Deleted Scenes: Alternate Sight

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Backstory: Alternate Sight

“Where’s Grandpa?” Kai asked as they all entered the living room for their lesson but only saw Grandma removing her raincoat and placing her umbrella by the door.

“Oh, I’m not good enough for you now?” She placed her hand over her heart, mouth agape. It was rare to have a training session with Grandma Vi. She was usually an observer during the lessons.

“I didn’t mean it like that, Grandma.” Kai tried to recover as he sat down on the arm of the chair beside her.” So, what are we learning?”

“Today’s lesson is about your ears,” Grandma said, then looked on as Kai, Kenzo, Kane, and Kanai looked at each other with their faces screwed. “Most of the time, you will hear a threat before seeing it. But, once you see it, it could be too late.” She reached into her bag and handed them each a floral scarf. “Cover your eyes.”

They did as they were told, and then the music began to play. The melodic tones with natural sounds of rustling leaves and birds singing played softly in the background as their grandmother guided them to different areas of the room.

“Umm. Are we supposed to be doing something,” Kane asked.

“Hush and listen.” She said. Everyone was almost in place. Grandma placed Kanai in the last position and said, “Raise your right hand. Now, point in front of you. Keep pointing toward me and follow the sounds. Who can find me first?”

She stopped speaking but walked around the room, making noticeable noises and taking heavy strides around the furniture. Darting from one side of the room to the other but never in a straight line. The boys swung their arms around, trying to keep track of her movements. Kenzo and Kane got tangled up. Kai was able to find her first.

“Good job, Kai.” Kanai started to remove the mask from his eyes, but Grandma Vi grabbed his hand. “Not so fast. Keep your eyes covered. I will move you back to your starting positions.” She guided them to their respective locations and explained, “It is not enough to rely on your ears alone. Multiple people were walking around, and each of you was distracted by the movements of others. It is not as simple as hearing the steps. Can you tell whose steps they are? Can you determine if the approach is a threat? Are there other senses that can help you follow my movements?” With each of the boys in a circle and Vi at the center, she said, ‘Hands up. Begin.”

Grandma Vi was able to slip right between Kanai and Kai without them noticing. She strolled across the room as everyone but Kane rushed to the center. Kane remained in place with his chin in the air, slowly panning his head from side to side.

Kane sniffed with his nose in the air and then quickly found her. “Great job, Kane.” She patted his shoulder and asked, “How did you find me?”

“There were too many footsteps, but I noticed that most of them were more sliding steps than regular walking. I know I was sliding my feet, trying to avoid running into things. I figured everyone else would be doing something similar, but the person with sight would not have that problem and could walk fast with confidence. When I heard the footsteps with a regular rhythm, I smelled your perfume, to be sure.”

“That was smart. Now, remove your blindfolds," Queen said. They each removed the scarves from their eyes. When they opened their eyes, they looked out at the clear blue water on a beautiful beach covered in white sand. The boys could only see themselves on the beach but no one else. Grandma Vi slowly said, “Listen for the threat.”

Vi pulled Kanai out of the illusion and whispered in his ear. “They cannot see us or each other, but they can hear us. I want you to distract them. Do not touch them, but make them feel like you might.”

Kanai’s eyes lit up as he nodded, and a devious smile crossed his face.

Since Kanai was a ball of energy, the fast-paced pursuit allowed him to jump, flip, and run all over the house uninhibited. He and his grandmother approach them from different directions, drawing their attention. The objective was for the boys to hear them advancing despite what their eyes saw and react accordingly.

After a few tries, they all could focus on what they heard and adjust. Vi approached Kane from the left slowly, and Kane adjusted to face her, craning his head to find the sound. When Kanai came from the right and a whoosh of air passed his face, Kane’s head snapped toward the gust, and then his body tensed with his hands raised to defend himself.

After a few rounds, they captured the approaches faster but also decerned between what was a threat and what was not.

“Close your eyes.” Then she counted to ten. “Open.” This time, when their eyes opened, they were looking at a lush forest. “You are under attack. Defend yourself.”

There was a click, and then the familiar rhythmic clicking of the ceiling fan began. Kanai was in the illusion now, and Kai became Vi’s partner. Kenzo, Kane, and Kanai were turning around but had not moved from their respective starting positions. Grandma Vi signaled for Kai to go for the attack. Vi provided distractions as Kai approached.

Kenzo was watching a bush that was moving in the distance. When Kai threw a throw pillow at Kenzo’s head, he swung his arm up to block. Kenzo blocked the pillow with his arm but then felt a piercing pain from a body blow. His hands dropped as he curled to cover his torso, and Kai hit him across the face with a pillow.

Ignoring the sting, Kenzo fixed his stance and listened closely to the shuffling of feet across the room. Then he heard the faint sound of Kai snickering. He took a step toward the sound, blocking the next few blows. Suddenly, something hooked around Kenzo’s right arm, pulling it backward.

While he was distracted, Kai changed his target to Kanai and Kane. Grandma had been using an umbrella to tap around the room and occasionally struck Kane and Kanai in the arm, leg, or torso so they could work on their blocks. Now that she and Kai had switched places, she used the umbrella hook to grab Kenzo’s arm and stop the pursuit. He whipped around and was able to disarm her.

Although they could technically see, they could not trust their eyes. They all were able to defend themselves well by relying on other senses.

“That was prime, Grandma,” Kenzo said as he returned the umbrella. “I have never thought about what it would be like if I could not trust my eyes.”

“Most people don’t consider the possibility until they lose one of their senses. The most well-rounded people train their senses individually, making them stronger when used together.”

“This is my first time in one of your illusions,” Kanai said as he spun the scarf around his forearm. “That was so much fun.”

“It is not the first time. When you were younger, you would stay at our house often. When you were restless babies, I would use color waves that flowed to your lullabies to help you fall asleep. When you got a little older, I would read to you. I used illusions to put you into the stories. Later, your imaginations took over.”

“Oh, I remember that!” Kai said with a brilliant grin. “I knew the music you put on sounded familiar, too. You would play it to put us to sleep and make birds fly around the room,” Kai said.

“Do you do that often,” Kane asked.

“Not lately, but you kids are keeping me sharp.” She smiled.

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