CHAPTER TWENTY

A Few Days on Land

We had not been on land in over two months, after becoming "passengers of the Nautilus," as Captain Nemo declared Rather, we had become prisoners of the captain. We were eager to step onto land and experience its food, which we had not tasted in a great while.

When we arrived, we found a variety of fruits and vegetables, which we picked to take back to the Nautilus. After several hours of hunting, we were only able to find a few birds to roast. Ned was quite disappointed, as he was looking forward to hunting larger animals for their meat, which he had so wished to eat while onboard the Nautilus. Ned Land knew what vegetables and fruits to search for, as he spent many years as a sailor, going on such hunting journeys while on sea adventures.

After a full day of hunting, we returned to the Nautilus, our boat filled with various fruits and vegetables, as well as a few birds that were killed for their meat. As we returned to the submarine, no one appeared. I returned to my room and slept well after dinner.

The next day, the 6th of January, nothing was new onboard the Nautilus. We decided to return to the island. Ned Land was hoping to find larger animals on the island. After searching for many hours, we still had not found any larger animals to hunt.

Some time later, after going deeper into the island's forest, Ned Land managed to kill a great pig, which had immediately fallen dead when it was hit with the powerful air gun. We prepared parts of the meat, but saved most for later meals onboard the Nautilus. Soon after this successful hunt, the two companions found a group of kangaroos, moving rather slowly, allowing the two friends to kill four or five.

"Ah, Professor!" cried Ned Land, "what excellent meals we will soon have! And those idiots onboard the Nautilus refuse such wonderful treasures."

At six o'clock in the evening, we returned to our boat. The Nautilus was two miles away, which we saw from the beach of the island.

"What if we do not return to the Nautilus this evening?" said Conseil.

"What if we never return?" Ned Land responded.

At that moment, a stone fell nearby.

(end of section)