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.