diff --git a/packages/compiler/src/frontend/lowering/lower-node-island.ts b/packages/compiler/src/frontend/lowering/lower-node-island.ts
index bab5f15a1..fae8aa219 100644
--- a/packages/compiler/src/frontend/lowering/lower-node-island.ts
+++ b/packages/compiler/src/frontend/lowering/lower-node-island.ts
@@ -17,6 +17,7 @@
  * thrown Error crosses as its nearest intrinsic class with its message and
  * string `code`. */
 import { realpathSync } from "node:fs";
+import { isAbsolute } from "node:path";
 import * as ts from "../ts7/adapter.js";
 import { locOf } from "../program.js";
 import type { NodeApiMember } from "../node-api-import.js";
@@ -108,6 +109,12 @@ export function lowerNodeApiCall(
     throw new PoisonError();
   }
   const specifier = lowerer.lowerExprExpecting(specifierNode, STRING);
+  // An absolute specifier names a file of the build machine: the call names
+  // the shipped copy, relative to the caller inside the tree.
+  if (isAbsolute(specifierNode.text) && specifier.kind === "strLit") {
+    const target = lowerer.nodeIslandModules.resolvedPath(caller, specifierNode.text);
+    if (target !== null) lowerer.nodeIslandSpecifiers.push({ literal: specifier, caller, target });
+  }
   const name = lowerer.lowerExprExpecting(argNodes[1]!, STRING);
   const values = argNodes.slice(2).map((arg) => {
     const value = lowerer.lowerExpr(arg);
diff --git a/packages/compiler/src/frontend/lowering/lowerer.ts b/packages/compiler/src/frontend/lowering/lowerer.ts
index 4b6b0acdf..6594d8175 100644
--- a/packages/compiler/src/frontend/lowering/lowerer.ts
+++ b/packages/compiler/src/frontend/lowering/lowerer.ts
@@ -3145,6 +3145,12 @@ export class Lowerer {
   readonly nodeIslandModules = new NodeIslandModuleCollector();
   /** Each call's caller literal, set to its tree path when lowering ends. */
   readonly nodeIslandCallers: { literal: IrExpr & { kind: "strLit" }; caller: string }[] = [];
+  /** Absolute specifiers, rewritten to the shipped file relative to their caller. */
+  readonly nodeIslandSpecifiers: {
+    literal: IrExpr & { kind: "strLit" };
+    caller: string;
+    target: string;
+  }[] = [];
   /** Per-directory answers of experimental-import.ts's declaration-file test. */
   readonly experimentalFiles = new Map<string, boolean>();
   /** Interned LifetimeRegion.run helpers, by callback type key. */
@@ -8656,6 +8662,8 @@ export class Lowerer {
     const modules = this.nodeIslandModules.tree();
     for (const { literal, caller } of this.nodeIslandCallers)
       literal.value = NodeIslandModuleCollector.callerPath(modules, caller);
+    for (const { literal, caller, target } of this.nodeIslandSpecifiers)
+      literal.value = NodeIslandModuleCollector.relativeSpecifier(caller, target);
     return { libnode: "", nodeVersion: "", ...(modules === null ? {} : { modules }) };
   }
 
diff --git a/packages/compiler/src/node-islands/libnode.test.ts b/packages/compiler/src/node-islands/libnode.test.ts
index cd310e0e1..94add4f1c 100644
--- a/packages/compiler/src/node-islands/libnode.test.ts
+++ b/packages/compiler/src/node-islands/libnode.test.ts
@@ -1,4 +1,12 @@
-import { existsSync, mkdirSync, mkdtempSync, readFileSync, rmSync, writeFileSync } from "node:fs";
+import {
+  existsSync,
+  mkdirSync,
+  mkdtempSync,
+  readFileSync,
+  rmSync,
+  symlinkSync,
+  writeFileSync,
+} from "node:fs";
 import { tmpdir } from "node:os";
 import { join } from "node:path";
 import { describe, expect, test } from "vitest";
@@ -94,6 +102,39 @@ describe("the recorded libnode pack", () => {
     expect(existsSync(join(out, "app.libnode"))).toBe(false);
   });
 
+  test("beside refuses manifest file names outside the pack", () => {
+    for (const name of ["..", ".", "../escaped", "/etc/passwd", "a/b", "a\\b", "x\u0000y"]) {
+      const dir = pack("24.22.0");
+      writeFileSync(
+        join(dir, "manifest.json"),
+        JSON.stringify({
+          nodeVersion: "24.22.0",
+          bridgeAbi: NODE_BRIDGE_ABI,
+          files: { [name]: {} },
+        }),
+      );
+      const out = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), "scriptc-libnode-out-"));
+      expect(libnodeRecord("beside", join(out, "app"), { SCRIPTC_LIBNODE: dir })).toBe(
+        `the libnode pack at ${dir} lists a file outside the pack ('${name}')`,
+      );
+      expect(existsSync(join(out, "app.libnode"))).toBe(false);
+      expect(existsSync(join(out, "escaped"))).toBe(false);
+    }
+  });
+
+  test("beside refuses pack files that are symbolic links", () => {
+    const dir = pack("24.22.0");
+    const elsewhere = join(mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), "scriptc-libnode-elsewhere-")), "secret");
+    writeFileSync(elsewhere, "secret");
+    rmSync(join(dir, "libnode.so.137"));
+    symlinkSync(elsewhere, join(dir, "libnode.so.137"));
+    const out = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), "scriptc-libnode-out-"));
+    expect(libnodeRecord("beside", join(out, "app"), { SCRIPTC_LIBNODE: dir })).toBe(
+      `the libnode pack at ${dir} holds libnode.so.137 as a symbolic link; pack files must be regular files`,
+    );
+    expect(existsSync(join(out, "app.libnode"))).toBe(false);
+  });
+
   test("a pack the deployment places beside the executable needs no manifest at build time", () => {
     expect(libnodeRecord("$ORIGIN/node", "/out/app", {})).toEqual({
       libnode: "$ORIGIN/node",
diff --git a/packages/compiler/src/node-islands/libnode.ts b/packages/compiler/src/node-islands/libnode.ts
index a0ae29d2f..dc6498924 100644
--- a/packages/compiler/src/node-islands/libnode.ts
+++ b/packages/compiler/src/node-islands/libnode.ts
@@ -14,13 +14,14 @@
  * also the hook for bundling Node into the executable itself later. */
 import { createHash } from "node:crypto";
 import {
+  constants,
   copyFileSync,
   linkSync,
+  lstatSync,
   mkdirSync,
   readFileSync,
   realpathSync,
   rmSync,
-  statSync,
 } from "node:fs";
 import { basename, isAbsolute, join, resolve, sep } from "node:path";
 
@@ -76,12 +77,15 @@ function readManifest(dir: string): PackManifest | string {
 }
 
 /** Copies the pack next to the executable (hard links where possible), or
- * returns why it cannot: the target would replace the pack itself, or the
- * manifest names a file outside the pack. */
+ * returns why it cannot: the target would replace the pack itself, the
+ * manifest names a file outside the pack, or a pack file is not a regular
+ * file (a symbolic link could point anywhere). Every destination is checked
+ * to resolve inside the target directory. */
 function placeBeside(source: string, manifest: PackManifest, target: string): string | undefined {
   const names = ["manifest.json", "LICENSE", ...Object.keys(manifest.files)];
   const unsafe = names.find(
-    (name) => name === "" || name === "." || name === ".." || /[/\\]/.test(name),
+    (name) =>
+      name === "" || name === "." || name === ".." || /[/\\\0]/.test(name) || isAbsolute(name),
   );
   if (unsafe !== undefined)
     return `the libnode pack at ${source} lists a file outside the pack ('${unsafe}')`;
@@ -89,19 +93,30 @@ function placeBeside(source: string, manifest: PackManifest, target: string): st
   const to = realpathOr(target);
   if (from === to || from.startsWith(to + sep) || to.startsWith(from + sep))
     return `--libnode=beside would replace the libnode pack it copies (${source}); point SCRIPTC_LIBNODE at a pack outside ${target}`;
-  rmSync(target, { recursive: true, force: true });
-  mkdirSync(target, { recursive: true });
+  const present: string[] = [];
   for (const name of names) {
-    const file = join(source, name);
+    let info;
     try {
-      statSync(file);
+      info = lstatSync(join(source, name));
     } catch {
       continue;
     }
+    if (!info.isFile())
+      return `the libnode pack at ${source} holds ${name} as a ${info.isSymbolicLink() ? "symbolic link" : "non-regular file"}; pack files must be regular files`;
+    present.push(name);
+  }
+  rmSync(target, { recursive: true, force: true });
+  mkdirSync(target, { recursive: true });
+  const inside = resolve(target) + sep;
+  for (const name of present) {
+    const destination = resolve(target, name);
+    if (!destination.startsWith(inside))
+      return `the libnode pack at ${source} lists a file outside the pack ('${name}')`;
+    const file = join(source, name);
     try {
-      linkSync(file, join(target, name));
+      linkSync(file, destination);
     } catch {
-      copyFileSync(file, join(target, name));
+      copyFileSync(file, destination, constants.COPYFILE_EXCL);
     }
   }
   return undefined;
diff --git a/packages/compiler/src/node-islands/modules.test.ts b/packages/compiler/src/node-islands/modules.test.ts
index 6badf376a..63201e1e0 100644
--- a/packages/compiler/src/node-islands/modules.test.ts
+++ b/packages/compiler/src/node-islands/modules.test.ts
@@ -167,6 +167,33 @@ describe("the collected module tree", () => {
     ]);
   });
 
+  test("a require through a linked directory keeps the link in the tree", () => {
+    const root = project({
+      "src/main.ts": "",
+      "src/entry.cjs": "module.exports = require('./lib/x.cjs');",
+      "shared/x.cjs": "exports.x = 1;",
+    });
+    symlinkSync("../shared", join(root, "src/lib"));
+    const collector = new NodeIslandModuleCollector();
+    expect(collector.add(join(root, "src/main.ts"), "./entry.cjs")).toBeNull();
+    const tree = collector.tree()!;
+    expect(tree.links).toEqual([{ path: "src/lib", target: "../shared" }]);
+    expect(tree.files.map((f) => f.path)).toEqual(["shared/x.cjs", "src/entry.cjs"]);
+  });
+
+  test("an absolute specifier names the shipped file relative to its caller", () => {
+    const root = project({ "src/main.ts": "", "lib/m.cjs": "" });
+    const collector = new NodeIslandModuleCollector();
+    const target = collector.resolvedPath(join(root, "src/main.ts"), join(root, "lib/m.cjs"))!;
+    expect(target).toBe(join(root, "lib/m.cjs"));
+    expect(NodeIslandModuleCollector.relativeSpecifier(join(root, "src/main.ts"), target)).toBe(
+      "../lib/m.cjs",
+    );
+    expect(
+      NodeIslandModuleCollector.relativeSpecifier(join(root, "main.ts"), join(root, "m.cjs")),
+    ).toBe("./m.cjs");
+  });
+
   test("built-in modules alone ship no tree", () => {
     const root = project({ "main.ts": "" });
     const collector = new NodeIslandModuleCollector();
diff --git a/packages/compiler/src/node-islands/modules.ts b/packages/compiler/src/node-islands/modules.ts
index 0d63dc333..e1551c070 100644
--- a/packages/compiler/src/node-islands/modules.ts
+++ b/packages/compiler/src/node-islands/modules.ts
@@ -211,14 +211,34 @@ export class NodeIslandModuleCollector {
     return null;
   }
 
-  /** The real path of `path`, recording a link when `path` itself (not an
-   * ancestor) is a symbolic link. */
+  /** The real path of `path`, recording a link for each component of it
+   * that is a symbolic link (a linked directory on the way, or the file
+   * itself), so that the path resolves inside the tree as it does here. */
   private placed(path: string): string {
-    const target = trackedRealpath(path) ?? path;
-    const parent = trackedRealpath(dirname(path)) ?? dirname(path);
-    const link = join(parent, basename(path));
-    if (link !== target) this.links.set(link, target);
-    return target;
+    let real: string = sep;
+    for (const part of resolve(path).split(sep)) {
+      if (part === "") continue;
+      const lexical = join(real, part);
+      const target = trackedRealpath(lexical) ?? lexical;
+      if (target !== lexical) this.links.set(lexical, target);
+      real = target;
+    }
+    return real;
+  }
+
+  /** The real path of the file an absolute or relative `specifier` names
+   * from `fromFile`, or null when there is none. */
+  resolvedPath(fromFile: string, specifier: string): string | null {
+    if (!isPathSpecifier(specifier)) return null;
+    const target = resolveFile(resolve(dirname(fromFile), specifier));
+    return target === null ? null : (trackedRealpath(target) ?? target);
+  }
+
+  /** A specifier that names `target` from `caller` inside the tree: the
+   * relative path between them, with `/` separators. */
+  static relativeSpecifier(caller: string, target: string): string {
+    const path = portable(relative(dirname(caller), target));
+    return path.startsWith("../") ? path : `./${path}`;
   }
 
   /** A module of the program: collected with the package.json that scopes
@@ -609,17 +629,29 @@ export function placeNodeIslandModules(
 ): string | null {
   const data = readNodeIslandModules(modules);
   if (typeof data === "string") return data;
+  // Every path, and every link's target, stays inside the tree.
+  const inside = resolve(target) + sep;
+  const placed = (relativePath: string): string | null => {
+    const path = resolve(target, ...relativePath.split("/"));
+    return path.startsWith(inside) ? path : null;
+  };
+  for (const entry of [...modules.files, ...modules.links]) {
+    const path = placed(entry.path);
+    if (path === null) return `the island module tree names a path outside it ('${entry.path}')`;
+    if ("target" in entry && !resolve(dirname(path), entry.target).startsWith(inside))
+      return `the island module tree links outside it ('${entry.path}' to '${entry.target}')`;
+  }
   rmSync(target, { recursive: true, force: true });
   mkdirSync(target, { recursive: true });
   let offset = 0;
   for (const file of modules.files) {
-    const path = join(target, ...file.path.split("/"));
+    const path = placed(file.path)!;
     mkdirSync(dirname(path), { recursive: true });
-    writeFileSync(path, data.subarray(offset, offset + file.size));
+    writeFileSync(path, data.subarray(offset, offset + file.size), { flag: "wx" });
     offset += file.size;
   }
   for (const link of modules.links) {
-    const path = join(target, ...link.path.split("/"));
+    const path = placed(link.path)!;
     mkdirSync(dirname(path), { recursive: true });
     symlinkSync(link.target, path);
   }
diff --git a/tests/corpus/7662-node-call-exit-events/main.ts b/tests/corpus/7662-node-call-exit-events/main.ts
index 909550588..15bb6ad5d 100644
--- a/tests/corpus/7662-node-call-exit-events/main.ts
+++ b/tests/corpus/7662-node-call-exit-events/main.ts
@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
+// @exit: 4
 // @requires-libnode
 // The program and the Node.js it loads end as one process: Node's
 // 'beforeExit' and 'exit' run when the program ends, work that 'beforeExit'