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.