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.