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.