The next morning most of the townsfolk awoke to a loud cracking noise. Not a cracking sound like rock or wood being shattered but more like a gorilla snapping a massive pane of glass.

      A large green portal opened up in the middle of the town square, there, surrounded by badly upkept bushes, trees, and various litter thrown around the ground. A small man stepped out of the massive vortex of energy before another loud boom signaled the shrinking of the portal, down to the size of a pea floating mid-air.

     The gnome looked around the park, neither satisfied nor impressed, walking at a brisk pace for a human, his legs were nearly imperceptible as he came to the town hall. Throwing open the front doors to the one room building with a wave of magical force, his deep blue and purple robe flowing in the breeze.

     “Allllllrighty! Chief magical architect Zippy Runs-on-fire reporting for duty!” The small man announced to the only person in the room.

     Darnell sat at the single table in the corner beside a microwave and refrigerator, in a puffy green robe, mini-bagel cereal in a pool of orange juice.

     Darnell, upon seeing the doors burst open and hearing the loud proclamation lurched forward, spitting out his cereal and juice concoction. Looking around but not seeing a person there he looked down, not expecting anyone but finding the small gnome with his vision.

     “Uhm, Hi… Zippy? It’s an honor to meet you but...” He did his best to pull the robe more together, hiding his baby elephant boxer-briefs. “...It’s a bit early? The town hall doesn’t even open for another hour, it… it should have been locked.”

     After hearing this; Zippy looked up at the door, “I’ll make sure to replace it.”

     Darnell sighed, loud and heavy, the noise of someone with more weight on their shoulders than they know how to bear. “Shut the door and come on in, ya hungry?”

     Zippy did just that, leaping from a standing position the gnome was able to put just enough force to make the doors close perfectly without the bang being too loud. “Good, I missed breakfast, I was under the assumption I was late. We didn’t have all these time zones and such before we walked into the portal.”

     Finding something more… generally accepted as breakfast, Darnell fixed the gnome a packet of apple and cinnamon oats, putting it on the table across from him as he sat down. “Here ya go, we aint got too much up here but what’s ours is yours.”

     The gnome hopped up on the table, unable to get to the oats from the chair and sat on the other side of the bowl with a spoon that looked like a mighty staff in his hands. The size difference made it look like he was eating out of a massive cauldron. “Good to see manners was not something lost with magic, much obliged.”

     Darnell took a large spoonful of his orangey bagels and looked a bit confused. “Sorry there, we don’t know much bout ya’ll comin back. Access to the internet was already spotty in the town before we started flying.”

     Zippy, after swallowing a large mouthful of steaming oats smiled at the mayor, “Floating, in actuality you’re floating, flying comes later you see.”

     Darnell nearly choked, “W-wait, you aren’t going to help us get down?”

     Zippy looked very confused at the man. “No, not really. Truthfully I thought you would be ecstatic. Before the sundering, flying islands were massive spots of commerce and learning. Beacons of the different, they were the gathering places for many groups and politicians. This island, this mountain I mean, to try and copy a phrase I just learned, you slapped oil.”

     Darnell thought to correct the gnome’s saying but deciding it was close enough continued. “Oh, well… that’s good news. So it’s safe to live up here?”

     Zippy chuckled a little to himself, setting down a human-sized mug of milk. “Ahhhh, oh, yeah it’s more than safe, it’s recommended. The thinner air makes your lungs stronger, especially when you go back down for some reason. The mana is thicker, much thicker, you should be proud that you have an entire mountain, normally earth mana is hard to come by on a flying island, but you have a steady supply. You could be a training ground for warriors, a college of academia, an artist’s paradise.” Zippy smiled to himself, looking into the distance as he waxed poetic.

     Darnell’s mind was racing, he thought this little guy was here to SOLVE a civics problem, but this problem may have been the best thing to hit the newly reopened town. “S-so, information hasn’t made it out this far about ya’ll returning an' whatnot.” The man's accent coming out thicker due to all the mental strain, doing his best to glean information from the gnome to help his small town. “So, are the races comin' back or….”

     The gnome just giggled, “You all seem so confused by this, here, let me describe this better. I take it you still have caterpillars and butterflies?” Waiting for a nod from Darnell the gnome continued. “All humans are like caterpillars, eating and growing until you get to a certain point, and then steadily slowly declining until the end.”

     The mayor looked confused, “That’s not right, they go into a cocoon, turn into butterflies and all that.”

     The gnome, finishing the rather large cauldron of oats let out a loud burp, “Right. But my example was for a caterpillar who had no idea that butterflies were even real. Now, what would you do if I said, elves, orcs, dwarves… Those are your butterflies.”

     The mayor sat there, slack-jawed, having been a fan of fantasy games in his youth this didn’t sound right to him. “B-But, those are other races right?”

     The gnome shook his head, continuing, “No, just one race of sentient beings as far as I can tell, humans are just… well, the larval stage I guess you could say If.. Say, a dwarf and an elf had a child, they would not immediately be half-dwarf and half-elf, they would be human. Now, when their metamorphosis happens if they have the right requirements that just might be the form they come out as, but it is not guaranteed.”

     If it were possible, Darnell’s jaw would have dropped further, fallen through the floor, crashed through the mountain, and landed on the ground below. “W-w-what?! How? How do we do it? Why would we do it?”

     Zippy seemed nonplussed by this response, drinking the milk out of the massive mug, swallowing it then continuing. “How? Around the age of twenty five and after a human may draw in mana from a high mana zone. That starts their chrysalis phase in which you go on your journey after you find your true self the mana will turn you into whatever being or combinations of being you have access to and wish to be reborn as.” The small gnome giggled to himself, remembering something from the far past.

     Darnell looked confused, “Being?” His mind was racing but this was the only question it seemed he could get out of his mouth.

     Zippy nodded knowingly, “Yeah, you call them races, we call them beings, lizardfolk, trolls, the like. Anyway, as for the why, well from what I can tell you humans have forwarded the knowledge of medicine to keep yourselves alive until roughly the age of eighty to one hundred, is this accurate?”

     With a scared whimper and nod Darnell waited for the rest.

     “Add another say, four hundred years or so to that. When a human becomes a being, their form is reinforced with the mana. Illnesses of age become reduced, genetic abnormalities become stabilized, really it’s just a boost all around.” Zippy paused and took another massive gulp of the mug of milk. “I mean, how else do you think we survived those hundreds and thousands of years ago? This is what let us take over as the dinosaurs were in decline.”

     Darnell couldn’t say another word, just looking at the gnome and processing for the next ten minutes as the small man finished his beverage.

     After finishing his drink the gnome lept off of the table and smiled at the mayor. “Well, it seems the town hall is open, are you ready for the day?” referring to the clock above the eating area it seems that opening time has come.

     Darnell took zippy through what little ‘town’ there was after getting dressed. Showing him all of the sites that exist before heading toward ‘Savvy Scavengers, Odds and Ends for the Discerning Mind.’

     Zippy was smiling a majority of the way, never falling behind Darnell, he created some small purple cloud to float around on to keep up with the normal-sized man. “This is a quaint little town you have here, and from what I can tell…” The gnome sent his cloud down and picked up a small rock off the ground, licking it, then trying to bite it. “...The mana has settled, you won’t be falling out of the sky.”

     Darnell let out a small chuckle as the gnome licked the rock, walking toward the center of town, off to the side on a dirt road stood the antiques shop. Darnell liked it there, quiet and unimposing, he could talk away for hours on end about the creations of one hundred years ago. Relics that survived the industrial revolution and two world wars, something about the building gave him a sense of reverence and understanding.

     Zippy on the other hand… “Oh, now that is surprising.” The gnome stopped in front of the store to marvel at it, continuing his thoughts, “to think that a sage building has already seeded in this time.” He let out a long drawn out whistle at his astonishment.

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     Darnell looked at his walking companion, “sage building?”

     Zippy looked pleasantly pleased; like someone had just given him the most unexpected and welcome surprise. “It’s a place mana gathers, attracted to older items and knowledge. I always loved these kinds of places, iiiiinteresting things happen in those walls.” The gnome chuckled knowingly but kept the rest to himself.

     Darnell just shrugged and opened the door, a familiar Diiiing-dong is heard through the front of the room as he holds open the door for the gnomish mage. The small cloaked form floated in on his cloud again, Darnell following close behind.

     Auntie Christia is a shrewd woman, however, her shop was currently in an upheaved mess from both the mountain taking off and her own insatiable thirst for knowledge. “Welcome Darnell what can I do… for… you…” There were long pauses between the last three words as she noticed the gnome floating around four feet off of the ground in HER shop.

     Quickly Auntie Christia ran up the stairs, far faster than Darnell thought a woman of her age could move. In just enough time for Darnell and Zippy to give each other very confused looks, the woman ran back down the stairs; fully jumping the last three in a show of athleticism. Stopping just in front of the duo she held out a plate of brownies, two piles of them.

     Smiling at them both in her best ‘sweet old lady voice’, “Here you go dearies, left for my special nut infused triple fudge brownies, right for my plain hemp delights.” Darnell, who’d partaken plenty in college and needed a clear head took one of the nutty fudge brownies with pleasure while zippy stared in amazement.

     Zippy happily smiled at the woman before taking one, “It has been so long since I had a Zoroastrian treat! Especially if you consider the sundering.” He licked his lips.

     Auntie Christia took one of her hemp brownies and gave it to the gnome smiling at him, nearly jumping in excitement for some reason. “Here you go, they’re pretty weak.”

     Zippy took the brownie happily, breaking it in half and shoving one half into a small bag on his side, even though the brownie was almost as tall as the gnome, the half fit rather easily into the small bag, not showing any sign of the size it was before. Opening his mouth wide Zippy devoured the gigantic treat, letting out a small burp after he finished. “Much obliged, portal travel is hard on the stomach, that should help.”

     Darnell wanted to ask how he did what he did by fitting half of it into his bag. Darnell wanted to ask how someone so small ate a brownie almost as big as them. Darnell wanted to ask if he’d be okay considering the kind of brownie…. Darnell did none of these things.

     “So… uhm, you mentioned humans becoming beings?” Darnell continued, lightly clearing his throat so the other two would pay attention, noticing Jamie in the back. “How exactly do we do it? You said there’s tons of mana around here.”

     Zippy looked confused, almost a little shocked but then regained himself, “I’m sorry, it’s hard getting used to this. It was common knowledge from the time I’m from, here...” Zippy touched Darnell’s hand and suddenly the human’s vision was filled with hundreds of small puddles of color through the shop, then he looked at Auntie Christia.

     “W-What?! Are you okay?!” Darnell asked as it looked like Auntie Christia was covered in a massive roaring purple fire. Her normally cream-colored porcelain skin looked like it had cracks all over it!

     Auntie Christia, confused could only say, “Yeah, I mean I haven’t rested much, but I’ve never felt better the last few days, why do you ask?” The older scavenger was genuinely confused by Darnell’s outburst, unable to respond to his question adequately, Zippy filled in the blanks.

     Zippy gestured to the woman. Cracks ran along her skin in Darnell’s vision, blackish-purple energy visible through them. Her torso looked to be engulfed in massive roaring flames but it was completely untouched. “She’s in a place of power, her transformation’s begun. I’m sorry to drop this on you Madam Christia, but you’re turning magical.”

     The sixty-eight-year-old woman let out a squee that would make five-year-olds blush as she started happily jumping in place. “MAGIC?! I… I’m actually becoming a magic being? What kind? How? When? Can I pick?” The woman kept going, more questions spewing forth from her mouth.

     Zippy carefully floated up on his cloud, a staff appearing from the sleeve in his coat, he pressed it to the woman's lips to stop her constant questions. He laughed deeply, genuinely, wiping a tear from his eye, “Don’t worry, in order, yes, you’re becoming magical. No, I don’t know what kind. It takes MAYBE a week but the last time I saw was three days. You kind of pick… that part’s hard to describe. You’re maybe a fifth of the way in, so four more days?”

     Zippy shrugged, becoming less and less confident as the words came out of his mouth. Auntie Christia, on the other hand, was taking the knowledge she was turning into some unknown magical being quite well. Then, turning to Darnell. “It’s already happening, I suggest you tell your people. This entire mountain is a place of strong mana, it is regathering quickly, others will come to begin their own transformations.”

     Darnell sat down in an antique chair by the entrance sighing heavily. “Okay, uhm, my people will have questions you know.”

     Zippy nodded, understanding in his eyes, “There is really nothing to fear, but I will gladly answer any questions your townsfolk ask.”

     Darnell smiled at Auntie Christia weakly. “Think I can get another one of those brownies for the road? Gonna be a long day.”

     Three hours later Darnell had gathered the remaining forty-two people in the town, counting both himself and zippy. At Zippy’s request, he brought in everyone including the children, bringing the grand total of bodies in the town hall to fifty-seven.

     Darnell banged his gavel against the desk in front of him signalling the start of the meeting. After everyone in the room except for a small crying baby had quieted he continued over the small human’s screams. “Alright, as you all know, our city is now floating in the air several hundred feet above the ground. As I told you all yesterday, a magic specialist has been sent to our town, I would like to introduce everyone here to Zippy Runs-on-Fire.”

     The large dreadlocked man pointed both his hands toward the gnome standing on the desk. There were a few snickers from the younger children in the audience but for the most part, it was quiet, even the baby had quit crying. “Questions will be answered one by one until there are no more as soon as I am done.” the gnome loudly proclaimed.

     Over the course of the next hour, Zippy explained to the townspeople that there was no going back down. That the mana had lifted all of the mountains back into the air as they were in the long past. That eventually the wind or magical forces will start it moving along a flightpath and that many visitors will be coming to the town for its unique properties and sights. He spoke clearly and matter-of-factly to the entire town, treating even the children as equals as he spoke.

     After he had finished describing the mana re-seeding and how certain older items may soon find themselves magical he started explaining beings. His explanation was short and to the point, at a certain age if a human is in a high mana area they will go through a metamorphosis into their next stage of life. How it’s really different for everyone, new “being” forms discovered all the time as the mana changes you according to your own thoughts and desires.

     After the gnome finished, the first person to politely raise their hand was a young woman, roughly highschool age, maybe a little older. Her long red curly hair fell slightly past her shoulders and a vague sense of power came off her a Zippy called on her.

     The entire room was tense, not even the babies were crying anymore, the gnome had said he was open to questions after all. The entirety of the crowd stunned, Billy Joe looked at Zippy with the most serious look on her face imaginable. “So… You’re saying we have to deal with puberty… AGAIN!?”

     The entire town hall burst out laughing, the tense nature of the room before the question completely evaporating. Even Zippy, who was ready for existential questions and long-winded explanation couldn’t help but chuckle and wipe a tear of laughter from his left eye. “No, No, don’t worry about that. It only lasts a week, and it feels quite nice. But for the last few hours or day each of you will be surrounded by a large cocoon of mana. You’ll finalize your changes in a dream-like state.”

     His words didn’t seem to have any effect on the town, Looking over at Auntie Christia she nodded at him, a gentle sneer across her lips. “Auntie Christia has already begun, it has been a long time since my own reawakening. She should be finished with her changes by the end of the week. If you have any questions or concerns about the process it appears her changes are proceeding how they normally do, I’m sure she would be willing to alleviate your concerns.

     While not many in the small town were friends with Auntie Christia when you live in a community of under one hundred you gain an understanding of each other. No one in attendance doubted the elderly woman’s knowledge or her kindness, each of them silently deciding at some later point to come talk to the scavenger when they have time.

     Jamie slowly, timidly raised their hand next, Zippy noticing it quickly called on them. Jamie stuttered a little out of raw nerves but regained their composure quickly, unsure how to phrase their words correctly they just spoke. “W-We’re uhm… what bodily changes can we expect? I-It is magic after all, would say… our gender or sex be different?”

     Zippy paused, unsure how to answer Jamie’s question, thinking for a good half a minute while the entire room scooted to the edge of their seat, then the gnome continued. “I’ve only seen a biology change like that two or three times… The few I did they all seemed far happier after they became a being if that makes any sense.”

     A collective sigh of relief washed over the majority of the crowd, a few seemed apprehensive. But Jamie had a very faint smile on their lips as they sat back down beside Billy Joe. It seemed the answer was more than satisfactory.

     A large imposing woman stood and waited to be called on, Zippy pointed at her quickly and she spoke. The butcher wasn’t very good with her words all the time, and she looked very confused and shaken, but there was a powerful determination in her eyes. “About magic returning… We don’t know a lot about it, but from what I've been told we can do… anything. Will I be able to become more skilled at my craft with it?”

     Zippy nodded in acknowledgment, “You can do a lot with magic, there are few rules after all… But the level of control and power determines what you can do. The only strict rules seem to be that you can’t just create or destroy, the energy has to go to or come from somewhere.” Noticing the woman’s semi-bloody apron he continued. “How would you like a knife you never have to sharpen, a cutting board that firms up the meat for you? How about the ability to pull out the blood magically instead of draining it? The implications are endless.”

     Looking quite happy with the answer the butcher sat. Not many other people seemed to have questions, most were just trying to digest what they’d already learned. Then, a small boy roughly eight years old came up, giggling at the gnome's name. “Zippy, hehe, zippy… uhm… will it hurt? Momma told me that when our bodies change that it can hurt. I don’t like shots when I go to the doctor.” The small boy proudly said in front of all to see.

     Zippy, floating on his cloud came to rest in front of the boy's face, his magic still projecting his voice to the entire room. With a kindness in his eyes, “the most important things in life hurt. But not so much on this… have you ever had a reeeaaaaallly bad itch and scratched it when Momma said you need to stop?” the gnome asked, a massive grin on his face to reassure the child.

     “Uh huh, especially if I play with the leaves in the yard.” The boy proudly announced his own frolic in poison ivy.

     Zippy let out a small chuckle to himself. “Mine felt a lot like I scratched too much. It was pretty hard to handle at first, but that’s why we have friends. To get us through the hard times we can’t do on our own.”