The next day.
The Rustbucket was rolling down the road while Ben and Gwen, bored out of their minds, watched TV.
On the screen, several kids were playing in a schoolyard when three thugs suddenly jumped out. Looking vicious and menacing, they scared the children into tears, sending them screaming in all directions.
"Who will save us and stand against the Evil Bad Friends Alliance?"
The next second, three cartoon characters appeared on the screen.
"It's Handy Buddy!"
As soon as the narrator said that, a red-skinned weirdo with four arms popped out of the bushes and struck a pose.
"Bowling Bandit, don't get cocky!" Handy Buddy shouted as he charged at one of the masked crooks.
"And also... Fiery Buddy!"
A skinny man in a Heatblast costume dropped from the sky looking grand and imposing.
The moment he landed, he stepped in a pile of dog poop...
"Hey, Fiery Buddy, taste my power!"
A blue cat carrying a trash can charged at Fiery Buddy.
"Fiery Buddy, watch out for the Kitty Litterer!" Handy Buddy shouted while still fighting the Bowling Bandit.
Fiery Buddy pointed both hands downward and released flames to burn away the dog poop, then blasted the Kitty Litterer, trash can and all, flying with a burst of fire.
"Doggy Buddy!!"
As soon as the narrator finished speaking, an orange little dog came tumbling and scrambling over.
His attack on the last thug was both unusual and brutally direct. He turned around, faced away from the thug, and started furiously kicking dirt with his hind legs.
It looked exactly like a dog covering up its poop after taking a dump.
And the dirt he kicked up actually buried the villain on the spot.
"The embodiment of justice and kindness. They are the Super Alien Hero Brothers Gang!"
That scene had Gwen cracking up.
"Ben, am I imagining things, or are these super idiots just knockoff versions of your Alien Heroes?"
Lucian watched from the side, the corner of his mouth twitching. "What a brain-dead cartoon..."
The Alien Heroes on the screen were imitations of Four Arms, Heatblast, and Wildmutt.
And with the childish art style on top of the awful plot, both Lucian and Ben felt deeply uncomfortable.
After all, they both had those three Alien Heroes. Seeing them copied and turned into... whatever this was naturally made them unhappy.
"Somebody's going to pay for this," Ben said.
...
Half an hour later.
The Rustbucket suddenly broke down. After checking it over, Grandpa Max found that the brake pads needed replacing.
Just so happened, the Planetary Studios was nearby.
So Grandpa Max decided to let Lucian take Ben and Gwen inside the Planetary Studios to have some fun, while he went to the repair shop himself to fix the car.
Of course, he could have let a mechanic handle it, but Grandpa Max was used to fixing the Rustbucket himself. Besides, there were too many secrets hidden inside for ordinary people to know about.
The moment Ben heard they were going to the Planetary Studios, he practically exploded with excitement. "The Planetary Studios? Awesome! Kangaroo Commando is in there!"
"There should be pretty actresses in there too. If I get the chance, I'm definitely asking for an autograph." Gwen looked full of anticipation. She really wanted a photo with the world-famous diva Berry Berry.
"Alright, let's go take a look."
Soon, Lucian led Ben and Gwen into the Planetary Studios.
The place was huge. It had all kinds of entertainment facilities and giant mascots, like roller coasters, pirate ships, and Handy Buddy balloons.
There were also plenty of stunt show sets built specifically for stunt performers, covering an enormous area.
Ben ran over to a poster with Kangaroo Commando on it.
He looked about thirty or forty years old, with a black hood covering down to his forehead, a stylized letter K marked on it, and a brown skintight combat suit over a muscular build.
The most eye-catching thing about him was the sled under his feet.
Calling it a sled was not really accurate. It was actually a jumping device that gave Kangaroo Commando tremendous leaping power.
"I seriously do not understand what's so fun about watching some old actor in little shorts hopping around everywhere," Gwen said, completely baffled.
"You wouldn't get it." Ben waved a hand, his eyes full of admiration as he looked at Kangaroo Commando. "I grew up watching his show. A big part of why I want to be a hero is because of him."
After that, the group kept moving.
"Dean signing event? Author of The Adventures of the Super Alien Hero Brothers Gang."
They saw a poster on the wall ahead showing the Alien Hero Gang alongside a young man.
The Alien Hero Gang was, of course, Handy Buddy, Fiery Buddy, and Doggy Buddy.
Just looking at it made Ben furious.
As for the young man, he looked pretty ordinary, with brown-blond hair, green eyes, a thin build, and a slightly frail appearance.
"Dean's signing event is just up ahead. Want to go check it out?" Gwen asked.
"Obviously!" Ben strode forward, seething.
At that moment, Dean was sitting at a desk, carefully drawing pictures of the Alien Heroes.
In front of him was a long, densely packed line of people, heads everywhere.
"You jerk, stop right there!"
Ben gritted his teeth, rushed forward, snatched the drawing out of Dean's hands, and ripped it to pieces.
"Hey, kid, what do you think you're doing? The Alien Hero Gang is my copyright. You're paying for that!" Dean was baffled and furious.
"What do you mean, your copyright? Your Alien Hero Gang is obviously copying my... the aliens I saw on TV!" Ben shouted stubbornly.
And in the very next second, security threw him out.
"Doofus, that was way too impulsive." Gwen shook her head.
Boom!
Suddenly, a crimson burst of fire erupted from the tall building behind them...