muse-crew 0.7.10 → 0.7.12

package/workflows/chore.js

@@ -26,6 +26,15 @@ const startStepIndex = inputs.start_step_index || 0;
 // resolution back via updatetask in the self-claim below.
 const RESOLVED_WORKFLOW = inputs.resolved_workflow || null;
 const WORKFLOW_WAS_NULL = inputs.workflow_was_null === true;
+// One-shot recovery routing: the dispatcher sets inputs.next_phase when it
+// routes this run via an explicit recover-task redirect. The value is
+// consumed (cleared) atomically by the successful self-claim below:
+// claim-task takes expected_next_phase and clears the matching next_phase in
+// the same transaction as the winning session insert, so no platform death
+// can slip between claim and consumption and replay the routing. A stale or
+// superseded routing survives — only an exact match clears.
+// what the dispatcher routed on.
+const NEXT_PHASE_ROUTED = (typeof inputs.next_phase === "string" && inputs.next_phase.length > 0) ? inputs.next_phase : null;
 
 // Visual verdict protocol availability — the workflow parks for parent-run
 // baseline capture ONLY when the protocol is fully shipped. The protocol
@@ -529,52 +538,22 @@ function verifyAppliedChanges(expected, applied) {
   return { ok: true };
 }
 
-// Publish read-back request builder: the verbatim_request the workflow hands
-// to artifact_inspect (via a child) after the artifact build lands. Pure
-// function — no I/O, no clock. The request carries the merged diff as the
-// expected change and asks for an independent read of the artifact's actual
-// source: for each file, the exact current text of the changed regions plus
-// a per-line present/absent finding. The parent (docs/publish-verification.md)
-// compares these findings against the diff mechanically and stamps provenance
-// only on a match. This breaks the circularity that hollowed canary run 8
-// (2026-09-11): verifyAppliedChanges compares the builder's applied-report
-// against the diff the report was derived from — a fabricated report passes
-// by construction. Independent read-back cannot be fabricated from the diff;
-// it must match the artifact's real content.
-function buildPublishReadbackRequest(taskId, commit, diff, buildAgentId) {
-  // Build-ID correlation (2026-09-12): buildAgentId is the build.agent_id the
-  // workflow observed for the publish attempt (the artifact system's in-flight
-  // build correlation ID — not a durable post-completion identifier). The read-back request carries it so the parent can
-  // prove the read-back inspected the live build of THIS attempt — not a
-  // different build's output. Null/empty means the edit was accepted but
-  // never correlated to a builder run. Pure function of inputs — no I/O,
-  // no clock.
-  var buildIdLine = (typeof buildAgentId === "string" && buildAgentId.length > 0)
-    ? "Expected builder build agent_id: " + buildAgentId + " (the artifact system's in-flight correlation ID for this publish attempt — not a durable post-completion identifier).\n"
-    : "No build agent_id was observed for this publish attempt (the edit was accepted but never correlated to a builder run) — say so explicitly in your report.\n";
-  return (
-    "Publish content read-back for task " + taskId + ", merge commit " + commit + ".\n" +
-    "The unified diff below was supposed to be applied to this artifact's source tree and deployed. Do NOT modify anything.\n" +
-    "Do NOT rely on the builder's applied-changes report — it is derived from this same diff, so it cannot confirm the content. Read the artifact's CURRENT source directly.\n" +
-    "\n" +
-    buildIdLine +
-    "Report the live build's agent_id as seen in artifact_status (or state explicitly that no build/agent_id is visible). If an expected agent_id is given above and the live one differs, say so exactly — the read-back may be inspecting a different build's output.\n" +
-    "\n" +
-    "UNIFIED DIFF (expected change):\n" +
-    "```diff\n" + diff + "\n```\n" +
-    "\n" +
-    "For each file in the diff:\n" +
-    "1. Read the file's CURRENT content in the artifact source tree.\n" +
-    "2. Quote the exact current text of the regions around the changed lines.\n" +
-    "3. For every added (+) line in the diff, state whether that exact line is PRESENT in the current source.\n" +
-    "4. For every removed (-) line in the diff, state whether that exact line is ABSENT from the current source.\n" +
-    "5. Report build/deploy health and the console error count.\n" +
-    "\n" +
-    "Return the per-file present/absent findings with the quoted observed lines. Do not modify anything.\n" +
-    "This read-back feeds the parent content-verification protocol (docs/publish-verification.md): the parent stamps provenance only when every added line is present and every removed line is absent."
-  );
-}
-
+// Publish read-back request (currently unavailable): the verbatim_request
+// the parent protocol (docs/publish-verification.md) would hand to an
+// independent read-back tool after the artifact build lands. artifact_inspect
+// was removed by the platform (2026-09-14); artifact.inspect is malfunction
+// diagnosis, not a substitute — so no agent-callable read-back tool exists
+// and this request cannot currently be issued. Pure function — no I/O, no
+// clock. The request carries the merged diff as the expected change and asks
+// for an independent read of the artifact's actual source: for each file, the
+// exact current text of the changed regions plus a per-line present/absent
+// finding. Until a read-back path exists, the parent cannot independently
+// confirm content and verification parks at "publish: verification-requested"
+// (see docs/publish-verification.md). This preserves the circularity break
+// that hollowed canary run 8 (2026-09-11): verifyAppliedChanges compares the
+// builder's applied-report against the diff the report was derived from — a
+// fabricated report passes by construction. Independent read-back cannot be
+// fabricated from the diff; it must match the artifact's real content.
 // Pre-publish base observation (diagnostic, 2026-09-12): instruction fragment
 // for the builder's edit request, asking it to report the sha256 of each
 // touched file's CURRENT content BEFORE applying the diff. Pure function —
@@ -668,6 +647,18 @@ function extractMarkerLines(workerText) {
   return markers.join("\n");
 }
 
+// Already-merged idempotency (canary 2026-09-15, task 1d692d91): when the
+// builder correctly makes no commit because the deliverable is already on
+// main (a prior merge or hand-repair landed it), it declares
+// `repo_diff: none (already-merged: <sha>)` naming the main commit that
+// carries the work. The sha is hex-only (7-40 chars) so the workflow can
+// interpolate it into the mechanical ancestor check without injection
+// risk. Pure — pinned byte-identical across standard/bugfix/chore.
+function extractAlreadyMerged(workerText) {
+  var m = /^repo_diff:\s*none\s*\(already-merged:\s*([0-9a-f]{7,40})\)/im.exec(workerText || "");
+  return m ? { sha: m[1].toLowerCase() } : { sha: null };
+}
+
 // Worktree confinement: the Build agent must declare the exact worktree
 // path it built in on a `worktree:` marker line. The workflow compares it
 // against WORKTREE_HINT mechanically (exact string match) — never by
@@ -845,6 +836,12 @@ let mapGateBounceCount = 0;
 // rationalized a skip against explicit instruction text — text alone did not
 // hold, so the decision now lives in workflow code, not agent judgment.
 let releaseDecision = null; // { release: "yes"|"no", version_bump: "patch"|"minor"|"major"|null }
+// Already-merged idempotency: the verified sha from the builder's
+// `repo_diff: none (already-merged: <sha>)` declaration (null when the
+// builder made commits or declared a runtime-state deliverable). The
+// workflow verifies the sha is an ancestor of main at Build closeout;
+// Review's no-diff branch reads this, never the builder's prose.
+let alreadyMergedSha = null;
 // Deterministic publish target — computed by the workflow (registry base +
 // bumpVersion), never by the Publish agent.
 let publishTarget = null; // { base, scope, target }
@@ -1084,7 +1081,7 @@ while (i < STEPS.length) {
     const claimResult = await agent(
       "Claim this task for the " + step.name + " step.\n" +
       "Run in shell and return the stdout verbatim:\n" + crewCmd("update-task", firstClaimUpdateArgs) + "\n" +
-      "Then run in shell and return the stdout verbatim:\n" + crewCmd("claim-task", { task_id: taskId, identity: step.identity, step: step.name, notes: step.name + " step started" }) + "\n" +
+      "Then run in shell and return the stdout verbatim:\n" + crewCmd("claim-task", { task_id: taskId, identity: step.identity, step: step.name, notes: step.name + " step started", ...(NEXT_PHASE_ROUTED ? { expected_next_phase: NEXT_PHASE_ROUTED } : {}) }) + "\n" +
       "If the claim response has claimed=true, then run in shell and return the stdout verbatim:\n" + crewCmd("clear-reservation", { task_id: taskId }) + "\n" +
       "Do not interpret the claim response. It already contains an explicit \"claimed\" field — copy it verbatim.\n" +
       "Return { claimed: <verbatim>, session_id: \"<...>\" }. If claimed is false there is no session_id; return { claimed: false, session_id: \"\" }.",
@@ -1260,7 +1257,7 @@ while (i < STEPS.length) {
   var instructions = "";
 
   if (step.name === "Triage") {
-    instructions = "Validate the task, check clarity, note dependencies, confirm the chore workflow assignment.\nReport back in plain prose — what you found.\nEXPERIENTIAL FLAG: does this task change anything rendered and visible in the project's user-facing artifact (pages, components, styles, layout, copy, visual states)? If yes it is experiential and gets baseline captures. End your report with exactly one line on its own, lowercase, unrephrased: experiential: yes — or experiential: no. This line is machine-read.";
+    instructions = "Validate the task against the project's repo at " + REPO_PATH + " — that exact checkout, not any other copy of the project on disk. If you run git commands, cd " + REPO_PATH + " first.\nCheck clarity, note dependencies, confirm the chore workflow assignment.\nReport back in plain prose — what you found.\nEXPERIENTIAL FLAG: does this task change anything rendered and visible in the project's user-facing artifact (pages, components, styles, layout, copy, visual states)? If yes it is experiential and gets baseline captures. End your report with exactly one line on its own, lowercase, unrephrased: experiential: yes — or experiential: no. This line is machine-read.";
 
   } else if (step.name === "Map") {
     var mapGatePara = "";
@@ -1272,7 +1269,7 @@ while (i < STEPS.length) {
         " If the baseline evidence is missing with no baseline:none recorded, do not write the spec — report 'baseline evidence missing — Map gate bounce required' and stop.\n" +
         "Declare capture targets for the post-change visual capture: end your report with a line `capture_targets: <comma-separated views/controls this change affects>` (optional; falls back to the task description).";
     }
-    instructions = "Research options, pick the path, write a clear spec for the builder.\nThe builder will edit source files in a git worktree of the project at " + REPO_PATH + ".\nProject: " + PROJECT_DESC + "\nTo understand the current code, read source files directly using the read tool. Do NOT use artifact_inspect — it is async and will not return in time.\nIdentify the exact files and changes needed. Be specific: file paths, what to add or change.\nReport back in plain prose — what you specified." + mapGatePara;
+    instructions = "Research options, pick the path, write a clear spec for the builder.\nThe builder will edit source files in a git worktree of the project at " + REPO_PATH + ".\nProject: " + PROJECT_DESC + "\nTo understand the current code, read source files directly using the read tool. Do NOT use artifact_inspect — it was removed by the platform (2026-09-14) and does not exist; do not substitute artifact.inspect (malfunction diagnosis, not an inspection tool).\nIdentify the exact files and changes needed. Be specific: file paths, what to add or change.\nReport back in plain prose — what you specified." + mapGatePara;
 
   } else if (step.name === "Build") {
     instructions = "STEP 1: Prepare your worktree.\n" +
@@ -1296,12 +1293,33 @@ while (i < STEPS.length) {
       "cd " + WORKTREE_HINT + "\n" +
       "git add -A\n" +
       "git commit -m \"chore: " + safeTitle + "\"\n\n" +
-      "If the task's deliverable is runtime state (a cron definition, scheduler change, or dashboard/config state created outside the repo) and the repository genuinely needs no change, do NOT fabricate a commit: leave the branch with no commits ahead of main and declare `repo_diff: none` in your report, naming the runtime-state deliverable. Otherwise commit your changes normally.\n\n" +
+      "If the task's deliverable is runtime state (a cron definition, scheduler change, or dashboard/config state created outside the repo) and the repository genuinely needs no change, do NOT fabricate a commit: leave the branch with no commits ahead of main and declare `repo_diff: none` in your report, naming the runtime-state deliverable. If you verified the deliverable is already on main (a prior merge or hand-repair landed it — do NOT re-implement working code), make no commit and declare `repo_diff: none (already-merged: <sha>)` naming the main commit that carries the work; the workflow verifies the sha is an ancestor of main, and a false declaration fails the phase. Otherwise commit your changes normally.\n\n" +
       (rejectionNotes ? "REWORK after rejection. Address:\n" + rejectionNotes + "\n\n" : "") +
       "Report back in plain prose: what you built and the outcome." +
       (PUBLISH_TYPE === "npm" ? " End your report with the release: and version_bump: lines exactly as specified above — keep them on their own lines, lowercase, unrephrased — then a line `worktree: ` followed by the exact working directory path from above (copy it verbatim \u2014 it must match character-for-character), then a final line with exactly: VERDICT: PASS if the build is complete, VERDICT: FAIL if it is not." : " End your report with a line `worktree: ` followed by the exact working directory path from above (copy it verbatim \u2014 it must match character-for-character), then exactly one line: VERDICT: PASS if the build is complete, VERDICT: FAIL if it is not.");
 
   } else if (step.name === "Review") {
+    // Already-merged hydration: when this run did not execute Build itself
+    // (dispatcher resume at Review after a platform death between phases),
+    // recover the workflow-attested verification from the latest completed
+    // Build session notes. The `already_merged_verified:` line was written
+    // by the workflow after a mechanical ancestor check — it is trusted;
+    // the builder's bare declaration never is. Absent the line, the
+    // mechanical fact below reads "none declared" and Cass fails closed.
+    if (!alreadyMergedSha) {
+      var hydNotes = await agent(
+        "Read the latest completed Build session notes for task " + taskId + ".\n" +
+        "Run in shell and return the stdout verbatim:\n" + crewCmd("get-state", { events_limit: 1 }) + "\n" +
+        "In the returned sessions array, find the most recent session (by started_at) with task_id \"" + taskId + "\", step \"Build\", and status \"completed\". Return ONLY its notes field, verbatim, with no commentary.",
+        { key: "hydrate-already-merged" + (reworkCount > 0 ? "-r" + reworkCount : ""), label: "Hydrating already-merged verification" }
+      );
+      var hydStr = (typeof hydNotes === "string") ? hydNotes : JSON.stringify(hydNotes);
+      var hvm = /already_merged_verified:\s*([0-9a-f]{7,40})/i.exec(hydStr);
+      if (hvm) {
+        alreadyMergedSha = hvm[1].toLowerCase();
+        log("Hydrated already-merged verification from Build session notes: " + alreadyMergedSha);
+      }
+    }
     instructions = "Review independently and cold. No prior context from the builder.\nDo NOT access the task dashboard, event log, or any comments. Your review is based solely on the spec and the code.\n\n" +
       (mapperSpec ? "MAPPER'S SPEC (the builder was asked to implement exactly this):\n" + mapperSpec + "\n\n" : "Read the spec from the task description.\n\n") +
       "Examine the code changes by running:\n" +
@@ -1311,7 +1329,7 @@ while (i < STEPS.length) {
       WORKTREE_HINT + "/\n\n" +
       "Check quality, correctness, spec compliance.\n" +
       "Check that public-affecting changes have matching public doc updates (API.md or the published API contract). If the docs are missing or inaccurate, report what is stale, then end your report with exactly this line: VERDICT: FAIL.\n" +
-      "If the branch has no commits ahead of main (inspect shows an empty commit log), approve ONLY if the Build summary declares `repo_diff: none` with a plausible runtime-state deliverable (e.g. a cron created via the cron tool). Otherwise report 'no commits ahead of main and no repo_diff: none declaration — the builder likely forgot to commit', then end your report with exactly this line: VERDICT: FAIL.\n" +
+      "If the branch has no commits ahead of main (inspect shows an empty commit log), approve ONLY if the Build summary declares `repo_diff: none` with (a) a plausible runtime-state deliverable (e.g. a cron created via the cron tool), or (b) an already-merged declaration `repo_diff: none (already-merged: <sha>)` AND the mechanical fact below confirms the sha verified. MECHANICAL FACT (computed by the workflow, never by the builder): already_merged sha = " + (alreadyMergedSha ? alreadyMergedSha + " (verified ancestor of main: YES)" : "none declared") + ". Otherwise report 'no commits ahead of main and no valid repo_diff: none declaration — the builder likely forgot to commit', then end your report with exactly this line: VERDICT: FAIL.\n" +
       (PUBLISH_TYPE === "npm" ? "PACKAGE VERSION: this project publishes to the npm registry, and versions are assigned at publish time — never in branches. Two checks:\n" +
       "(a) The task branch must NOT have changed package.json's `version` field. Check: cd " + REPO_PATH + " && git diff main..." + TASK_BRANCH + " -- package.json. If the branch touched `version` in any way, report 'versions are assigned at publish time, never in branches — remove the version change' in your notes, then end your report with exactly this line: VERDICT: FAIL.\n" +
       "(b) The accepted Build report declares: " + releaseDecisionText() + ". " +
@@ -1325,7 +1343,7 @@ while (i < STEPS.length) {
       "Run: "+ LIFECYCLE_ENV + "WORKFLOW_RUN_ID=" + lockHolder + " integrate " + taskId + " \"merge: chore: " + safeTitle + "\"\n\n" +
       "Read the output:\n" +
       "- If it contains MERGED, integration succeeded. Report the merged commit hash.\n" +
-      "- If it contains MERGED_EMPTY, the branch had no commits ahead of main (a runtime-state deliverable, declared by Build as repo_diff: none). Integration succeeded vacuously: the merge lock was NOT taken and there is no new commit. Report 'merged empty: no repo changes — deliverable was runtime state', then end your report with exactly this line: VERDICT: PASS. SKIP STEP 2 (push): there is no new commit to push.\n" +
+      "- If it contains MERGED_EMPTY, the branch had no commits ahead of main (declared by Build as repo_diff: none — either a runtime-state deliverable or an already-merged sha the workflow verified). Integration succeeded vacuously: the merge lock was NOT taken and there is no new commit. Report 'merged empty: no repo changes — deliverable was runtime state or already on main', then end your report with exactly this line: VERDICT: PASS. SKIP STEP 2 (push): there is no new commit to push.\n" +
       "- If it contains LOCK_HELD, another task holds the merge lock (mid Integrate/Publish) and the 10-minute bounded backoff is exhausted. Report 'merge lock held after bounded backoff', then end your report with exactly this line: VERDICT: FAIL.\n" +
       "- If it contains CONFLICT, the plain merge failed — the merge was aborted, main is clean, and your task still holds the merge lock. Do NOT fail yet. Resolve it:\n" +
       "RESOLUTION:\n" +
@@ -1388,11 +1406,12 @@ while (i < STEPS.length) {
       // (fail-closed). There is deliberately NO workflow-side provenance
       // stamp: the builder's applied-report is circular (canary run 8,
       // 2026-09-11), so the stamp moved to the parent — after the build
-      // lands, the workflow triggers an independent artifact_inspect
-      // read-back, records the session completed, and parks with
-      // "publish: verification-requested". The parent stamps provenance only
-      // after the read-back confirms the content (docs/publish-verification.md);
-      // Chore has no QA: the parent's stamp read-back is the final gate.
+      // lands, the workflow records the session completed and parks with
+      // "publish: verification-requested". The parent owns verification
+      // (docs/publish-verification.md); the independent read-back step is
+      // currently unavailable (no agent-callable read-back tool exists —
+      // artifact_inspect was removed by the platform 2026-09-14).
+      // Chore has no QA: the parent's verification is the final gate.
       var artifactPublish = null;
       var publishLockRefreshed = false;
       var publishSkippedNoLock = false;
@@ -1440,14 +1459,45 @@ while (i < STEPS.length) {
         // changes — no prose claim to trust. If the artifact tool namespace
         // is missing from this child it reports honestly and the workflow
         // retries once with a fresh key (bounded); anything else parks.
+        // Publish diff base (2026-09-14, task 0c53af4e): the carried diff is
+        // BASE..HEAD where BASE is the previously-stamped provenance
+        // source_commit — NOT HEAD^1. A push-time reconcile merge puts the
+        // task's own changes behind an intermediate merge, so HEAD^1..HEAD
+        // silently drops the task's fix while the artifact builds without
+        // it. The stamped base is the artifact's actual content; BASE..HEAD
+        // is the complete unpublished delta. Empty tree only for a genuine
+        // first publish (no provenance stamped yet).
+        var EMPTY_TREE_SHA = "4b825dc642cb6eb9a060e54bf8d69288fbee4904";
+        var provResult = await agent(
+          crewCmd("get-provenance", {}) + "\n" +
+          "Return JSON { \"provenance\": <the CLI's provenance object, or null when nothing is stamped> } and nothing else. Do not interpret it.",
+          { key: attemptKey("publish-provenance-base-" + taskId, reworkCount), label: "Reading stamped publish base",
+            schema: { type: "object", properties: { provenance: { type: ["object", "null"] } }, required: ["provenance"] } }
+        );
+        var publishBase = (provResult.provenance && provResult.provenance.source_commit) || "";
+        publishBase = String(publishBase).trim();
+        if (!publishBase) {
+          publishBase = EMPTY_TREE_SHA;
+          log("Publish base for task " + taskId + ": no provenance stamped yet — using empty tree (first publish)");
+        } else if (!/^[0-9a-f]{40}$/.test(publishBase)) {
+          return await parkTask("Publish base '" + publishBase + "' is not a valid commit SHA — cannot compute the publish diff. Human attention needed.");
+        }
         var diffResult = await agent(
-          "Run: cd " + REPO_PATH + " && git rev-parse HEAD && echo '---PARENT---' && git rev-parse HEAD^1 && echo '---DIFF---' && git diff HEAD^1 HEAD && echo '---NAMES---' && git diff-tree --no-commit-id --name-only -r HEAD\n" +
-          "Return JSON { \"commit\": \"<HEAD trimmed>\", \"parent\": \"<HEAD^1 trimmed>\", \"diff\": \"<raw unified diff, may be multi-line>\", \"files\": \"<newline-separated paths>\" } and nothing else.",
-          { key: attemptKey("publish-artifact-diff-" + taskId, reworkCount), label: "Computing merged diff for publish",
-            schema: { type: "object", properties: { commit: { type: "string" }, parent: { type: "string" }, diff: { type: "string" }, files: { type: "string" } }, required: ["commit", "diff"] } }
+          "Run: cd " + REPO_PATH + " && BASE='" + publishBase + "' && HEAD=$(git rev-parse HEAD) && " +
+          "if [ \"$BASE\" = '" + EMPTY_TREE_SHA + "' ]; then ANCESTOR=yes; else git merge-base --is-ancestor \"$BASE\" \"$HEAD\" && ANCESTOR=yes || ANCESTOR=no; fi && " +
+          "echo '---COMMIT---' && echo \"$HEAD\" && echo '---BASE---' && echo \"$BASE\" && echo '---ANCESTOR---' && echo \"$ANCESTOR\" && " +
+          "if [ \"$ANCESTOR\" = yes ]; then echo '---DIFF---' && git diff \"$BASE\" \"$HEAD\" && echo '---NAMES---' && git diff-tree --no-commit-id --name-only -r \"$BASE\" \"$HEAD\"; fi\n" +
+          "Return JSON { \"commit\": \"<HEAD trimmed>\", \"base\": \"<BASE trimmed>\", \"ancestor\": \"<yes|no>\", \"diff\": \"<raw unified diff, may be multi-line>\", \"files\": \"<newline-separated paths>\" } and nothing else.",
+          { key: attemptKey("publish-artifact-diff-" + taskId, reworkCount), label: "Computing publish diff from stamped base",
+            schema: { type: "object", properties: { commit: { type: "string" }, base: { type: "string" }, ancestor: { type: "string" }, diff: { type: "string" }, files: { type: "string" } }, required: ["commit", "base", "ancestor", "diff"] } }
         );
+        if ((diffResult.ancestor || "").trim() !== "yes") {
+          return await parkTask("Publish base " + publishBase.slice(0, 12) + " is not an ancestor of HEAD " + (diffResult.commit || "").trim().slice(0, 12) + " — the stamped provenance does not lead to the integrated commit. Human attention needed.");
+        }
+        if ((diffResult.base || "").trim() !== publishBase) {
+          return await parkTask("Publish diff base mismatch: agent reported '" + (diffResult.base || "").trim().slice(0, 12) + "' but the stamped base is '" + publishBase.slice(0, 12) + "'. Human attention needed.");
+        }
         var mergeCommitForPublish = (diffResult.commit || "").trim();
-        var mergeParentForPublish = (diffResult.parent || "").trim();
         var mergeDiff = diffResult.diff || "";
         if (!mergeDiff.trim()) {
           return await parkTask("Publish diff is empty for commit " + (mergeCommitForPublish || "unknown") + " — a merge lock was held but there is no change to carry. Human attention needed.");
@@ -1479,12 +1529,16 @@ while (i < STEPS.length) {
         // but never parks. The observation tells us what the publish actually
         // reads, so the subsequent fix can require the right base.
         var expectedBaseHashes = {};
-        try {
+        if (publishBase === EMPTY_TREE_SHA) {
+          // First publish: every file in the diff is new to the artifact.
+          expectedChanges.forEach(function (f) { expectedBaseHashes[f.path] = "NEW-FILE"; });
+          log("Publish expected base hashes for task " + taskId + ": empty tree (first publish) — all " + expectedChanges.length + " file(s) new");
+        } else try {
           // Shell-quote helper (no regex-with-quote: the test parser does not
           // understand regex literals containing quotes).
           var sq = function(s) { return "'" + String(s).split("'").join("'\\''") + "'"; };
           var baseHashResult = await agent(
-            "Run: cd " + REPO_PATH + " && parent=" + sq(mergeParentForPublish) + " && for f in " + expectedChanges.map(function(f) { return sq(f.path); }).join(" ") + "; do printf '%s:' \"$f\"; git show \"$parent:$f\" 2>/dev/null | sha256sum | cut -d' ' -f1; done\n" +
+            "Run: cd " + REPO_PATH + " && parent=" + sq(publishBase) + " && for f in " + expectedChanges.map(function(f) { return sq(f.path); }).join(" ") + "; do printf '%s:' \"$f\"; git show \"$parent:$f\" 2>/dev/null | sha256sum | cut -d' ' -f1; done\n" +
             "Return JSON { \"hashes\": \"<newline-separated <path>:<sha256> lines, empty hash means the file is new in this diff>\" } and nothing else.",
             { key: attemptKey("publish-base-hashes-" + taskId, reworkCount), label: "Computing expected base content hashes",
               schema: { type: "object", properties: { hashes: { type: "string" } }, required: ["hashes"] } }
@@ -1493,7 +1547,7 @@ while (i < STEPS.length) {
             var m = /^([^:]+):([0-9a-f]*)$/.exec(line.trim());
             if (m) expectedBaseHashes[m[1]] = m[2] || "NEW-FILE";
           });
-          log("Publish expected base hashes for task " + taskId + " (merge parent " + (mergeParentForPublish || "unknown").slice(0, 12) + "): " + JSON.stringify(expectedBaseHashes));
+          log("Publish expected base hashes for task " + taskId + " (stamped base " + publishBase.slice(0, 12) + "): " + JSON.stringify(expectedBaseHashes));
         } catch (e) {
           log("Publish expected base hash computation failed for task " + taskId + " (non-fatal, observation degraded): " + (e && e.message ? e.message : e));
         }
@@ -1551,6 +1605,7 @@ while (i < STEPS.length) {
             required: ["edit_started", "build_agent_id", "applied"] };
         var rebuildTrigger = null;
         var rebuildReportMissing = false; // true if the edit went through but the agent returned no applied report (structured-output failure) — the smoke-check is skipped; the parent's independent read-back is the verification
+        var rebuildEvidenceNote = null; // human-readable evidence line for the ledger when the edit is confirmed via fallback evidence (in-flight poll or durable audit dir) rather than the trigger's own report
         // The trigger key of the attempt that last ran, for the publish ledger.
         // Minted once here (not re-minted per use site) so the ledger always
         // records the exact key that was issued — and so a re-minted duplicate
@@ -1569,6 +1624,32 @@ while (i < STEPS.length) {
         // (2026-09-12, task 23ca8f3f): computed once the trigger outcome is
         // known, logged loudly, never a park.
         var publishAppliedObservation = null; // "match" | "mismatch: <reason>" | "missing-report" — observation only, never a park
+        // Durable-evidence snapshot (2026-09-14): the structured-output
+        // fallback below only observes IN-FLIGHT builds. A build that
+        // finished before the poll leaves no in-flight trace — but the
+        // platform's audit harness leaves a durable one:
+        // ~/workspace/ts-spaces/<slug>/audits/<timestamp>-<id>/ per
+        // completed build. Snapshot the listing BEFORE the trigger so the
+        // fallback can diff before/after: a directory appearing during the
+        // trigger window is positive evidence the edit went through and
+        // the build completed. Best-effort and non-gating: if the snapshot
+        // fails, the durable check is skipped and the fallback behaves as
+        // before. No wall-clock in-script (deterministic replay) — the
+        // comparison is a pure before/after set diff.
+        var auditDirsBeforeTrigger = [];
+        try {
+          var auditBefore = await agent(
+            "List the artifact audit directories for slug \"" + PUBLISH_SLUG + "\" (best-effort snapshot, never a gate).\n" +
+            "Run: ls -1 ~/workspace/ts-spaces/" + PUBLISH_SLUG + "/audits/ 2>/dev/null\n" +
+            "Return JSON { \"dirs\": \"<newline-separated names, empty string when the audits directory does not exist or is empty>\" } and nothing else.",
+            { key: attemptKey("publish-audit-before-" + taskId, reworkCount), label: "Snapshotting audit dirs before rebuild trigger",
+              schema: { type: "object", properties: { dirs: { type: "string" } }, required: ["dirs"] } }
+          );
+          auditDirsBeforeTrigger = String((auditBefore && auditBefore.dirs) || "").split("\n").map(function (s) { return s.trim(); }).filter(function (s) { return s.length > 0; });
+          log("Publish audit-dir snapshot before trigger for task " + taskId + ": " + auditDirsBeforeTrigger.length + " entries");
+        } catch (auditBeforeErr) {
+          log("Publish audit-dir snapshot before trigger failed for task " + taskId + " (non-fatal, durable-evidence check degraded): " + (auditBeforeErr && auditBeforeErr.message ? auditBeforeErr.message : auditBeforeErr));
+        }
         try {
           rebuildTrigger = await agent(rebuildPrompt,
             { key: rebuildAttemptKey, label: "Triggering artifact rebuild", schema: rebuildSchema });
@@ -1627,7 +1708,46 @@ while (i < STEPS.length) {
             rebuildTrigger = { edit_started: true, error: "", applied: null };
             rebuildReportMissing = true;
             rebuildAgentId = acceptedAgentId;
+            rebuildEvidenceNote = "edit confirmed via build-state poll after structured-output failure (build " + acceptedAgentId + "); builder applied-report missing";
           } else {
+            // Durable completion check (2026-09-14): the in-flight poll
+            // above only sees RUNNING builds. Attempt 7 (2026-09-14) proved
+            // the gap: the trigger child applied the edit, the build ran
+            // and completed — the platform's audit harness captured it
+            // mid-window — then the child failed to return JSON. The
+            // fallback poll saw no in-flight build, so a successful publish
+            // parked as "unknown". Diff the audit-dir listing against the
+            // pre-trigger snapshot: a timestamped directory that appeared
+            // during the trigger window is positive evidence the edit went
+            // through and the build completed. This never re-issues the
+            // edit and never stamps provenance — it only routes to the
+            // parent's independent content read-back, which remains the
+            // real verification.
+            var newAuditDirs = [];
+            try {
+              var auditAfter = await agent(
+                "List the artifact audit directories for slug \"" + PUBLISH_SLUG + "\" (best-effort, never a gate).\n" +
+                "Run: ls -1 ~/workspace/ts-spaces/" + PUBLISH_SLUG + "/audits/ 2>/dev/null\n" +
+                "Return JSON { \"dirs\": \"<newline-separated names, empty string when the audits directory does not exist or is empty>\" } and nothing else.",
+                { key: attemptKey("publish-audit-after-" + taskId, reworkCount), label: "Re-listing audit dirs after trigger failure",
+                  schema: { type: "object", properties: { dirs: { type: "string" } }, required: ["dirs"] } }
+              );
+              var auditDirsAfterTrigger = String((auditAfter && auditAfter.dirs) || "").split("\n").map(function (s) { return s.trim(); }).filter(function (s) { return s.length > 0; });
+              // Only timestamped build dirs count — the "latest" symlink
+              // and anything else are not builds.
+              newAuditDirs = auditDirsAfterTrigger.filter(function (d) {
+                return auditDirsBeforeTrigger.indexOf(d) === -1 && /^20\d\d-\d\d-\d\dT\d\d-\d\d-\d\dZ-/.test(d);
+              });
+            } catch (auditAfterErr) {
+              log("Publish audit-dir re-list after trigger failure failed for task " + taskId + " (non-fatal, durable-evidence check degraded): " + (auditAfterErr && auditAfterErr.message ? auditAfterErr.message : auditAfterErr));
+            }
+            if (newAuditDirs.length > 0) {
+              log("Publish rebuild trigger: new audit dir(s) during the trigger window (" + newAuditDirs.join(", ") + ") — the edit went through and the build completed despite the structured-output failure. Skipping applied-report smoke-check; parent read-back is the verification.");
+              rebuildTrigger = { edit_started: true, error: "", applied: null };
+              rebuildReportMissing = true;
+              rebuildAgentId = null;
+              rebuildEvidenceNote = "edit confirmed via durable audit evidence after structured-output failure (new audit dir " + newAuditDirs[0] + "); builder applied-report missing";
+            } else {
             // No build observed — but that proves nothing (a fast-completing
             // build can finish between polls, or the check itself failed). The
             // outcome is UNKNOWN. No retry: re-issuing the edit here duplicated
@@ -1643,6 +1763,7 @@ while (i < STEPS.length) {
               detail: "structured-output failure on rebuild trigger; build-state poll saw no build (or the check itself failed); edit may have been accepted as pending_init"
             }, reworkCount);
             return await parkTask("Publish outcome unknown: the rebuild trigger's child did not return JSON, and the follow-up build-state poll could not observe a build for slug " + PUBLISH_SLUG + ". The edit may have been accepted as pending_init, so no retry was issued — a blind retry duplicated the edit on 2026-09-12. The attempt is recorded in the publish ledger at " + crewHome + "/.publish-ledger/" + PUBLISH_SLUG + ".jsonl (commit " + String(mergeCommitForPublish || "unknown").slice(0, 12) + "). Correlate the accepted edit via the ledger and the builder's eventual completion before re-driving Publish. Fail-closed.");
+            }
           }
         }
         if (!rebuildReportMissing && !rebuildTrigger.edit_started && rebuildTrigger.error === "artifact_tools missing after load") {
@@ -1712,7 +1833,7 @@ while (i < STEPS.length) {
             applied_report: publishAppliedObservation,
             outcome: "submitted",
             detail: rebuildReportMissing
-              ? "edit confirmed via build-state poll after structured-output failure (build " + (rebuildAgentId || "agent_id unknown") + "); builder applied-report missing"
+              ? (rebuildEvidenceNote || "edit confirmed via build-state poll after structured-output failure (build " + (rebuildAgentId || "agent_id unknown") + "); builder applied-report missing")
               : "edit accepted; builder applied-report received"
           }, reworkCount);
         } else if (rebuildTrigger) {
@@ -1769,6 +1890,15 @@ while (i < STEPS.length) {
           // lock was lost: stop the run and park the task — never continue to
           // a provenance stamp or version assignment without holding the lock.
           var buildPoll = null;
+          // STEP 1b poll-signal accumulators (2026-09-15, task aadeccc3):
+          // the durable audit-dir fallback below needs the poll's own
+          // observations, not just its final verdict — whether our build was
+          // ever seen, whether a stranger's build was ever in flight, and
+          // what the last check observed. OR-ed across all three chunks so
+          // a signal seen in any chunk survives the chunk boundary.
+          var pollSawOurBuild = false;
+          var pollSawStranger = false;
+          var lastObservedAgentId = null;
           for (var chunk = 1; chunk <= 3; chunk++) {
             if (chunk > 1) {
               var refreshPoll = await agent(
@@ -1791,36 +1921,150 @@ while (i < STEPS.length) {
               : attemptKey("publish-artifact-poll-" + taskId + "-c" + chunk, reworkCount);
             buildPoll = await agent(
               "First call tool_search.load_tool_namespace with paths [\"artifact\"]. Then poll artifact_status for slug \"" + PUBLISH_SLUG + "\" \u2014 for OUR build only, the one whose agent_id is \"" + rebuildAgentId + "\" (the receipt captured when the edit was accepted; the agent_id is the artifact system's in-flight build correlation ID, stable across polls while the build runs). Check every 30 seconds, up to 7 checks (3.5 minutes max). On each check, read the raw build object:\n" +
-              "- If no build is running (build is null): OUR build finished. Stop and report done.\n" +
+              "On every check, record whether you have positively OBSERVED our build: a running build whose agent_id equals \"" + rebuildAgentId + "\", or a completed-build record whose agent_id equals \"" + rebuildAgentId + "\" (if the tool surfaces one \u2014 match it mechanically, never assume).\n" +
+              "- If no build is running (build is null) and you have NOT observed our build: our build's completion is UNPROVEN. Absence of a running build is not evidence our build ran. Do NOT report done.\n" +
+              "- If no build is running (build is null) and you previously observed our build running: our build finished. Stop and report done.\n" +
               "- If the running build's agent_id equals \"" + rebuildAgentId + "\": still ours \u2014 keep waiting.\n" +
-              "- If the running build's agent_id is present but DIFFERENT: our build is gone (it finished before this one started). Do NOT wait on the stranger's build and do NOT attribute its completion to our attempt \u2014 stop and report done.\n" +
-              "Return JSON { \"build_done\": <true if our build is no longer running within budget, false on timeout>, \"status\": \"<final status or timeout note>\", \"observed_agent_id\": \"<the agent_id seen on the last check, or null when no build was running>\" } and nothing else.",
+              "- If the running build's agent_id is present but DIFFERENT: that is a stranger's build. Do NOT attribute its completion to our attempt and do NOT wait on it \u2014 keep checking within budget; if the budget expires without observing our build, report done=false. Record it in saw_stranger regardless of what else you observe.\n" +
+              "Return JSON { \"build_done\": <true ONLY when you positively observed our build and it is no longer running, false otherwise>, \"saw_our_build\": <true if you observed our build at any check, false if never>, \"saw_stranger\": true if at ANY check a running build had an agent_id different from ours (\"" + rebuildAgentId + "\"), false otherwise, \"status\": \"<final status or timeout note>\", \"observed_agent_id\": \"<the agent_id seen on the last check, or null when no build was running>\" } and nothing else.",
               { key: pollKey, label: "Waiting for artifact build to complete (chunk " + chunk + " of 3)",
-                schema: { type: "object", properties: { build_done: { type: "boolean" }, status: { type: "string" }, observed_agent_id: { type: ["string", "null"] } }, required: ["build_done"] },
+                schema: { type: "object", properties: { build_done: { type: "boolean" }, saw_our_build: { type: "boolean" }, saw_stranger: { type: "boolean" }, status: { type: "string" }, observed_agent_id: { type: ["string", "null"] } }, required: ["build_done"] },
                 timeoutMs: 270000 }
             );
+            pollSawOurBuild = pollSawOurBuild || (buildPoll && buildPoll.saw_our_build === true);
+            pollSawStranger = pollSawStranger || (buildPoll && buildPoll.saw_stranger === true);
+            lastObservedAgentId = (buildPoll && buildPoll.observed_agent_id) || null;
             if (buildPoll && buildPoll.build_done) { break; }
           }
           if (!buildPoll || !buildPoll.build_done) {
             buildPoll = { build_done: false, status: (buildPoll && buildPoll.status) || "build still running after the 10.5-minute bounded poll" };
           }
-          if (buildPoll.build_done) {
+          if (buildPoll.build_done && pollSawOurBuild) {
             // STEP 1c (mechanical): NO provenance stamp here. Canary run 8
             // (2026-09-11) proved the stamp cannot certify content: the
             // builder's applied-report is derived from the carried diff, so
             // verifyAppliedChanges above is circular — a fabricated report
             // passes by construction, and every phase went green on a hollow
-            // build. The stamp moves to the parent (docs/publish-verification.md):
-            // after an independent artifact_inspect read-back confirms the
-            // artifact's actual content matches the merged diff, the parent
-            // stamps provenance and re-queues; QA's provenance check then
-            // enforces the stamp mechanically, so an unverified publish fails
-            // loudly in QA instead of passing silently here.
+            // build. The stamp moves to the parent (docs/publish-verification.md);
+            // the independent read-back step is currently unavailable (no
+            // agent-callable read-back tool exists — artifact_inspect was
+            // removed by the platform 2026-09-14), so the parent cannot
+            // confirm content and the task parks for verification.
+            // Chore has no QA: the parent's verification is the final gate.
             publishBuildLanded = true;
             artifactPublish = { source_commit: mergeCommitForPublish, pending_parent_verification: true };
             log("Publish build landed for task " + taskId + " — provenance stamp deferred to parent content verification");
           } else {
-            publishFailure = "Artifact build did not complete within budget: " + (buildPoll.status || "timeout") + ". The publish may or may not have landed — provenance was not stamped.";
+            // STEP 1b durable audit-dir fallback (2026-09-15, task aadeccc3):
+            // the poll above only observes IN-FLIGHT builds. A build that
+            // finished between the receipt capture and the poll's first check
+            // leaves no in-flight trace — but the platform's audit harness
+            // leaves a durable one (~/workspace/ts-spaces/<slug>/audits/
+            // <timestamp>-<id>/ per completed build). Diff the audit-dir
+            // listing against the pre-trigger snapshot: a timestamped dir
+            // that appeared during the attempt window is evidence a build
+            // completed. Attribution is by window, not by build identity:
+            // the poll's saw_stranger signal only catches stranger builds in
+            // flight AT a check — a stranger that finished entirely inside
+            // the window is indistinguishable, so any observed stranger
+            // blocks attribution and the outcome stays unknown. This never
+            // re-issues the edit and never stamps provenance — ok=true only
+            // routes to the parent's independent content read-back, which
+            // remains the real verification.
+            //
+            // The poll end-state is read from the poll's own observations,
+            // not from build_done alone: a build in flight at the last check
+            // means the budget was shorter than the latency (or the build is
+            // stuck) — NOT that no build ever started; nothing observed at
+            // any check is the never-started signal.
+            var pollEndState = lastObservedAgentId ? "build-still-running-at-poll-end"
+              : (pollSawOurBuild ? "our-build-observed-then-unconfirmed" : "no-build-observed-in-window");
+            var strangerObserved = pollSawStranger;
+            var newAuditDirsAfterPoll = [];
+            try {
+              var auditAfterPoll = await agent(
+                "List the artifact audit directories for slug \"" + PUBLISH_SLUG + "\" (best-effort, never a gate).\n" +
+                "Run: ls -1 ~/workspace/ts-spaces/" + PUBLISH_SLUG + "/audits/ 2>/dev/null\n" +
+                "Return JSON { \"dirs\": \"<newline-separated names, empty string when the audits directory does not exist or is empty>\" } and nothing else.",
+                { key: attemptKey("publish-audit-after-poll-" + taskId, reworkCount), label: "Re-listing audit dirs after build poll",
+                  schema: { type: "object", properties: { dirs: { type: "string" } }, required: ["dirs"] } }
+              );
+              var auditDirsAfterPollList = String((auditAfterPoll && auditAfterPoll.dirs) || "").split("\n").map(function (s) { return s.trim(); }).filter(function (s) { return s.length > 0; });
+              newAuditDirsAfterPoll = auditDirsAfterPollList.filter(function (d) {
+                return auditDirsBeforeTrigger.indexOf(d) === -1 && /^20\d\d-\d\d-\d\dT\d\d-\d\d-\d\dZ-/.test(d);
+              });
+              log("Publish audit-dir re-list after build poll for task " + taskId + ": " + newAuditDirsAfterPoll.length + " new timestamped dir(s)");
+            } catch (auditAfterPollErr) {
+              log("Publish audit-dir re-list after build poll failed for task " + taskId + " (non-fatal, durable-evidence check degraded): " + (auditAfterPollErr && auditAfterPollErr.message ? auditAfterPollErr.message : auditAfterPollErr));
+            }
+            // auditReportOk: pure tri-state read of a report.json body —
+            // true (build ok), false (build failed), null (missing or
+            // unreadable — not evidence either way). The child returns the
+            // raw body verbatim; interpretation lives here, never in prose.
+            var auditReportOk = function (raw) {
+              if (typeof raw !== "string") return null;
+              var trimmed = raw.trim();
+              if (trimmed === "" || trimmed === "MISSING") return null;
+              var parsed;
+              try { parsed = JSON.parse(trimmed); } catch (e) { return null; }
+              if (parsed && typeof parsed.ok === "boolean") return parsed.ok;
+              return null;
+            };
+            var auditOkAfterPoll = null;
+            var newestAuditDirAfterPoll = null;
+            if (newAuditDirsAfterPoll.length > 0 && !strangerObserved) {
+              newAuditDirsAfterPoll.sort();
+              newestAuditDirAfterPoll = newAuditDirsAfterPoll[newAuditDirsAfterPoll.length - 1];
+              try {
+                var auditOkRead = await agent(
+                  "Read the build report for artifact slug \"" + PUBLISH_SLUG + "\", audit dir \"" + newestAuditDirAfterPoll + "\" (verbatim read, never interpreted, never a gate).\n" +
+                  "Run: cat ~/workspace/ts-spaces/" + PUBLISH_SLUG + "/audits/" + newestAuditDirAfterPoll + "/report.json 2>/dev/null || echo MISSING\n" +
+                  "Return JSON { \"raw\": \"<verbatim file contents, or the literal string MISSING when the file does not exist>\" } and nothing else.",
+                  { key: attemptKey("publish-audit-ok-after-poll-" + taskId, reworkCount), label: "Reading build report after build poll",
+                    schema: { type: "object", properties: { raw: { type: "string" } }, required: ["raw"] } }
+                );
+                auditOkAfterPoll = auditReportOk(auditOkRead && auditOkRead.raw);
+              } catch (auditOkReadErr) {
+                log("Publish build-report read after build poll failed for task " + taskId + " (non-fatal, treated as unknown): " + (auditOkReadErr && auditOkReadErr.message ? auditOkReadErr.message : auditOkReadErr));
+                auditOkAfterPoll = null;
+              }
+            }
+            if (auditOkAfterPoll === true) {
+              publishBuildLanded = true;
+              artifactPublish = { source_commit: mergeCommitForPublish, pending_parent_verification: true };
+              log("Publish build landed for task " + taskId + " via durable audit evidence — provenance stamp deferred to parent content verification");
+              await recordPublishLedger({
+                commit: mergeCommitForPublish,
+                attempt: rebuildAttemptKey,
+                agent_id: rebuildAgentId,
+                applied_report: publishAppliedObservation,
+                outcome: "submitted",
+                detail: "durable audit evidence shows a build completed during the attempt window (audit dir " + newestAuditDirAfterPoll + ", report ok=true); routed to parent verification"
+              }, reworkCount);
+            } else if (auditOkAfterPoll === false) {
+              publishFailure = "Artifact build FAILED for slug " + PUBLISH_SLUG + " (audit dir " + newestAuditDirAfterPoll + ", report ok=false). Explicit negative evidence: a build ran and failed (attribution by window, not by build identity — no stranger build was observed in flight during the poll). The publish did not land — provenance was not stamped. Fail-closed.";
+              await recordPublishLedger({
+                commit: mergeCommitForPublish,
+                attempt: rebuildAttemptKey,
+                agent_id: rebuildAgentId,
+                applied_report: publishAppliedObservation,
+                outcome: "failed",
+                detail: "a build ran and failed (attribution by window, not by build identity): audit dir " + newestAuditDirAfterPoll + " report ok=false; no stranger build observed in flight during the poll"
+              }, reworkCount);
+            } else {
+              var unattributableReason = strangerObserved ? "stranger-build-observed-during-poll"
+                : (pollEndState === "build-still-running-at-poll-end" ? "build-still-running-at-poll-end"
+                : (newAuditDirsAfterPoll.length === 0 ? "no-new-audit-dir-in-window" : "audit-report-unreadable-or-missing"));
+              publishFailure = "Artifact build completion unproven (fail-closed, no provenance stamped): unattributable_reason=" + unattributableReason + "; poll_end_state=" + pollEndState + "; " + "saw_our_build=" + pollSawOurBuild + "; new_audit_dirs=" + newAuditDirsAfterPoll.length + ". Attribution is by window, not by build identity. The publish may or may not have landed. Fail-closed.";
+              await recordPublishLedger({
+                commit: mergeCommitForPublish,
+                attempt: rebuildAttemptKey,
+                agent_id: rebuildAgentId,
+                applied_report: publishAppliedObservation,
+                outcome: "unknown",
+                detail: "durable audit-dir fallback could not attribute a completed build to this attempt (unattributable_reason=" + unattributableReason + ", poll_end_state=" + pollEndState + ")"
+              }, reworkCount);
+            }
           }
         } else {
           publishFailure = "Artifact rebuild trigger failed: " + (rebuildTrigger.error || "artifact_edit not accepted") + ". The publish did not land.";
@@ -2071,6 +2315,52 @@ while (i < STEPS.length) {
       };
     }
     log("Build worktree confinement passed: " + wt.path);
+
+    // Already-merged idempotency: a `repo_diff: none (already-merged:
+    // <sha>)` declaration is verified mechanically — <sha> must resolve
+    // and be an ancestor of main in the configured repo. A fabricated or
+    // mistaken declaration fails the phase here (the dispatcher retries
+    // Build under its consecutive-failure cap); a verified declaration is
+    // recorded in alreadyMergedSha for Review's no-diff branch. Without
+    // this guard, Build correctly doing nothing left Review with no
+    // mechanical way to accept an empty diff, and Cass rejected for "no
+    // commits ahead of main — the builder likely forgot to commit" while
+    // the deliverable sat on main (canary 2026-09-15, task 1d692d91).
+    // The sha is hex-only by construction (extractAlreadyMerged), so
+    // interpolating it into the shell command cannot inject.
+    var am = extractAlreadyMerged(workerText);
+    if (am.sha) {
+      var amCheck = await agent(
+        "Verify the builder's already-merged declaration.\n" +
+        "Run in shell and return the stdout verbatim:\n" +
+        "cd " + REPO_PATH + " && git rev-parse --verify --quiet " + am.sha + " >/dev/null && git merge-base --is-ancestor " + am.sha + " main && echo ALREADY_MERGED_YES || echo ALREADY_MERGED_NO",
+        { key: "verify-already-merged" + (reworkCount > 0 ? "-r" + reworkCount : ""), label: "Verifying already-merged declaration" }
+      );
+      var amOut = (typeof amCheck === "string") ? amCheck : JSON.stringify(amCheck);
+      if (!/ALREADY_MERGED_YES/.test(amOut)) {
+        log("Build already-merged declaration failed verification — " + am.sha + " is not an ancestor of main — marking failed for retry");
+        await agent(
+          "Record already-merged verification failure.\n" +
+          "Run in shell and return the stdout verbatim:\n" + crewCmd("record-phase", {
+            task_id: taskId,
+            session: { id: activeSessionId, task_id: taskId, identity: step.identity, step: step.name, status: "failed",
+              notes: "Build declared repo_diff: none (already-merged: " + am.sha + ") but " + am.sha + " is not an ancestor of main in the configured repo. The declaration is fabricated or mistaken; the work is not on main. Phase failed for retry" },
+            event: { task_id: taskId, type: "failed", message: "Build already-merged declaration failed verification — " + am.sha + " not an ancestor of main, phase failed, dispatcher will retry" }
+          }),
+          { key: "record-already-merged-fail-" + step.name, label: "Recording already-merged verification failure" }
+        );
+        return {
+          __hatchWorkflowControl: "blocked",
+          result: {
+            blocked_reason: "Build already-merged declaration failed verification",
+            message: "The builder declared repo_diff: none (already-merged: " + am.sha + ") but " + am.sha + " is not an ancestor of main. The work is not on main; the phase is marked failed and the dispatcher will retry Build.",
+            task_id: taskId
+          }
+        };
+      }
+      alreadyMergedSha = am.sha;
+      log("Build already-merged declaration verified: " + am.sha + " is an ancestor of main");
+    }
   }
 
   // Deterministic closeout: no formatter agent. The verdict is mechanical
@@ -2198,48 +2488,22 @@ while (i < STEPS.length) {
   // it to HEAD: that verifies the stamp, not the content. Canary run 8
   // (2026-09-11) passed it with a hollow build — the stamp was honest, the
   // artifact was stale, all eight phases green. The stamp now moves to the
-  // parent: trigger an independent artifact_inspect read-back of the changed
-  // regions here; the parent stamps provenance only after mechanically
-  // confirming the artifact's actual content matches the merged diff. QA's
-  // provenance check enforces the stamp — an unverified publish fails loudly
-  // there instead of passing silently here.
+  // parent (docs/publish-verification.md); the independent read-back step
+  // is currently unavailable (no agent-callable read-back tool exists —
+  // artifact_inspect was removed by the platform 2026-09-14), so the parent
+  // cannot confirm content and the task parks for verification.
   // Skip-aware (park 2026-09-11): an empty-diff Integrate takes no merge
   // lock, and the deterministic publish path skips rebuild/stamp entirely —
   // there is no new content to verify, so verification is vacuous.
   // publishSkippedNoLock is workflow-computed state from the explicit
   // lock-status read in STEP 0, not agent prose.
-  var publishVerifyInspect = { triggered: false, inspection_id: "", error: "" };
-  if (step.name === "Publish" && PUBLISH_TYPE === "artifact" && PUBLISH_SLUG) {
-    if (publishSkippedNoLock) {
-      log("Publish skipped for task " + taskId + " (no merge lock held — empty-diff Integrate): content verification vacuous, nothing was shipped");
-    } else if (!publishBuildLanded) {
-      log("Publish build did not land for task " + taskId + " — no content to verify (the failure park above already fired)");
-    } else {
-    try {
-      var inspectResult = await agent(
-        ARTIFACT_LOAD_PREAMBLE +
-        "Call artifact_inspect with slug \"" + PUBLISH_SLUG + "\", repair_authorized false, and verbatim_request exactly as follows:\n" +
-        "<<<READBACK_REQUEST\n" + buildPublishReadbackRequest(taskId, mergeCommitForPublish, mergeDiff, rebuildAgentId) + "\nREADBACK_REQUEST\n" +
-        "If artifact_inspect is still not available after the load, do NOT improvise — return { \"triggered\": false, \"inspection_id\": \"\", \"error\": \"artifact_tools missing after load\" } and nothing else.\n" +
-        "Return JSON { \"triggered\": <true if the inspection started, false otherwise>, \"inspection_id\": \"<the inspection id, or empty string>\", \"error\": \"<details or empty string>\" } and nothing else.",
-        { key: attemptKey("publish-verify-inspect-" + taskId, reworkCount), label: "Triggering publish content read-back",
-          schema: { type: "object", properties: { triggered: { type: "boolean" }, inspection_id: { type: "string" }, error: { type: "string" } }, required: ["triggered"] } }
-      );
-      publishVerifyInspect.triggered = !!(inspectResult && inspectResult.triggered);
-      publishVerifyInspect.inspection_id = (inspectResult && inspectResult.inspection_id) || "";
-      publishVerifyInspect.error = (inspectResult && inspectResult.error) || "";
-      if (publishVerifyInspect.triggered) {
-        log("Publish content read-back inspection triggered for task " + taskId + ": " + publishVerifyInspect.inspection_id);
-      } else {
-        log("Publish content read-back inspect trigger failed for task " + taskId + ": " + (publishVerifyInspect.error || "not started") + " — the park below asks the parent to trigger it manually");
-      }
-    } catch (e) {
-      publishVerifyInspect.error = (e && e.message ? e.message : String(e)).slice(0, 200);
-      log("Publish content read-back inspect trigger threw for task " + taskId + ": " + publishVerifyInspect.error + " — the park below asks the parent to trigger it manually");
-    }
-    } // end: !publishSkippedNoLock && publishBuildLanded — a skipped or failed publish has nothing to verify
-  }
-
+  // The parent (tick worker) triggers the ONE read-back inspection it can
+  // actually receive (async results go to the root agent, never into a
+  // workflow run — a workflow-side trigger would be an orphan). The workflow
+  // only parks; the parent's scan builds the request deterministically via
+  // lib/build-readback-request.js and ferries the inspection.
+  // publishBuildLanded and publishSkippedNoLock are workflow-computed state;
+  // a skipped or failed publish has nothing to verify.
   // Session notes. Machine-readable marker lines are extracted from the full
   // worker report and appended AFTER the slice so a long report can never
   // amputate them; later phases (Review reading repo_diff:, QA backstop
@@ -2257,6 +2521,15 @@ while (i < STEPS.length) {
   } else {
     summary = (stepResult.summary || "Step completed").slice(0, 2000 - workerMarkers.length - 1) + (workerMarkers ? "\n" + workerMarkers : "");
   }
+  // Already-merged attestation: when the Build gate verified the builder's
+  // already-merged declaration, the workflow records its own marker line in
+  // the session notes (like the builder markers above, it is appended after
+  // the slice so it can never be amputated). A later run resumed at Review
+  // hydrates alreadyMergedSha from this workflow-attested line — never from
+  // the builder's declaration alone.
+  if (step.name === "Build" && alreadyMergedSha) {
+    summary += "\nalready_merged_verified: " + alreadyMergedSha;
+  }
 
   // Capture mapper's spec for Build and Review
   if (step.name === "Map" && passed) {
@@ -2323,10 +2596,7 @@ while (i < STEPS.length) {
   if (passed && step.name === "Publish" && PUBLISH_TYPE === "artifact" && PUBLISH_SLUG && !publishSkippedNoLock && publishBuildLanded) {
     return await parkTask("publish: verification-requested " + mergeCommitForPublish +
       " (build " + (rebuildAgentId || "agent_id unobserved") + ")" +
-      " — artifact build landed, post-deploy finalized, provenance NOT stamped. Parent: run docs/publish-verification.md" +
-      (publishVerifyInspect.triggered
-        ? " (content read-back inspection " + publishVerifyInspect.inspection_id + " already triggered)."
-        : " (read-back inspect trigger failed: " + (publishVerifyInspect.error || "not started") + " — parent: trigger artifact_inspect manually)."));
+      " — artifact build landed, post-deploy finalized, provenance NOT stamped. Parent: run docs/publish-verification.md.");
   }
 
   i++;