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.