The space ship came to a halt, skidding slightly on the gravelled path before coming to rest on its training wheels. Finally, it had arrived on the dreadful Planet X. Seconds ticked by, then the hero leaped off of it and struck a heroic pose. His name was Mega Racer, and he had come to save the universe.

Everything was quiet and peaceful, in fact, maybe a little too peaceful. Mega Racer glanced around, not quite feeling ready to approach the castle of the evil Laser King. While he was indecisive, a soft summer breeze made his cape flap out behind him. It caught on the space ship's handle bars, making him fall over. When he tried to get up, the space ship fell on top of him. It took a while to untangle himself from it, but he finally got to his feet and brushed off his thin, grey-furred arms.

A giggle made him look up, just in time to see a jet black face disappear from a second floor window. Feeling angry and embarrassed, Mega Racer hurried over to the castle's door and threw it open. He had been there before, of course, but this time it looked very different. Like a dungeon, he decided. A dungeon on the entrance floor, was that even possible? He shook his head to stay focused, then slowly made his way to the stairs. The Laser King's lair lay one floor up, he knew. Slowly, step by step, he started to ascend.

In all his long career as a space hero, Mega Racer had never, not ever, faced a worse threat. The Laser King was pure evil, and his goal was to rule the universe or to destroy it. The upper floor hallway turned out to be empty, but Mega Racer could hear faint sounds coming from up ahead. It sounded vaguely like music, but he decided that it was probably the wailing screams of some poor, tortured prisoner. Despite his usual hero's courage, he was beginning to feel scared.

Then the door to his left swung open, and with a shrill scream the Laser King jumped at him. Mega Racer squealed and took a step backwards, tripped on his cape and fell on his butt. The Laser King giggled evilly.

"So, you fall before my might?"

"Did not!" Mega Racer protested. "I just fell."

"Better stay down or I'll pound ya!"

"No way!"

Snarling, the Laser King pounced, but Mega Racer was ready. With a mighty push of his strong legs, he jumped clear of danger, then had his turn laughing as the villain crashed into the wall head first. Groaning and grunting, the King stood up, wiping the beginnings of tears from his eyes, and Mega Racer got his first good look at his mortal enemy. The Laser King was of lupine shape, his fur black as space. His battle armour consisted of a pair of pants that were as black as his pelt, and over them what looked like a pair of bright red swim trunks, but which were really most likely heat proof protective wear to keep him safe from Mega Racer's Flame Attack. The villain's eyes, which Mega Racer knew were really bright blue, were hidden beneath his deadly laser goggles. They both wore footside capes.

At the same time, Mega Racer could feel the other's scrutinising eyes all over himself. He knew that he, too, was well dressed for battle. Laser beams would stand no chance against his shirt made out of safety cotton, and his jet-powered rocket pants would aid his strong legs to keep up the speed that gave him his name. The two sized each other up for a moment, then the Laser King let out a low growl and attacked again.

"Eep!"

Panic overtook Mega Racer, and he turned to flee, running down the stairs at full speed. Behind him he could hear the villain's laser blasts, and he could all but feel the heat as shot after shot zipped past him. He dashed through a room where someone who might be one of the Laser King's evil henchmen sat and watched a large monitor of some kind. Probably to aid in the conquest of the universe, Mega Racer thought as he sped by, not listening to the henchman's raised voice.

The next room looked like a laboratory of some kind. There were storage units of all kinds, even one that looked to Mega Racer like a sub-zero container. No doubt he would end up in it if he were caught. A shudder ran down his spine, but just then he bumped into some other creature, which was rummaging through a cold storage unit. Maybe it was foraging for food. He had little time to reflect, because the Laser King came in through another door. The two enemies stared at each other for a full second, then both of them screamed, and Mega Racer fled again.

"What are you crazy pups doing now?" he heard the creature's from behind him. "You're not supposed to run indoors!"

"Watch it, Dani," Mega Racer warned. "He's insane."

"Out of the way, you foul-smelling troll!" the Laser King shouted as he tried to make his way past the creature. "Begone!"

There was a brief commotion; a loud thump followed by a wail, then the Laser King emerged, clutching his nose and with tears streaming down his cheeks. Mega Racer approached his enemy carefully and laid an arm over his shoulder, causing the striped terry cape to fall off. It took a while for the villain's sobs to subside, then the two of them helped each other to restore his battle outfit. Once they were done, they immediately locked each other in a wrestling grip, fell over and tumbled back into the room with the monitor. The henchman who had been watching it said something, but neither combatant listened. Instead they broke apart. Mega Racer hid behind a couch, while the Laser King jumped up on a chair and shook his fist at the ceiling.

"I'm going to destroy the world!" he yelled shrilly. "Nay, the universe!"

Just then, someone else appeared in the room, and grabbed hero and villain alike by the scruffs of their necks. They both whimpered as they were held still until they had stopped struggling. The Laser King dropped his cape again, but caught as he was he could not retrieve it. The one who was holding them spun them both around and got to her knees.

"I thought I told you boys to play outside!" she scolded. Mega Racer felt his ears droop, and he could see that the Laser King was no better off. "And still you cause all this ruckus."

"We're sorry, ma'am," Mega Racer tried, fighting back tears. "We were just..."

"I was just gonna kill him, mom!" the Laser King whined. "He stopped me from ruling the galaxy!"

"Galaxy or no galaxy, you're both playing outside from now on." They both drew breath, but were caught short. "No, no more protests! It's a fine day, you should enjoy the sunshine. I don't want to see you inside before dinner!"

"But we can't breathe in space."

"Then go down to the park, it's got an atmosphere." She smiled gently as she let them go. "You can conquer the galaxy just as easily from there."

"Yes, Commander," the Laser King saluted, and Mega Racer joined in. "Come on, Timmy!"

"I'm Mega Racer, Dave."

"And I'm the Atomic Emperor!"

"No you're not!" Mega Racer objected as they left the dreadful Planet X and walked down the road to the park. "You're the Laser King!"

"Not anymore, now I'm the Atomic Emperor. And I'm gonna destroy you!"

"Eep!"

Mega Racer dodged the attack and started running towards the park at full speed. His cape fell off, but he barely noticed. Behind him he could hear the snarls and yips of the pursuing Emperor, and his only thought was to reach the safety of the sandbox Dune Planet. The chase was on!