And thus, like she did with Captain Falcon, Ike, and Robin, Lucina told Master Hand about the incidents that began happening as of last Friday night. As she was explaining the details of the monsters in her dreams, she made sure not to mention any of the theories that Robin had stated to her previously, such as the Gengar or the False Character. She wanted Master Hand to make his own deductions based on the scenarios. And since he himself represented some sort of "godlike" figure to the Smashers, surely he would have the one and only solution to her supernatural predicament.
As she concluded her explanation, she noticed the hand angle himself toward the floor, simulating the portrayal of a human being who was deep in thought.
"Lucina," he said with a sigh, "I expected something better from an honest Smasher like you."
Lucina raised her eyebrows in confusion.
"I beg your pardon, sir?" she replied.
The hand looked back up at her, and like always she could not tell what he was thinking or what he was about to say because of the fact that he had no face.
"Do you really expect me to believe that the reason why you are in this bed with stab wounds is because you were attacked by monsters in your dreams?" he asked.
This statement alone was exactly the reason why she was so hesitant to tell the other Smashers about her problem in the first place. Who in the right mind would believe such nonsensical drabble that's clearly something ripped right out of a Freddy Krueger movie?
"I can't explain it in any other way," she replied, somewhat disheartened. "The monsters have appeared in my sleep every night for the past three days, and I fear that they are going to show up again tonight and probably for the nights following."
"Maybe you shouldn't watch so many scary movies."
She wasn't sure if she was to take that sentence as an insult, but she held her tongue regardless.
"The thing is, Lucina," continued Master Hand, "I have reason to believe that the culprit behind these attacks is not your 'boogey man.' Last night, the security camera planted in this room caught you on tape trying to hurt yourself."
Lucina was certainly surprised to hear that coming from Master Hand. Did Falcon and Ike go against their word?
"That wasn't me though," she protested. "My body was being controlled by one of the monsters."
"That's a load of baloney," he scoffed. "Even if there was an evil presence on the mansion grounds, the barrier surrounding the property would have detected it while it was passing through. The barrier has never been broken once since it was deployed a few years ago."
"I understand that the evidence is not in my favor," she replied as strongly as she could. "But I don't know how else to explain it. I'm innocent, and if I can't find some way to deal with these midnight occurrences, then I fear that I may fall asleep one of these nights never to wake up again."
The hand pondered silently on this for a few moments before coming up with a response.
"I still stand by my points," he said. "These monsters you're seeing at night are likely a result of some traumatic ordeal that stupid movie put you through. The fact is that you were the one caught trying to strangle yourself last night, and I'll bet you any money that it was also you who is responsible for your slash wounds two nights ago. Honestly, if this is just your way of trying to get attention, then I'm afraid I will have to take matters into my own hand. I can't afford to have you forfeiting matches in the tournament because you can't control your urges."
Lucina was trying her best to remain calm, but she couldn't help but feel a small spark of irritation build up inside her.
"I can assure you I'm not trying to get anyone's attention," she replied seriously. "I just want my life to go back to the way it was before."
"Well then let's start making that change, shall we?"
The hand began to glow, causing a strange blue aura to surround Lucina's Falchion, which was sitting upright against the other bed. The sword began floating in the air and vibrating momentarily before disappearing completely into some kind of void.
"Wait, what are you doing?" she asked anxiously.
"We're going to have ourselves a little experiment," said the hand seriously. "Today, I'm going to take away your sword. If you can't seem to go another night without putting your hands around your neck, I'm going to put restraints on you. These restraints will progressively get more and more intense for each subsequent night you try to hurt yourself. If I have to put a straitjacket on you by the end of this week, then so help me I will."
"I'm not crazy!" she protested. "And if you take away my sword, you're only going to put me in more danger!"
"More danger than what caused you to end up in this hospital bed?" he replied. "I don't think so. At least this way you can still partake in the tournament. I have ordered the Waddle Dees to remove the weapons rack that you keep in your room just to be on the safe side. If you need to grab a sword for the match, you can ask for permission from R.O.B. or one of the servants to retrieve one from the armory, but you must return it afterwards immediately. Hopefully, this new system will help keep you in check by the time you're done recovering from whatever mental roadblock you keep butting up against. It's too bad we don't have any real psychiatrists in the roster…"
Lucina could only shake her head in dismay. She couldn't believe how insane Master Hand's decisions were, and better yet, how he himself did not see how crazy his temporary solution was. She was expecting something bad the moment the hand came to knock on her door, but she didn't expect something of this magnitude. Now, not only was she expected to just "get over" these bizarre nightmares, but she was also supposed to do it without her weapon. What was he going to impose next, turning her dorm room into a padded cell as if this mansion was some sort of insane asylum?
She ended up pleading to the hand for several minutes on the grounds that he was misjudging the situation entirely and that even if his assumptions were her real problem, they were definitely the wrong way to go about resolving it. The hand was persistent however, and refused to waver from his decision, stating again and again that she was letting her imagination get the best of her. The poor girl found herself backed up into a corner with no way out other than to reluctantly comply with the plan Master Hand had set forth for her.
She really wished she had a friend by her side to help her stand up against her superior like the trustworthy Robin, the loyal Ike, or even that airhead Captain Falcon.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the mansion…
Ike and Shulk were wandering down the halls, making their way to the cursed dorm room of who was probably the one and only Smasher they feared the most. After lunchtime, the mercenary and the Homs had joined forces in their attempts to interrogate the mansion's villains. The process itself was quite tedious to say the least. Nothing in their training as swordsmen would have prepared them to face the wrath of one known as Ganondorf.
Earlier in the day they had spotted King Dedede in the game room along with Waddle Doo, Fox, and Mario playing a game of foosball, while an upbeat remix of the Kirby's Dreamland theme was playing in the background. The king was reluctant to meet with them outside in the hall, but fortunately Yoshi had been passing by just in time to take his place in the game. After confirming that the coast was clear, Ike began questioning Dedede about anything he knew regarding dreams.
Despite his reputation as a villain, Dedede was pretty compliant with the swordsmen and gave his best opinion on the matter. He didn't seem to know much about dreams coming to life, but he did make mention about a specific villain known as "Nightmare" who was notorious for making bad dreams a reality for its victims. Of course, it was impossible for Nightmare to be anywhere in the mansion as the barrier protecting the place prevented it from doing so. Not to mention, the Star Rod was securely tucked away at the Fountain of Dreams, which was one of the main sources of power Nightmare used to manifest itself in people's minds. Still, the information was quite useful to the swordsmen, and they made sure to give the king a "thanks" for his help, to which Dedede could only reply, "Yeah whatever, just let me get back to my damn game!"
Shulk and Ike continued on their rounds of the mansion, both of them talking about Lucina's predicament, as well as themselves for a while because incidentally, neither of them knew all that much about each other. Ike learned about Shulk's home world known as the Bionis, and of the evil mechanized forces that threatened it from the Mechonis. He also learned a bit more about the Monado, the sacred sword that Shulk always carried around with him. Apparently, not only was the Monado a powerful weapon and time manipulator, but it also gave Shulk incredible fighting abilities. Shulk, likewise, learned quite a bit about Ike, like how he was the son of a powerful warrior named Greil, and that he helped to lead a band of mercenaries to take on a darker force in his own world. The two found themselves with a lot more in common than they expected and as such, developed a trusting bond of friendship, reminiscent of soldiers that both swordsmen used to fight alongside on the fields of battle.
Eventually, the two came across Bowser, who was found in the garage trying to fix Bowser Jr.'s broken up Clown Car. The Koopa King was pretty tired, covered in oil and dust as expected from anyone who took the time to work on vehicles. But to be fair, "these damn kids never take care of anything by themselves," or so he said anyway. Just like they had done to Dedede, they began questioning Bowser on anything he knew about nightmares being a reality. The Koopa King could only laugh at their questions, say how that sort of thing was impossible and that, "if dreams were real then I'd be sitting on a beach in Hawaii next to Peach and that blasted plumber would be eating pasta through a straw."
In other words, Bowser had no idea what they were talking about, so it was safe to assume that he also did not have anything to do with Lucina's problem.
This series of events eventually led them up to the last villain, who would probably have some useful information for them. The two found themselves outside of Ganondorf's room, hesitantly standing there uneasily as they stared at the clean wood finish of the door.
"This is his room, right?" asked Shulk.
"I think so," replied Ike, although it was kind of obvious when the plaque next to the door clearly read, "Ganondorf." There were still some remnants of an adhesive when Sonic had childishly replaced the "dorf" with a sticker that read, "dork."
"We might as well knock then," said Shulk as he took a step forward, but was stopped when the mercenary put a hand on his shoulder.
"Hold on," he said. "He could be sleeping in there."
Everyone remembers the last time someone had accidentally woken Ganondorf from his midafternoon nap. Let's just say that poor Pac-Man was seeing stars for the next week or so.
"Well we can't stand out here all day," replied Shulk. "Besides, if he starts getting mad, I'm sure we can outrun him."
It was silly to think that anyone could outrun someone infamously known as the "King of Evil."
"Okay fine," replied Ike before taking a deep breath. "Here it goes."
He approached the door and firmly knocked on it three times. They waited several seconds almost until a full minute had gone by, but there was no response from the other side. The two swordsmen glanced at each other before Ike waltzed back up to the door to knock again. Just as he was about to place a fist on the wood however, a low voice emanating from inside of the room caught his attention.
"What business do you have here, heroes?" asked the muffled voice of Ganondorf from the other side.
"We've come to ask you a few questions," replied Shulk calmly. "If you would be so kind as to open the door?"
"No one is to disturb me during this hour," grumbled Ganondorf sternly. "I thought I made that clear to you all."
"We understand that," said Ike. "But what we have to ask you is very important."
"Does it have anything to do with me, the tournament, or the Triforce?"
"Well… No, not really."
"Then I kindly ask that you remove yourselves from my presence. Also, don't scuff the welcome mat."
Ike and Shulk glanced down at their feet to see a brown mat in front of the door with the words "GET LOST" imprinted on it.
"He doesn't entertain very often does he," mumbled Shulk as he looked back up at his companion.
Ike was hoping that it wouldn't have to come to him explaining Lucina's situation to Ganondorf, but if the Gerudo King was not going to let up, then it seemed that he really didn't have a choice. Dedede and Bowser were easier to talk to, but Ganondorf, well, he was going to take a bit more convincing.
"It's about Lucina," said Ike through the wooden frame of the door. "She thinks she's being attacked by evil spirits in her sleep. We thought that you might know something about it."
There was a slight pause before Ganondorf made any kind of reply.
"Who on Din's green earth is Lucina?" was all he said.
Admittedly, Ganondorf was not very good with remembering names, especially when it came to people he didn't particularly care about. Incidentally, this set of people made up about 98% of the entire roster, but no one dared to mention anything about it anyway. He was familiar with the Smashers who he had worked with over the past decade or so, but he was still getting used to newcomers like Lucina and Shulk. First impressions didn't really matter with Ganondorf either since he more or less hated everyone equally.
"She's the one who's been in the hospital wing for the past few days now," replied Shulk. "You know, blue hair, has a sword, kind of looks like Marth."
"Oh right… Lucina," said Ganondorf under his breath. "She's supposed to be a twin sibling to Marth is she not?"
"…Not even close," muttered Ike. "But that's besides the point. Listen, we need to talk. Lucina's been having these reoccurring dreams lately where she's being attacked by monsters. The reason why she ended up in the hospital wing in the first place was because she woke up with several slash wounds on her body given to her by one of the creatures she encountered. We think there might be some kind of evil presence behind it, so we were wondering if there was some way you'd be able to assist us."
A series of locks and tumblers could soon be heard clicking and clacking from the other side before the door finally opened, revealing a menacing Ganondorf in his usual dark attire. The large man stood tall, intimidating both of the swordsmen for a few seconds.
"Now why, in the name of Nayru, would I want to help you?" asked Ganondorf with a frown.
Ike and Shulk both looked at each other and nodded firmly.
"Because if you don't," replied Shulk, "she could die."
The dark lord put a hand to his chin, partly out of amusement and partly because he was trying to decide what he wanted to do. Truth be told, he was all for witnessing the pain and struggles of worthless mortals be it physically, mentally, or spiritually. On the other hand, perhaps assisting these good heroes with their heroic deeds and such could help build him a better reputation around the mansion? Why, if Ganondorf was one of the people responsible for saving poor Lucina's life, the Smashers would have to give him more respect! Even that boneheaded Captain Falcon would have to think twice before getting in his way.
Ganondorf may have been evil, but he was also a king. He couldn't help but think how great life would be if people started treating him as such. To be both feared and respected was a status that he had only attained half of.
"Alright heroes," said the Gerudo King with a sinister smile. "Let's talk."
He faded back into the darkness of his room, beckoning for the two swordsmen to follow him. They were a little uneasy at first, as no one had ever entered into Ganon's lair before. Still, they held their ground (as well as their breath) and went in, maintaining a high guard no matter what. As anyone would expect, Ganondorf's room was mostly dark, the only light sources in the room being various candles that were scattered all over the place from the floor, to the shelves, to the tables. Various books were piled everywhere, as well as Hylian cloths, and magic mirrors, while specific items in the room such as a cauldron and his signature sword sat idly on the side.
It wasn't the cleanest room in the mansion, but it was home all the same.
Ganondorf gestured for the two Smashers to sit down at a round table that had a crystal ball on it, though it seemed to be covered by a violet rag. Despite his general attitude towards everything, Ganondorf was quite the respectable host, and even offered some Gerudo crackers to the two Smashers. They declined however, just to be on the safe side.
Discussions about the dreams soon followed thereafter. Again, Ike and Shulk explained how Lucina had been having reoccurring nightmares about monsters trying to kill her in her sleep. They did their best to describe the creatures just as she had done before, but none of them seemed interesting to the King of Evil until they got to the third monster. Oddly enough, this creature had less of a background than the other two, but there were a few key details that Ganondorf was able to pick up on that garnered his attention.
Firstly, the creature had somehow descended onto Lucina from her ceiling, though she couldn't get a good view of it due to the large hand that had found its way around her neck. And that was another thing: The hand. This was the only real detail Ike could recall Lucina ever talking about regarding the third night. Ganondorf made it apparent that perhaps the reason why she couldn't see the creature except for its hand was because the creature's entire body was made up of nothing else but the hand, similar to how Master Hand was all that his name implied. At this of course, Shulk and Ike were kind of confused, for neither of them had ever seen a creature like that before except Master Hand and his brother, Crazy Hand. It was at that moment when Ganondorf reached for a book under the table, flipping through to the pages until stopping on a bookmarked segment. He began analyzing the page, putting a hand to his chin as he skimmed over the words while Shulk and Ike just sat in silence. After a few minutes, the Gerudo pulled the rag off of the crystal ball, which began shining brightly in the room.
"Did Lucina's monster look like this?" he asked.
Upon closer inspection of the crystal ball, the Smashers noticed that in the center of it was the image of a disembodied black hand. The hand had claws for nails, and appeared to be crawling through the suspended atmosphere like some kind of spider.
"What is it?" asked Shulk.
"A minion that only I can control in the land of Hyrule," replied Ganondorf calmly. "Its purpose is to act as a guard, seeking out trespassers on my land and removing them from the premises. They are cold-blooded hunters that will never eat or sleep. They are called Wallmasters."
Author's Note: Just want to say a few quick words before I end this chapter.
Firstly, I had originally much more written for this chapter, like a scene with Falcon and Robin, but I stopped when I realized how long this was getting. The cut section will be pushed to the next chapter, which is a bummer because I wanted the next chapter to be the start of the fourth encounter. Looks like we're going to have to wait for one more update before the nightmares return.
Secondly, if there's anyone in the crowd who suffers or has suffered from some kind of mental disorder or has gone through some kind of mentally traumatizing event in their life, I hope that Master Hand's comments did not offend you. I realized after writing this that I might be tugging on some people's emotions, and even I myself know someone who has suffered through something similar in their life. So again, if you took offense to this, I am sorry; I'm not trying to hurt anyone's feelings or make them feel bad in any way. I'm just trying to write a story.
Finally, with November now upon us, unfortunately my updates for this story may not be as consistent as they were before. I will try to get the usual once-a-week updates out to you guys, but if you don't see anything from me for like two weeks after this, do not fret; I will not abandon this story. For more information on this, please check my profile page. Have a happy and safe Halloween everyone!
