At dawn, a Registry vessel moved closer to the channel. A small boat lowered from its side and aimed for the archive skiff, which waited behind the inner wall with the copied research pages secured below deck.
Muo stood at the chain station. “Raise the chain.”
Pema and Ruo took the winch handles. Han directed the fishing boats behind the inner barrier, clearing the channel before the chain rose. Lian sent the warning code to the upper village.
Yan stood beside the crew, his body near the winch. He sent one Soul-Lantern projection through the signal tower to watch the outer channel. The projection reported a second vessel moving toward the western shallows.
“Two ships are closing,” he told Han. “One is still aimed at the archive skiff.”
Han called the west warning to Lian. Residents began carrying clinic supplies and contract copies along the planned route. The harbor was not yet under attack, but the movement of the small boat had changed the meaning of the offer.
The winch groaned. Pema turned the handle while Ruo worked the lower gear. The chain rose a handspan, then stuck. Ruo found the snag under the post: a loop of old rope had caught the wheel.
