DeMonStar did not belong here.

He knew that intellectually, but he also felt it viscerally. The nature of this level of reality was alien to him, and hostile. He felt like a mountain-climber, who'd discovered too late that the air was getting thin around him. This world was slowly leeching the strength- no, the reality- out of him.

If not for this, he would be eager to stay around this strange new dimension for a while. It was filled with all sorts of strange opportunities for advancement. DeMonStar was alternately amused and horrified by the thought that this human next to him had written his entire life.

This human, and the other, he corrected himself. The mysterious conspirator who'd wrested him out of his natural world must also be a writer. From what he'd gathered from his creator, everyone here was.

Does this mean that I could write something here?

The thought jarred his mind to a halt. He had a sudden vision of returning to his own world as an omnipotent and perfected being, with all of his enemies dead from sudden spontaneous heart attacks. It was tempting...

...And, he realized, unworkable. If he returned to his world, then Demonicuss would resume writing him, and undo any great changes he wrote. No, he would have to write something subtle, a change so small that his creator wouldn't notice it...
The solution came to him, clear and obvious. It brought a tiny smile to his face.

Demonicuss, who'd been moving stealthily down the hall beside his creation, saw his expression and asked, "What?"

"Nothing," he responded. "Nothing at all. This is the entrance to the NEB, is it not?" He gestured to the doorway they were passing, walled in with the steel security-barriers that his earlier battle with Z-Mage had set off.
"Yes. Why?"
"We should investigate here. Perhaps the conspirator left some clue when he pulled me and Z-Mage out of our reality."
"I don't think that-" Demonicuss trailed off as the huge alien lifted the barrier open and strode inside. He started to follow, but his bodyguard held a hand up.
"Let me check it first," DeMonStar warned. "There may be traps of some sort. It'll only take a minute."

"No problem," he said, rubbing the back of his head. "I think I can tell who's writing this chapter..."

"Oook! Ook ook ooh-ooh-ook!"
"What? The conspirator is Papergirl?! I don't believe it!" Slick responded.
"OoooOook. Ook. Oook Oook."
"Well, how does howyadoin know?" Golden Lion demanded.
"Oook. Ook?"
"Yes, we'd like to see this proof of his. Where is it?"
"Ook ook-ook, ook!"
"Let's go to the Vertigo Board, then!"

"Well, don't look at me," said an extremely-well-fed Fenris defensively. "Everyone knows wolves don't carry money!"
The waitress began tapping her foot impatiently, as the CBRans looked from one, to another, to the bill in the center of the table.

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