Greta Thornick, the zombie bartender from Blackmoor, shuffled through the crowd with a wide, toothy grin, her best friend Amy Karvelis the gorgon at her side, magic contact lenses gleaming emerald under the lights. Grace Cassidy, once a CGI childhood star, now a scientist, marveled at the mix of real and fictional worlds colliding all around her. Jenny Menard, the half-fairy princess of Goldwood, floated inches above the carpet, waving excitedly to her minotaur bestie Elsie, who wore a superhero cape two sizes too small.

Tyler, a hand-drawn toon, nervously approached his favorite artist, clutching a vintage comic. Serena, his human girlfriend, snapped photos as she joined the line for an autograph from Molly Maxwell, a toon actress famous for her expressive eyebrows. Across the aisle, Delores and Scott debated their favorite video game moments as they waited for a signature from a legendary developer. Molly’s husband Derek Dustin, meanwhile, tuned his guitar with the CGI band Pixel Buddies, sharing a laugh with Floyd Jenkins, Tim Androvski, and Rocky Raptor, who adjusted his sunglasses on his snout.

In the food court, Gaston Bideau, a vampire in a stylish velvet coat, scowled as a group of teens whispered about “sparkling.” Cleopatra Ramses, wrapped in elegant linen and gold, recounted ancient history to a rapt audience. Nearby, a trio of elementals—Ember the fire elemental, Terra the earth elemental, and