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.