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.