“Deborah and I saw them off in the starship. They left a ­couple of hundred thousand years before the aliens came, and when we hopped back to that time, the aliens didn’t come after all, so I assume they succeeded. I have no idea how.”

“She’s not really blind,” said Loaf.

“She has no eyes,” said Noxon.

Deborah tapped the band over her eyes. “It’s a machine,” she said. “Not as advanced as their visual units.” She indicated Vadeshex and Ramex.

“We waited until the Visitors came back from Garden,” said Rigg. “In the original version of history, the Destroyers had already wiped out human life on Earth before they got home. We sliced our way a few dozen years, just to be sure the Destroyers never came.”

“The expedition you call ‘the Visitors’ gave a very favorable report,” said Deborah. “They recommended that this world be left completely alone to go on developing without interference.”

“And the government made that official policy,” said Noxon. “Doesn’t mean it’ll stay the policy, but it’s a good sign. They stuck with it for a dozen years or so. Then we popped back, got on the Visitors’ outbound ship, and sliced our way through their whole voyage.”

“They never knew you were on the ship?” asked Umbo.

Noxon gave him a withering look. “Give me credit,” he said.

Umbo grinned. “We may call you Noxon, but you’re still Rigg.”

“I’m not sure how to take that,” said Rigg.

“It’s pure flattery to both of us,” said Noxon. “You should all know that I didn’t plan on coming back here. If I hadn’t accidently duplicated myself, I would have ended up with the backward Ram Odin out at the alien world. Presumably they’re colonizing the place now. But as long as this copy of me existed, I thought I might as well come home.”

“With a friend,” said Param.

“You can never have too many friends,” said Noxon.

But the way Deborah threaded an arm around his waist made it clear enough that this wasn’t an ordinary friendship.

“My job is over,” said Noxon, “but I realize you’re still caught up in the war against Haddamander and Hagia. I don’t want to distract you.”

“We no longer have such a tight deadline to work with,” said Olivenko. “Since the world isn’t ending a couple of years from now.”

“The ship told me that you already knew the Destroyers were aliens,” said Noxon. “Rigg and Param got bounced past the Destruction and had some kind of fight, yes? I’ve never actually seen one of them. Do you have it recorded?”

“Rigg makes us watch it twice a day,” said Ram Odin.

Rigg shook his head a little.

Noxon grinned. “Well, I want to see you whip them.”