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.