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.