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.