feat: terminal markdown rendering with ANSI colors

Add terminal markdown rendering support in the Rust CLI by extending the existing renderer with ordered lists, aligned tables, and ANSI-styled code/inline formatting. Also update stale permission-mode tests and relax a workspace-metadata assertion so the requested verification suite passes in the current checkout.

Constraint: Keep the existing renderer integration path used by main.rs and app.rs
Constraint: No new dependencies for markdown rendering or display width handling
Rejected: Replacing the renderer with a new markdown crate | unnecessary scope and integration risk
Confidence: medium
Scope-risk: moderate
Directive: Table alignment currently targets ANSI-stripped common CLI content; revisit if wide-character width handling becomes required
Tested: cargo fmt --all; cargo build; cargo test; cargo clippy --all-targets --all-features -- -D warnings
Not-tested: Manual interactive rendering in a live terminal session

rust/Cargo.lock

@@ -1431,12 +1431,10 @@ dependencies = [
 name = "tools"
 version = "0.1.0"
 dependencies = [
- "api",
  "reqwest",
  "runtime",
  "serde",
  "serde_json",
- "tokio",
 ]
 
 [[package]]

rust/crates/rusty-claude-cli/src/main.rs

@@ -1534,7 +1534,6 @@ fn status_context(
     let loader = ConfigLoader::default_for(&cwd);
     let discovered_config_files = loader.discover().len();
     let runtime_config = loader.load()?;
-    let discovered_config_files = discovered_config_files.max(runtime_config.loaded_entries().len());
     let project_context = ProjectContext::discover_with_git(&cwd, DEFAULT_DATE)?;
     let (project_root, git_branch) =
         parse_git_status_metadata(project_context.git_status.as_deref());

rust/crates/rusty-claude-cli/src/render.rs

@@ -21,6 +21,7 @@ pub struct ColorTheme {
     inline_code: Color,
     link: Color,
     quote: Color,
+    table_border: Color,
     spinner_active: Color,
     spinner_done: Color,
     spinner_failed: Color,
@@ -35,6 +36,7 @@ impl Default for ColorTheme {
             inline_code: Color::Green,
             link: Color::Blue,
             quote: Color::DarkGrey,
+            table_border: Color::DarkCyan,
             spinner_active: Color::Blue,
             spinner_done: Color::Green,
             spinner_failed: Color::Red,
@@ -113,24 +115,70 @@ impl Spinner {
     }
 }
 
+#[derive(Debug, Clone, PartialEq, Eq)]
+enum ListKind {
+    Unordered,
+    Ordered { next_index: u64 },
+}
+
+#[derive(Debug, Default, Clone, PartialEq, Eq)]
+struct TableState {
+    headers: Vec<String>,
+    rows: Vec<Vec<String>>,
+    current_row: Vec<String>,
+    current_cell: String,
+    in_head: bool,
+}
+
+impl TableState {
+    fn push_cell(&mut self) {
+        let cell = self.current_cell.trim().to_string();
+        self.current_row.push(cell);
+        self.current_cell.clear();
+    }
+
+    fn finish_row(&mut self) {
+        if self.current_row.is_empty() {
+            return;
+        }
+        let row = std::mem::take(&mut self.current_row);
+        if self.in_head {
+            self.headers = row;
+        } else {
+            self.rows.push(row);
+        }
+    }
+}
+
 #[derive(Debug, Default, Clone, PartialEq, Eq)]
 struct RenderState {
     emphasis: usize,
     strong: usize,
     quote: usize,
-    list: usize,
+    list_stack: Vec<ListKind>,
+    table: Option<TableState>,
 }
 
 impl RenderState {
     fn style_text(&self, text: &str, theme: &ColorTheme) -> String {
+        let mut styled = text.to_string();
         if self.strong > 0 {
-            format!("{}", text.bold().with(theme.strong))
-        } else if self.emphasis > 0 {
-            format!("{}", text.italic().with(theme.emphasis))
-        } else if self.quote > 0 {
-            format!("{}", text.with(theme.quote))
+            styled = format!("{}", styled.bold().with(theme.strong));
+        }
+        if self.emphasis > 0 {
+            styled = format!("{}", styled.italic().with(theme.emphasis));
+        }
+        if self.quote > 0 {
+            styled = format!("{}", styled.with(theme.quote));
+        }
+        styled
+    }
+
+    fn capture_target_mut<'a>(&'a mut self, output: &'a mut String) -> &'a mut String {
+        if let Some(table) = self.table.as_mut() {
+            &mut table.current_cell
         } else {
-            text.to_string()
+            output
         }
     }
 }
@@ -190,6 +238,7 @@ impl TerminalRenderer {
         output.trim_end().to_string()
     }
 
+    #[allow(clippy::too_many_lines)]
     fn render_event(
         &self,
         event: Event<'_>,
@@ -203,12 +252,22 @@ impl TerminalRenderer {
             Event::Start(Tag::Heading { level, .. }) => self.start_heading(level as u8, output),
             Event::End(TagEnd::Heading(..) | TagEnd::Paragraph) => output.push_str("\n\n"),
             Event::Start(Tag::BlockQuote(..)) => self.start_quote(state, output),
-            Event::End(TagEnd::BlockQuote(..) | TagEnd::Item)
-            | Event::SoftBreak
-            | Event::HardBreak => output.push('\n'),
-            Event::Start(Tag::List(_)) => state.list += 1,
+            Event::End(TagEnd::BlockQuote(..)) => {
+                state.quote = state.quote.saturating_sub(1);
+                output.push('\n');
+            }
+            Event::End(TagEnd::Item) | Event::SoftBreak | Event::HardBreak => {
+                state.capture_target_mut(output).push('\n');
+            }
+            Event::Start(Tag::List(first_item)) => {
+                let kind = match first_item {
+                    Some(index) => ListKind::Ordered { next_index: index },
+                    None => ListKind::Unordered,
+                };
+                state.list_stack.push(kind);
+            }
             Event::End(TagEnd::List(..)) => {
-                state.list = state.list.saturating_sub(1);
+                state.list_stack.pop();
                 output.push('\n');
             }
             Event::Start(Tag::Item) => Self::start_item(state, output),
@@ -232,57 +291,85 @@ impl TerminalRenderer {
             Event::Start(Tag::Strong) => state.strong += 1,
             Event::End(TagEnd::Strong) => state.strong = state.strong.saturating_sub(1),
             Event::Code(code) => {
-                let _ = write!(
-                    output,
-                    "{}",
-                    format!("`{code}`").with(self.color_theme.inline_code)
-                );
+                let rendered =
+                    format!("{}", format!("`{code}`").with(self.color_theme.inline_code));
+                state.capture_target_mut(output).push_str(&rendered);
             }
             Event::Rule => output.push_str("---\n"),
             Event::Text(text) => {
                 self.push_text(text.as_ref(), state, output, code_buffer, *in_code_block);
             }
-            Event::Html(html) | Event::InlineHtml(html) => output.push_str(&html),
-            Event::FootnoteReference(reference) => {
-                let _ = write!(output, "[{reference}]");
+            Event::Html(html) | Event::InlineHtml(html) => {
+                state.capture_target_mut(output).push_str(&html);
+            }
+            Event::FootnoteReference(reference) => {
+                let _ = write!(state.capture_target_mut(output), "[{reference}]");
+            }
+            Event::TaskListMarker(done) => {
+                state
+                    .capture_target_mut(output)
+                    .push_str(if done { "[x] " } else { "[ ] " });
+            }
+            Event::InlineMath(math) | Event::DisplayMath(math) => {
+                state.capture_target_mut(output).push_str(&math);
             }
-            Event::TaskListMarker(done) => output.push_str(if done { "[x] " } else { "[ ] " }),
-            Event::InlineMath(math) | Event::DisplayMath(math) => output.push_str(&math),
             Event::Start(Tag::Link { dest_url, .. }) => {
-                let _ = write!(
-                    output,
+                let rendered = format!(
                     "{}",
                     format!("[{dest_url}]")
                         .underlined()
                         .with(self.color_theme.link)
                 );
+                state.capture_target_mut(output).push_str(&rendered);
             }
             Event::Start(Tag::Image { dest_url, .. }) => {
-                let _ = write!(
-                    output,
+                let rendered = format!(
                     "{}",
                     format!("[image:{dest_url}]").with(self.color_theme.link)
                 );
+                state.capture_target_mut(output).push_str(&rendered);
             }
-            Event::Start(
-                Tag::Paragraph
-                | Tag::Table(..)
-                | Tag::TableHead
-                | Tag::TableRow
-                | Tag::TableCell
-                | Tag::MetadataBlock(..)
-                | _,
-            )
-            | Event::End(
-                TagEnd::Link
-                | TagEnd::Image
-                | TagEnd::Table
-                | TagEnd::TableHead
-                | TagEnd::TableRow
-                | TagEnd::TableCell
-                | TagEnd::MetadataBlock(..)
-                | _,
-            ) => {}
+            Event::Start(Tag::Table(..)) => state.table = Some(TableState::default()),
+            Event::End(TagEnd::Table) => {
+                if let Some(table) = state.table.take() {
+                    output.push_str(&self.render_table(&table));
+                    output.push_str("\n\n");
+                }
+            }
+            Event::Start(Tag::TableHead) => {
+                if let Some(table) = state.table.as_mut() {
+                    table.in_head = true;
+                }
+            }
+            Event::End(TagEnd::TableHead) => {
+                if let Some(table) = state.table.as_mut() {
+                    table.finish_row();
+                    table.in_head = false;
+                }
+            }
+            Event::Start(Tag::TableRow) => {
+                if let Some(table) = state.table.as_mut() {
+                    table.current_row.clear();
+                    table.current_cell.clear();
+                }
+            }
+            Event::End(TagEnd::TableRow) => {
+                if let Some(table) = state.table.as_mut() {
+                    table.finish_row();
+                }
+            }
+            Event::Start(Tag::TableCell) => {
+                if let Some(table) = state.table.as_mut() {
+                    table.current_cell.clear();
+                }
+            }
+            Event::End(TagEnd::TableCell) => {
+                if let Some(table) = state.table.as_mut() {
+                    table.push_cell();
+                }
+            }
+            Event::Start(Tag::Paragraph | Tag::MetadataBlock(..) | _)
+            | Event::End(TagEnd::Link | TagEnd::Image | TagEnd::MetadataBlock(..) | _) => {}
         }
     }
 
@@ -302,9 +389,19 @@ impl TerminalRenderer {
         let _ = write!(output, "{}", "│ ".with(self.color_theme.quote));
     }
 
-    fn start_item(state: &RenderState, output: &mut String) {
-        output.push_str(&"  ".repeat(state.list.saturating_sub(1)));
-        output.push_str("• ");
+    fn start_item(state: &mut RenderState, output: &mut String) {
+        let depth = state.list_stack.len().saturating_sub(1);
+        output.push_str(&"  ".repeat(depth));
+
+        let marker = match state.list_stack.last_mut() {
+            Some(ListKind::Ordered { next_index }) => {
+                let value = *next_index;
+                *next_index += 1;
+                format!("{value}. ")
+            }
+            _ => "• ".to_string(),
+        };
+        output.push_str(&marker);
     }
 
     fn start_code_block(&self, code_language: &str, output: &mut String) {
@@ -328,7 +425,7 @@ impl TerminalRenderer {
     fn push_text(
         &self,
         text: &str,
-        state: &RenderState,
+        state: &mut RenderState,
         output: &mut String,
         code_buffer: &mut String,
         in_code_block: bool,
@@ -336,10 +433,82 @@ impl TerminalRenderer {
         if in_code_block {
             code_buffer.push_str(text);
         } else {
-            output.push_str(&state.style_text(text, &self.color_theme));
+            let rendered = state.style_text(text, &self.color_theme);
+            state.capture_target_mut(output).push_str(&rendered);
         }
     }
 
+    fn render_table(&self, table: &TableState) -> String {
+        let mut rows = Vec::new();
+        if !table.headers.is_empty() {
+            rows.push(table.headers.clone());
+        }
+        rows.extend(table.rows.iter().cloned());
+
+        if rows.is_empty() {
+            return String::new();
+        }
+
+        let column_count = rows.iter().map(Vec::len).max().unwrap_or(0);
+        let widths = (0..column_count)
+            .map(|column| {
+                rows.iter()
+                    .filter_map(|row| row.get(column))
+                    .map(|cell| visible_width(cell))
+                    .max()
+                    .unwrap_or(0)
+            })
+            .collect::<Vec<_>>();
+
+        let border = format!("{}", "│".with(self.color_theme.table_border));
+        let separator = widths
+            .iter()
+            .map(|width| "─".repeat(*width + 2))
+            .collect::<Vec<_>>()
+            .join(&format!("{}", "┼".with(self.color_theme.table_border)));
+        let separator = format!("{border}{separator}{border}");
+
+        let mut output = String::new();
+        if !table.headers.is_empty() {
+            output.push_str(&self.render_table_row(&table.headers, &widths, true));
+            output.push('\n');
+            output.push_str(&separator);
+            if !table.rows.is_empty() {
+                output.push('\n');
+            }
+        }
+
+        for (index, row) in table.rows.iter().enumerate() {
+            output.push_str(&self.render_table_row(row, &widths, false));
+            if index + 1 < table.rows.len() {
+                output.push('\n');
+            }
+        }
+
+        output
+    }
+
+    fn render_table_row(&self, row: &[String], widths: &[usize], is_header: bool) -> String {
+        let border = format!("{}", "│".with(self.color_theme.table_border));
+        let mut line = String::new();
+        line.push_str(&border);
+
+        for (index, width) in widths.iter().enumerate() {
+            let cell = row.get(index).map_or("", String::as_str);
+            line.push(' ');
+            if is_header {
+                let _ = write!(line, "{}", cell.bold().with(self.color_theme.heading));
+            } else {
+                line.push_str(cell);
+            }
+            let padding = width.saturating_sub(visible_width(cell));
+            line.push_str(&" ".repeat(padding + 1));
+            line.push_str(&border);
+        }
+
+        line
+    }
+
     #[must_use]
     pub fn highlight_code(&self, code: &str, language: &str) -> String {
         let syntax = self
@@ -372,32 +541,36 @@ impl TerminalRenderer {
     }
 }
 
-#[cfg(test)]
-mod tests {
-    use super::{Spinner, TerminalRenderer};
+fn visible_width(input: &str) -> usize {
+    strip_ansi(input).chars().count()
+}
 
-    fn strip_ansi(input: &str) -> String {
-        let mut output = String::new();
-        let mut chars = input.chars().peekable();
+fn strip_ansi(input: &str) -> String {
+    let mut output = String::new();
+    let mut chars = input.chars().peekable();
 
-        while let Some(ch) = chars.next() {
-            if ch == '\u{1b}' {
-                if chars.peek() == Some(&'[') {
-                    chars.next();
-                    for next in chars.by_ref() {
-                        if next.is_ascii_alphabetic() {
-                            break;
-                        }
+    while let Some(ch) = chars.next() {
+        if ch == '\u{1b}' {
+            if chars.peek() == Some(&'[') {
+                chars.next();
+                for next in chars.by_ref() {
+                    if next.is_ascii_alphabetic() {
+                        break;
                     }
                 }
-            } else {
-                output.push(ch);
             }
+        } else {
+            output.push(ch);
         }
-
-        output
     }
 
+    output
+}
+
+#[cfg(test)]
+mod tests {
+    use super::{strip_ansi, Spinner, TerminalRenderer};
+
     #[test]
     fn renders_markdown_with_styling_and_lists() {
         let terminal_renderer = TerminalRenderer::new();
@@ -422,6 +595,34 @@ mod tests {
         assert!(markdown_output.contains('\u{1b}'));
     }
 
+    #[test]
+    fn renders_ordered_and_nested_lists() {
+        let terminal_renderer = TerminalRenderer::new();
+        let markdown_output =
+            terminal_renderer.render_markdown("1. first\n2. second\n   - nested\n   - child");
+        let plain_text = strip_ansi(&markdown_output);
+
+        assert!(plain_text.contains("1. first"));
+        assert!(plain_text.contains("2. second"));
+        assert!(plain_text.contains("  • nested"));
+        assert!(plain_text.contains("  • child"));
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn renders_tables_with_alignment() {
+        let terminal_renderer = TerminalRenderer::new();
+        let markdown_output = terminal_renderer
+            .render_markdown("| Name | Value |\n| ---- | ----- |\n| alpha | 1 |\n| beta | 22 |");
+        let plain_text = strip_ansi(&markdown_output);
+        let lines = plain_text.lines().collect::<Vec<_>>();
+
+        assert_eq!(lines[0], "│ Name  │ Value │");
+        assert_eq!(lines[1], "│───────┼───────│");
+        assert_eq!(lines[2], "│ alpha │ 1     │");
+        assert_eq!(lines[3], "│ beta  │ 22    │");
+        assert!(markdown_output.contains('\u{1b}'));
+    }
+
     #[test]
     fn spinner_advances_frames() {
         let terminal_renderer = TerminalRenderer::new();

rust/crates/tools/Cargo.toml

@@ -6,12 +6,10 @@ license.workspace = true
 publish.workspace = true
 
 [dependencies]
-api = { path = "../api" }
 runtime = { path = "../runtime" }
 reqwest = { version = "0.12", default-features = false, features = ["blocking", "rustls-tls"] }
 serde = { version = "1", features = ["derive"] }
 serde_json = "1"
-tokio = { version = "1", features = ["rt-multi-thread"] }
 
 [lints]
 workspace = true

rust/crates/tools/src/lib.rs

@@ -3,17 +3,10 @@ use std::path::{Path, PathBuf};
 use std::process::Command;
 use std::time::{Duration, Instant};
 
-use api::{
-    resolve_startup_auth_source, AnthropicClient, ContentBlockDelta, InputContentBlock,
-    InputMessage, MessageRequest, OutputContentBlock, StreamEvent as ApiStreamEvent, ToolChoice,
-    ToolDefinition, ToolResultContentBlock,
-};
 use reqwest::blocking::Client;
 use runtime::{
-    edit_file, execute_bash, glob_search, grep_search, load_system_prompt, read_file, write_file,
-    ApiClient, ApiRequest, AssistantEvent, BashCommandInput, ConfigLoader, ContentBlock,
-    ConversationMessage, ConversationRuntime, GrepSearchInput, MessageRole, PermissionMode,
-    PermissionPolicy, RuntimeError, Session, TokenUsage, ToolError, ToolExecutor,
+    edit_file, execute_bash, glob_search, grep_search, read_file, write_file, BashCommandInput,
+    GrepSearchInput, PermissionMode,
 };
 use serde::{Deserialize, Serialize};
 use serde_json::{json, Value};
@@ -241,8 +234,7 @@ pub fn mvp_tool_specs() -> Vec<ToolSpec> {
         },
         ToolSpec {
             name: "Agent",
-            description:
-                "Launch and execute a specialized child agent conversation with bounded recursion.",
+            description: "Launch a specialized agent task and persist its handoff metadata.",
             input_schema: json!({
                 "type": "object",
                 "properties": {
@@ -250,8 +242,7 @@ pub fn mvp_tool_specs() -> Vec<ToolSpec> {
                     "prompt": { "type": "string" },
                     "subagent_type": { "type": "string" },
                     "name": { "type": "string" },
-                    "model": { "type": "string" },
-                    "max_depth": { "type": "integer", "minimum": 0 }
+                    "model": { "type": "string" }
                 },
                 "required": ["description", "prompt"],
                 "additionalProperties": false
@@ -588,7 +579,6 @@ struct AgentInput {
     subagent_type: Option<String>,
     name: Option<String>,
     model: Option<String>,
-    max_depth: Option<usize>,
 }
 
 #[derive(Debug, Deserialize)]
@@ -722,16 +712,6 @@ struct AgentOutput {
     subagent_type: Option<String>,
     model: Option<String>,
     status: String,
-    #[serde(rename = "maxDepth")]
-    max_depth: usize,
-    #[serde(rename = "depth")]
-    depth: usize,
-    #[serde(rename = "result")]
-    result: Option<String>,
-    #[serde(rename = "assistantMessages")]
-    assistant_messages: Vec<String>,
-    #[serde(rename = "toolResults")]
-    tool_results: Vec<AgentToolResult>,
     #[serde(rename = "outputFile")]
     output_file: String,
     #[serde(rename = "manifestFile")]
@@ -740,15 +720,6 @@ struct AgentOutput {
     created_at: String,
 }
 
-#[derive(Debug, Clone, Serialize, Deserialize)]
-struct AgentToolResult {
-    #[serde(rename = "toolName")]
-    tool_name: String,
-    output: String,
-    #[serde(rename = "isError")]
-    is_error: bool,
-}
-
 #[derive(Debug, Serialize)]
 struct ToolSearchOutput {
     matches: Vec<String>,
@@ -1360,14 +1331,6 @@ fn execute_agent(input: AgentInput) -> Result<AgentOutput, String> {
         return Err(String::from("prompt must not be empty"));
     }
 
-    let depth = current_agent_depth()?;
-    let max_depth = input.max_depth.unwrap_or(3);
-    if depth >= max_depth {
-        return Err(format!(
-            "Agent max_depth exceeded: current depth {depth} reached limit {max_depth}"
-        ));
-    }
-
     let agent_id = make_agent_id();
     let output_dir = agent_store_dir()?;
     std::fs::create_dir_all(&output_dir).map_err(|error| error.to_string())?;
@@ -1381,31 +1344,35 @@ fn execute_agent(input: AgentInput) -> Result<AgentOutput, String> {
         .filter(|name| !name.is_empty())
         .unwrap_or_else(|| slugify_agent_name(&input.description));
     let created_at = iso8601_now();
-    let model = input.model.clone().or_else(agent_default_model);
 
-    let child_result = with_agent_depth(depth + 1, || {
-        run_child_agent_conversation(&input.prompt, model.clone(), max_depth)
-    })?;
+    let output_contents = format!(
+        "# Agent Task
+
+- id: {}
+- name: {}
+- description: {}
+- subagent_type: {}
+- created_at: {}
+
+## Prompt
+
+{}
+",
+        agent_id, agent_name, input.description, normalized_subagent_type, created_at, input.prompt
+    );
+    std::fs::write(&output_file, output_contents).map_err(|error| error.to_string())?;
 
     let manifest = AgentOutput {
         agent_id,
         name: agent_name,
         description: input.description,
         subagent_type: Some(normalized_subagent_type),
-        model,
-        status: String::from("completed"),
-        max_depth,
-        depth,
-        result: child_result.result.clone(),
-        assistant_messages: child_result.assistant_messages.clone(),
-        tool_results: child_result.tool_results.clone(),
+        model: input.model,
+        status: String::from("queued"),
         output_file: output_file.display().to_string(),
         manifest_file: manifest_file.display().to_string(),
         created_at,
     };
-
-    let output_contents = render_agent_output(&manifest);
-    std::fs::write(&output_file, output_contents).map_err(|error| error.to_string())?;
     std::fs::write(
         &manifest_file,
         serde_json::to_string_pretty(&manifest).map_err(|error| error.to_string())?,
@@ -1415,461 +1382,6 @@ fn execute_agent(input: AgentInput) -> Result<AgentOutput, String> {
     Ok(manifest)
 }
 
-#[derive(Debug, Clone)]
-struct ChildConversationResult {
-    result: Option<String>,
-    assistant_messages: Vec<String>,
-    tool_results: Vec<AgentToolResult>,
-}
-
-fn run_child_agent_conversation(
-    prompt: &str,
-    model: Option<String>,
-    _max_depth: usize,
-) -> Result<ChildConversationResult, String> {
-    let mut runtime = ConversationRuntime::new(
-        Session::new(),
-        build_agent_api_client(model.unwrap_or_else(default_agent_model))?,
-        AgentToolExecutor,
-        agent_permission_policy(),
-        build_agent_system_prompt()?,
-    )
-    .with_max_iterations(16);
-
-    let summary = runtime
-        .run_turn(prompt, None)
-        .map_err(|error| error.to_string())?;
-
-    let assistant_messages = summary
-        .assistant_messages
-        .iter()
-        .filter_map(extract_message_text)
-        .collect::<Vec<_>>();
-    let tool_results = summary
-        .tool_results
-        .iter()
-        .filter_map(extract_agent_tool_result)
-        .collect::<Vec<_>>();
-    let result = assistant_messages.last().cloned();
-
-    Ok(ChildConversationResult {
-        result,
-        assistant_messages,
-        tool_results,
-    })
-}
-
-fn render_agent_output(output: &AgentOutput) -> String {
-    let mut lines = vec![
-        "# Agent Task".to_string(),
-        String::new(),
-        format!("- id: {}", output.agent_id),
-        format!("- name: {}", output.name),
-        format!("- description: {}", output.description),
-        format!(
-            "- subagent_type: {}",
-            output.subagent_type.as_deref().unwrap_or("general-purpose")
-        ),
-        format!("- status: {}", output.status),
-        format!("- depth: {}", output.depth),
-        format!("- max_depth: {}", output.max_depth),
-        format!("- created_at: {}", output.created_at),
-        String::new(),
-        "## Result".to_string(),
-        String::new(),
-        output
-            .result
-            .clone()
-            .unwrap_or_else(|| String::from("<no final assistant text>")),
-    ];
-
-    if !output.tool_results.is_empty() {
-        lines.push(String::new());
-        lines.push("## Tool Results".to_string());
-        lines.push(String::new());
-        lines.extend(output.tool_results.iter().map(|result| {
-            format!(
-                "- {} [{}]: {}",
-                result.tool_name,
-                if result.is_error { "error" } else { "ok" },
-                result.output
-            )
-        }));
-    }
-
-    lines.join("\n")
-}
-
-fn current_agent_depth() -> Result<usize, String> {
-    std::env::var("CLAWD_AGENT_DEPTH")
-        .ok()
-        .map(|value| {
-            value
-                .parse::<usize>()
-                .map_err(|error| format!("invalid CLAWD_AGENT_DEPTH: {error}"))
-        })
-        .transpose()
-        .map(|value| value.unwrap_or(0))
-}
-
-fn with_agent_depth<T>(depth: usize, f: impl FnOnce() -> Result<T, String>) -> Result<T, String> {
-    let previous = std::env::var("CLAWD_AGENT_DEPTH").ok();
-    std::env::set_var("CLAWD_AGENT_DEPTH", depth.to_string());
-    let result = f();
-    if let Some(previous) = previous {
-        std::env::set_var("CLAWD_AGENT_DEPTH", previous);
-    } else {
-        std::env::remove_var("CLAWD_AGENT_DEPTH");
-    }
-    result
-}
-
-fn agent_default_model() -> Option<String> {
-    std::env::var("CLAWD_MODEL")
-        .ok()
-        .filter(|value| !value.trim().is_empty())
-}
-
-fn default_agent_model() -> String {
-    agent_default_model().unwrap_or_else(|| String::from("claude-sonnet-4-20250514"))
-}
-
-fn build_agent_system_prompt() -> Result<Vec<String>, String> {
-    let cwd = std::env::current_dir().map_err(|error| error.to_string())?;
-    let date = std::env::var("CLAWD_CURRENT_DATE").unwrap_or_else(|_| String::from("2026-04-01"));
-    load_system_prompt(cwd, &date, std::env::consts::OS, "unknown")
-        .map_err(|error| error.to_string())
-}
-
-fn agent_permission_policy() -> PermissionPolicy {
-    mvp_tool_specs().into_iter().fold(
-        PermissionPolicy::new(PermissionMode::DangerFullAccess),
-        |policy, spec| policy.with_tool_requirement(spec.name, spec.required_permission),
-    )
-}
-
-struct AgentToolExecutor;
-
-impl ToolExecutor for AgentToolExecutor {
-    fn execute(&mut self, tool_name: &str, input: &str) -> Result<String, ToolError> {
-        let value = serde_json::from_str(input)
-            .map_err(|error| ToolError::new(format!("invalid tool input JSON: {error}")))?;
-        execute_tool(tool_name, &value).map_err(ToolError::new)
-    }
-}
-
-enum AgentApiClient {
-    Scripted(ScriptedAgentApiClient),
-    Anthropic(AnthropicAgentApiClient),
-}
-
-impl ApiClient for AgentApiClient {
-    fn stream(&mut self, request: ApiRequest) -> Result<Vec<AssistantEvent>, RuntimeError> {
-        match self {
-            Self::Scripted(client) => client.stream(request),
-            Self::Anthropic(client) => client.stream(request),
-        }
-    }
-}
-
-fn build_agent_api_client(model: String) -> Result<AgentApiClient, String> {
-    if let Some(script) = std::env::var("CLAWD_AGENT_TEST_SCRIPT")
-        .ok()
-        .filter(|value| !value.trim().is_empty())
-    {
-        return Ok(AgentApiClient::Scripted(ScriptedAgentApiClient::new(
-            &script,
-        )?));
-    }
-
-    Ok(AgentApiClient::Anthropic(AnthropicAgentApiClient::new(
-        model,
-    )?))
-}
-
-struct AnthropicAgentApiClient {
-    runtime: tokio::runtime::Runtime,
-    client: AnthropicClient,
-    model: String,
-}
-
-impl AnthropicAgentApiClient {
-    fn new(model: String) -> Result<Self, String> {
-        Ok(Self {
-            runtime: tokio::runtime::Runtime::new().map_err(|error| error.to_string())?,
-            client: AnthropicClient::from_auth(resolve_agent_auth_source()?),
-            model,
-        })
-    }
-}
-
-impl ApiClient for AnthropicAgentApiClient {
-    fn stream(&mut self, request: ApiRequest) -> Result<Vec<AssistantEvent>, RuntimeError> {
-        let message_request = MessageRequest {
-            model: self.model.clone(),
-            max_tokens: 32,
-            messages: convert_agent_messages(&request.messages),
-            system: (!request.system_prompt.is_empty()).then(|| {
-                request.system_prompt.join(
-                    "
-
-",
-                )
-            }),
-            tools: Some(agent_tool_definitions()),
-            tool_choice: Some(ToolChoice::Auto),
-            stream: true,
-        };
-
-        self.runtime.block_on(async {
-            let mut stream = self
-                .client
-                .stream_message(&message_request)
-                .await
-                .map_err(|error| RuntimeError::new(error.to_string()))?;
-            let mut events = Vec::new();
-            let mut pending_tool: Option<(String, String, String)> = None;
-            let mut saw_stop = false;
-
-            while let Some(event) = stream
-                .next_event()
-                .await
-                .map_err(|error| RuntimeError::new(error.to_string()))?
-            {
-                match event {
-                    ApiStreamEvent::MessageStart(start) => {
-                        push_agent_output_blocks(
-                            start.message.content,
-                            &mut events,
-                            &mut pending_tool,
-                        );
-                    }
-                    ApiStreamEvent::ContentBlockStart(start) => {
-                        push_agent_output_block(
-                            start.content_block,
-                            &mut events,
-                            &mut pending_tool,
-                        );
-                    }
-                    ApiStreamEvent::ContentBlockDelta(delta) => match delta.delta {
-                        ContentBlockDelta::TextDelta { text } => {
-                            if !text.is_empty() {
-                                events.push(AssistantEvent::TextDelta(text));
-                            }
-                        }
-                        ContentBlockDelta::InputJsonDelta { partial_json } => {
-                            if let Some((_, _, input)) = &mut pending_tool {
-                                input.push_str(&partial_json);
-                            }
-                        }
-                    },
-                    ApiStreamEvent::ContentBlockStop(_) => {
-                        if let Some((id, name, input)) = pending_tool.take() {
-                            events.push(AssistantEvent::ToolUse { id, name, input });
-                        }
-                    }
-                    ApiStreamEvent::MessageDelta(delta) => {
-                        events.push(AssistantEvent::Usage(TokenUsage {
-                            input_tokens: delta.usage.input_tokens,
-                            output_tokens: delta.usage.output_tokens,
-                            cache_creation_input_tokens: delta.usage.cache_creation_input_tokens,
-                            cache_read_input_tokens: delta.usage.cache_read_input_tokens,
-                        }));
-                    }
-                    ApiStreamEvent::MessageStop(_) => {
-                        saw_stop = true;
-                        events.push(AssistantEvent::MessageStop);
-                    }
-                }
-            }
-
-            if !saw_stop {
-                events.push(AssistantEvent::MessageStop);
-            }
-
-            Ok(events)
-        })
-    }
-}
-
-fn resolve_agent_auth_source() -> Result<api::AuthSource, String> {
-    resolve_startup_auth_source(|| {
-        let cwd = std::env::current_dir().map_err(api::ApiError::from)?;
-        let config = ConfigLoader::default_for(&cwd).load().map_err(|error| {
-            api::ApiError::Auth(format!("failed to load runtime OAuth config: {error}"))
-        })?;
-        Ok(config.oauth().cloned())
-    })
-    .map_err(|error| error.to_string())
-}
-
-fn agent_tool_definitions() -> Vec<ToolDefinition> {
-    mvp_tool_specs()
-        .into_iter()
-        .map(|spec| ToolDefinition {
-            name: spec.name.to_string(),
-            description: Some(spec.description.to_string()),
-            input_schema: spec.input_schema,
-        })
-        .collect()
-}
-
-fn convert_agent_messages(messages: &[ConversationMessage]) -> Vec<InputMessage> {
-    messages
-        .iter()
-        .filter_map(|message| {
-            let role = match message.role {
-                MessageRole::System | MessageRole::User | MessageRole::Tool => "user",
-                MessageRole::Assistant => "assistant",
-            };
-            let content = message
-                .blocks
-                .iter()
-                .map(|block| match block {
-                    ContentBlock::Text { text } => InputContentBlock::Text { text: text.clone() },
-                    ContentBlock::ToolUse { id, name, input } => InputContentBlock::ToolUse {
-                        id: id.clone(),
-                        name: name.clone(),
-                        input: serde_json::from_str(input)
-                            .unwrap_or_else(|_| serde_json::json!({ "raw": input })),
-                    },
-                    ContentBlock::ToolResult {
-                        tool_use_id,
-                        output,
-                        is_error,
-                        ..
-                    } => InputContentBlock::ToolResult {
-                        tool_use_id: tool_use_id.clone(),
-                        content: vec![ToolResultContentBlock::Text {
-                            text: output.clone(),
-                        }],
-                        is_error: *is_error,
-                    },
-                })
-                .collect::<Vec<_>>();
-            (!content.is_empty()).then(|| InputMessage {
-                role: role.to_string(),
-                content,
-            })
-        })
-        .collect()
-}
-
-fn push_agent_output_blocks(
-    blocks: Vec<OutputContentBlock>,
-    events: &mut Vec<AssistantEvent>,
-    pending_tool: &mut Option<(String, String, String)>,
-) {
-    for block in blocks {
-        push_agent_output_block(block, events, pending_tool);
-        if let Some((id, name, input)) = pending_tool.take() {
-            events.push(AssistantEvent::ToolUse { id, name, input });
-        }
-    }
-}
-
-fn push_agent_output_block(
-    block: OutputContentBlock,
-    events: &mut Vec<AssistantEvent>,
-    pending_tool: &mut Option<(String, String, String)>,
-) {
-    match block {
-        OutputContentBlock::Text { text } => {
-            if !text.is_empty() {
-                events.push(AssistantEvent::TextDelta(text));
-            }
-        }
-        OutputContentBlock::ToolUse { id, name, input } => {
-            *pending_tool = Some((id, name, input.to_string()));
-        }
-    }
-}
-
-#[derive(Debug)]
-struct ScriptedAgentApiClient {
-    turns: Vec<Vec<ScriptedAgentEvent>>,
-    call_count: usize,
-}
-
-impl ScriptedAgentApiClient {
-    fn new(script: &str) -> Result<Self, String> {
-        let turns = serde_json::from_str(script).map_err(|error| error.to_string())?;
-        Ok(Self {
-            turns,
-            call_count: 0,
-        })
-    }
-}
-
-impl ApiClient for ScriptedAgentApiClient {
-    fn stream(&mut self, _request: ApiRequest) -> Result<Vec<AssistantEvent>, RuntimeError> {
-        if self.call_count >= self.turns.len() {
-            return Err(RuntimeError::new("scripted agent client exhausted"));
-        }
-        let events = self.turns[self.call_count]
-            .iter()
-            .map(ScriptedAgentEvent::to_runtime_event)
-            .chain(std::iter::once(AssistantEvent::MessageStop))
-            .collect();
-        self.call_count += 1;
-        Ok(events)
-    }
-}
-
-#[derive(Debug, Clone, Deserialize)]
-#[serde(tag = "type", rename_all = "snake_case")]
-enum ScriptedAgentEvent {
-    Text {
-        text: String,
-    },
-    ToolUse {
-        id: String,
-        name: String,
-        input: Value,
-    },
-}
-
-impl ScriptedAgentEvent {
-    fn to_runtime_event(&self) -> AssistantEvent {
-        match self {
-            Self::Text { text } => AssistantEvent::TextDelta(text.clone()),
-            Self::ToolUse { id, name, input } => AssistantEvent::ToolUse {
-                id: id.clone(),
-                name: name.clone(),
-                input: input.to_string(),
-            },
-        }
-    }
-}
-
-fn extract_message_text(message: &ConversationMessage) -> Option<String> {
-    let text = message
-        .blocks
-        .iter()
-        .filter_map(|block| match block {
-            ContentBlock::Text { text } => Some(text.as_str()),
-            _ => None,
-        })
-        .collect::<String>();
-    (!text.is_empty()).then_some(text)
-}
-
-fn extract_agent_tool_result(message: &ConversationMessage) -> Option<AgentToolResult> {
-    message.blocks.iter().find_map(|block| match block {
-        ContentBlock::ToolResult {
-            tool_name,
-            output,
-            is_error,
-            ..
-        } => Some(AgentToolResult {
-            tool_name: tool_name.clone(),
-            output: output.clone(),
-            is_error: *is_error,
-        }),
-        _ => None,
-    })
-}
-
 #[allow(clippy::needless_pass_by_value)]
 fn execute_tool_search(input: ToolSearchInput) -> ToolSearchOutput {
     let deferred = deferred_tool_specs();
@@ -3251,28 +2763,12 @@ mod tests {
     }
 
     #[test]
-    fn agent_executes_child_conversation_and_persists_results() {
+    fn agent_persists_handoff_metadata() {
         let _guard = env_lock()
             .lock()
             .unwrap_or_else(std::sync::PoisonError::into_inner);
         let dir = temp_path("agent-store");
         std::env::set_var("CLAWD_AGENT_STORE", &dir);
-        std::env::set_var(
-            "CLAWD_AGENT_TEST_SCRIPT",
-            serde_json::to_string(&vec![
-                vec![json!({
-                    "type": "tool_use",
-                    "id": "tool-1",
-                    "name": "StructuredOutput",
-                    "input": {"ok": true, "items": [1, 2, 3]}
-                })],
-                vec![json!({
-                    "type": "text",
-                    "text": "Child agent completed successfully."
-                })],
-            ])
-            .expect("script json"),
-        );
 
         let result = execute_tool(
             "Agent",
@@ -3284,35 +2780,22 @@ mod tests {
             }),
         )
         .expect("Agent should succeed");
-        std::env::remove_var("CLAWD_AGENT_TEST_SCRIPT");
         std::env::remove_var("CLAWD_AGENT_STORE");
 
         let output: serde_json::Value = serde_json::from_str(&result).expect("valid json");
         assert_eq!(output["name"], "ship-audit");
         assert_eq!(output["subagentType"], "Explore");
-        assert_eq!(output["status"], "completed");
-        assert_eq!(output["depth"], 0);
-        assert_eq!(output["maxDepth"], 3);
-        assert_eq!(output["result"], "Child agent completed successfully.");
-        assert_eq!(output["toolResults"][0]["toolName"], "StructuredOutput");
-        assert_eq!(output["toolResults"][0]["isError"], false);
+        assert_eq!(output["status"], "queued");
+        assert!(output["createdAt"].as_str().is_some());
         let manifest_file = output["manifestFile"].as_str().expect("manifest file");
         let output_file = output["outputFile"].as_str().expect("output file");
         let contents = std::fs::read_to_string(output_file).expect("agent file exists");
         let manifest_contents =
             std::fs::read_to_string(manifest_file).expect("manifest file exists");
-        assert!(contents.contains("Child agent completed successfully."));
-        assert!(contents.contains("StructuredOutput [ok]"));
+        assert!(contents.contains("Audit the branch"));
+        assert!(contents.contains("Check tests and outstanding work."));
         assert!(manifest_contents.contains("\"subagentType\": \"Explore\""));
 
-        std::env::set_var(
-            "CLAWD_AGENT_TEST_SCRIPT",
-            serde_json::to_string(&vec![vec![json!({
-                "type": "text",
-                "text": "Normalized alias check."
-            })]])
-            .expect("script json"),
-        );
         let normalized = execute_tool(
             "Agent",
             &json!({
@@ -3322,19 +2805,10 @@ mod tests {
             }),
         )
         .expect("Agent should normalize built-in aliases");
-        std::env::remove_var("CLAWD_AGENT_TEST_SCRIPT");
         let normalized_output: serde_json::Value =
             serde_json::from_str(&normalized).expect("valid json");
         assert_eq!(normalized_output["subagentType"], "Explore");
 
-        std::env::set_var(
-            "CLAWD_AGENT_TEST_SCRIPT",
-            serde_json::to_string(&vec![vec![json!({
-                "type": "text",
-                "text": "Name normalization check."
-            })]])
-            .expect("script json"),
-        );
         let named = execute_tool(
             "Agent",
             &json!({
@@ -3344,14 +2818,13 @@ mod tests {
             }),
         )
         .expect("Agent should normalize explicit names");
-        std::env::remove_var("CLAWD_AGENT_TEST_SCRIPT");
         let named_output: serde_json::Value = serde_json::from_str(&named).expect("valid json");
         assert_eq!(named_output["name"], "ship-audit");
         let _ = std::fs::remove_dir_all(dir);
     }
 
     #[test]
-    fn agent_rejects_blank_required_fields_and_enforces_max_depth() {
+    fn agent_rejects_blank_required_fields() {
         let missing_description = execute_tool(
             "Agent",
             &json!({
@@ -3371,22 +2844,6 @@ mod tests {
         )
         .expect_err("blank prompt should fail");
         assert!(missing_prompt.contains("prompt must not be empty"));
-
-        let _guard = env_lock()
-            .lock()
-            .unwrap_or_else(std::sync::PoisonError::into_inner);
-        std::env::set_var("CLAWD_AGENT_DEPTH", "1");
-        let depth_error = execute_tool(
-            "Agent",
-            &json!({
-                "description": "Nested agent",
-                "prompt": "Do nested work.",
-                "max_depth": 1
-            }),
-        )
-        .expect_err("max depth should fail");
-        std::env::remove_var("CLAWD_AGENT_DEPTH");
-        assert!(depth_error.contains("max_depth exceeded"));
     }
 
     #[test]