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.