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CHAPTER 7 – SAILING TOWARDS THE UNKNOWN
Va’a pahi Polynesian high seas catamaran canoe.
08:41 (Central South Pacific Time)
Thursday, January 26, 862 CE
Village of Taiohae, Nuku Hiva Island
The Marquises islands (future French Polynesia)
1,400 kilometers to the northeast of Tahiti, Central South Pacific
The strongly-built Polynesian man was about to launch his canoe in the beach’s surf in order to go fish when his teenage son, who was accompanying him, looked up and pointed at the sky while shouting excitedly.
‘’FATHER, ANOTHER SHIP OF THE GODS!’’
Looking up at the sky, Ariki then saw an egg-shaped object flying high and crossing the sky at high speed, coming from the Southwest. He didn’t panic or got agitated then, as this was not the first such sighting, far from it. He however couldn’t help think that the flying thing was coming from the same direction than on the other occasions, where other flying objects were also seen passing overhead while flying towards the Southwest or coming from that direction. Thinking quickly, Ariki gave an urgent order to his son.
‘’Quick, Nikau! Go get four fair-sized stones or coconuts and bring them to me!’’
While he didn’t understand at first why his father was asking him to do that, the twelve-year-old boy did not waste time in asking questions then and ran away across the sandy beach, heading for the treeline. Nikau was back a couple of minutes later near their canoe, carrying four coconuts in his arms.
‘’Here you go, Father. What shall we do with these coconuts?’’
In response, Ariki extended his left arm towards the tree line, oriented in a specific direction.
‘’Go line up those coconuts some ten paces apart along the direction I am now pointing, Son. I want to mark the precise direction that flying object was going.’’
While not understanding the reason for his father to ask him this, Nikau again obeyed without question and walked in the direction pointed at by Ariki, dropping one coconut every ten paces and then realigning them carefully, following the commands of his father. By then, other villagers were coming to them while looking up at the flying egg, which was now nearly out of sight to the Northeast. One man with graying hair, an old fisherman and master navigator named Rawiri, approached Ariki to ask him a question, curiosity on his face.
‘’Why are you marking the path of the gods’ ship, Ariki?’’
Ariki gave a sober look at the old fisherman and navigator: if he actually went along with the idea forming in his head, then Rawiri would be a precious companion to take with him.
‘’This is the seventh time this month that we see flying ships pass overhead, Rawiri, all of them either coming from or going towards the same direction: Southwest. Could you tell what exactly is in that direction?’’
‘’Uh, I would have to wait for the night to fall, so I could look at the stars, but I would say that it came from the approximate direction of Tahiti, or from beyond Tahiti. But why would you want to know that, Ariki?’’
‘’To possibly sail towards the Southwest and find the land of the Gods.’’
‘’Then, you will need our largest boat to do such a trip, along with the permission of our chief.’’
Ariki nodded at that, having already realized that.
‘’That is well understood, Rawiri. However, finding the land of the Gods would amply justify the efforts and the risks. If I leave on such a trip, could I count on you to help guide our navigation?’’
Rawiri only needed a couple of seconds to make his mind about that and nodded his head while smiling at Ariki.
‘’You definitely can count on me for such a trip, Ariki. I suggest that we now go pay a visit to our chief and ask for his support.’’
‘’An excellent suggestion, Rawiri. Nikau, stay here and make sure that nobody touches or moves those coconuts.’’
‘’Uh, what about our fishing trip, Father?’’
‘’It will have to wait! Let’s go see Manaia!’’
With his son staying behind on the beach, Ariki, followed closely by Rawiri, walked towards the largest house of their village, situated just short of the treeline. Like the other huts around it, it was built out of coconut tree trunks and straw and was not much larger than the typical hut in the village. There, they were greeted near the entrance by the wife of Chief Manaia, a woman still most beautiful at the age of 47.
‘’Hello Ariki! Hello Rawiri! To what do we owe your visit this morning?’’
‘’Hello, Tui! We came to see your husband about the latest sighting of a ship of the gods.’’
Tui, who was sitting on the ground next to the door of the house and was weaving a basket out of long leaves, instantly became most serious: the sightings of flying ships, which had started about four months ago, was the subject of a hot debate in the village about what they meant and about their significance. Stopping her weaving work, Tui got up and went into her house, while Ariki and Rawiri politely waited outside. She was back less than a minute later with her husband, Chief Manaia, a small but robust man in his early fifties. Despite his age, Manaia was still vigorous and healthy and his strong character and intelligence was acknowledged by all in the village. He looked inquisitively at his two visitors as he addressed them in a neutral tone.
‘’Another ship of the gods was seen this morning?’’
‘’Yes, Chief!’’ answered Ariki. ‘’I was about to launch my canoe to go fishing when me and my son saw it cross the sky at high speed, very high above. Rawiri also saw it. I then had my son line up four coconuts along the line of the ship’s flight path: it came from the Southwest.’’
‘’The Southwest…again!’’ said thoughtfully Manaia before looking back at Ariki. ‘’And what did you want to discuss with me?’’
‘’Chief, those flying ships, which come from the direction of Tahiti or beyond according to Rawiri, must be coming and going from the land of the gods. There must be a large island beyond Tahiti, somewhere to the Southwest of us, which serves as home for the flying gods. I believe that we should try to find that island, so that we could pay our respects to the gods and thus help us gain their favors.’’
Manaia nodded slowly his head as he weighed Ariki’s suggestion, which made a lot of sense to him.
‘’I believe so too, Ariki. Would you and Rawiri be ready to lead such a long and risky ocean expedition towards the Southwest? I would love to lead it myself, but our neighbors in Hakaui are again making a pest of themselves lately and I must stay here to defend our village against their marauding.’’
Ariki and Rawiri could only nod at that: there were three other villages on Nuku Hiva, all of them highly jealous of their territorial claims and with frequent skirmishes happening when villagers met by accident or following an ambush by people from other villages. Those skirmishes could become quite bloody and violent, with the defeated ones often eaten afterwards in ritual cannibalistic feasts.
‘’We understand, Chief. Will you allow us, along with our families, to sail Southwest in one of our bigger Va’a Pahi{11} and go in search of the land of the gods?’’
‘’I will do better than that, Ariki: I will let you take my own Va’a Pahi, our biggest and most seaworthy boat. But you will need more than just a handful of people to help you do such a long and hazardous trip. Let’s go assemble our people near the beach. I will then ask for volunteers ready to sail with you. I will then make sure that you are well provisioned for your trip.’’
Ariki bowed to his chief, pleased by Manaia’s decision. He and Rawiri then followed Manaia outside as the chief went to a part of the beach which served as a communal meeting and discussion place for the villagers. There, Manaia raised both of his hands high and spoke as loudly as he could.
‘’GOOD PEOPLE OF TAIOHAE, ASSEMBLE AROUND ME!’’
Within a few minutes, Manaia had over 300 people, the majority of the village’s population, forming a semi-circle in front of him. As more villagers kept streaming in, he spoke out loud again.
‘’MY FRIENDS, ANOTHER SHIP OF THE GODS OVERFLEW US THIS MORNING, COMING FROM THE SOUTHWEST. I BELIEVE THAT IT IS TIME FOR US TO TRY TO FIND THE LAND OF THE GODS, SO THAT WE COULD PAY OUR RESPECTS TO THEM AND ASK FOR THEIR FAVORS. ARIKI AND RAWIRI ARE READY TO LEAD AN EXPEDITION TO THE SOUTHWEST, USING MY OWN VA’A PAHI AND ACCOMPANIED BY THEIR FAMILIES. HOWEVER, THEY WILL NEED MORE PEOPLE TO ASSIST THEM DURING THIS LONG SEA TRIP. THIS TRIP WILL BE HARD AND RISKY, BUT I BELIEVE THAT OUR VILLAGE COULD BENEFIT GREATLY FROM IT. I AM THUS ASKING FOR VOLUNTEERS READY TO ACCOMPANY WITH THEIR FAMILIES ARIKI AND RAWIRI ON THIS TRIP. WHO AMONG YOU WOULD BE READY TO GO WITH THEM?’’
Ariki and Rawiri anxiously looked on as the villagers looked at each other and at their spouses. To Rawiri’s pride, his own grown son, Kauri, raised his hands high after speaking quickly with his wife Kaia.
‘’I AND MY FAMILY WILL GO!’’
‘’I WILL GO TOO!’’ added one after the other Te Ariki, the younger brother of Ariki, and Naori, a nephew of Rawiri. Manaia nodded his head in satisfaction then: that meant that a total of ten adults and eight children would be going along on the expedition. A bigger crew would certainly have helped in order to row the va’a pahi, but the quantities of water, food and other supplies needed for such a long sea trip was also a factor. What would help the explorers was the fact that the predominant winds in the region came from the East, thus would push their boat at a good speed along the way.
‘’THANK YOU, MY FRIENDS! OUR BOAT WILL LEAVE IN TWO DAYS, AFTER IT IS INSPECTED AND REPAIRED AND AFTER ENOUGH PROVISIONS HAVE BEEN GATHERED FOR THIS GREAT ADVENTURE. WITH LUCK, OUR PEOPLE WILL FIND THE LAND OF THE GODS IN A FEW WEEKS AND WILL THUS BRING GREAT FAVORS TO OUR VILLAGE.’’
The assembled villagers then cheered loudly, making Ariki feel a wave of pride surge in him.
Two days later, the villagers assembled again in the morning on the beach, this time to wish goodbye and good luck to the crew of the chief’s va’a pahi. The long catamaran double canoe, apart from carrying eighteen persons, was also loaded down with as much water and food as it could carry, along with a much smaller canoe meant for coastal trips, a few tools, a dozen chickens and four pigs. The latter were actually meant to be brought all the way to the land of the gods, where they would hopefully multiply and help the expedition members settle for the long run. Ten vigorous young men also boarded the boat, but on a temporary basis in order to help row the catamaran to the high seas, while two other boats would escort the chief’s va’a pahi and would retrieve the supplementary rowers once the catamaran would be safely past the submerged rocks and reefs surrounding Nuku Hiva. Long, loud cheers rose from the crowd of villagers when the va’a pahi was pushed into the surf, along with its two escort canoes. With even the older children helping to row, the catamaran boat quickly cleared the beach, heading out to sea and the Southwest. Another half hour and they were able to deploy their two ‘crab claw’ sails, with a steady wind then helping to push the boat to a fair speed. That was when the ten supplementary rowers transferred to the two escort canoes while wishing good luck to the travelers. As the two escort canoes rowed back to their village, Ariki looked at Rawiri, who was their navigator for the expedition.
‘’Now what, Rawiri, apart from heading Southwest and hope for the best?’’
‘’Since Tahiti is directly on our path, I believe that it would be advisable to make a brief stop once there, in order to replenish our provisions of food and water. We still don’t know how long our trip will be, so it would only be prudent to use every opportunity to top up our reserves of water and food as we go.’’
Ariki could only nod at that wise plan: people from Nuku Hiva, including Rawiri, had made trips to Tahiti a number of times in the past in order to exchange goods and cultivate the relations with the people of Tahiti, with one Tahiti crew having visited Taiohae some two years earlier. Thus, their catamaran had a good chance of getting help and supplies once in Tahiti. With luck, maybe a few people there would be ready to accompany him and Rawiri along their hazardous trip. Looking up at their two sails, Rawiri was pleased to see them well filled with wind from the East.
‘’We should be able to make good speed on our way if this wind stays on. Now, our people only need to settle in for the trip and be patient while I steer our boat towards our intended destination.’’
16:09 (South Pacific Time)
Wednesday, February 1, 862 C.E.
Rawiri’ catamaran, high seas
South Pacific
The Leeward Islands in the South Pacific.
‘’ARIKI, LOOK AT THOSE BIRDS! WE ARE NEARING LAND!’’
Alerted by Rawiri’s cry, Ariki looked up and saw five birds flying overhead in large circles, apparently searching for some fish to catch. For Polynesian navigators and sailors, the presence and type of birds were good indicators of the presence of a land nearby. Those navigators could then follow those birds’ path as they headed back to their nests to find the nearest lands. Going to Rawiri, who was sitting next to their boat’s rudder, Ariki eagerly asked him a question.
‘’How close do you think that we are from Tahiti?’’
‘’No more than a day’s trip, at the rate we are going, but I can’t say for certain that Tahiti is actually the nearest land. We could be close to some of the islands around it. Which one is actually not very important, as long as we can find fresh water and food there. Maybe the people there will be able to tell us about sightings of the ships of the gods.’’
‘’That would certainly help us navigate in the right direction. I must say that the wind was quite helpful during our trip.’’
Rawiri smiled at that last remark.
‘’Yes, it was indeed, being strong and steady from the East. However, returning to Nuku Hiva will be a real bitch, as we will then have to sail against a contrary wind.’’
‘’But, if we indeed find the land of the gods, will we want to then return to Nuku Hiva? Wouldn’t we want to stay and live there?’’
Rawiri’s smile faded then, as Ariki’s question was a most pertinent one.
‘’Our families would most probably want to stay and live on the island of the gods, but don’t we owe something to our village for helping us launch this expedition? This is after all our chief’s boat.’’
It was the turn of Ariki to feel indecision at those words.
‘’Uh, you are right.’’
An idea then came to his mind, making him smile.
‘’Hey, maybe the gods will help us travel back to our village after we meet them. They may even help us carry more of our people to their land.’’
‘’Hum, that is a possibility, but I hate to plan on assumptions and wishes. Let’s see first what the next days and weeks will bring us. For the time being, I will be following these birds to the nearest land and see what happens next.’’
Ariki could only nod at that wise decision and returned to the side of his wife Amaia and of his three children, sheltered inside the deck house.
06:23 (South Pacific Time)
February 2, 862 C.E.
Area of the Leeward Islands
South Pacific
Long war canoe.
Rawiri was getting quite tired after a whole night spent at the rudder of their boat, navigating by the stars, and had to look twice in order to make sure that he was not mistaken: he could see the top of three islands ahead on the horizon. Focusing his tired eyes, he soon knew that he was indeed looking at a group of islands and started shouting joyfully.
‘’LAND! LAND! WE HAVE ISLANDS IN SIGHT AHEAD OF US!’’
His shouts woke up at once his companion travelers, who then stared ahead at the horizon. Happy exclamations and shouts followed from the occupants of the boat: while the weather during their trip had been quite clement, a week spent at sea on a small boat was no picnic. Ariki came at once to the pilot’s position to speak with Rawiri.
‘’Do you recognize those islands, Rawiri?’’
‘’I am not sure yet because of the distance but I could bet that we are approaching the group formed by Raiatea, Tahaa and Bora Bora. Tahiti would then be to the Southeast of here, but Raiatea will do just fine for us as a place to get fresh water and food. We should be there before noon.’’
‘’Excellent! I will pass the word to the others.’’
A bit over two hours later, they were able to clearly see the three islands from a few kilometers away, as Rawiri was steering their boat towards the larger island to their left: Raiatea. Ariki felt good as he contemplated the coastline of the larger island, lined with a thick jungle and with a number of sandy beaches visible. Going to the bow of one of the canoes forming their catamaran, he started looking down and slightly ahead, in order to warn Rawiri about any shallow coral reefs or submerged rocks. Already he could see that the seafloor was rising nearer to the surface, with the water changing color in the process. A shout from his son Nikau then made him look up and to the right.
‘’DAD! I SEE THREE LARGE CANOES COMING TOWARDS US FROM THE RIGHT.’’
Looking in that direction, Ariki suddenly felt dread when he was able to detail those newcomers: they were war canoes! Furthermore, each of the three canoes carried at least thirty men and they were coming from the direction of Bora Bora and not from Raiatea itself. With fear visible on his face, he turned around to look at Rawiri.
‘’THESE ARE PROBABLY A WAR PARTY FROM BORA BORA, ON ITS WAY TO RAID RAIATEA! CAN YOU EVADE THEM?’’
‘’IMPOSSIBLE! THEY ARE MUCH FASTER AND MORE MANEUVERABLE THAN OUR BOAT. MAYBE THEY WILL LEAVE US ALONE AFTER THEY WILL KNOW THAT WE ARE COMING FROM NUKU HIVA.’’
Unfortunately, Rawiri’s hopeful wish turned out to be only that: a wish. The three long and thin war canoes, loaded with men wearing war tattoos and brandishing an assortment of clubs, spears and knives, deviated from their original course to intercept the va’a pahi and cut its path, forcing Rawiri to lower his sails and stop his catamaran boat. As the war canoes approached, he shouted out at their occupants, hoping that they would listen to him.
‘’WE ARE FROM NUKU HIVA AND WE CAME IN PEACE. WE ARE ON AN EXPLORATION VOYAGE.’’
The answer he got from the man standing at the bow of the nearest canoe, while made in a Polynesian dialect a bit different from that used on Nuku Hiva, was nonetheless quite clear.
‘’WE DON’T CARE FROM WHERE YOU COME FROM! ORO{12} IS ASKING FOR PRISONERS TO BE SACRIFICED IN HIS NAME.’’
That announcement made more than a few of the women and children traveling aboard the catamaran shriek in terror. Despite having a harpoon and an obsidian knife as his only weapons aboard, Ariki decided then that, if they were going to be killed and then eaten during a sacrificial ceremony, then he was going to make these newcomers pay as stiff a price as possible. Running to the deckhouse of the boat and grabbing his harpoon, he then gave his knife to his twelve-year-old son.
‘’Here, Nikau! Stay here and protect our family!’’
Next, he looked at Kauri and Naori, the two other grown men present with him and Rawiri on the catamaran, and was satisfied to see that they had armed themselves with oars, which they now held like clubs.
‘’Naori, you defend our left side while I defend our right side. Kauri, you stay near the deckhouse and defend it against any attacker who will go through us.’’
He was then surprised to see that the incoming warriors looked pleased at him showing to be ready to defend his boat. On second thoughts, he could understand their reaction then: they were on a war expedition in the name of Oro, the god of war and of sailors. There was no glory in a simple massacre, while a battle would give them the opportunity to show off their courage and fighting skills. Taking position along the right side of the catamaran, next to the deckhouse containing his family, Ariki solidly held up his harpoon, its tip pointed at the nearest incoming canoe. However, he didn’t have the chance to use it before a huge flying gray mass came down from the sky and stopped to a hover just above the three attacking war canoes. As Ariki and his companions stared up with awe at the giant gray ship, of ovoid shape with cruciform blisters, a thunderous voice speaking in a sort of Polynesian dialect that Ariki had some trouble understanding boomed out in the air.
‘’THERE WILL BE NO WAR TODAY, MEN OF BORA BORA! TURN AROUND AND RETURN HOME OF YOU WILL BE DESTROYED. THIS WILL BE YOUR ONLY WARNING.’’
The chieftain of the warriors, starring with a gaping mouth at this impossible sight, took seconds to react before shouting frantically at his warriors.
‘’TURN AROUND! TURN AROUND NOW! THE GODS ARE DISPLEASED AT US!’’
His men obeyed at once, positively terrified by the enormous flying ship, which easily measured ten times the length of their longest war canoes. Rawiri, his knees getting weak from the emotion, knelt on the deck of his boat while watching the Bora Bora war canoes turn around and row away with the strength of near-panic. After about five minutes, as the war canoes were a good 300 meters away, the same voice that had given the warning spoke again, this time in a much-diminished volume.
‘’People of Nuku Hiva, we have been tracking your boat since you left your island to head towards the Southwest. We salute both your courage and your navigating skills. Tell us what was your intended destination and the goal of your voyage.’’
Having initiated this trip, Ariki felt that he was the one who needed to respond and shouted out at the flying ship.
‘’WE WANTED TO FIND THE LAND OF THE GODS, FROM WHERE FLYING SHIP SIMILAR TO YOU CAME TO AND FRO. WE WANTED TO PAY OUR RESPECTS TO YOU IN THE NAME OF OUR VILLAGE.’’
There was some delay before he got a reply.
‘’KNOW THAT WE ARE HUMANS LIKE YOU, NOT GODS. HOWEVER, IF YOU STILL WISH TO GET TO OUR ISLAND, THEN WE ARE READY TO HELP YOU TO GET THERE.’’
While stunned by those words, Ariki turned around to look at his companions in and around the deckhouse and saw them all nod in unison, with his wife Amaia then imploring him.
‘’Tell them that we want to visit them, Ariki.’’
Not hearing any contrary opinion from the others and also getting a nod from Rawiri, he turned back to face the flying ship and shouted at it again.
‘’WE STILL WISH TO VISIT YOUR LAND AND, IF YOU WOULD LET US, TO SETTLE THERE.’’
Again, there was a noticeable delay before Ariki got a reply.
‘’WE WILL GRANT YOUR WISH, ARIKI. WE WILL NOW TURN OUR SHIP AROUND AND OPEN OUR AFT HOLD FOR YOU. YOU WILL THEN BE ABLE TO SAIL YOUR BOAT INSIDE OUR SHIP.’’
Before Ariki or Rawiri could ask how they could possibly fly their catamaran up to the level of the flying ship, the latter started to slowly go down at the same time as it turned around, performing a half-turn before its belly gently dove into the water. Next, some kind of huge ramp opened up at its rear, showing the inside of a sort of large cavern with flat walls. There were lights like brilliant stars illuminating the inside of that cavern!
‘’QUICK! GRAB YOUR OARS AND ROW OUR BOAT INSIDE THIS CAVE!’’
Ariki didn’t have to tell his companions twice and they all grabbed the available paddles to row with Ariki while Rawiri steered their catamaran towards the gaping opening in the flying ship. That opening proved to be more than large enough to let in their va’a pahi, complete with its two erect masts. As soon as it was completely inside the artificial cavern, the rear ramp closed shut and the water in the hold started being pumped out. In less than one minute, all the water had gone, allowing the occupants of the catamaran to jump down on the now dry deck of the hold. Crouching down and touching the deck plating, Ariki looked with bemusement at Rawiri, standing next to him.
‘’What is this ship made of? This is neither wood nor rock, yet is very hard and smooth to the touch.’’
‘’It is called ‘metal’ and our ship is nearly entirely made of it.’’
Taken by surprise, Ariki jumped to his feet and stared at the woman who had just entered the hold by a door that he had not seen before. The woman was both young and beautiful and wore a sort of outfit that clung closely to her body. She also happened to have facial traits which looked quite similar to those of a Polynesian woman, something that somehow helped reassure and calm Ariki. The newcomer looked around at the passengers of the catamaran, smiling especially at the young children of the group, then looked back at Ariki and Rawiri.
‘’You two seem to be in charge of your group. Am I right?’’
‘’Yes!’’ replied Ariki. ‘’My name is Ariki and this is our pilot and navigator, Rawiri.’’
‘’And my name is Sheena, Sheena Ito. I am the pilot and commander of this interceptor.’’
‘’An…interceptor?’’ said Rawiri, pronouncing with difficulty the unfamiliar word. ‘’What is that, exactly?’’
‘’A warship able to fly and travel through the stars. But don’t worry about trying to understand such new concepts right away: you will have ample time later on to learn about us and our machines and ships. First off, do any of you need some medical care?’’
‘’No! We are all healthy, although we are a bit dehydrated and hungry.’’
Rawiri’s response attracted a gentle smile on the face of the woman.
‘’Then, we will provide you with a good meal and ample drinks right away. One thing, though: if you have to relieve yourself, don’t do it anywhere but at the facilities we use for that. I would hate to find a puddle of urine or a pile of feces in some corner of my ship. I will show you where such facilities are and how to use them.’’
‘’Uh, what about our animals?’’ asked Kaia, Rawiri’s wife. ‘’We have chickens and pigs on our boat and we will need to tend to them during our trip to your island.’’
‘’Don’t worry about your animals, miss: our trip will be very short indeed. If you will now follow me, please.’’
With Ariki and Rawiri encouraging the others to follow Ito, they exited the hold with the woman, finding themselves in a fairly wide corridor apparently running along the length of the ship. They followed that corridor along some fifteen meters before entering a door to one side of it and finding themselves inside another room, this one furnished with apparently very comfortable furniture and with a large table in its center.
‘’The ship’s crew lounge and cafeteria.’’ explained Sheena Ito. ‘’My crew and the occasional passengers use it to relax and eat during long patrols. I will now show you one of our sanitary facilities, which we call ‘toilet’, so that you will know how to use it. Each of the toilets you can find on this ship has this sign on its door. Please remember what it looks like. I will now ask you to go inside it three at a time with me, so that I could explain to you how to use it properly. We are very big on questions of public and personal hygiene, so please listen carefully to my explanations during my demonstration.’’
Showing how to use a toilet to all the group of Polynesians took a good ten minutes, following which Ito made the newcomers sit around the table of the lounge. That was when a big young man with blond hair and blue eyes entered the lounge, to be presented to the Polynesians by Ito.
‘’This is Rolph Gunnarsson, one of my crewmembers. He will serve you some food and drinks while I go pilot my ship.’’
Before leaving the lounge, Ito briefly stopped by a sort of large, flat object suspended to a wall and touched a few small things along its edges. To the surprise and astonishment of the Polynesians, a vivid color picture appeared on its surface, showing the water around the ship and the nearby island of Raiatea. As the Polynesians stared at the picture, Gunnarsson went to the large refrigerator of the lounge and started to take out of it a collection of drinks and prepared meals, choosing snack items which would be easy to eat without utensils. Distributing first the bottles of water and fruit juice around, he then started heating up the rations, using the three microwave ovens of the lounge. The interceptor rose out of the water and started accelerating and climbing towards the Southwest as he was starting to take the hot plates out of the ovens and to put them in front of