diff --git a/src/mcp/mcp.c b/src/mcp/mcp.c
index 75ff8e396c..3b3f2806ca 100644
--- a/src/mcp/mcp.c
+++ b/src/mcp/mcp.c
@@ -9921,10 +9921,16 @@ static char *handle_cross_repo_mode(cbm_mcp_server_t *srv, const char *repo_path
     free(lease_keys);
     yyjson_doc_free(jdoc);
 
-    if (result.failed) {
+    if (result.no_targets || result.failed) {
         free(project);
         return cbm_mcp_text_result(
-            "cross-repo source or target project is missing, invalid, or not indexed", true);
+            result.no_targets
+                ? "cross-repo-intelligence resolved zero target projects: no indexed project "
+                  "other than the source matched target_projects. Index the other service first "
+                  "(run list_projects to see what is indexed); existing cross-repo edges were "
+                  "left unchanged."
+                : "cross-repo source or target project is missing, invalid, or not indexed",
+            true);
     }
 
     int total = result.http_edges + result.async_edges + result.channel_edges + result.grpc_edges +
diff --git a/src/pipeline/pass_cross_repo.c b/src/pipeline/pass_cross_repo.c
index 9ce0e50fbc..f65b64f8c3 100644
--- a/src/pipeline/pass_cross_repo.c
+++ b/src/pipeline/pass_cross_repo.c
@@ -1239,17 +1239,33 @@ cbm_cross_repo_result_t cbm_cross_repo_match_cancellable(const char *project,
         result.failed = !result.cancelled;
         return result;
     }
+    int other_targets = 0;
     for (int i = 0; i < resolved_count; i++) {
         if (cr_cancel_requested(&run)) {
             result.cancelled = true;
             free_project_list(resolved, resolved_count);
             return result;
         }
-        if (strcmp(resolved[i], project) != 0 && !cr_project_exists(resolved[i])) {
+        if (strcmp(resolved[i], project) == 0) {
+            continue;
+        }
+        if (!cr_project_exists(resolved[i])) {
             result.failed = true;
             free_project_list(resolved, resolved_count);
             return result;
         }
+        other_targets++;
+    }
+    /* Nothing but the source itself to match against (a self-only list, or
+     * ["*"] in a store holding only the source). Reporting that as success
+     * with projects_scanned:0 is indistinguishable from "these services share
+     * no routes", and the source's existing CROSS_* edges would be wiped below
+     * with nothing to rebuild them. Fail before any write. (#1133) */
+    if (other_targets == 0) {
+        result.failed = true;
+        result.no_targets = true;
+        free_project_list(resolved, resolved_count);
+        return result;
     }
 
     /* Every input is known to exist before destructive source cleanup. The
diff --git a/src/pipeline/pass_cross_repo.h b/src/pipeline/pass_cross_repo.h
index 10ee0199ab..898283c3e3 100644
--- a/src/pipeline/pass_cross_repo.h
+++ b/src/pipeline/pass_cross_repo.h
@@ -20,6 +20,7 @@ typedef struct {
     int projects_scanned;
     double elapsed_ms;
     bool failed;          /* source/target validation, open, or allocation failed */
+    bool no_targets;      /* failed: nothing but the source project resolved (#1133) */
     bool cancelled;       /* stopped at a bounded cancellation checkpoint */
     bool partial_results; /* committed writes before cancellation were retained */
 } cbm_cross_repo_result_t;
diff --git a/tests/test_cli.c b/tests/test_cli.c
index 01fb79ec8d..d18f442795 100644
--- a/tests/test_cli.c
+++ b/tests/test_cli.c
@@ -15228,6 +15228,28 @@ TEST(cli_build_args_json_array_flag_accepts_json_literal) {
     PASS();
 }
 
+/* #1133: `index_repository --target-projects '["*"]'` (the form the help
+ * documents) must reach the cross-repo matcher as a one-element array, not as
+ * a single string holding the literal text -- that shape resolved to zero
+ * targets and returned a silent "success" with projects_scanned:0. */
+TEST(cli_build_args_json_target_projects_literal_issue1133) {
+    char *err = NULL;
+    char *argv[] = {"--repo-path",       "/r",     "--mode", "cross-repo-intelligence",
+                    "--target-projects", "[\"*\"]"};
+    char *json = cbm_cli_build_args_json("index_repository", 6, argv, &err);
+    ASSERT_NOT_NULL(json);
+    ASSERT_NULL(err);
+    ASSERT(strstr(json, "\"target_projects\":[\"*\"]") != NULL);
+    free(json);
+
+    char *argv2[] = {"--repo-path", "/r", "--target-projects", "[\"svc-a\",\"svc-b\"]"};
+    json = cbm_cli_build_args_json("index_repository", 4, argv2, &err);
+    ASSERT_NOT_NULL(json);
+    ASSERT(strstr(json, "\"target_projects\":[\"svc-a\",\"svc-b\"]") != NULL);
+    free(json);
+    PASS();
+}
+
 /* An unknown flag for a KNOWN tool must be rejected loudly, not silently
  * typed as a string and dropped server-side (#997). GF1 eval: `trace_path
  * --max-depth 1` was accepted, the real --depth stayed at default 3, and
@@ -16385,6 +16407,7 @@ SUITE(cli) {
     RUN_TEST(cli_build_args_json_integer_flag_issue680);
     RUN_TEST(cli_build_args_json_bare_boolean_issue680);
     RUN_TEST(cli_build_args_json_array_flag_accepts_json_literal);
+    RUN_TEST(cli_build_args_json_target_projects_literal_issue1133);
     RUN_TEST(cli_build_args_json_unknown_flag_rejected);
     RUN_TEST(cli_build_args_json_repeated_array_issue680);
     RUN_TEST(cli_build_args_json_kebab_to_snake_issue680);
diff --git a/tests/test_cross_repo.c b/tests/test_cross_repo.c
index 7b8af9bbd2..365154a62e 100644
--- a/tests/test_cross_repo.c
+++ b/tests/test_cross_repo.c
@@ -469,6 +469,58 @@ TEST(cross_repo_pre_cancel_preserves_existing_cross_edges) {
     PASS();
 }
 
+/* #1133: a run whose targets resolve to nothing but the source project must
+ * fail explicitly. It used to report "success" with projects_scanned:0 --
+ * indistinguishable from "these services share no routes" -- and, worse, it
+ * had already wiped the source's existing CROSS_* edges before noticing there
+ * was nothing to match against. */
+TEST(cross_repo_self_only_target_fails_and_keeps_edges_issue1133) {
+    cross_repo_fixture_t fixture;
+    bool setup =
+        cross_repo_fixture_begin(&fixture) &&
+        cross_repo_seed_http_pair(&fixture, "self-source", "self-target", "/self-only", "self");
+    if (!setup) {
+        cross_repo_fixture_end(&fixture);
+        FAIL("failed to seed self-only fixture");
+    }
+
+    const char *target = "self-target";
+    cbm_cross_repo_result_t initial = cbm_cross_repo_match("self-source", &target, 1);
+    int before = cross_repo_count_edges(&fixture, "self-source", "CROSS_HTTP_CALLS");
+    const char *self = "self-source";
+    cbm_cross_repo_result_t result = cbm_cross_repo_match("self-source", &self, 1);
+    int after = cross_repo_count_edges(&fixture, "self-source", "CROSS_HTTP_CALLS");
+    cross_repo_fixture_end(&fixture);
+
+    ASSERT_FALSE(initial.failed);
+    ASSERT_TRUE(before > 0);
+    ASSERT_TRUE(result.failed);
+    ASSERT_TRUE(result.no_targets);
+    ASSERT_EQ(result.projects_scanned, 0);
+    ASSERT_EQ(after, before);
+    PASS();
+}
+
+/* #1133: ["*"] in a store that holds only the source project resolves to zero
+ * targets -- same contract as an explicit self-only list. */
+TEST(cross_repo_wildcard_with_no_other_project_fails_issue1133) {
+    cross_repo_fixture_t fixture;
+    if (!cross_repo_fixture_begin(&fixture) ||
+        !cross_repo_create_project(&fixture, "lonely-source")) {
+        cross_repo_fixture_end(&fixture);
+        FAIL("failed to create isolated source project");
+    }
+
+    const char *targets[] = {"*"};
+    cbm_cross_repo_result_t result = cbm_cross_repo_match("lonely-source", targets, 1);
+    cross_repo_fixture_end(&fixture);
+
+    ASSERT_TRUE(result.failed);
+    ASSERT_TRUE(result.no_targets);
+    ASSERT_EQ(result.projects_scanned, 0);
+    PASS();
+}
+
 /* Add the internal "<name>::missed" miss-graph row that indexing writes into
  * the SAME db whenever a file parses partially. */
 static bool cross_repo_add_missed_shadow(const cross_repo_fixture_t *fixture, const char *project) {
@@ -528,4 +580,6 @@ SUITE(cross_repo) {
     RUN_TEST(cross_repo_failed_bidirectional_insert_is_not_counted);
     RUN_TEST(cross_repo_cancel_mid_run_keeps_completed_target_and_stops_before_later_target);
     RUN_TEST(cross_repo_pre_cancel_preserves_existing_cross_edges);
+    RUN_TEST(cross_repo_self_only_target_fails_and_keeps_edges_issue1133);
+    RUN_TEST(cross_repo_wildcard_with_no_other_project_fails_issue1133);
 }