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.