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.