“This initiatory story of Captain Levant, who undertakes a great journey during which he meets and fraternizes with a fantastic bestiary: a flying cat, a time-making bird, a scribe butterfly, a palimpsest fish and many other species with extravagant gifts. These beasts do not find their place on earth, because they are hybrid creatures. To restore a balance they must become stars. We are going to witness this transformation. The captain, hired by a consortium, goes to look with a reduced crew for a meteorite in the Pacific. The meteorite appears to contain brownleeite, a metal that could accelerate space conquest. The captain will not find the much desired material but an island-mirage, a reflection of his desires."