“There’s just something unsettling about having cursed idols aboard again,” Leox said. He was alone with Geode, who knew about their last cursed-idol incident and had never reported it to Scover Byne. (Little Bit was precious to him, but you couldn’t blame a girl for wanting to talk about things with her momma. Luckily, this had been before her time.) “They’re bad luck, as you and I have ample reason to know. Gives me the willies.”

Geode was made of more stoic stuff. However, Leox could tell he didn’t like it, either. Last time, they’d taken the wrong idols to the wrong planet, on behalf of a Rodian who turned out to be very much the wrong client. The intent, so far as Leox could reconstruct it after the fact, was for the Rodian to be worshipped as an idol-dominating god by the fearful populace.

The populace had had other ideas.

Leaning against the nearest console, Leox studied the insect-shaped idol, the one with pincers and wings. “I mean, I didn’t mind the chanting or the incense. The sacrifices were okay since they were just flowers. And, man, that plinth they carved in your honor? Looked just like you. Could’ve been your twin.”

Geode didn’t even have to mention the rather less successful mosaic portraying Leox’s descent from their celestial starcraft. Wasn’t like Leox could ever forget it, no matter how hard he tried.

“It’s not good for the spirit, being worshipped. Corrodes you from the inside out.” Leox shook his head. “Which is the real curse of these kinds of things, if you ask me. We got out of there not one moment too soon. At least the Jedi are packing these away instead of trying to use them for all the wrong reasons.”

That Rodian had wound up fleeing the planet as fast as he could, and in another ship, since Leox had had about enough of his foolishness by that point. Leox and Geode had remained only as long as was decent before leaving the people with a gentle moral code of kindness. Probably those fellows had come to their senses within a few months, once they’d gotten used to having their most sacred ancient objects back on their world and gone back to using its original name.

At any rate, he hoped so. Otherwise, there was now a planet called Leoxo, and if Affie ever found out, he’d never hear the end of it.

“So I guess this is it,” Nan said.

Reath stood with her near the airlocks. The Vessel was already at the point of departure. “You’re leaving soon, too?”

“We’re actually going to finish some repairs first. Remember the state you found us in?”

“Right,” he said, wincing at his own forgetfulness. “Do you need anything? Supplies, or assistance—”

“Nope, we’re good,” Nan insisted. “We have everything we need. Including time, now, thanks to you.”