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.