diff --git a/.claude-plugin/marketplace.json b/.claude-plugin/marketplace.json
index 142d6914c..6b998dd72 100644
--- a/.claude-plugin/marketplace.json
+++ b/.claude-plugin/marketplace.json
@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@
   "plugins": [
     {
       "name": "genie",
-      "version": "5.260726.7",
+      "version": "5.260726.9",
       "source": "./plugins/genie",
       "description": "Human-AI partnership for Claude Code. Share a terminal, orchestrate workers, evolve together. Brainstorm ideas, wish them into plans, make with parallel agents, ship as one team. A coding genie that grows with your project."
     }
diff --git a/.github/workflows/musl-adapter-smoke.yml b/.github/workflows/musl-adapter-smoke.yml
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..af2160876
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/workflows/musl-adapter-smoke.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,105 @@
+name: Musl Adapter Smoke
+
+# The Alpine execution adapter historically ran ONLY inside production release
+# dogfood jobs, so every adapter defect cost a full release cycle to discover
+# (docker pull noise on the stderr-strict probe, container-root vs host-uid git
+# ownership). This smoke exercises the adapter on a real amd64 runner with the
+# real previous-stable musl binary on every PR that touches it: seeding a git
+# repository through the container exactly as the dogfood harness does, and
+# asserting the probe's contract — exit 0 with a byte-empty stderr.
+on:
+  pull_request:
+    paths:
+      - 'scripts/run-musl-dogfood.sh'
+      - '.github/workflows/musl-adapter-smoke.yml'
+
+permissions:
+  contents: read
+
+jobs:
+  smoke:
+    name: Seed a repository through the Alpine adapter
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    timeout-minutes: 10
+    steps:
+      - uses: actions/checkout@93cb6efe18208431cddfb8368fd83d5badbf9bfd # v5
+        with:
+          persist-credentials: false
+
+      - name: Pre-pull the pinned Alpine image (mirrors the dogfood job)
+        run: docker pull -q 'alpine:3.19@sha256:6baf43584bcb78f2e5847d1de515f23499913ac9f12bdf834811a3145eb11ca1'
+
+      - name: Download the previous-stable musl release binary
+        env:
+          GH_TOKEN: ${{ github.token }}
+        run: |
+          set -euo pipefail
+          PREVIOUS_TAG="v$(jq -r '.version' .well-known/latest.json 2>/dev/null || true)"
+          if [[ "$PREVIOUS_TAG" == "v" || "$PREVIOUS_TAG" == "vnull" ]]; then
+            echo "::error::could not resolve the previous stable version from .well-known/latest.json"
+            exit 1
+          fi
+          gh release download "$PREVIOUS_TAG" --repo "$GITHUB_REPOSITORY" \
+            --pattern "genie-*-linux-x64-musl.tar.gz" --dir "$RUNNER_TEMP/previous"
+
+      - name: Probe-mode contract — exit 0 with a byte-empty stderr
+        run: |
+          set -euo pipefail
+          ROOT="${RUNNER_TEMP}/dogfood-root"
+          mkdir -p "$ROOT/repos/a" "$ROOT/home" "$ROOT/genie-home/bin" "$ROOT/tmp" "$ROOT/n-extract"
+          tar -xzf "$RUNNER_TEMP"/previous/genie-*-linux-x64-musl.tar.gz -C "$ROOT/n-extract"
+          cp "$ROOT/n-extract/genie" "$ROOT/genie-home/bin/genie"
+          chmod 755 "$ROOT/genie-home/bin/genie"
+          cp "$ROOT/n-extract/VERSION" "$ROOT/genie-home/bin/VERSION" || true
+          # The harness's verifyCapability runs the adapter WITHOUT DOGFOOD_ROOT
+          # (candidate mounted read-only at /candidate) and rejects any stderr
+          # byte. --version is quiet on every generation, so bootstrap noise
+          # (docker pull progress, apk output) is the only thing that could
+          # reach stderr — exactly the class this contract pins.
+          status=0
+          HOME="$ROOT/home" TMPDIR="$ROOT/tmp" TERM=xterm \
+            bash scripts/run-musl-dogfood.sh "$ROOT/genie-home/bin/genie" --version \
+            >"$RUNNER_TEMP/probe-out" 2>"$RUNNER_TEMP/probe-err" || status=$?
+          if [[ "$status" -ne 0 ]]; then
+            echo "::error::probe-mode adapter invocation exited ${status}"
+            cat "$RUNNER_TEMP/probe-out" "$RUNNER_TEMP/probe-err"
+            exit 1
+          fi
+          if [[ -s "$RUNNER_TEMP/probe-err" ]]; then
+            echo "::error::probe-mode adapter invocation wrote stderr (the capability probe fails on any stderr byte):"
+            cat "$RUNNER_TEMP/probe-err"
+            exit 1
+          fi
+          grep -q . "$RUNNER_TEMP/probe-out" || { echo "::error::--version produced no output"; exit 1; }
+
+      - name: Stateful-mode seeding — the exact leg that failed in v5.260726.9
+        run: |
+          set -euo pipefail
+          ROOT="${RUNNER_TEMP}/dogfood-root"
+          git init -q -b main "$ROOT/repos/a"
+          ADAPTER="$PWD/scripts/run-musl-dogfood.sh"
+          cd "$ROOT/repos/a"
+          run_via_adapter() {
+            local status=0
+            DOGFOOD_ROOT="$ROOT" HOME="$ROOT/home" GENIE_HOME="$ROOT/genie-home" \
+              TMPDIR="$ROOT/tmp" GENIE_RELEASE_DOGFOOD=1 TERM=xterm \
+              bash "$ADAPTER" "$ROOT/genie-home/bin/genie" "$@" \
+              >"$RUNNER_TEMP/cli-out" 2>"$RUNNER_TEMP/cli-err" || status=$?
+            if [[ "$status" -ne 0 ]]; then
+              echo "::error::adapter invocation 'genie $*' exited ${status}"
+              cat "$RUNNER_TEMP/cli-out" "$RUNNER_TEMP/cli-err"
+              exit 1
+            fi
+            cat "$RUNNER_TEMP/cli-out"
+          }
+          run_via_adapter init
+          run_via_adapter task create --title smoke-sentinel --wish smoke
+          run_via_adapter board
+          # The database seeded through the container must be owned by the
+          # runner user, or every later host-side stage fails closed on
+          # genie's stat.uid ownership checks.
+          [[ "$(stat -c %u "$ROOT/repos/a/.genie/genie.db")" == "$(id -u)" ]] || {
+            echo "::error::container-created database is not owned by the host user"
+            exit 1
+          }
+          echo "adapter smoke: OK"
diff --git a/package.json b/package.json
index 3e9771672..17606d884 100644
--- a/package.json
+++ b/package.json
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 {
   "name": "@automagik/genie",
 
-  "version": "5.260726.7",
+  "version": "5.260726.9",
   "description": "Collaborative terminal toolkit for human + AI workflows. NOTE: npm distribution discontinued 2026-05-09 — install via `curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/automagik-dev/genie/main/install.sh | bash` (cosign + SLSA verified). See https://automagik.dev/genie/release-process",
 
   "license": "MIT",
diff --git a/plugins/genie/.claude-plugin/plugin.json b/plugins/genie/.claude-plugin/plugin.json
index eab8797b7..dcb6950f4 100644
--- a/plugins/genie/.claude-plugin/plugin.json
+++ b/plugins/genie/.claude-plugin/plugin.json
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 {
   "name": "genie",
-  "version": "5.260726.7",
+  "version": "5.260726.9",
   "description": "Human-AI partnership for Claude Code. Share a terminal, orchestrate workers, evolve together. Brainstorm ideas, turn them into wishes, execute with /work, validate with /review, and ship as one team.",
   "author": {
     "name": "Namastex Labs"
diff --git a/plugins/genie/.codex-plugin/plugin.json b/plugins/genie/.codex-plugin/plugin.json
index 2a178b170..f670a9bc5 100644
--- a/plugins/genie/.codex-plugin/plugin.json
+++ b/plugins/genie/.codex-plugin/plugin.json
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 {
   "name": "genie",
-  "version": "5.260726.7",
+  "version": "5.260726.9",
   "description": "Plan, execute, review, and ship software with Genie workflows in Codex.",
   "author": {
     "name": "Namastex Labs",
diff --git a/plugins/genie/package.json b/plugins/genie/package.json
index 46cc5aef6..43bf4a1a3 100644
--- a/plugins/genie/package.json
+++ b/plugins/genie/package.json
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 {
   "name": "genie-plugin",
-  "version": "5.260726.7",
+  "version": "5.260726.9",
   "private": true,
   "description": "Runtime dependencies for genie bundled CLIs",
   "license": "MIT",
diff --git a/plugins/hermes-genie/plugin.yaml b/plugins/hermes-genie/plugin.yaml
index 36941294e..4bbfea43a 100644
--- a/plugins/hermes-genie/plugin.yaml
+++ b/plugins/hermes-genie/plugin.yaml
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 name: genie
-version: 5.260726.7
+version: 5.260726.9
 description: "Native Hermes surface for Genie orchestration: read-only status plus work-plan and review-plan gap tools that the MCP board surface does not cover, hooks, commands, and a thin cockpit skill. Board/task truth comes from the genie MCP tools."
 provides_tools:
   # Default surface: exactly the three gap tools the MCP board surface does not cover.
diff --git a/scripts/run-musl-dogfood.sh b/scripts/run-musl-dogfood.sh
index c06772c83..97bd8d137 100755
--- a/scripts/run-musl-dogfood.sh
+++ b/scripts/run-musl-dogfood.sh
@@ -52,6 +52,15 @@ fi
 # write pull progress to stderr, which the harness's stderr-strict capability
 # probe treats as failure. The dogfood workflow pre-pulls the digest.
 docker_args=(run --rm -i --security-opt no-new-privileges)
+
+# The candidate must run AS THE HOST USER, not container root. The fixture tree
+# is bind-mounted and shared with host-side stages: git refuses a repository
+# whose on-disk owner differs from the effective uid ("dubious ownership", so
+# `genie init` reports "not a git repository"), genie's own fail-closed
+# ownership checks demand stat.uid == process uid, and any root-owned file the
+# container creates would poison every later host-side stage. Root is needed
+# only for the apk bootstrap; su-exec then drops to this exact identity.
+docker_args+=(--env "DOGFOOD_HOST_UID=$(id -u)" --env "DOGFOOD_HOST_GID=$(id -g)")
 container_candidate="/candidate/${candidate_name}"
 
 # The one-shot capability probe needs only a read-only candidate directory.
@@ -98,8 +107,10 @@ exec docker "${docker_args[@]}" \
     # Bootstrap noise must never reach stderr: the probe fails on any stderr
     # byte, and only the candidate binary output is meaningful to it. apk
     # failures still abort through set -e.
-    apk add --no-cache bash git libstdc++ >/dev/null 2>&1
+    apk add --no-cache bash git libstdc++ su-exec >/dev/null 2>&1
     candidate=$1
     shift
-    exec "$candidate" "$@"
+    # Drop from bootstrap root to the exact host identity that owns the
+    # bind-mounted fixture tree (see DOGFOOD_HOST_UID rationale above).
+    exec su-exec "${DOGFOOD_HOST_UID}:${DOGFOOD_HOST_GID}" "$candidate" "$@"
   ' sh "$container_candidate" "$@"
diff --git a/scripts/run-musl-dogfood.test.ts b/scripts/run-musl-dogfood.test.ts
index cd17dbba4..8281d64b9 100644
--- a/scripts/run-musl-dogfood.test.ts
+++ b/scripts/run-musl-dogfood.test.ts
@@ -54,6 +54,13 @@ describe('musl dogfood execution adapter', () => {
     // the manifest every run and write pull progress to stderr, failing the
     // harness's stderr-strict capability probe.
     expect(args).not.toContain('--pull=always');
+    // The candidate must execute as the host identity, not container root:
+    // the bind-mounted fixture tree is shared with host-side stages, and both
+    // git (dubious ownership) and genie's own ownership checks fail-close on a
+    // uid mismatch. Root exists only for the apk bootstrap; su-exec drops it.
+    expect(args).toContain(`DOGFOOD_HOST_UID=${process.getuid?.()}`);
+    expect(args).toContain(`DOGFOOD_HOST_GID=${process.getgid?.()}`);
+    expect(args.some((line) => line.includes('su-exec "${DOGFOOD_HOST_UID}:${DOGFOOD_HOST_GID}"'))).toBe(true);
     expect(args).toContain('alpine:3.19@sha256:6baf43584bcb78f2e5847d1de515f23499913ac9f12bdf834811a3145eb11ca1');
     expect(args).toContain(`type=bind,src=${fx.root},dst=/candidate,readonly`);
     expect(args).toContain('$(touch should-not-exist); spaced');