Discover: Your Superpower

Captain EJ has a special superpower...his incredible voice!

Captain EJ vs. The Knucklers [Episode 4]: In the safety of the Stronghold, you learn the source and the extent of your strength. You will never look at your own two hands the same—knowing, now, the power they contain. You also learn what constitutes full strength for Captain EJ—which is used sparingly in consideration of the great potential for destruction.

It's not the powers we have that makes us heroes, but when and how we decide to use them. With the help of Mr. Honeybee and Sally Smith, we figure out a strategy to contain the Knuckler's rampant misuse of their scientific genius. After learning about the incredible work of the elder, Dr. Knucklers, we attempt to contact them on their sabbatical.

Perhaps they can stop their sons from afar; or else, we will have to stop them ourselves.

Voices by: Captain EJ and Amanda Fobbos

Transcript

Welcome to The Adventures of Captain EJ.

Today,

We will continue our most important mission yet.

You can do anything you set your heart to,

And I know that together we can defeat any foe.

I'm so grateful to have you as my trusted sidekick,

Hero,

And just in time.

In case you missed the last episode,

I'll give you the quick Captain's Recap now.

We walked straight into a Knuckler ambush,

And kept walking.

Their long-distance vaporization attempts didn't stand a chance against our suits of silver that could handle the heat,

But we did hit a bit of a snag.

It seems Pinky Knuckler knows more about the silver in our suits than even Mr.

Honeybee did,

And Mr.

Honeybee made them.

Pinky somehow knew that the silver came directly from none other than Knuckler International.

With that insider information,

Pinky drew us in closer,

All the way to their front door.

They may have disabled our technology and trapped us physically,

But their win was only momentary.

Using powers you didn't realize you had,

We freed ourselves using our own strength and know-how.

Together,

We secured the perimeter of the Knuckler compound and made sure they stayed put,

Entertaining themselves with the games they play.

I fear that the destruction they're unleashing on Dormir is just another form of entertainment to them.

But for now,

We have to figure out how Pinky,

Thumb,

Their scientist parents,

And Knuckler International Corporation are all connected.

And for that,

We have to wake up from our much-needed nap in the backyard hammocks.

All you have to do is close your eyes,

Get cozy,

And listen to the sound of my voice.

Captain EJ will lead the way.

EJ,

Let's begin.

You are here,

Slowly waking up in the honeybee garden.

A warm afternoon breeze sways your hammock back and forth.

You close your heavy eyelids for a little more rest as the sun shines gently on your face.

Take a slow,

Deep breath in through your nose.

Feel the coolness of the fresh air coming in and filling up your lungs.

Then slowly breathe all the way out through your mouth and let yourself be heavy here.

Captain EJ is still snoozing in the hammock across from you,

And Harold is still curled up beside you,

Snoring.

It's so peaceful here,

Yet you know that not too far away mayhem is lurking and waiting for the next opportunity to strike.

You whisper over to Captain EJ,

Trying to politely wake him up and ask about the strength you found yourself to have right when you needed it most.

But he pulls the blanket up to his chin,

Readjusts,

And turns to the other side in a deep sleep.

You look down at your hands and inspect them front and back.

They look like your typical hands,

But last night you were able to pry solid metal bars apart like they were made of silly putty.

You twist around to look at your elbows,

Arms,

And shoulders.

Do you still have that strength?

Without waking Harold,

You slink out of the hammock and walk over to a heavy wooden patio table that sits in the middle of Melody B's garden.

It has potted plants in the center,

And there are clay pots stacked on the tabletop waiting to be used.

You should be able to lift this easily if you still had that strength,

Right?

Take another slow,

Deep breath in through your nose,

And strengthen each and every one of your muscles.

Then slowly breathe out and try to lift the table off the ground.

It doesn't budge,

So you let your whole body relax.

You were able to move the table slightly by pushing it,

But not as much as you'd expect after last night.

Looking around the garden,

You wonder how else you can test this.

Harold has his head rested on the Battle Buzz helmet back on the hammock.

That could have something to do with it.

Walking back over to your helmet,

You see its green light flashing.

That's how you know it's charged and ready to use.

Make sure your neck is straight and tall,

With your ears as far away from your shoulders as possible.

Place the Battle Buzz helmet back on your head.

Click the dial on the side to zoom your scope out.

You can see the garden in brilliant shades of reds and purples now.

With infrared vision,

You can see the heat given off by little creatures in the trees and even underground.

A sense of power swells in your mind and you slowly begin to feel what you felt last night.

The helmet activates and sends a tingling sensation across your scalp like a microscopic massage.

With laser focus,

You meet yourself back at the table once again.

Take a slow,

Deep breath in through your nose and feel how strong you are.

Then slowly breathe all the way out through your mouth and lift the table off the ground with your own two hands.

Not only can you lift it off the ground,

But you can lift it over your head with one hand.

With the other hand,

You catch the pots that slide off the table as you lift it effortlessly.

You can hardly believe it.

With the table in your hands and possibility in your heart,

A rustle brings your attention back to the garden.

You look behind you to see Captain EJ and Harold smiling proudly.

Seems Hero has discovered what puts the battle in Battle Buzz helmet,

Huh Harold?

You concentrate on lowering the table back down to the ground slowly,

So your grip doesn't break it,

And arrange the pots carefully since they are much lighter in your hands than usual.

You always knew you had incredible strength,

But this is beyond what you ever imagined yourself to be capable of.

That is very much the point and the function of the Battle Buzz helmet that you're wearing.

Before Captain EJ can explain further,

Mr.

Honeybee sees that you're awake and excitedly rushes out the back door,

Carrying opened packaging from the delivery and the tablet where he stores his volumes of research.

Oh good,

You're both awake.

I looked into this Knuckler International Corporation.

I still can't believe I didn't notice the name before.

Mr.

Honeybee clicks around quickly and swipes his hand up toward the top of the tablet in one swift motion.

What was displaying on his screen now projects onto a transparent display that unfurls from the rooftop with one of his clicks and hangs down the side of the house.

You take off your helmet and immediately distract yourself with how perfect this setup would be for backyard movie nights,

Complete with the fire pit and those cozy hammocks.

But Captain EJ's booming voice asking Mr.

Honeybee a question brings you back to the moment.

Time was of the essence when you got that package,

Mr.

Honeybee.

It's understandable that you didn't study it,

But you clearly have now.

Are those the elder Knucklers standing in front of their charities?

Are they wonderful people?

From what I can tell,

Dr.

And Dr.

Knuckler are doing extremely important work for the world.

Just look at this long list of awards their innovative research has won and the charities they support.

Mr.

Honeybee scrolls down a list of hundreds of names.

Besides the names are smiling pictures of them accepting their awards and all the thankful people around the world shaking their hands.

That's when a familiar shimmering face pops up in the pictures on the screen.

You point out the very silver Sally Smith who helped and completely outed you and Captain EJ and Dormir.

She and the rest of her silver smithing family are huddled around the Dr.

Knucklers like a team who just won.

Hero brings us brilliantly to my next point.

Sally Smith's the silver that the elder Knucklers helped mine out of thin air,

Literally.

Let me explain.

Dr.

And Dr.

Knuckler developed a fractional distillation technique that mines silver particles from the air.

Mr.

Honeybee goes on to explain that Dormir is specially situated in a valley that sits in the shadow of surrounding mountains.

Since the sunlight shines so minimally on the place,

The cooler air retains more of its nighttime properties.

At night,

When the moon reflects the light of the sun without transmitting as much heat,

The minute silver particles that flicker on the moon's surface beam down to earth with the moonlight.

Throughout the shady day in Dormir,

Silver particles collect in the valley.

They are left hanging in the shadow of the night before.

Dr.

And Dr.

Knuckler begin their nocturnal work when the silver in the air is at its densest and ready to harvest.

It seems that Pinky,

More so than Thumb,

Devised an alternative use for the fractional distillator.

It can heat the air of Dormir to the perfect temperature that separates out the silver particles without destroying them.

That's how Pinky knew your suits were made of silver,

Even though they weren't at all visible.

Because silver is the only thing their machines cannot disintegrate.

Everything else around it can be vaporized with the push of a button.

On our trip to Dormir,

We did learn that the Elder Knucklers wanted their sons to follow in their footsteps,

So Pinky and Thumb must know enough about the science to misuse the technology with devastating precision.

But wait,

I don't understand what is so important about silver that it needs to be mined from the air.

What can it do?

Another interesting point,

But an easier question to answer,

Is what silver can't do.

And the answer appears to be nothing.

It's used in medicine and hospitals because it naturally fights germs.

It's one of the most reflective metals,

So it helps us see our own reflection in mirrors.

It regulates temperature.

It's used in cars,

Engines,

Electronics,

Jewelry,

And silverware.

It's used to purify water and even to convert sunlight into solar electricity.

Silver seems to solve a lot of the most enduring problems,

Which is why Dr.

And Dr.

Knuckler are so renowned.

They supply most of the world's silver through Knuckler International.

Wow,

I had no idea.

This is excellent research as always,

Mr.

Honeybee.

That level of technology in the wrong hands puts so much more at risk than just one town and its people.

Speaking of,

Sally Smith should be calling on the holophone any minute.

She confirmed there was no additional damage last night,

Which,

In and of itself,

Is a miracle.

Whatever you and Hero did last night worked in the short term.

She also mentioned that she might be able to get a hold of the Elder Knucklers.

If they know what Pinky and Thumb are doing,

They may be able to stop them,

Or at the very least,

Power down their laboratory in some way.

I'm sure they have some kind of failsafe enabled for when they're away.

Back in the nondescript garage,

The command center is abuzz with blinking indicators,

Beeping gadgets,

And humming machinery.

The alert from Mr.

Honeybee's holographic phone is a glowing orb that bubbles out the sleek screen.

We can see Sally Smith's face looking at us,

Waiting for us to answer her call.

Mr.

Honeybee places a device on a small pad near the floor and clicks to answer.

Suddenly,

Sally appears in 3D as if she's standing right in front of you in the garage.

She looks much more relieved than the last time we saw her.

This was the first morning in over a week that she didn't wake up to more destruction.

Her neighbor came by with cookies to celebrate.

With a big smile,

She reaches out to give you and Captain EJ a hug through her hologram.

You try not to seem shocked that it's possible for her to do that and lean in nonchalantly.

The buzz of electricity tickles your shoulder where she squeezes you tight with gratitude.

Mr.

Honeybee updates her on all we've learned about Dr.

And Dr.

Knuckler.

Sally is anxious to fill in the gaps and begins telling us all about her family of silversmiths and the long history of work she's done with the doctors.

Sally shimmers even brighter as a three-dimensional hologram than she does in person.

The animated way she talks as she lights up makes her look like she's made of magic.

The Smith family has been working with silver for so many generations that we sort of shimmer.

I like to think of it as a little bit of moon dust sprinkled on our lineage.

At this point,

It's genetic,

I assume.

My parents taught me the trade.

Their parents taught them.

We have smithing tools that are centuries old at our ranch.

That's what's so scary about what the younger Knucklers are doing.

Just think of all that we stand to lose for no good reason.

One of our two-ton furnaces just disappeared into thin air.

Irreplaceable family heirloom vaporized.

That was my great-great-great-grandparents' furnace,

And now it's gone.

I'm willing to help in any way I can.

Sally's long-standing working relationship with the Dr.

Knucklers means that she has many ways to contact them,

Even when they're away,

In case of business emergencies.

She's already tried calling their cell phones,

But they do not get service in the Arctic Circle.

They are there taking advantage of a months-long polar night to advance their fractal desolation research.

Their sabbaticals can last anywhere from a couple of weeks to months at a time.

With Mr.

Honeybee's satellite phone,

Though,

We can get a clear signal through to their satellite phones.

Captain EJ quickly grabs the phone from the workbench,

And Mr.

Honeybee opens the garage.

We'll need to be out in the open air with a clear view of the sky to access the satellite.

It can send communications to just about anywhere on the planet,

As long as both phones have a clear path to transmit signals back and forth to the satellite.

We're also going to need Sally down in the driveway,

So she can read us the number.

You gently pick up the holophone from its spot in the garage and carefully balance Sally's hologram while you walk-run to the driveway.

The satellite phone rings and rings over the speaker.

Captain EJ paces back and forth while it does.

Take a slow,

Deep breath in through your nose.

Hold your breath in for the last ring.

Then slowly breathe all the way out through your mouth as the call goes to the Dr.

Knuckler's voicemail.

They explain that they are doing new cloud experiments that aim to attract more silver to a particular area.

But the dense clouds will obstruct their signal.

They did mention something helpful.

They get mail twice a month at their research facility,

So that's something.

We need another plan,

And Sally,

For that we'll need your skills.

Of course.

Captain EJ and Honeybee Hero,

Whatever I can do.

Thoughts and possibilities race through your head before a sense of calm washes over you.

Captain EJ felt it too,

And once again,

Your great minds think just alike.

You look at each other and smirk,

Knowing exactly what to do.

Oh,

By now I know that look.

What are you two thinking?

You have to tell me.

I cannot read your minds like you can.

What is it?

We know all the machinery that Pinky and Thumb have access to in their parents' lab cannot destroy silver.

And we have someone right here who literally makes silver.

We need to put those two things together.

Genius.

How did I not think of this?

With Sally's resources and skills,

Mr.

Honeybee's technology,

And our strategy and strength,

We can plate the entire town of Dormir with the protective layer of silver.

If it worked for us and our suits,

It will work for Dormir and all of the invaluable things they hold dear.

Sally can set a cast for any possible shape.

She's never silver-plated the side of a house before,

But she's willing to try.

Since we only have our two arms,

Mr.

Honeybee can help move things remotely with teleportation.

For the big,

Heavy silver plates that need to be put in place once they've cooled,

Well,

We have that handled.

Our two arms each will be plenty.

Together,

You and Captain EJ will be the force of protection that Dormir and its people so desperately need.

Before she ends the holocaust,

Sally fires up one of her remaining furnaces and gets right to work melting down all the scrapped silver that doesn't have a use yet.

She mentions that another fresh batch is on its way,

But doesn't go into details.

Silver is now going to become one of the most precious of all her precious metals.

Mr.

Honeybee can easily replicate the teleportation remote prototype that you used on the last trip.

He rushes off to the workbench to get that started just as Sally's hologram fades back into the ether.

You know just what to do,

And now it's time to do it.

Hero,

Our conscientious use of strength is crucial to this mission.

It's time for you to know exactly how the BattleBuzz helmet works and all you're actually capable of.

Come with me.

Captain EJ leads you back into the stronghold where your suits of silver are stored for safekeeping.

On the way,

You grab your BattleBuzz helmet which is laying on the workbench,

Concealed as a beanie,

And tuck it under your arm.

You reach up to the bike in the rack that is hanging from the ceiling and push it along its track until the wall behind it reveals the door to the stronghold.

Captain sorts through a ring of keys until he finds the one that opens the top drawer of a red tool chest in the corner.

There he finds the little flash drive with numbers that change every couple minutes.

It flashes 555 and you quickly enter that into the keypad.

Quiet yourself inside and out as you stand in front of the vaulted steel door with your head held high.

Take a slow,

Deep breath in through your nose while the facial recognition laser traces your face.

Then slowly breathe all the way out through your mouth and step into the stronghold through the open door.

You walk up to your reflection in the mirror where the robotic arm will emerge from.

Now you look at the mirror knowing something more than you did before.

This mirror is made of silver and more than that,

Silver's ability to reflect light is one of the few ways you're able to ever see yourself,

What you look like from the outside that is,

Which is something totally different than how it feels to be you.

Standing in your own reflection,

You look at yourself as you never have before.

You are stronger than you ever thought possible.

What you thought were physical limits were just optical illusions of your own limited human perception.

The mirror doors separate and the suits of silver are presented to you and Captain EJ on the robotic arm.

Layer by layer,

You suit up and think about the mission ahead of us.

So much is at stake,

But you can't think about that now.

Heroes don't need to think about how heroic they are.

Nothing truly heroic is done in vain.

Captain EJ again hands you headphones that fit snugly over your ears and secures the inner door.

This stronghold is the only place that Captain EJ practices using his powers at full strength.

Now you will have to adjust to having yours just like he did.

Captain EJ has had his whole life to learn to live with his superpowers,

But you are learning in an emergency with no time to spare.

The mirror doors close in front of you and you put on your Battle Bus helmet,

First as a beanie.

Together you and Captain EJ convert your beanies to helmets and he explains how this strange piece of technology works with you,

Specifically.

You're the only other person in the world that has a Battle Bus helmet.

No one else can be trusted to wield such power.

Mr.

Honeybee spent years perfecting the mechanism within this helmet.

It's modeled after the special way that Captain EJ thinks.

The functionality in his helmet serves as a reminder that even he sometimes needs.

Each thought we think is an electrical current that travels through our squishy folded up brains.

That current mixes with chemicals called hormones that help different parts of your body communicate with each other.

Every time we think a thought,

We create a specific pathway that our physiology responds to with an array of chemicals.

That process,

And that process alone,

Determines the strength you do or do not have in any given moment.

These pathways,

Although changeable,

Become entrenched.

The electricity gets comfortable traveling along the same pathway just like we find our favorite ways of doing things over time.

That is how our habits,

And thus our personalities,

Are developed,

For better or worse.

Whether you think you can or you think you can't,

You're right.

That is the damage self-defeating thoughts pose to our otherwise creative brain machinery.

And it's our brains,

Not our muscles,

That allow us to use our full strength.

What Captain EJ does is sincerely believe that he can.

This helmet delivers a sense of reality that is saturated with possibility.

But all of that already lives in you.

The Battle Bus helmet just allows you to feel it,

Unimpeded by any previous habits.

It gives your electricity shortcut pathways that get straight to the point.

You are hero now.

It doesn't matter what you or anyone else called you before.

You didn't see this before,

But Captain EJ has several stone walls set up deeper in the expanse of Stronghold.

This is what he uses for strength practice.

Full of enthusiastic inspiration,

You leap up to the wall and decide to pull a single stone completely out of the concrete that is holding them together.

With one hand,

You gently nudge the heavy cinder block.

It cracks as it rips away from the rest of the stone wall.

You hold it up to really take it in.

Captain EJ smiles watching you realize how strong you are.

He's been waiting for this moment for a long time,

And it's finally here.

You know what he has always known about you,

How capable you are of doing anything you set your heart and mind to.

After a couple tries,

You successfully punch right through one of the stone walls.

You can lift anything,

Including Captain EJ,

Much to his surprise.

You are now well-versed in your own power.

Captain EJ quiets himself down to practice in his own way.

The last you saw of this,

He was able to hold the teleportation remote in midair.

Now you're able to see just how he does that.

He signals for you to put your hands over your headphones to protect your ears as much as possible.

The helmet is obstructing the headphones from sitting flat against your ears,

So you hurry to adjust them for reasons you don't know yet.

Then he looks to the stone walls in the stronghold,

One of which you just punched through.

You got one ear tucked away under the headphone,

But you're struggling to get the other one to fully cover your ear.

As you fumble with it,

Captain EJ takes a slow,

Deep breath in through his nose.

His chest lifts and his hands ball into fists.

Then he exhales and shouts in the direction of the stone walls.

It's unlike any sound you've heard before,

And you only hear it for a split second before your one exposed ear starts ringing.

You jerk the headphone over your other ear,

Clamoring for relief just as each of the stone walls explode in quick succession.

The sound waves of Captain EJ's voice have such a force that not much on Earth can withstand.

His voice is his superpower.

But given its ultimate destruction,

He has vowed to only use its terrifying strength when absolutely necessary and never,

Ever in the direction of a person.

He only used it on things like these stone walls or falling buildings,

And he's gotten quite precise at doing that.

But even Captain EJ does not know the extent of the magic that lives within his voice.

He keeps it hidden away for the most part,

Exposed only rarely and mostly in this stronghold where the people he cherishes can be protected.

Captain EJ sits down on the rubble,

All that's left from the stone walls.

Hero,

It's not the special powers or incredible strength that makes us who we are.

It's what we decide to do with those gifts and how we use them.

Otherwise,

We are no different,

No better than Pinky and Thumbknuckler.

We take responsibility for our abilities and honor them with healthy self-discipline.

But more than that,

We always begin and end with love.

Let's go save Dormir.

That concludes our adventure.

I can't wait to see you again.

Captain EJ,

Over and out.

Reviews

There really is so much embedded in these recordings, and when I’m not being mesmerized to sleep by voice and background heartbeat, the good messages and quirky story keep me engaged. Much appreciation 🙏🏼❤️