as we  cross the mountain, we  can  walk 
 only  at night. long  ago, someone  here 
 must've  angered the sun,  and today  it 
 still  burns us  strangely. but with the 
 sunset  the air comes raining  back down 
 and  gets  thick enough  to  breathe. it 
 carries with  it  smells  from far away, 
 colourful sparks for the  imagination, a 
 sharp contrast  for  the stale black  of 
 the night.                               
                                          
 the others  think i'm young,  they don't 
 take  me  seriously   and  i  fear  they 
 snicker  a  bit.  you  usually  get  old 
 before  you learn  the  trade  enough to 
 take other  people.  but i do lead  them 
 safely     forward,     every     night. 
                                          
 however, currently  there  seems  to  be 
 something going on  ahead. those  around 
 the   corner  have   stopped,  shouting, 
 pointing.                                
                                          
                           
                           
                           
                           
                           
                           
                           
                           
                                          
 my greatest treasure, the                
 book of stars,   is   a  combined   map, 
 calendar  and  timepiece as long  as you 
 know what year  it is.  every page  is a 
 grid of  nine  starfields,  hand  drawn, 
 below which  are written coordinates  in 
 both  space  and  time.  a lot of  it is 
 applicable  on earth,  but not  all.  it 
 hints  of  other  places  -  some  stars 
 reordered,  some  names   i  have  never 
 heard.    sometimes   the    dates   are 
 impossible.                              
                                          
 those pages  are exactly what i scramble 
 for  right now.  i've stopped breathing. 
 i sling  open  the  book of stars a  bit 
 too quick, spilling all my notes  on the 
 ground. one  lands on my foot, it  is  a 
 drawing of  a  muscle cow,  but  i could 
 care less right now.                     
                                          
 for it seems like there's a new  moon in 
 the sky.