Sailing to South America, the sailing ship "Fortuna" gets stuck in a calm in the middle of the Atlantic. Heat and thirst drive the team crazy, knives are already flashing and the wind is being conjured in the darkness of the night. Captain Kihnu Jõnn has to tame desperate men and trade with heavenly forces in order to bring the ship's crew to the destination port, who want to leave him there.

The events took place in the Russian Empire in the 19th century. Jõnn is a self-made captain ("metskapten") who has just got himself a new sailing ship, "Fortuuna". When the ship is sailing in the middle of the ocean, the wind suddenly stops blowing and the vessel is stuck in the middle of still and salty water with hungry and thirsty crew on board.