“Do you see the problem now?” Bulan pointed several hundred feet across the water at the entrance to the harbor. Its opening was flanked on either side by rocks that gnashed at passing ships like sharks’ teeth. Laya followed Bulan’s finger with her gaze. Her eyes widened when she saw the source of all the fuss.

“What on earth . . . ?”

Bulan nodded. “Last night, one of the ships got blown off course. Now it’s blocking half the entrance. Only the smaller boats can get in.”

“How strong were those winds?” Laya asked, incredulous.

The ship in question was one of the largest cargo vessels Laya had ever seen. Its hull would rival the belly of a whale, and its masts shot straight up to the heavens, disappearing into the clouds overhead. The bow had gotten lodged between the jagged rocks at the mouth of the harbor. Laya counted several rowboats tethered to the sides of the hull, sailors straining with their oars as they struggled in vain to free the ship.

“Didn’t you hear the storm last night?” Bulan said. A shadow of recognition crossed her face. Her gaze hardened. “Ah⁠—the Kulaws must have arrived early for the feast days. I’m guessing that’s what kept you occupied.”

A deep flush crept up Laya’s neck. Her knuckles whitened against the railing. “I don’t know what you’re insinuating. I haven’t seen Luntok in weeks,” she said testily. It wasn’t a lie.

Bulan hummed a note of disbelief and turned back to the beached ship. No matter what excuse Laya gave, her sister would never believe her.

Doubt churned in Laya’s gut. She can’t prove anything, she thought savagely. Rather than press Bulan on the subject, Laya swallowed her worries and focused on the task at hand. Her eyes fell once more on the men in the rowboats⁠—their meager oars could do little to free a vessel of that size. A powerful gust had entrapped the ship between the rocks, and only a powerful gust could blow it out.

“Stand back,” she told Bulan as she raised her palms to the sky. The air rushed down to meet them in winding currents. Laya grinned as the invisible threads of energy wrapped themselves around her fingertips. She balled her hands into fists, cementing her grasp. With a deep breath, she gave the threads a harsh tug. The air above their heads split with a mighty blast that almost knocked her and Bulan off their feet.