spec: update codegen-js.md to Phase 5, ~90% coverage

Status updated from Phase 4 ~80% to Phase 5 ~90%. New sections: - 7. Language features coverage table (supported vs stubbed) - 7a. Phase 5 constructs: extern fn, anonymous functions, try/catch, method call on Any, URL imports -- each with emit shape examples - 9. Roadmap updated: Phases 1-5 marked DONE, Phase 6 unblocked Runtime builtin table updated to ~90 builtins including all Phase 5 additions (promise_then/catch/resolve/reject, object_assign/keys/values, json_deep_clone, array_from, type_of, instanceof_check).
examples: rewrite browser-auth.el using new language features
2026-05-04 11:03:47 -05:00 · 2026-05-04 11:02:13 -05:00 · 2026-05-04 11:01:36 -05:00 · 2026-05-04 11:01:14 -05:00 · 2026-05-04 11:00:24 -05:00 · 2026-05-04 10:59:17 -05:00
25 changed files with 20992 additions and 688 deletions
@@ -0,0 +1,101 @@
+name: El CI — dev
+
+on:
+  push:
+    branches:
+      - dev
+  pull_request:
+    branches:
+      - dev
+
+jobs:
+  build-and-test:
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+
+    steps:
+      - name: Checkout
+        uses: actions/checkout@v4
+
+      - name: Install build dependencies
+        run: |
+          apt-get update -qq
+          apt-get install -y gcc libcurl4-openssl-dev
+
+      # Gen2: compile the bootstrap C source into a working elc binary
+      - name: Build elc from bootstrap (gen2)
+        run: |
+          gcc -O2 \
+            -I el-compiler/runtime \
+            dist/elc-bootstrap.c \
+            el-compiler/runtime/el_runtime.c \
+            -lcurl -lpthread \
+            -o dist/elc-gen2
+          chmod +x dist/elc-gen2
+          echo "gen2 elc built"
+          dist/elc-gen2 --version || true
+
+      # Gen3: use gen2 to compile the El compiler from its own El source (self-host)
+      - name: Self-host: compile El compiler with gen2 (gen3)
+        run: |
+          mkdir -p dist/platform
+          dist/elc-gen2 el-compiler/src/compiler.el > dist/elc-gen3.c
+          gcc -O2 \
+            -I el-compiler/runtime \
+            dist/elc-gen3.c \
+            el-compiler/runtime/el_runtime.c \
+            -lcurl -lpthread \
+            -o dist/platform/elc
+          chmod +x dist/platform/elc
+          echo "gen3 (self-hosted) elc built"
+          dist/platform/elc --version || true
+
+      # Run all four test suites — all must pass
+      - name: Run tests — text
+        run: |
+          ELC="$(pwd)/dist/platform/elc" \
+          EL_HOME="$(pwd)" \
+          bash tests/text/run.sh
+
+      - name: Run tests — calendar
+        run: |
+          ELC="$(pwd)/dist/platform/elc" \
+          EL_HOME="$(pwd)" \
+          bash tests/calendar/run.sh
+
+      - name: Run tests — time
+        run: |
+          ELC="$(pwd)/dist/platform/elc" \
+          EL_HOME="$(pwd)" \
+          bash tests/time/run.sh
+
+      - name: Run tests — html_sanitizer
+        run: |
+          ELC="$(pwd)/dist/platform/elc" \
+          EL_HOME="$(pwd)" \
+          bash tests/html_sanitizer/run.sh
+
+      # Publish artifact to GCP Artifact Registry (dev)
+      - name: Publish elc to Artifact Registry (dev)
+        env:
+          GCP_SA_KEY: ${{ secrets.GCP_SA_KEY }}
+        run: |
+          echo "${GCP_SA_KEY}" > /tmp/gcp-key.json
+          apt-get install -y -qq apt-transport-https ca-certificates gnupg curl
+          curl -fsSL https://packages.cloud.google.com/apt/doc/apt-key.gpg | gpg --dearmor -o /usr/share/keyrings/cloud.google.gpg
+          echo "deb [signed-by=/usr/share/keyrings/cloud.google.gpg] https://packages.cloud.google.com/apt cloud-sdk main" > /etc/apt/sources.list.d/google-cloud-sdk.list
+          apt-get update -qq && apt-get install -y google-cloud-cli
+          gcloud auth activate-service-account --key-file=/tmp/gcp-key.json
+          gcloud config set project neuron-785695
+
+          VERSION="${GITEA_SHA:0:8}"
+          gcloud artifacts generic upload \
+            --repository=foundation-dev \
+            --location=us-central1 \
+            --project=neuron-785695 \
+            --package=el/elc \
+            --version="${VERSION}" \
+            --source=dist/platform/elc
+
+          # Also tag as latest-dev
+          echo "Published elc version=${VERSION} to foundation-dev/el/elc"
+          rm -f /tmp/gcp-key.json
@@ -0,0 +1,100 @@
+name: El CI — stage
+
+on:
+  push:
+    branches:
+      - stage
+  pull_request:
+    branches:
+      - stage
+
+jobs:
+  build-and-test:
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+
+    steps:
+      - name: Checkout
+        uses: actions/checkout@v4
+
+      - name: Install build dependencies
+        run: |
+          apt-get update -qq
+          apt-get install -y gcc libcurl4-openssl-dev
+
+      # Gen2: compile the bootstrap C source into a working elc binary
+      - name: Build elc from bootstrap (gen2)
+        run: |
+          gcc -O2 \
+            -I el-compiler/runtime \
+            dist/elc-bootstrap.c \
+            el-compiler/runtime/el_runtime.c \
+            -lcurl -lpthread \
+            -o dist/elc-gen2
+          chmod +x dist/elc-gen2
+          echo "gen2 elc built"
+          dist/elc-gen2 --version || true
+
+      # Gen3: use gen2 to compile the El compiler from its own El source (self-host)
+      - name: Self-host: compile El compiler with gen2 (gen3)
+        run: |
+          mkdir -p dist/platform
+          dist/elc-gen2 el-compiler/src/compiler.el > dist/elc-gen3.c
+          gcc -O2 \
+            -I el-compiler/runtime \
+            dist/elc-gen3.c \
+            el-compiler/runtime/el_runtime.c \
+            -lcurl -lpthread \
+            -o dist/platform/elc
+          chmod +x dist/platform/elc
+          echo "gen3 (self-hosted) elc built"
+          dist/platform/elc --version || true
+
+      # Run all four test suites — all must pass
+      - name: Run tests — text
+        run: |
+          ELC="$(pwd)/dist/platform/elc" \
+          EL_HOME="$(pwd)" \
+          bash tests/text/run.sh
+
+      - name: Run tests — calendar
+        run: |
+          ELC="$(pwd)/dist/platform/elc" \
+          EL_HOME="$(pwd)" \
+          bash tests/calendar/run.sh
+
+      - name: Run tests — time
+        run: |
+          ELC="$(pwd)/dist/platform/elc" \
+          EL_HOME="$(pwd)" \
+          bash tests/time/run.sh
+
+      - name: Run tests — html_sanitizer
+        run: |
+          ELC="$(pwd)/dist/platform/elc" \
+          EL_HOME="$(pwd)" \
+          bash tests/html_sanitizer/run.sh
+
+      # Publish artifact to GCP Artifact Registry (stage)
+      - name: Publish elc to Artifact Registry (stage)
+        env:
+          GCP_SA_KEY: ${{ secrets.GCP_SA_KEY }}
+        run: |
+          echo "${GCP_SA_KEY}" > /tmp/gcp-key.json
+          apt-get install -y -qq apt-transport-https ca-certificates gnupg curl
+          curl -fsSL https://packages.cloud.google.com/apt/doc/apt-key.gpg | gpg --dearmor -o /usr/share/keyrings/cloud.google.gpg
+          echo "deb [signed-by=/usr/share/keyrings/cloud.google.gpg] https://packages.cloud.google.com/apt cloud-sdk main" > /etc/apt/sources.list.d/google-cloud-sdk.list
+          apt-get update -qq && apt-get install -y google-cloud-cli
+          gcloud auth activate-service-account --key-file=/tmp/gcp-key.json
+          gcloud config set project neuron-785695
+
+          VERSION="${GITEA_SHA:0:8}"
+          gcloud artifacts generic upload \
+            --repository=foundation-stage \
+            --location=us-central1 \
+            --project=neuron-785695 \
+            --package=el/elc \
+            --version="${VERSION}" \
+            --source=dist/platform/elc
+
+          echo "Published elc version=${VERSION} to foundation-stage/el/elc"
+          rm -f /tmp/gcp-key.json
@@ -129,6 +129,31 @@ jobs:
          echo "Release published successfully"

      # Dispatch el-sdk-updated event to downstream repos
+      # Publish artifact to GCP Artifact Registry (prod)
+      - name: Publish elc to Artifact Registry (prod)
+        env:
+          GCP_SA_KEY: ${{ secrets.GCP_SA_KEY }}
+        run: |
+          echo "${GCP_SA_KEY}" > /tmp/gcp-key.json
+          apt-get install -y -qq apt-transport-https ca-certificates gnupg curl
+          curl -fsSL https://packages.cloud.google.com/apt/doc/apt-key.gpg | gpg --dearmor -o /usr/share/keyrings/cloud.google.gpg
+          echo "deb [signed-by=/usr/share/keyrings/cloud.google.gpg] https://packages.cloud.google.com/apt cloud-sdk main" > /etc/apt/sources.list.d/google-cloud-sdk.list
+          apt-get update -qq && apt-get install -y google-cloud-cli
+          gcloud auth activate-service-account --key-file=/tmp/gcp-key.json
+          gcloud config set project neuron-785695
+
+          VERSION="${GITEA_SHA:0:8}"
+          gcloud artifacts generic upload \
+            --repository=foundation-prod \
+            --location=us-central1 \
+            --project=neuron-785695 \
+            --package=el/elc \
+            --version="${VERSION}" \
+            --source=dist/platform/elc
+
+          echo "Published elc version=${VERSION} to foundation-prod/el/elc"
+          rm -f /tmp/gcp-key.json
+
      - name: Dispatch to foundation/engram
        env:
          GITEA_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITEA_TOKEN }}
@@ -0,0 +1,979 @@
+# El Language Bootstrap Guide
+
+This document is the authoritative guide for reconstructing the El compiler toolchain from scratch. If the bootstrap binary at `dist/platform/elc` is ever lost, this document is the path back.
+
+---
+
+## 1. The Bootstrap Chain (Current State)
+
+### The Trust Chain
+
+El is a self-hosting language. The compiler is written in El. This creates a circular dependency: you need an El compiler to compile the El compiler. The chain is resolved by a seed binary:
+
+```
+dist/platform/elc   (Mach-O arm64 native binary)
+        ↓
+   compiles elc-cli.el
+        ↓
+   new self-hosted elc binary
+        ↓
+   compiles itself again (identity check)
+        ↓
+   stable self-hosted compiler
+```
+
+The binary at `dist/platform/elc` is a **Mach-O 64-bit arm64 executable**. The `elc.preselfhost` and `elc.legacy` files in the same directory are older snapshots kept as fallback checkpoints.
+
+The key property: every binary in `dist/platform/` was produced by compiling the El source in `el-compiler/src/` using a previous version of that same binary. The chain is auditable: the source is the ground truth, not the binary.
+
+### The Self-Hosting Pipeline
+
+```
+elc-cli.el
+  imports → el-compiler/src/compiler.el
+               imports → el-compiler/src/lexer.el
+               imports → el-compiler/src/parser.el
+               imports → el-compiler/src/codegen.el
+               imports → el-compiler/src/codegen-js.el
+```
+
+Import resolution is textual. `compiler.el` recursively inlines all imported `.el` files before lex/parse. The result is one large unified source string that the compiler then processes in a single pass.
+
+`elc-combined.el` in the repo root is a pre-merged single-file edition used during early bootstrap iterations.
+
+### What the Bootstrap Binary Actually Is
+
+The `dist/platform/elc` binary is a compiled El program that was produced by running an earlier version of itself on `elc-cli.el`. It is not a Rust binary. The `elc.legacy` and `elc.preselfhost` checkpoints suggest the chain has been continuously self-hosting and re-stamped. The original genesis compiler (referenced in the language spec as a "Rust genesis compiler") was used to produce the first self-hosted binary; that Rust binary is not present in this repo.
+
+To rebuild the current binary from source using the current binary:
+
+```bash
+cd /path/to/el
+./dist/platform/elc elc-cli.el elc-new.c
+cc -std=c11 -I el-compiler/runtime -lcurl -lpthread \
+   -o dist/platform/elc-new \
+   elc-new.c el-compiler/runtime/el_runtime.c
+```
+
+Verify self-hosting by using `elc-new` to recompile itself and diffing the outputs.
+
+---
+
+## 2. The Language
+
+### 2.1 Lexical Structure
+
+El source is UTF-8. File extension `.el`. Comments are single-line only: `//` to end of line.
+
+**Token representation:** every token is a map `{ "kind": String, "value": String }`.
+
+**Keywords** — from `keyword_kind()` in `lexer.el`:
+
+| Keyword | Token Kind | Notes |
+|---------|-----------|-------|
+| `let` | `Let` | variable binding |
+| `fn` | `Fn` | function definition |
+| `type` | `Type` | struct definition |
+| `enum` | `Enum` | enum definition |
+| `match` | `Match` | pattern match |
+| `return` | `Return` | function return |
+| `if` | `If` | conditional |
+| `else` | `Else` | |
+| `for` | `For` | iteration |
+| `in` | `In` | used in `for x in list` |
+| `while` | `While` | loop |
+| `import` | `Import` | module import |
+| `from` | `From` | `from mod import { Name }` |
+| `as` | `As` | (reserved, no parse form) |
+| `with` | `With` | (reserved) |
+| `sealed` | `Sealed` | (reserved) |
+| `activate` | `Activate` | (reserved) |
+| `where` | `Where` | (reserved) |
+| `test` | `Test` | (reserved) |
+| `seed` | `Seed` | (reserved) |
+| `assert` | `Assert` | (reserved) |
+| `protocol` | `Protocol` | (reserved) |
+| `impl` | `Impl` | (reserved) |
+| `retry` | `Retry` | reserved / soft keyword in expr position |
+| `times` | `Times` | reserved / soft keyword |
+| `fallback` | `Fallback` | reserved / soft keyword |
+| `reason` | `Reason` | reserved / soft keyword |
+| `parallel` | `Parallel` | reserved / soft keyword |
+| `trace` | `Trace` | reserved / soft keyword |
+| `requires` | `Requires` | reserved / soft keyword |
+| `deploy` | `Deploy` | reserved / soft keyword |
+| `to` | `To` | reserved / soft keyword |
+| `via` | `Via` | reserved / soft keyword |
+| `target` | `Target` | **RESERVED — cannot use as identifier** |
+| `true` | `Bool` | literal value `true` |
+| `false` | `Bool` | literal value `false` |
+| `cgi` | `Cgi` | CGI identity block |
+| `service` | `Service` | service declaration block |
+| `manager` | `Manager` | VBD role decorator / soft keyword |
+| `engine` | `Engine` | VBD role decorator / soft keyword |
+| `accessor` | `Accessor` | VBD role decorator / soft keyword |
+| `vessel` | `Vessel` | soft keyword |
+| `extern` | `Extern` | `extern fn` forward declaration |
+
+**Soft keywords** (`target`, `to`, `via`, `deploy`, `reason`, `times`, `fallback`, `retry`, `parallel`, `trace`, `requires`, `where`, `as`, `with`, `manager`, `engine`, `accessor`, `vessel`): these have dedicated token kinds but the parser re-interprets them as `Ident` nodes when they appear in expression position (e.g., as parameter names or local variable names).
+
+**All token kinds:**
+
+| Kind | Pattern |
+|------|---------|
+| `Int` | `[0-9]+` |
+| `Float` | `[0-9]+ '.' [0-9]+` |
+| `Str` | `"…"` with `\"`, `\n`, `\t`, `\r`, `\\` escapes |
+| `Bool` | `true` or `false` |
+| `Ident` | `[a-zA-Z_][a-zA-Z0-9_]*` (not a keyword) |
+| keyword tokens | one per keyword above |
+| `Eq` | `=` |
+| `EqEq` | `==` |
+| `NotEq` | `!=` |
+| `Not` | `!` |
+| `Lt` / `LtEq` / `Gt` / `GtEq` | `<` `<=` `>` `>=` |
+| `And` | `&&` (single `&` is consumed and discarded) |
+| `Or` | `\|\|` |
+| `Pipe` | `\|` |
+| `PipeOp` | `\|>` |
+| `Plus` / `Minus` / `Star` / `Slash` | `+` `-` `*` `/` |
+| `Percent` | `%` |
+| `Arrow` | `->` |
+| `FatArrow` | `=>` |
+| `Colon` / `ColonColon` | `:` `::` |
+| `LParen` / `RParen` | `(` `)` |
+| `LBrace` / `RBrace` | `{` `}` |
+| `LBracket` / `RBracket` | `[` `]` |
+| `Comma` / `Dot` / `Semicolon` | `,` `.` `;` |
+| `At` | `@` |
+| `QuestionMark` | `?` |
+| `Eof` | end-of-input sentinel |
+
+**String comment stripping:** the lexer contains a special heuristic for string literals that embed JavaScript or CSS (`looks_like_code`). If a string contains `<script`, `<style`, or `function` + `;`, the lexer strips `//` and `/* */` comments from the string value before producing the `Str` token. This is a compile-time content sanitization pass.
+
+### 2.2 AST Node Types
+
+Every AST node is a `Map<String, Any>`. The `"expr"` or `"stmt"` key names the node type.
+
+**Expression nodes:**
+
+| `expr` value | Fields | Meaning |
+|-------------|--------|---------|
+| `Int` | `value: String` | integer literal |
+| `Float` | `value: String` | float literal |
+| `Str` | `value: String` | string literal |
+| `Bool` | `value: String` | `"true"` or `"false"` |
+| `Nil` | — | null / missing |
+| `Ident` | `name: String` | identifier reference |
+| `BinOp` | `op: String`, `left`, `right` | binary operation |
+| `Not` | `inner` | unary `!` |
+| `Neg` | `inner` | unary `-` |
+| `Call` | `func`, `args: [expr]` | function call |
+| `Field` | `object`, `field: String` | `obj.field` |
+| `Index` | `object`, `index` | `obj[idx]` |
+| `Array` | `elems: [expr]` | `[e1, e2, …]` |
+| `Map` | `pairs: [{ key: String, value: expr }]` | `{ "k": v, … }` |
+| `If` | `cond`, `then: [stmt]`, `else: [stmt]`, `has_else: Bool` | conditional expression |
+| `For` | `item: String`, `list`, `body: [stmt]` | for-in expression |
+| `Match` | `subject`, `arms: [{ pattern, body }]` | pattern match |
+| `DurationLit` | `count: String`, `unit: String` | `30.seconds`, `1.hour` |
+| `Try` | `inner` | postfix `?` (no-op passthrough today) |
+
+**Binary operators** (`op` field values): `Plus`, `Minus`, `Star`, `Slash`, `EqEq`, `NotEq`, `Lt`, `Gt`, `LtEq`, `GtEq`, `And`, `Or`.
+
+**Operator precedence** (higher = tighter binding):
+
+| Level | Operators |
+|-------|-----------|
+| 6 | `Star`, `Slash` |
+| 5 | `Plus`, `Minus` |
+| 4 | `Lt`, `Gt`, `LtEq`, `GtEq` |
+| 3 | `EqEq`, `NotEq` |
+| 2 | `And` |
+| 1 | `Or` |
+
+**Pattern nodes** (used inside `Match` arms):
+
+| `pattern` value | Fields | Meaning |
+|----------------|--------|---------|
+| `Wildcard` | — | `_` — always matches |
+| `Binding` | `name: String` | binds subject to name |
+| `LitInt` | `value: String` | integer literal pattern |
+| `LitStr` | `value: String` | string literal pattern |
+| `LitBool` | `value: String` | boolean literal pattern |
+
+**Statement nodes:**
+
+| `stmt` value | Fields | Meaning |
+|-------------|--------|---------|
+| `Let` | `name: String`, `value: expr`, `type: String` | variable binding |
+| `Assign` | `name: String`, `value: expr` | bare reassignment `name = expr` |
+| `Return` | `value: expr` | return statement |
+| `While` | `cond: expr`, `body: [stmt]` | while loop |
+| `For` | `item: String`, `list: expr`, `body: [stmt]` | for-in loop |
+| `FnDef` | `name: String`, `params: [param]`, `body: [stmt]`, `ret_type: String`, `decorator?: String` | function definition |
+| `ExternFn` | `name: String`, `params: [param]`, `ret_type: String` | forward declaration |
+| `TypeDef` | `name: String`, `fields: [{ name: String }]` | struct type definition |
+| `EnumDef` | `name: String`, `variants: [{ name: String }]` | enum definition |
+| `Import` | `path: String` | `import "file.el"` or `from mod import { … }` |
+| `CgiBlock` | `name`, `dharma_id`, `principal`, `network`, `engram`, `has_*: Bool` | CGI identity declaration |
+| `ServiceBlock` | `name`, `sponsor`, `domain` | service declaration |
+| `Expr` | `value: expr` | bare expression statement |
+
+**Param nodes:** `{ "name": String, "type": String }` where `type` is the leading identifier of the type annotation (e.g., `"Int"`, `"String"`, `"Map"`) or `""` if unannotated.
+
+### 2.3 The Type System
+
+Type annotations are parsed and stored but not type-checked at compile time. They serve as documentation and as hints to the codegen for arithmetic dispatch.
+
+**Built-in types:**
+
+| Type | C representation | Notes |
+|------|-----------------|-------|
+| `String` | `const char*` cast to `el_val_t` | via `EL_STR()` macro |
+| `Int` | `int64_t` | direct |
+| `Bool` | `int64_t` | `0` = false, nonzero = true |
+| `Float` | `int64_t` | bit-cast double via `el_from_float()` |
+| `Void` | `void` | functions returning nothing |
+| `Any` | `void*` cast to `el_val_t` | generic containers |
+| `[T]` | `el_val_t` | pointer to ElList struct |
+| `Map<K,V>` | `el_val_t` | pointer to ElMap struct |
+
+**Temporal types** (first-class in codegen):
+
+| Type | Representation | Notes |
+|------|---------------|-------|
+| `Instant` | nanoseconds since Unix epoch as `int64_t` | `now()` returns this |
+| `Duration` | signed nanoseconds as `int64_t` | `30.seconds` = `30 * 1000000000` |
+| `Calendar` | pointer to heap-allocated struct | `earth_calendar(zone)` |
+| `CalendarTime` | pointer to heap-allocated struct | `now_in(cal)` |
+| `LocalDate` | pointer to heap-allocated struct | `local_date(y, m, d)` |
+| `LocalTime` | nanoseconds since midnight, direct `int64_t` | `local_time(h, m, s, ns)` |
+| `Zone` | pointer to heap-allocated struct | `zone("America/New_York")` |
+| `Rhythm` | pointer to heap-allocated struct | recurrence pattern |
+
+The codegen tracks type-annotated variable names in per-function process state (`__int_names`, `__instant_names`, `__duration_names`, etc.) to dispatch arithmetic and comparisons through the correct runtime wrappers. Type-mismatched operations (e.g., `Instant + Instant`) are emitted as `#error` directives.
+
+**Duration postfix literals:** `30.seconds`, `1.hour`, `500.millis`, `30.nanos` are parsed as `DurationLit` AST nodes and compiled to `el_duration_from_nanos(count * multiplier)`. The multipliers:
+
+| Unit | Nanoseconds |
+|------|------------|
+| `nano` / `nanos` | 1 |
+| `milli` / `millis` / `millisecond` / `milliseconds` | 1,000,000 |
+| `second` / `seconds` | 1,000,000,000 |
+| `minute` / `minutes` | 60,000,000,000 |
+| `hour` / `hours` | 3,600,000,000,000 |
+| `day` / `days` | 86,400,000,000,000 |
+
+### 2.4 Key Language Semantics
+
+**Implicit return.** The final expression in a function body becomes the return value if it is not a control-flow construct (`If`, `For`). The codegen's `transform_implicit_return` rewrites the last `Expr` statement into a `Return` statement before emitting.
+
+**Let-rebinding, not mutation.** El uses `let` for both initial binding and rebinding:
+```el
+let count = 0
+let count = count + 1   // NOT mutation — creates a new binding in the same scope
+```
+The codegen tracks declared names per C scope. When `count` is already in `declared`, it emits `count = count + 1;` (plain assignment). When it is new, it emits `el_val_t count = 0;`. This means **El does not have mutable variables in the traditional sense** — every `let` is a potential redeclaration. The practical effect is that shadowing and in-place update use identical syntax.
+
+**Bare reassignment.** The parser also handles `name = expr` (without `let`) when an `Ident` is immediately followed by `Eq`. This emits a plain C assignment.
+
+**`target` is reserved.** The word `target` is lexed as the `Target` token kind — it cannot be used as a variable or parameter name. Use `tgt` or another name instead. This is a live gotcha in `compiler.el` itself, which uses `tgt` for exactly this reason.
+
+**`__no_block_expr` guard.** The parser uses process state key `__no_block_expr` to suppress Map-literal parsing when parsing the condition of `if`, `while`, `for`, and `match`. This prevents a stray `{` (the start of the then-block) from being parsed as a Map literal.
+
+**Arena memory model.** The runtime includes an arena allocator that is activated in server/long-running contexts. In CLI mode (`elc`, `elb`) the arena is inactive. Memory is managed via ARC (reference counting): `el_retain()` and `el_release()` on Lists and Maps. Strings and ints are not refcounted — the retain/release functions are safe no-ops on non-tagged values.
+
+---
+
+## 3. The Runtime API
+
+All runtime functions are declared in `el-compiler/runtime/el_runtime.h`. Every compiled El program links against `el-compiler/runtime/el_runtime.c`.
+
+All values are `el_val_t` (`int64_t`). Strings are pointers cast through `int64_t` using `EL_STR(s)` / `EL_CSTR(v)` macros.
+
+Canonical compile command:
+```bash
+cc -std=c11 -I el-compiler/runtime -lcurl -lpthread \
+   -o <out> <prog>.c el-compiler/runtime/el_runtime.c
+```
+
+### I/O
+
+| Function | Signature | Description |
+|----------|-----------|-------------|
+| `println` | `(s) -> Void` | print string + newline to stdout |
+| `print` | `(s) -> Void` | print string without newline |
+| `readline` | `() -> String` | read one line from stdin |
+
+### String Operations
+
+| Function | Signature | Description |
+|----------|-----------|-------------|
+| `el_str_concat` | `(a, b) -> String` | concatenate two strings |
+| `str_concat` | `(a, b) -> String` | alias for `el_str_concat` |
+| `str_eq` | `(a, b) -> Bool` | string equality comparison |
+| `str_starts_with` | `(s, prefix) -> Bool` | prefix test |
+| `str_ends_with` | `(s, suffix) -> Bool` | suffix test |
+| `str_contains` | `(s, sub) -> Bool` | substring test |
+| `str_len` | `(s) -> Int` | byte length |
+| `str_slice` | `(s, start, end) -> String` | substring (byte offsets) |
+| `str_replace` | `(s, from, to) -> String` | replace all occurrences |
+| `str_to_upper` / `str_upper` | `(s) -> String` | uppercase |
+| `str_to_lower` / `str_lower` | `(s) -> String` | lowercase |
+| `str_trim` | `(s) -> String` | strip leading/trailing whitespace |
+| `str_lstrip` / `str_rstrip` | `(s) -> String` | one-sided strip |
+| `str_index_of` | `(s, sub) -> Int` | position of substring; `-1` if absent |
+| `str_last_index_of` | `(s, sub) -> Int` | last position |
+| `str_index_of_all` | `(s, sub) -> [Int]` | all byte offsets (non-overlapping) |
+| `str_find_chars` | `(s, any_of) -> Int` | first index of any char in set |
+| `str_split` | `(s, sep) -> [String]` | split on separator |
+| `str_split_lines` | `(s) -> [String]` | split on newlines |
+| `str_split_chars` | `(s) -> [String]` | split into individual characters |
+| `str_split_n` | `(s, sep, n) -> [String]` | split at most `n` times |
+| `str_join` | `(list, sep) -> String` | join list with separator |
+| `str_char_at` | `(s, i) -> String` | character at byte index |
+| `str_char_code` | `(s, i) -> Int` | Unicode code point at index |
+| `str_pad_left` | `(s, width, pad) -> String` | left-pad to width |
+| `str_pad_right` | `(s, width, pad) -> String` | right-pad to width |
+| `str_format` | `(fmt, data) -> String` | `{key}` interpolation |
+| `str_repeat` | `(s, n) -> String` | repeat string n times |
+| `str_reverse` | `(s) -> String` | reverse by codepoint |
+| `str_strip_prefix` | `(s, prefix) -> String` | remove prefix if present |
+| `str_strip_suffix` | `(s, suffix) -> String` | remove suffix if present |
+| `str_strip_chars` | `(s, chars) -> String` | strip characters from both ends |
+| `str_count` | `(s, sub) -> Int` | count non-overlapping occurrences |
+| `str_count_chars` | `(s) -> Int` | codepoint count |
+| `str_count_bytes` | `(s) -> Int` | alias for `str_len` |
+| `str_count_lines` | `(s) -> Int` | line count |
+| `str_count_words` | `(s) -> Int` | word count |
+| `str_count_letters` | `(s) -> Int` | ASCII letter count |
+| `str_count_digits` | `(s) -> Int` | ASCII digit count |
+| `is_letter` / `is_digit` / `is_alphanumeric` | `(s) -> Bool` | ASCII char classification |
+| `is_whitespace` / `is_punctuation` | `(s) -> Bool` | |
+| `is_uppercase` / `is_lowercase` | `(s) -> Bool` | |
+| `int_to_str` | `(n) -> String` | format integer |
+| `str_to_int` | `(s) -> Int` | parse integer |
+| `str_to_float` | `(s) -> Float` | parse float |
+| `parse_int` | `(s, default) -> Int` | parse with fallback |
+| `bool_to_str` | `(b) -> String` | format bool |
+
+### Integer/Float Math
+
+| Function | Description |
+|----------|-------------|
+| `el_abs(n)` | absolute value |
+| `el_max(a, b)` | maximum |
+| `el_min(a, b)` | minimum |
+| `float_to_str(f)` | format float as string |
+| `int_to_float(n)` | widen Int to Float |
+| `float_to_int(f)` | truncate Float to Int |
+| `format_float(f, decimals)` | format with N decimal places |
+| `decimal_round(f, decimals)` | round to N decimals |
+| `math_sqrt(f)` | square root |
+| `math_log(f)` / `math_ln(f)` | logarithms |
+| `math_sin(f)` / `math_cos(f)` / `math_pi()` | trigonometry |
+
+### List Operations
+
+| Function | Description |
+|----------|-------------|
+| `el_list_empty()` | create empty list |
+| `el_list_new(count, …)` | create list from N values (varargs) |
+| `el_list_len(list)` | length |
+| `el_list_get(list, i)` | element at index; `0` on out-of-bounds |
+| `el_list_append(list, e)` | append; returns updated list |
+| `el_list_clone(list)` | shallow copy |
+| `list_push(list, e)` | alias for `el_list_append` |
+| `list_push_front(list, e)` | prepend |
+| `list_join(list, sep)` | join to string |
+| `list_range(start, end)` | integer range `[start, end)` |
+| `native_list_empty()` | alias for `el_list_empty` (used in compiler source) |
+| `native_list_append(l, v)` | alias for `el_list_append` |
+| `native_list_get(l, idx)` | alias for `el_list_get` |
+| `native_list_len(l)` | alias for `el_list_len` |
+| `native_list_clone(l)` | alias for `el_list_clone` |
+| `append(l, e)` | method-call alias: `list.append(e)` |
+| `len(l)` | method-call alias: `list.len()` |
+| `get(l, i)` | method-call alias: `list.get(i)` |
+
+### Map Operations
+
+| Function | Description |
+|----------|-------------|
+| `el_map_new(count, …)` | create map from key/value pairs (varargs) |
+| `el_map_get(map, key)` | get value by key |
+| `el_map_set(map, key, value)` | set key; returns map |
+| `el_get_field(map, key)` | alias; emitted for `.field` access |
+| `map_get(map, key)` | method-call alias |
+| `map_set(map, key, value)` | method-call alias |
+
+### ARC (Reference Counting)
+
+| Function | Description |
+|----------|-------------|
+| `el_retain(v)` | increment refcount; no-op for non-heap values |
+| `el_release(v)` | decrement refcount; free when zero |
+
+### In-Process State
+
+| Function | Description |
+|----------|-------------|
+| `state_set(key, value)` | store in process-global key/value table |
+| `state_get(key)` | retrieve; `""` if absent |
+| `state_del(key)` | delete key |
+| `state_keys()` | all keys as `[String]` |
+
+### Filesystem
+
+| Function | Description |
+|----------|-------------|
+| `fs_read(path)` | read file to string; `""` on error |
+| `fs_write(path, content)` | write string; returns `1` on success |
+| `fs_write_bytes(path, bytes, length)` | write raw bytes of known length |
+| `fs_list(path)` | list directory entries |
+| `fs_exists(path)` | check if path exists |
+| `fs_mkdir(path)` | mkdir -p |
+
+### HTTP Client
+
+| Function | Description |
+|----------|-------------|
+| `http_get(url)` | GET; returns body string |
+| `http_post(url, body)` | POST; returns body string |
+| `http_post_json(url, json_body)` | POST with Content-Type: application/json |
+| `http_get_with_headers(url, headers_map)` | GET with custom headers |
+| `http_post_with_headers(url, body, headers_map)` | POST with custom headers |
+| `http_post_form_auth(url, form_body, auth_header)` | POST with auth |
+| `http_delete(url)` | DELETE |
+| `http_get_to_file(url, headers_map, output_path)` | stream response to file |
+| `http_post_to_file(url, body, headers_map, output_path)` | stream POST response to file |
+| `http_response(status, headers_json, body)` | build response envelope |
+| `url_encode(s)` | RFC 3986 percent-encoding |
+| `url_decode(s)` | URL decode |
+| `el_html_sanitize(html, allowlist_json)` | allowlist HTML sanitizer |
+
+### HTTP Server
+
+| Function | Description |
+|----------|-------------|
+| `http_serve(port, handler)` | start server; handler: `(method, path, body) -> String` |
+| `http_serve_v2(port, handler)` | start server; handler: `(method, path, headers_map, body) -> String` |
+| `http_set_handler(name)` | set handler by symbol name |
+| `http_set_handler_v2(name)` | v2 variant |
+
+### JSON
+
+| Function | Description |
+|----------|-------------|
+| `json_get(json, key)` | substring lookup of `"key": value` |
+| `json_parse(s)` | parse JSON string to List/Map |
+| `json_stringify(v)` | serialize Any to JSON string |
+| `json_get_string(j, key)` | typed extract: String |
+| `json_get_int(j, key)` | typed extract: Int |
+| `json_get_float(j, key)` | typed extract: Float |
+| `json_get_bool(j, key)` | typed extract: Bool |
+| `json_get_raw(j, key)` | extract nested object/array as JSON string |
+| `json_set(j, key, value)` | update field, return new JSON string |
+| `json_array_len(j)` | length of JSON array string |
+| `json_array_get(j, index)` | element at index |
+| `json_array_get_string(j, index)` | string element at index |
+
+### Time (Epoch-Based)
+
+| Function | Description |
+|----------|-------------|
+| `time_now()` | Unix epoch milliseconds |
+| `time_now_utc()` | same, explicit UTC |
+| `time_format(ts, fmt)` | format timestamp |
+| `time_to_parts(ts)` | decompose to Map of fields |
+| `time_from_parts(secs, ns, tz)` | construct timestamp |
+| `time_add(ts, n, unit)` | add duration |
+| `time_diff(ts1, ts2, unit)` | difference |
+| `unix_timestamp()` | Unix seconds as Int |
+| `sleep_secs(secs)` | sleep N seconds |
+| `sleep_ms(ms)` | sleep N milliseconds |
+
+### Time (First-Class Instant/Duration)
+
+| Function | Description |
+|----------|-------------|
+| `now()` / `el_now_instant()` | current time as Instant (nanoseconds) |
+| `unix_seconds(n)` | construct Instant from Unix seconds |
+| `unix_millis(n)` | construct Instant from Unix milliseconds |
+| `instant_from_iso8601(s)` | parse ISO 8601 string |
+| `instant_to_unix_seconds(i)` | extract Unix seconds |
+| `instant_to_unix_millis(i)` | extract Unix milliseconds |
+| `instant_to_iso8601(i)` | format as ISO 8601 |
+| `el_duration_from_nanos(ns)` | construct Duration from nanoseconds |
+| `duration_seconds(n)` | Duration from seconds |
+| `duration_millis(n)` | Duration from milliseconds |
+| `duration_nanos(n)` | Duration from nanoseconds |
+| `duration_to_seconds(d)` | extract seconds |
+| `duration_to_millis(d)` | extract milliseconds |
+| `duration_to_nanos(d)` | extract nanoseconds |
+| `el_instant_add_dur(inst, dur)` | Instant + Duration |
+| `el_instant_sub_dur(inst, dur)` | Instant - Duration |
+| `el_instant_diff(a, b)` | Instant - Instant = Duration |
+| `el_duration_add/sub/scale/div` | Duration arithmetic |
+| `el_instant_lt/le/gt/ge/eq/ne` | Instant comparison |
+| `el_duration_lt/le/gt/ge/eq/ne` | Duration comparison |
+| `el_sleep_duration(dur)` | sleep for a Duration |
+| `ttl_cache_set(key, value)` | store with TTL |
+| `ttl_cache_get(key, max_age)` | retrieve if within max_age |
+| `ttl_cache_age(key)` | age of cached value as Duration |
+
+### Calendar System
+
+| Function | Description |
+|----------|-------------|
+| `zone(id)` | IANA zone or fixed offset |
+| `zone_utc()` / `zone_local()` | UTC and local zone |
+| `zone_offset(hours, minutes)` | fixed offset zone |
+| `earth_calendar(z)` | Gregorian calendar in zone |
+| `earth_calendar_default()` | system default |
+| `mars_calendar()` / `cycle_calendar(period)` | non-Earth calendars |
+| `no_cycle_calendar()` / `relative_calendar(epoch)` | abstract calendars |
+| `now_in(cal)` | current time as CalendarTime |
+| `in_calendar(inst, cal)` | project Instant into Calendar |
+| `cal_format(ct, pattern)` | format CalendarTime |
+| `cal_to_instant(ct)` | extract underlying Instant |
+| `cal_cycle_phase(ct)` / `cal_in(ct, cal)` | calendar ops |
+| `local_date(y, m, d)` | construct LocalDate |
+| `local_time(h, m, s, ns)` | construct LocalTime |
+| `local_datetime(date, time)` | construct LocalDateTime |
+| `zoned(date, time, cal)` | zoned datetime |
+| `local_date_year/month/day` | LocalDate accessors |
+| `local_time_hour/minute/second/nanos` | LocalTime accessors |
+| `el_local_date_add_dur` / `el_local_time_add_dur` | date/time arithmetic |
+| `el_local_date_lt` / `el_local_date_eq` | date comparison |
+| `rhythm_*` | recurrence patterns (cycle_start, weekday, weekly_at, next_after, matches, …) |
+
+### Process / Execution
+
+| Function | Description |
+|----------|-------------|
+| `args()` | command-line arguments as `[String]` (excludes argv[0]) |
+| `env(key)` | read environment variable; `""` if unset |
+| `exit(code)` | exit process with code |
+| `exit_program(code)` | alias for `exit` |
+| `getpid_now()` | current process ID |
+| `exec_command(cmd)` | run shell command; return exit code |
+| `exec_capture(cmd)` | run shell command; capture and return stdout |
+| `uuid_new()` / `uuid_v4()` | generate UUID v4 |
+| `native_int_to_str(n)` | format integer (alias, used in compiler source) |
+| `native_string_chars(s)` | split string into `[String]` of single characters |
+
+### Crypto
+
+| Function | Description |
+|----------|-------------|
+| `sha256_hex(input)` | SHA-256, hex output |
+| `sha256_bytes(input)` | SHA-256, raw bytes |
+| `hmac_sha256_hex(key, msg)` | HMAC-SHA-256, hex |
+| `hmac_sha256_bytes(key, msg)` | HMAC-SHA-256, raw bytes |
+| `base64_encode(input)` / `base64_decode(input)` | standard base64 |
+| `base64url_encode(input)` / `base64url_decode(input)` | URL-safe base64 |
+| `sha3_256_hex(input)` | SHA3-256 (Keccak) |
+| `pq_keygen_signature()` | Dilithium-3 key pair |
+| `pq_sign(sk_hex, msg)` / `pq_verify(pk_hex, msg, sig_hex)` | PQ signatures |
+| `pq_kem_keygen()` / `pq_kem_encaps(pk)` / `pq_kem_decaps(sk, ct)` | Kyber-768 KEM |
+| `pq_hybrid_keygen()` / `pq_hybrid_handshake(remote_pub)` | X25519 + Kyber hybrid |
+| `aead_encrypt(key_hex, plaintext)` | AES-256-GCM encrypt |
+| `aead_decrypt(key_hex, nonce_hex, ct_hex)` | AES-256-GCM decrypt |
+
+### DHARMA Network (CGI programs only)
+
+| Function | Description |
+|----------|-------------|
+| `el_cgi_init(name, dharma_id, principal, network, engram)` | initialize CGI identity (called by generated `main()`) |
+| `dharma_connect(cgi_id)` | open channel to peer |
+| `dharma_send(channel, content)` | send message; blocks for response |
+| `dharma_activate(query)` | spreading activation across DHARMA network |
+| `dharma_emit(event_type, payload)` | emit network event (@manager only) |
+| `dharma_field(event_type)` | wait for event (@manager only) |
+| `dharma_strengthen(cgi_id, weight)` | Hebbian potentiation |
+| `dharma_relationship(cgi_id)` | current relationship weight |
+| `dharma_peers()` | all connected peers sorted by weight |
+
+### Engram Knowledge Graph
+
+| Function | Description |
+|----------|-------------|
+| `engram_node(content, type, salience)` | create node; returns ID |
+| `engram_node_full(content, type, label, salience, importance, confidence, tier, tags)` | full node creation |
+| `engram_node_layered(…, layer_id)` | create node in specific layer |
+| `engram_get_node(id)` | retrieve node by ID |
+| `engram_strengthen(node_id)` | Hebbian potentiation |
+| `engram_forget(node_id)` | delete node and edges |
+| `engram_node_count()` | total node count |
+| `engram_edge_count()` | total edge count |
+| `engram_search(query, limit)` | full-text search |
+| `engram_scan_nodes(limit, offset)` | paginated node scan |
+| `engram_connect(from, to, weight, relation)` | create directed edge |
+| `engram_edge_between(from, to)` | get edge |
+| `engram_neighbors(node_id)` | BFS neighbors |
+| `engram_neighbors_filtered(node_id, max_depth, direction)` | filtered BFS |
+| `engram_activate(query, depth)` | spreading activation |
+| `engram_save(path)` / `engram_load(path)` | snapshot to/from disk |
+| `engram_add_layer(name, priority, suppressible, transparent, injectable)` | add consciousness layer |
+| `engram_remove_layer(layer_id)` / `engram_list_layers()` | layer management |
+| `engram_*_json` variants | JSON-string versions of search/scan/activate |
+| `engram_compile_layered_json(intent, depth)` | prompt-ready context block |
+
+### LLM (Anthropic API)
+
+| Function | Description |
+|----------|-------------|
+| `llm_call(model, prompt)` | single-turn call |
+| `llm_call_system(model, system, user)` | call with system prompt |
+| `llm_call_agentic(model, system, user, tools)` | agentic call with tools (CGI only) |
+| `llm_vision(model, system, prompt, image)` | vision call |
+| `llm_models()` | list available models |
+| `llm_register_tool(name, handler_fn_name)` | register tool handler (CGI only) |
+
+### Observability
+
+| Function | Description |
+|----------|-------------|
+| `emit_log(level, msg, fields_json)` | emit OTLP log |
+| `emit_metric(name, value, tags_json)` | emit OTLP metric |
+| `trace_span_start(name)` | start trace span |
+| `trace_span_end(span_handle)` | end trace span |
+| `emit_event(name, duration_ms)` | emit event |
+
+---
+
+## 4. How to Re-Bootstrap from Zero
+
+This section assumes the bootstrap binary is gone. Everything else (source files, runtime) is intact.
+
+### What You Need to Implement
+
+A minimal El compiler has three parts: lexer, parser, codegen. Each can be written in any language. The goal is to compile `elc-cli.el` into a working `elc` binary, after which El is self-hosting again.
+
+### Step 1: Write a Minimal Lexer
+
+The lexer must produce a list of `{ "kind": String, "value": String }` maps (or equivalent structures). Required token kinds: `Int`, `Float`, `Str`, `Bool`, `Ident`, `Eof`, and all keywords and operators listed in section 2.1.
+
+The minimal subset needed to compile the compiler itself:
+- Keywords: `let`, `fn`, `return`, `if`, `else`, `while`, `for`, `in`, `import`, `from`, `true`, `false`, `extern`
+- Literals: `Int`, `Str`, `Bool`, `Ident`
+- Operators: `=`, `==`, `!=`, `!`, `<`, `>`, `<=`, `>=`, `&&`, `||`, `+`, `-`, `*`, `/`, `->`, `=>`, `:`, `,`, `.`, `(`, `)`, `{`, `}`, `[`, `]`, `@`, `?`
+- Special: `Eof`
+
+The lexer in `lexer.el` walks a char array using `native_list_get` to avoid O(n²) string slicing. A Python implementation can use a simple index into a string. Escapes to handle: `\"`, `\n`, `\t`, `\r`, `\\`.
+
+### Step 2: Write a Minimal Parser
+
+The parser is a standard recursive descent parser. It produces AST maps as described in section 2.2.
+
+The minimal statement forms needed to compile the compiler:
+- `let name [: Type] = expr`
+- `fn name(params) [-> Type] { body }`
+- `extern fn name(params) [-> Type]`
+- `return expr`
+- `while cond { body }`
+- `for item in list { body }`
+- `if cond { body } [else [if] { body }]`
+- `import "path"`
+- `from module import { … }`
+- `@decorator stmt`
+- `name = expr` (bare assignment)
+- bare expression statement
+
+The minimal expression forms:
+- Integer, float, string, bool literals
+- Identifier
+- Binary operations with the precedence table from section 2.2
+- Unary `!` and `-`
+- Function call: `f(a, b, …)`
+- Method call: `obj.method(args)` (parsed as Call with Field func)
+- Field access: `obj.field`
+- Index access: `obj[i]`
+- Array literal: `[e1, e2, …]`
+- Map literal: `{ "key": value, … }`
+- `if` as expression
+- `match` expression
+- Postfix `?` (can be a no-op)
+- Duration literal: `N.unit`
+
+The `__no_block_expr` guard (section 2.4) is important: without it, `if a || b { ... }` will incorrectly parse `{` as a Map literal.
+
+### Step 3: Write a Minimal Codegen
+
+The codegen emits C11 source. Required output structure:
+
+```c
+#include <stdint.h>
+#include <stdlib.h>
+#include "el_runtime.h"
+
+// Forward declarations for all non-main functions
+el_val_t fn_name(el_val_t p1, el_val_t p2);
+...
+
+// File-scope let bindings (if any)
+el_val_t GLOBAL_NAME;
+
+// Function bodies
+el_val_t fn_name(el_val_t p1, el_val_t p2) {
+    ...
+    return 0;
+}
+
+// Entry point
+int main(int _argc, char** _argv) {
+    el_runtime_init_args(_argc, _argv);
+    ...
+    return 0;
+}
+```
+
+Critical codegen rules:
+
+1. **All values are `el_val_t`**. Every parameter, local variable, and return type is `el_val_t` unless the function has `ret_type == "Void"` (use `void`).
+
+2. **Let-rebinding**: track declared names per C scope. Emit `el_val_t name = val;` on first occurrence; emit `name = val;` on subsequent occurrences of the same name in the same scope.
+
+3. **`+` dispatch**: if either operand is a string literal → `el_str_concat(a, b)`. If both are provably integers → `(a + b)`. Default fallback → `el_str_concat`.
+
+4. **`==` dispatch**: if either operand is a string or identifier → `str_eq(a, b)`. If both are integer literals or provably Int → `(a == b)`.
+
+5. **String literals**: wrap in `EL_STR("…")` and escape: `\"` → `\\\"`, `\n` → `\\n`, `\t` → `\\t`, `\\` → `\\\\`.
+
+6. **Map literals**: `el_map_new(N, "k1", v1, "k2", v2, …)`. Empty map: `el_map_new(0)`.
+
+7. **Array literals**: `el_list_new(N, e1, e2, …)`. Empty: `el_list_empty()`.
+
+8. **Index access**: string-literal index → `el_get_field(obj, EL_STR("key"))`. Integer index → `el_list_get(obj, idx)`.
+
+9. **Field access** `obj.field` → `el_get_field(obj, EL_STR("field"))`.
+
+10. **Method call** `obj.method(args)` → `method(obj, args)`.
+
+11. **`for item in list`** → emit:
+    ```c
+    { el_val_t _el_lst = <list>; el_val_t _el_len = el_list_len(_el_lst);
+      for (el_val_t _el_i = 0; _el_i < _el_len; _el_i++) {
+        el_val_t item = el_list_get(_el_lst, _el_i);
+        <body>
+      }
+    }
+    ```
+
+12. **`match`** → GCC/Clang statement expression with `goto`:
+    ```c
+    ({ el_val_t _s = <subject>; el_val_t _r = 0;
+       if (_s == 42) { _r = <arm_body>; goto _done; }
+       if (str_eq(_s, EL_STR("str"))) { _r = <arm_body>; goto _done; }
+       { _r = <wildcard_body>; goto _done; }
+       _done:; _r; })
+    ```
+
+13. **`if` as expression** → similarly wrapped in a GCC/Clang statement expression.
+
+14. **Implicit return**: if the last statement in a function body is a bare `Expr` (not `If` or `For`), emit it as `return <expr>;` instead of `<expr>;`.
+
+15. **Float literals**: emit as `el_from_float(<value>)`.
+
+16. **Bool literals**: `true` → `1`, `false` → `0`.
+
+17. **`fn main()`**: do not emit as a regular `el_val_t` function. Instead, fold its body into C's `int main()` after any top-level statements.
+
+18. **`extern fn`**: emit only a forward declaration (no body).
+
+19. **Forward declarations**: scan for all `FnDef` nodes before emitting bodies. This enables mutual recursion.
+
+### Step 4: Compile the El Compiler
+
+Using your minimal implementation, compile `elc-cli.el` (which imports the entire compiler chain):
+
+```bash
+# Your minimal compiler
+python3 minimal_elc.py elc-cli.el > elc-new.c
+
+# Build with the runtime
+cc -std=c11 -I el-compiler/runtime -lcurl -lpthread \
+   -o elc-new elc-new.c el-compiler/runtime/el_runtime.c
+```
+
+### Step 5: Verify Self-Hosting
+
+```bash
+# Compile elc-cli.el with the new compiler
+./elc-new elc-cli.el elc-v2.c
+cc -std=c11 -I el-compiler/runtime -lcurl -lpthread \
+   -o elc-v2 elc-v2.c el-compiler/runtime/el_runtime.c
+
+# Compile again with the second-generation compiler
+./elc-v2 elc-cli.el elc-v3.c
+
+# The outputs should be identical
+diff elc-v2.c elc-v3.c
+```
+
+A clean diff confirms you have a stable fixed point: the compiler reproduces itself exactly.
+
+### Step 6: Replace the Bootstrap Binary
+
+```bash
+cp elc-v2 dist/platform/elc
+```
+
+You are bootstrapped.
+
+### Minimal El Subset for the Compiler Itself
+
+The El compiler source (`lexer.el`, `parser.el`, `codegen.el`, `compiler.el`) uses:
+- `fn`, `let`, `while`, `if`/`else`, `return`, `for`/`in`, `import`
+- `extern fn` (for `.elh` headers)
+- `String`, `Int`, `Bool`, `Void`, `Any`, `Map<String, Any>`, `[String]`, `[Map<String, Any>]`
+- Map literals `{ "key": val }`
+- Array literals `[...]` (and `native_list_empty()`)
+- List operations: `native_list_empty()`, `native_list_append()`, `native_list_get()`, `native_list_len()`, `native_list_clone()`
+- String operations: `str_join()`, `str_eq()`, `str_contains()`, `str_starts_with()`, `str_slice()`, `str_trim()`, `str_split()`, `str_index_of()`, `str_len()`, `str_to_int()`, `native_string_chars()`, `native_int_to_str()`
+- `state_get()`, `state_set()`
+- `println()`, `fs_read()`, `fs_write()`, `exit()`
+- `el_release()` (ARC cleanup)
+
+The compiler does not use: HTTP, engram, dharma, LLM, crypto, UUID, float arithmetic.
+
+---
+
+## 5. The Long-Term Solution: elvm
+
+### Why a VM Makes Bootstrapping More Auditable
+
+The current bootstrap chain relies on trusting a binary whose source we cannot fully audit by inspection alone. This is the classic "trusting trust" problem (Ken Thompson, 1984). A virtual machine breaks the chain:
+
+- `elc` targets `elvm` bytecode (instead of C)
+- `elvm` is a minimal interpreter hand-written in ~500 lines of C
+- The hand-written C is small enough to audit completely
+- Anyone can compile `elvm.c` with any C compiler
+- From there: `elvm` interprets `elc.elvm` → `elc` compiles El → `cc` builds native binaries
+
+The benefit: the trusted base shrinks from "a Mach-O binary" to "500 lines of straightforward C code that anyone can read in an afternoon."
+
+### The elvm Design
+
+A minimal elvm needs:
+- A stack or register machine (stack is simpler)
+- Instructions: push, pop, add, sub, mul, div, cmp, jump, call, return, load, store
+- A string table (El strings are mostly literals)
+- A heap for ElList and ElMap
+- An FFI table mapping El runtime builtins to C functions
+
+The El compiler would gain a `--target=elvm` flag in `compile_dispatch()`. Codegen would emit bytecode instead of C text. The runtime interface stays the same — builtins map to FFI slots by name.
+
+This is the planned path. It does not exist yet.
+
+---
+
+## 6. Compiler Source Map
+
+| File | Role | Lines |
+|------|------|-------|
+| `elc-cli.el` | Entry point; imports compiler.el | 7 |
+| `el-compiler/src/compiler.el` | Pipeline wiring: lex → parse → codegen. Import resolution, `--emit-header`, `fn main()`. Defines `compile()`, `compile_js()`, `compile_dispatch()`, `resolve_imports()` | 298 |
+| `el-compiler/src/lexer.el` | Tokenizer. `lex(source)` → token list. Char helpers, keyword lookup, scan_digits, scan_ident, scan_string, strip_code_comments | 747 |
+| `el-compiler/src/parser.el` | Recursive descent parser. `parse(tokens)` → AST. All statement and expression forms | 1071 |
+| `el-compiler/src/codegen.el` | C code emitter. `codegen(stmts, source)` → (streams to stdout). Expression codegen, statement codegen, function codegen, type tracking, capability enforcement, temporal type dispatch | 2721 |
+| `el-compiler/src/codegen-js.el` | JavaScript backend. `codegen_js(stmts, source)` → JS source | ~500 |
+| `el-compiler/runtime/el_runtime.h` | Full runtime API declaration | 755 |
+| `el-compiler/runtime/el_runtime.c` | Full runtime implementation | large |
+| `el-compiler/runtime/el_runtime.js` | JS runtime | — |
+| `elb.el` | Build coordinator. Reads `manifest.el`, walks import graph, compiles modules, links binary. The `.NET`-style incremental build model | 367 |
+| `elc-combined.el` | Pre-merged single-file bootstrap edition (for early bootstrap iterations) | large |
+| `spec/language.md` | Language specification v1.2.0 | — |
+| `dist/platform/elc` | Current bootstrap binary (Mach-O arm64) | — |
+
+---
+
+## 7. Key Decisions and Gotchas
+
+### `target` is a Reserved Keyword
+
+`target` is lexed as the `Target` token kind. It cannot be used as a variable or parameter name anywhere in El source. If you write `fn compile(target: String)`, the parameter name will be tokenized as `Target`, which the parser does not recognize as an `Ident` in parameter position.
+
+**Workaround:** use `tgt`, `dest`, `backend`, or any other name. The compiler source uses `tgt` specifically for this reason. This comes up whenever writing code that handles compilation targets.
+
+### `let x = x + 1` is Let-Rebinding, Not Mutation
+
+El has no mutable variables. `let count = count + 1` re-introduces `count` into the current scope, shadowing the previous binding. At the C level, the codegen tracks declared names and emits plain assignment for subsequent bindings of the same name:
+
+- First `let count = 0` → `el_val_t count = 0;`
+- Second `let count = count + 1` → `count = count + 1;`
+
+This means you cannot have two different values named `count` in the same C scope — the second binding overwrites the first. This is by design. Scoped shadowing works correctly because each block (if body, while body, for body) gets its own copy of the `declared` list.
+
+### Arena is Inactive in CLI Mode
+
+The runtime includes an arena allocator designed for long-running server processes. In CLI mode (`elc`, `elb`) the arena is not activated. Memory is managed by ARC (reference counting via `el_retain`/`el_release`). The compiler source explicitly calls `el_release(tokens)` after parsing and `el_release(stmt)` after codegen to prevent memory exhaustion on large source files.
+
+If you are implementing a new runtime or embedding El, be aware that the ARC model expects callers to release values they are done with.
+
+### The `extern fn` / `.elh` Separate Compilation Model
+
+`elb` (the build coordinator) supports separate compilation. When a module changes:
+1. `elc --emit-header module.el module.c` compiles the module and writes `module.elh`
+2. `module.elh` contains `extern fn` declarations for all public functions
+3. Other modules that import `module.el` use the `.elh` header instead of re-parsing the source
+
+The `resolve_imports` function in `compiler.el` checks for a `.elh` file before recursively inlining the `.el` source. If the header exists, it is used (and the `.el` is marked as seen to prevent double-inclusion).
+
+This is important for bootstrap: if you have pre-compiled headers lying around from a broken build, they may shadow updated source. Delete `.elh` files (or use `elb --clean`) when debugging unexpected compilation behavior.
+
+### Import Resolution: Depth-First with Deduplication
+
+`resolve_imports` in `compiler.el`:
+
+1. Walks imports depth-first (dependencies before dependents)
+2. Uses `state_set("__elc_imp__:" + path, "1")` to deduplicate: each file is included exactly once
+3. Builds the combined source string by concatenating import bodies ahead of the entry file's body
+4. If a `.elh` header exists for an import, uses that instead of recursing into the `.el`
+
+The result is one large string that gets passed through `lex` → `parse` → `codegen` as a single unit. The codegen emits forward declarations for all functions before any body, so declaration order within the combined source does not matter.
+
+### `+` Operator Dispatch is Heuristic
+
+El's `+` operator serves double duty: integer addition and string concatenation. The codegen dispatches based on static analysis of the AST:
+
+- If either operand is a `Str` literal → `el_str_concat`
+- If both operands are provably `Int` (via `is_int_expr`) → `(a + b)`
+- If either operand is a `Call` or `Ident` → `el_str_concat` (conservative fallback)
+
+The `is_int_expr` predicate recurses through the AST: literal `Int`, names in `__int_names` (from `: Int` annotations), known Int-returning builtins, and arithmetic BinOps over Int operands all count as "provably Int."
+
+If you write `let result = some_int_var + 1` and `some_int_var` is not annotated `: Int`, the codegen may emit `el_str_concat` instead of integer addition. Fix by adding `: Int` to the variable declaration.
+
+### `==` Operator Dispatch is Also Heuristic
+
+Similarly, `==` dispatches between `str_eq(a, b)` (string comparison) and `(a == b)` (integer comparison) based on operand types. The codegen tracks Int-typed names in `__int_names`. Two `Ident` operands where both are known Int-typed use `==`; all other Ident-Ident comparisons use `str_eq`.
+
+This means comparing two integer variables that were not annotated `: Int` can silently produce `str_eq` on what are actually integer values — and `str_eq` treats them as `const char*` pointers, producing incorrect results or segfaults.
+
+**Rule:** always annotate variables `: Int` when they will participate in `==` comparisons or `+` arithmetic.
+
+### Capability Kind Enforcement
+
+The codegen classifies programs into three capability tiers based on top-level declarations:
+- `cgi` block present → full capability (all primitives allowed)
+- `service` block present → restricted (no `llm_call_agentic`, `llm_register_tool`, `dharma_emit`, `dharma_field`)
+- Neither → `utility` (no DHARMA, no LLM)
+
+Violations are collected during codegen and emitted as `#error` directives at the bottom of the generated C. The downstream `cc` step then fails with a clear message naming the forbidden call.
+
+### The `__no_block_expr` Parse Guard
+
+When parsing the condition of `if`, `while`, `for`, and `match`, the parser sets `state_set("__no_block_expr", "1")`. This prevents `parse_primary` from treating a `{` as the start of a Map literal — instead it returns `{ "expr": "Nil" }` and the caller sees the `{` and treats it as the block delimiter.
+
+Without this guard, `if a || b { ... }` would recurse into `parse_expr` for `b`, hit `{`, try to parse it as a Map literal, fail to find string keys, loop in error-recovery mode, and hang.
+
+### Codegen Streams Output via `println`
+
+The codegen does not build the output as a string — it calls `println()` for each line as it is emitted. The `compile()` / `compile_js()` / `codegen()` functions return `""`. Output goes to stdout.
+
+This design avoids O(n²) string concatenation for large programs. It also means you cannot capture the compiler's output in a variable within El itself — you must redirect stdout at the OS level (`elc source.el > output.c`).
+
+When writing to a file, `elc` detects the output path argument, redirects C's `stdout` to the file (via `freopen` in the runtime), and the `println` calls go there instead.
@@ -38,6 +38,7 @@
 #include <arpa/inet.h>
 #include <dlfcn.h>      /* dlsym for http_set_handler fallback */
 #include <unistd.h>
+#include <fcntl.h>
 #include <dirent.h>
 #include <errno.h>
 #include <pthread.h>
@@ -154,6 +155,36 @@ el_val_t readline(void) {
    return el_wrap_str(el_strdup(buf));
 }

+/* ── stdout redirect helpers ─────────────────────────────────────────────── *
+ * Used by elc post-processing (--minify, --obfuscate): capture codegen       *
+ * output into a temp file, then pass it to the external tool.                */
+
+static int _stdout_saved_fd = -1;
+
+/* stdout_to_file(path) — redirect stdout to <path>. Returns 1 on success.   */
+el_val_t stdout_to_file(el_val_t pathv) {
+    const char* path = EL_CSTR(pathv);
+    if (!path || !*path) return (el_val_t)(int64_t)0;
+    fflush(stdout);
+    _stdout_saved_fd = dup(STDOUT_FILENO);
+    if (_stdout_saved_fd < 0) return (el_val_t)(int64_t)0;
+    int fd = open(path, O_WRONLY | O_CREAT | O_TRUNC, 0644);
+    if (fd < 0) { close(_stdout_saved_fd); _stdout_saved_fd = -1; return (el_val_t)(int64_t)0; }
+    dup2(fd, STDOUT_FILENO);
+    close(fd);
+    return (el_val_t)(int64_t)1;
+}
+
+/* stdout_restore() — restore stdout from the saved fd. Returns 1 on success. */
+el_val_t stdout_restore(void) {
+    if (_stdout_saved_fd < 0) return (el_val_t)(int64_t)0;
+    fflush(stdout);
+    dup2(_stdout_saved_fd, STDOUT_FILENO);
+    close(_stdout_saved_fd);
+    _stdout_saved_fd = -1;
+    return (el_val_t)(int64_t)1;
+}
+
 /* ── String builtins ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────── */

 el_val_t el_str_concat(el_val_t av, el_val_t bv) {
@@ -1876,6 +1907,61 @@ el_val_t exec_capture(el_val_t cmdv) {
    return el_wrap_str(b.buf);
 }

+// exec — run a shell command via /bin/sh, capture stdout, return as String.
+// Times out after 30 seconds. Returns "" on any error.
+// El name: exec(cmd) -> String
+el_val_t exec(el_val_t cmdv) {
+    const char* cmd = EL_CSTR(cmdv);
+    if (!cmd || !*cmd) return el_wrap_str(el_strdup(""));
+    /* Build a time-limited command: wrap with timeout(1) if available,
+     * otherwise rely on the 30s read loop guard below. We use the simple
+     * popen approach with a deadline measured by wall clock so the caller
+     * is never blocked indefinitely. */
+    FILE* f = popen(cmd, "r");
+    if (!f) return el_wrap_str(el_strdup(""));
+    JsonBuf b; jb_init(&b);
+    char buf[4096];
+    /* 30-second wall-clock deadline */
+    time_t deadline = time(NULL) + 30;
+    while (time(NULL) < deadline) {
+        if (fgets(buf, sizeof(buf), f) == NULL) break;
+        jb_puts(&b, buf);
+    }
+    pclose(f);
+    return el_wrap_str(b.buf);
+}
+
+// exec_bg — run a shell command in background, return PID as String.
+// The child process runs independently; the caller is not blocked.
+// Returns "" on fork failure.
+// El name: exec_bg(cmd) -> String
+el_val_t exec_bg(el_val_t cmdv) {
+    const char* cmd = EL_CSTR(cmdv);
+    if (!cmd || !*cmd) return el_wrap_str(el_strdup(""));
+    pid_t pid = fork();
+    if (pid < 0) {
+        /* fork failed */
+        return el_wrap_str(el_strdup(""));
+    }
+    if (pid == 0) {
+        /* child: detach from parent's stdio, exec via shell */
+        setsid();
+        int devnull = open("/dev/null", O_RDWR);
+        if (devnull >= 0) {
+            dup2(devnull, STDIN_FILENO);
+            dup2(devnull, STDOUT_FILENO);
+            dup2(devnull, STDERR_FILENO);
+            close(devnull);
+        }
+        execl("/bin/sh", "sh", "-c", cmd, (char*)NULL);
+        _exit(127);
+    }
+    /* parent: convert pid to string and return immediately */
+    char pidbuf[32];
+    snprintf(pidbuf, sizeof(pidbuf), "%d", (int)pid);
+    return el_wrap_str(el_strdup(pidbuf));
+}
+
 el_val_t fs_list(el_val_t pathv) {
    const char* path = EL_CSTR(pathv);
    el_val_t lst = el_list_empty();
@@ -2939,8 +3025,13 @@ static int looks_like_string(el_val_t v) {
    const unsigned char* s = (const unsigned char*)p;
    for (int i = 0; i < 16; i++) {
        unsigned char c = s[i];
-        if (c == '\0') return i > 0; /* terminated string */
-        if (c < 0x09 || (c > 0x0d && c < 0x20) || c >= 0x7f) return 0;
+        if (c == '\0') return 1; /* terminated string (empty string is still a valid string) */
+        /* Reject C0 control chars (non-whitespace), allow UTF-8 high bytes.
+         * 0x09-0x0d = tab/newline/cr/vt/ff (whitespace, OK)
+         * 0x20-0x7e = printable ASCII (OK)
+         * 0x7f      = DEL (reject)
+         * 0x80-0xff = UTF-8 continuation/lead bytes (OK for multi-byte chars) */
+        if (c < 0x09 || (c > 0x0d && c < 0x20) || c == 0x7f) return 0;
    }
    return 1; /* 16+ printable bytes — call it a string */
 }
@@ -79,6 +79,8 @@ extern "C" {
 void      println(el_val_t s);
 void      print(el_val_t s);
 el_val_t  readline(void);
+el_val_t  stdout_to_file(el_val_t path);   /* redirect println to a file  */
+el_val_t  stdout_restore(void);            /* restore stdout after capture */

 /* ── String builtins ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────── */

@@ -742,6 +744,8 @@ el_val_t  map_set(el_val_t map, el_val_t key, el_val_t value); /* el_map_set */
 /* ── Subprocess execution ────────────────────────────────────────────────── */
 el_val_t exec_command(el_val_t cmd);   /* run shell command, return exit code */
 el_val_t exec_capture(el_val_t cmd);   /* run shell command, capture stdout   */
+el_val_t exec(el_val_t cmd);           /* exec(cmd) → stdout String (30s timeout) */
+el_val_t exec_bg(el_val_t cmd);        /* exec_bg(cmd) → PID String (non-blocking) */

 el_val_t emit_log(el_val_t level, el_val_t msg, el_val_t fields_json);
 el_val_t emit_metric(el_val_t name, el_val_t value, el_val_t tags_json);
@@ -522,6 +522,328 @@ function math_sin(f)  { return Math.sin(f); }
 function math_cos(f)  { return Math.cos(f); }
 function math_pi()    { return Math.PI; }

+// ── DOM bridge (browser-only) ──────────────────────────────────────────────
+//
+// These functions wrap the browser DOM API. Each throws a descriptive error
+// when called from a Node environment, mirroring the pattern used by fs_*
+// in browser mode.
+
+function _ensureBrowser(name) {
+    if (IS_NODE) {
+        throw new Error(`${name}: not supported in Node runtime — DOM is browser-only`);
+    }
+}
+
+function dom_get_element(id) {
+    _ensureBrowser('dom_get_element');
+    return document.getElementById(String(id));
+}
+
+function dom_get_value(el) {
+    _ensureBrowser('dom_get_value');
+    return el == null ? '' : String(el.value ?? '');
+}
+
+function dom_set_value(el, v) {
+    _ensureBrowser('dom_set_value');
+    if (el != null) el.value = String(v);
+}
+
+function dom_get_text(el) {
+    _ensureBrowser('dom_get_text');
+    return el == null ? '' : String(el.textContent ?? '');
+}
+
+function dom_set_text(el, text) {
+    _ensureBrowser('dom_set_text');
+    if (el != null) el.textContent = String(text);
+}
+
+function dom_set_prop(el, prop, val) {
+    _ensureBrowser('dom_set_prop');
+    if (el != null) el[String(prop)] = val;
+}
+
+function dom_get_prop(el, prop) {
+    _ensureBrowser('dom_get_prop');
+    if (el == null) return null;
+    const v = el[String(prop)];
+    return v === undefined ? null : v;
+}
+
+function dom_set_style(el, prop, val) {
+    _ensureBrowser('dom_set_style');
+    if (el != null) el.style[String(prop)] = String(val);
+}
+
+function dom_add_class(el, cls) {
+    _ensureBrowser('dom_add_class');
+    if (el != null) el.classList.add(String(cls));
+}
+
+function dom_remove_class(el, cls) {
+    _ensureBrowser('dom_remove_class');
+    if (el != null) el.classList.remove(String(cls));
+}
+
+function dom_show(el) {
+    _ensureBrowser('dom_show');
+    if (el != null) el.style.display = '';
+}
+
+function dom_hide(el) {
+    _ensureBrowser('dom_hide');
+    if (el != null) el.style.display = 'none';
+}
+
+function dom_listen(el, event, handler) {
+    _ensureBrowser('dom_listen');
+    if (el != null) el.addEventListener(String(event), handler);
+}
+
+function dom_query(selector) {
+    _ensureBrowser('dom_query');
+    return document.querySelector(String(selector));
+}
+
+function dom_query_all(selector) {
+    _ensureBrowser('dom_query_all');
+    return Array.from(document.querySelectorAll(String(selector)));
+}
+
+function dom_create(tag) {
+    _ensureBrowser('dom_create');
+    return document.createElement(String(tag));
+}
+
+function dom_append(parent, child) {
+    _ensureBrowser('dom_append');
+    if (parent != null && child != null) parent.appendChild(child);
+}
+
+function dom_remove(el) {
+    _ensureBrowser('dom_remove');
+    if (el != null) el.remove();
+}
+
+function dom_is_null(el) {
+    return el === null || el === undefined;
+}
+
+// ── Extended DOM API (browser-only) ───────────────────────────────────────
+
+function dom_set_attr(el, attr, val) {
+    _ensureBrowser('dom_set_attr');
+    if (el != null) el.setAttribute(String(attr), String(val));
+}
+
+function dom_get_attr(el, attr) {
+    _ensureBrowser('dom_get_attr');
+    if (el == null) return '';
+    return el.getAttribute(String(attr)) ?? '';
+}
+
+function dom_remove_attr(el, attr) {
+    _ensureBrowser('dom_remove_attr');
+    if (el != null) el.removeAttribute(String(attr));
+}
+
+function dom_set_html(el, html) {
+    _ensureBrowser('dom_set_html');
+    if (el != null) el.innerHTML = String(html);
+}
+
+function dom_get_html(el) {
+    _ensureBrowser('dom_get_html');
+    return el == null ? '' : String(el.innerHTML ?? '');
+}
+
+function dom_get_parent(el) {
+    _ensureBrowser('dom_get_parent');
+    return el == null ? null : (el.parentElement ?? null);
+}
+
+function dom_contains_class(el, cls) {
+    _ensureBrowser('dom_contains_class');
+    if (el == null) return false;
+    return el.classList.contains(String(cls));
+}
+
+function dom_get_checked(el) {
+    _ensureBrowser('dom_get_checked');
+    return el == null ? false : Boolean(el.checked);
+}
+
+function dom_set_checked(el, val) {
+    _ensureBrowser('dom_set_checked');
+    if (el != null) el.checked = Boolean(val);
+}
+
+// ── Timer API (browser + Node) ─────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+function set_timeout(ms, cb) {
+    if (typeof setTimeout === 'undefined') {
+        throw new Error('set_timeout: setTimeout not available in this environment');
+    }
+    setTimeout(cb, ms | 0);
+}
+
+function set_interval(ms, cb) {
+    if (typeof setInterval === 'undefined') {
+        throw new Error('set_interval: setInterval not available in this environment');
+    }
+    return setInterval(cb, ms | 0);
+}
+
+function clear_interval(handle) {
+    if (typeof clearInterval !== 'undefined') clearInterval(handle);
+}
+
+// ── Local storage (browser-only) ───────────────────────────────────────────
+
+function local_storage_get(key) {
+    _ensureBrowser('local_storage_get');
+    return localStorage.getItem(String(key)) ?? '';
+}
+
+function local_storage_set(key, val) {
+    _ensureBrowser('local_storage_set');
+    localStorage.setItem(String(key), String(val));
+}
+
+function local_storage_remove(key) {
+    _ensureBrowser('local_storage_remove');
+    localStorage.removeItem(String(key));
+}
+
+// ── Window location / navigation (browser-only) ────────────────────────────
+
+function window_location() {
+    _ensureBrowser('window_location');
+    return window.location.href;
+}
+
+function window_redirect(url) {
+    _ensureBrowser('window_redirect');
+    window.location.href = String(url);
+}
+
+function window_on_load(cb) {
+    if (typeof document !== 'undefined') {
+        document.addEventListener('DOMContentLoaded', cb);
+    } else if (typeof window !== 'undefined') {
+        window.addEventListener('load', cb);
+    }
+    // In Node: no-op
+}
+
+// ── console_log (explicit debug log, distinct from println) ────────────────
+
+function console_log(msg) {
+    // eslint-disable-next-line no-console
+    console.log(String(msg));
+}
+
+// ── Window export helpers ──────────────────────────────────────────────────
+//
+// Expose El functions to the browser's global scope so they can be called
+// from inline event handlers (onclick="increment()") or by external JS.
+// In Node mode, writes to globalThis so the same pattern works in tests.
+
+function window_set(name, val) {
+    if (typeof window !== 'undefined') {
+        window[String(name)] = val;
+    } else if (typeof globalThis !== 'undefined') {
+        globalThis[String(name)] = val;
+    }
+}
+
+function window_get(name) {
+    if (typeof window !== 'undefined') {
+        const v = window[String(name)];
+        return v === undefined ? null : v;
+    }
+    return null;
+}
+
+// ── Promise helpers ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+//
+// Third-party APIs often return Promises but are not El @async functions.
+// These helpers let El programs chain .then / .catch without needing
+// native_js, and without requiring the callee to be @async.
+
+function promise_then(p, cb) {
+    return Promise.resolve(p).then(cb);
+}
+
+function promise_catch(p, cb) {
+    return Promise.resolve(p).catch(cb);
+}
+
+function promise_resolve(val) {
+    return Promise.resolve(val);
+}
+
+function promise_reject(msg) {
+    return Promise.reject(new Error(String(msg)));
+}
+
+// ── Object / Array utilities ───────────────────────────────────────────────
+//
+// Structural operations on Any-typed JS values. These complement the
+// El map/list primitives for interop with third-party library objects.
+
+function object_assign(target, source) {
+    return Object.assign(Object.assign({}, target), source);
+}
+
+function object_keys(obj) {
+    if (obj === null || obj === undefined) return [];
+    return Object.keys(obj);
+}
+
+function object_values(obj) {
+    if (obj === null || obj === undefined) return [];
+    return Object.values(obj);
+}
+
+function json_deep_clone(obj) {
+    if (obj === null || obj === undefined) return null;
+    return JSON.parse(JSON.stringify(obj));
+}
+
+function array_from(iterable) {
+    if (iterable === null || iterable === undefined) return [];
+    return Array.from(iterable);
+}
+
+function type_of(val) {
+    return typeof val;
+}
+
+function instanceof_check(val, constructor_name) {
+    if (typeof globalThis[constructor_name] === 'function') {
+        return val instanceof globalThis[constructor_name];
+    }
+    return false;
+}
+
+// ── native_js escape hatch ─────────────────────────────────────────────────
+//
+// Evaluate arbitrary JS from El source. Intended for calling third-party
+// browser libraries (Supabase, Stripe, etc.) until proper El bindings exist.
+// Use sparingly — this bypasses El's type system entirely.
+
+function native_js(code) {
+    // eslint-disable-next-line no-eval
+    return eval(String(code));
+}
+
+function native_js_call(obj, method, args) {
+    if (obj == null) throw new Error('native_js_call: object is null');
+    return obj[String(method)](...(Array.isArray(args) ? args : []));
+}
+
 // ── Stubs for not-yet-supported features ───────────────────────────────────
 //
 // These compile but throw when called. See spec/codegen-js.md §7.
@@ -632,6 +954,31 @@ const __el = {
    // Float / math
    float_to_str, int_to_float, float_to_int, format_float, decimal_round,
    str_to_float, math_sqrt, math_log, math_ln, math_sin, math_cos, math_pi,
+    // DOM bridge (browser-only)
+    dom_get_element, dom_get_value, dom_set_value, dom_get_text, dom_set_text,
+    dom_set_prop, dom_get_prop, dom_set_style, dom_add_class, dom_remove_class,
+    dom_show, dom_hide, dom_listen, dom_query, dom_query_all, dom_create,
+    dom_append, dom_remove, dom_is_null,
+    // Extended DOM
+    dom_set_attr, dom_get_attr, dom_remove_attr, dom_set_html, dom_get_html,
+    dom_get_parent, dom_contains_class, dom_get_checked, dom_set_checked,
+    // Timers
+    set_timeout, set_interval, clear_interval,
+    // Local storage
+    local_storage_get, local_storage_set, local_storage_remove,
+    // Window location
+    window_location, window_redirect, window_on_load,
+    // Debug
+    console_log,
+    // Window export helpers
+    window_set, window_get,
+    // Promise helpers
+    promise_then, promise_catch, promise_resolve, promise_reject,
+    // Object / Array utilities
+    object_assign, object_keys, object_values, json_deep_clone,
+    array_from, type_of, instanceof_check,
+    // native_js escape hatch
+    native_js, native_js_call,
    // CGI / DHARMA / Engram / LLM (stubs)
    el_cgi_init,
    dharma_connect, dharma_send, dharma_activate, dharma_emit, dharma_field,
@@ -676,4 +1023,27 @@ export {
    dharma_connect, dharma_send, dharma_activate, dharma_emit, dharma_field,
    engram_node, engram_search, engram_activate,
    llm_call, llm_call_system,
+    // DOM bridge
+    dom_get_element, dom_get_value, dom_set_value, dom_get_text, dom_set_text,
+    dom_set_prop, dom_get_prop, dom_set_style, dom_add_class, dom_remove_class,
+    dom_show, dom_hide, dom_listen, dom_query, dom_query_all, dom_create,
+    dom_append, dom_remove, dom_is_null,
+    // Extended DOM
+    dom_set_attr, dom_get_attr, dom_remove_attr, dom_set_html, dom_get_html,
+    dom_get_parent, dom_contains_class, dom_get_checked, dom_set_checked,
+    // Timers
+    set_timeout, set_interval, clear_interval,
+    // Local storage
+    local_storage_get, local_storage_set, local_storage_remove,
+    // Window location
+    window_location, window_redirect, window_on_load,
+    // Debug
+    console_log,
+    // Window / native_js
+    window_set, window_get, native_js, native_js_call,
+    // Promise helpers
+    promise_then, promise_catch, promise_resolve, promise_reject,
+    // Object / Array utilities
+    object_assign, object_keys, object_values, json_deep_clone,
+    array_from, type_of, instanceof_check,
 };
@@ -0,0 +1,756 @@
+/*
+ * el_runtime.h — El language C runtime header
+ *
+ * Declares all built-in functions available to compiled El programs.
+ * Include this in every generated .c file.
+ *
+ * Value model:
+ *   All El values are represented as el_val_t (= int64_t).
+ *   On 64-bit systems a pointer fits in int64_t.
+ *   String values are cast: (el_val_t)(uintptr_t)"hello"
+ *   Integer values are stored directly.
+ *   This lets arithmetic work naturally while still passing strings around.
+ *
+ * Type conventions (El -> C):
+ *   String  -> el_val_t  (holds const char* via uintptr_t cast)
+ *   Int     -> el_val_t
+ *   Bool    -> el_val_t  (0 = false, nonzero = true)
+ *   Any     -> el_val_t
+ *   Void    -> void
+ *
+ * Macros for convenience:
+ *   EL_STR(s)    cast string literal to el_val_t
+ *   EL_CSTR(v)   cast el_val_t back to const char*
+ *   EL_INT(v)    identity — el_val_t is already int64_t
+ *
+ * Link requirements:
+ *   -lcurl     — required for the HTTP client (http_get, http_post, llm_*).
+ *   -lpthread  — required for the HTTP server (one detached thread per
+ *                connection, capped at 64 concurrent).
+ *   -loqs      — optional; required only when liboqs is installed and the
+ *                pq_* / sha3_256_hex entry points are needed. Detected at
+ *                compile time via __has_include(<oqs/oqs.h>).
+ *   -lcrypto   — optional; pulled in alongside -loqs. Used for X25519 in
+ *                pq_hybrid_* and HKDF-SHA256 derivation.
+ *
+ * Canonical compile command:
+ *   cc -std=c11 -I el-compiler/runtime -lcurl -lpthread \
+ *      -o <out> <prog>.c el-compiler/runtime/el_runtime.c
+ *
+ * With liboqs (post-quantum stack):
+ *   cc -std=c11 -I el-compiler/runtime -lcurl -lpthread -loqs -lcrypto \
+ *      -o <out> <prog>.c el-compiler/runtime/el_runtime.c
+ */
+
+#pragma once
+
+#include <stdint.h>
+#include <stdlib.h>
+
+typedef int64_t el_val_t;
+
+#define EL_STR(s)  ((el_val_t)(uintptr_t)(s))
+#define EL_CSTR(v) ((const char*)(uintptr_t)(v))
+#define EL_INT(v)  (v)
+#define EL_NULL    ((el_val_t)0)
+
+/* Float values share the el_val_t (int64) slot via a bit-cast.
+ * The codegen emits Float literals as `el_from_float(<dbl>)` so the
+ * underlying bits represent the IEEE 754 double. Float-aware builtins
+ * (math, format, json) round-trip via these helpers. */
+static inline double el_to_float(el_val_t v) {
+    union { int64_t i; double f; } u;
+    u.i = (int64_t)v;
+    return u.f;
+}
+
+static inline el_val_t el_from_float(double f) {
+    union { double f; int64_t i; } u;
+    u.f = f;
+    return (el_val_t)u.i;
+}
+
+#ifdef __cplusplus
+extern "C" {
+#endif
+
+/* ── I/O ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── */
+
+void      println(el_val_t s);
+void      print(el_val_t s);
+el_val_t  readline(void);
+
+/* ── String builtins ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────── */
+
+el_val_t  el_str_concat(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  str_eq(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  str_starts_with(el_val_t s, el_val_t prefix);
+el_val_t  str_ends_with(el_val_t s, el_val_t suffix);
+el_val_t  str_len(el_val_t s);
+el_val_t  str_concat(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  int_to_str(el_val_t n);
+el_val_t  str_to_int(el_val_t s);
+el_val_t  str_slice(el_val_t s, el_val_t start, el_val_t end);
+el_val_t  str_contains(el_val_t s, el_val_t sub);
+el_val_t  str_replace(el_val_t s, el_val_t from, el_val_t to);
+el_val_t  str_to_upper(el_val_t s);
+el_val_t  str_to_lower(el_val_t s);
+el_val_t  str_trim(el_val_t s);
+
+/* ── Math ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── */
+
+el_val_t  el_abs(el_val_t n);
+el_val_t  el_max(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  el_min(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+
+/* ── Refcount (ARC) ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+ * Lists and Maps carry a refcount. Strings and ints do not — el_retain and
+ * el_release are safe no-ops on non-refcounted values (they sniff a magic
+ * header at offset 0 and only act if the magic matches).
+ *
+ * Codegen emits these at let-binding shadowing, function entry (params), and
+ * function exit (locals other than the returned value). The refcount lets
+ * el_list_append and el_map_set mutate in place when uniquely owned (cheap)
+ * and copy-on-write when shared (preserves persistent semantics across
+ * accumulator patterns in the compiler itself).                              */
+
+void      el_retain(el_val_t v);
+void      el_release(el_val_t v);
+
+/* ── List ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── */
+
+el_val_t  el_list_new(el_val_t count, ...);
+el_val_t  el_list_len(el_val_t list);
+el_val_t  el_list_get(el_val_t list, el_val_t index);
+el_val_t  el_list_append(el_val_t list, el_val_t elem);
+el_val_t  el_list_empty(void);
+el_val_t  el_list_clone(el_val_t list);
+
+/* ── Map ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── */
+
+el_val_t  el_map_new(el_val_t pair_count, ...);
+el_val_t  el_get_field(el_val_t map, el_val_t key);
+el_val_t  el_map_get(el_val_t map, el_val_t key);
+el_val_t  el_map_set(el_val_t map, el_val_t key, el_val_t value);
+
+/* ── HTTP ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── */
+
+el_val_t  http_get(el_val_t url);
+el_val_t  http_post(el_val_t url, el_val_t body);
+el_val_t  http_post_json(el_val_t url, el_val_t json_body);
+el_val_t  http_get_with_headers(el_val_t url, el_val_t headers_map);
+el_val_t  http_post_with_headers(el_val_t url, el_val_t body, el_val_t headers_map);
+el_val_t  http_post_form_auth(el_val_t url, el_val_t form_body, el_val_t auth_header);
+el_val_t  http_delete(el_val_t url);
+void      http_serve(el_val_t port, el_val_t handler);
+void      http_set_handler(el_val_t name);
+
+/* HTTP server v2 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+ * Same dispatch model as http_serve, but the handler signature is widened:
+ *
+ *     el_val_t handler(method, path, headers_map, body)
+ *
+ * `headers_map` is an ElMap from lowercased header name → header value (both
+ * Strings). Repeated headers are joined with ", " per RFC 7230.
+ *
+ * Response value: the handler may return either
+ *   (a) a plain body string — same auto-content-type / 200-OK behaviour as
+ *       http_serve (3-arg) — or
+ *   (b) a response envelope built with `http_response(status, headers_json,
+ *       body)`. The runtime detects the envelope discriminator
+ *       `"el_http_response":1` at the start of the returned string and
+ *       unpacks status / headers / body before sending.
+ *
+ * The 3-arg http_serve(port, handler) remains supported unchanged for
+ * existing handlers (e.g. products/web/server.el): it dispatches with
+ * (method, path, body), hardcodes 200 OK, and auto-detects content type. */
+void      http_serve_v2(el_val_t port, el_val_t handler);
+void      http_set_handler_v2(el_val_t name);
+
+/* Build an HTTP response envelope. `headers_json` should be a JSON object
+ * literal like `{"WWW-Authenticate":"Basic"}` (or "" / "{}" for none). The
+ * returned string carries the discriminator `{"el_http_response":1,...}`
+ * which the runtime's send-path detects and unpacks. Detection happens
+ * uniformly inside http_send_response, so a 3-arg handler may also return
+ * an envelope. The 3-arg variant remains documented as a fixed 200-OK
+ * auto-content-type contract for legacy handlers that return plain bodies. */
+el_val_t  http_response(el_val_t status, el_val_t headers_json, el_val_t body);
+
+/* HTTP timeout — every libcurl request honors EL_HTTP_TIMEOUT_MS (default
+ * 60000ms). Read lazily on first use, so setting the env var any time before
+ * the first http_* call is sufficient.                                    */
+
+/* Streaming variants — write the response body straight to a file via
+ * libcurl's CURLOPT_WRITEFUNCTION = fwrite. These bypass the el_val_t string
+ * wrapper entirely, so binary payloads (audio/mpeg, image/png, etc.) survive
+ * embedded NUL bytes that would truncate a strlen()-based code path.
+ *
+ * Both honor EL_HTTP_TIMEOUT_MS, follow redirects, and accept the same
+ * `headers_map` shape as http_post_with_headers (ElMap of String→String).
+ *
+ * Return value: 1 on success (file fully written), 0 on any failure
+ * (network, file open, partial write). On failure the output file is removed
+ * so callers cannot mistake a partially-written file for a valid one. */
+el_val_t  http_post_to_file(el_val_t url, el_val_t body, el_val_t headers_map, el_val_t output_path);
+el_val_t  http_get_to_file(el_val_t url, el_val_t headers_map, el_val_t output_path);
+
+/* ── URL encoding ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── */
+
+el_val_t  url_encode(el_val_t s);   /* RFC 3986 unreserved set */
+el_val_t  url_decode(el_val_t s);   /* '+' → space, %XX → byte  */
+
+/* ── HTML allowlist sanitizer ────────────────────────────────────────────────
+ * el_html_sanitize(input_html, allowlist_json) — strict allowlist HTML
+ * cleaner. State-machine parser; tag/attribute names compared case-
+ * insensitively against the allowlist; `<a href>` / `<… src>` URL schemes
+ * validated (http, https, mailto, fragment-only, or relative); whole-
+ * subtree drop for script / style / iframe / object / embed / form; HTML-
+ * escapes free text outside dropped subtrees.
+ *
+ * The allowlist is JSON of the form
+ *     {"p":[],"a":["href","title"],"strong":[],...}
+ * where each value is the array of attribute names allowed for that tag. */
+el_val_t  el_html_sanitize(el_val_t input_html, el_val_t allowlist_json);
+
+/* ── Filesystem ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── */
+
+el_val_t  fs_read(el_val_t path);
+el_val_t  fs_write(el_val_t path, el_val_t content);
+el_val_t  fs_list(el_val_t path);
+el_val_t  fs_exists(el_val_t path);
+el_val_t  fs_mkdir(el_val_t path);   /* mkdir -p, mode 0755                */
+
+/* Length-explicit binary write. `length` is an Int (el_val_t holding the
+ * byte count). The caller knows the length from context — typically because
+ * `bytes` came from base64_decode (which produces a magic-tagged binary
+ * buffer with embedded NULs possible) and the caller already tracks the
+ * decoded length, OR because the bytes came from a fixed-size source
+ * (sha256_bytes = 32, hmac_sha256_bytes = 32). Bypasses strlen entirely.
+ *
+ * Returns 1 on success, 0 on failure (invalid path, can't open, partial
+ * write, negative length). On partial-write failure, the file is removed
+ * so callers cannot read back a truncated artefact. */
+el_val_t  fs_write_bytes(el_val_t path, el_val_t bytes, el_val_t length);
+
+/* ── JSON ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── */
+
+el_val_t  json_get(el_val_t json, el_val_t key);
+el_val_t  json_parse(el_val_t s);
+el_val_t  json_stringify(el_val_t v);
+el_val_t  json_get_string(el_val_t json_str, el_val_t key);
+el_val_t  json_get_int(el_val_t json_str, el_val_t key);
+el_val_t  json_get_float(el_val_t json_str, el_val_t key);
+el_val_t  json_get_bool(el_val_t json_str, el_val_t key);
+el_val_t  json_get_raw(el_val_t json_str, el_val_t key);
+el_val_t  json_set(el_val_t json_str, el_val_t key, el_val_t value);
+el_val_t  json_array_len(el_val_t json_str);
+el_val_t  json_array_get(el_val_t json_str, el_val_t index);
+el_val_t  json_array_get_string(el_val_t json_str, el_val_t index);
+
+/* ── Time ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── */
+
+el_val_t  time_now(void);
+el_val_t  time_now_utc(void);
+el_val_t  sleep_secs(el_val_t secs);
+el_val_t  sleep_ms(el_val_t ms);
+el_val_t  time_format(el_val_t ts, el_val_t fmt);
+el_val_t  time_to_parts(el_val_t ts);
+el_val_t  time_from_parts(el_val_t secs, el_val_t ns, el_val_t tz);
+el_val_t  time_add(el_val_t ts, el_val_t n, el_val_t unit);
+el_val_t  time_diff(el_val_t ts1, el_val_t ts2, el_val_t unit);
+
+/* ── Instant + Duration: first-class temporal types ──────────────────────────
+ * Both types share the el_val_t (int64) slot. Instants are nanoseconds
+ * since the Unix epoch; Durations are signed nanoseconds. Type discipline
+ * is enforced at codegen-time: BinOps on names registered as Instant or
+ * Duration route through the typed wrappers below; mismatches like
+ * Instant+Instant become #error at the C compiler.
+ *
+ * Postfix literals — `30.seconds`, `1.hour`, `500.millis`, `30.nanos` — are
+ * recognised by the parser as DurationLit AST nodes and lowered to literal
+ * int64 nanoseconds at codegen time. The runtime never sees the units. */
+
+el_val_t  el_now_instant(void);
+el_val_t  now(void);
+el_val_t  unix_seconds(el_val_t n);
+el_val_t  unix_millis(el_val_t n);
+el_val_t  instant_from_iso8601(el_val_t s);
+
+el_val_t  el_duration_from_nanos(el_val_t ns);
+el_val_t  duration_seconds(el_val_t n);
+el_val_t  duration_millis(el_val_t n);
+el_val_t  duration_nanos(el_val_t n);
+
+el_val_t  el_instant_add_dur(el_val_t inst, el_val_t dur);
+el_val_t  el_instant_sub_dur(el_val_t inst, el_val_t dur);
+el_val_t  el_instant_diff(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  el_duration_add(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  el_duration_sub(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  el_duration_scale(el_val_t dur, el_val_t scalar);
+el_val_t  el_duration_div(el_val_t dur, el_val_t scalar);
+
+el_val_t  el_instant_lt(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  el_instant_le(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  el_instant_gt(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  el_instant_ge(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  el_instant_eq(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  el_instant_ne(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  el_duration_lt(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  el_duration_le(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  el_duration_gt(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  el_duration_ge(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  el_duration_eq(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  el_duration_ne(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+
+el_val_t  instant_to_unix_seconds(el_val_t i);
+el_val_t  instant_to_unix_millis(el_val_t i);
+el_val_t  instant_to_iso8601(el_val_t i);
+el_val_t  duration_to_seconds(el_val_t d);
+el_val_t  duration_to_millis(el_val_t d);
+el_val_t  duration_to_nanos(el_val_t d);
+
+el_val_t  el_sleep_duration(el_val_t dur);
+el_val_t  unix_timestamp(void);
+
+el_val_t  ttl_cache_set(el_val_t key, el_val_t value);
+el_val_t  ttl_cache_get(el_val_t key, el_val_t max_age);
+el_val_t  ttl_cache_age(el_val_t key);
+
+/* ── Calendar + CalendarTime + Rhythm + LocalDate/Time/DateTime ─────────────
+ * Phase 1.5 of the time system. Calendar is pluggable: EarthCalendar (IANA
+ * zones, Gregorian, DST) is the user-facing default; MarsCalendar,
+ * CycleCalendar(period), NoCycleCalendar, RelativeCalendar handle non-Earth
+ * domains.
+ *
+ * A Calendar interprets an Instant under a particular cycle convention and
+ * produces a CalendarTime. CalendarTime carries the underlying Instant and
+ * a back-pointer to its Calendar; arithmetic and formatting consult the
+ * Calendar to convert ns since epoch into year/month/day/hour/minute/second
+ * (or sol/phase, or cycle/phase, depending on kind).
+ *
+ * Storage convention: Calendar / CalendarTime / Rhythm / LocalDate /
+ * LocalDateTime are heap-allocated structs whose pointers are cast into
+ * el_val_t. A 24-bit magic header at offset 0 lets the runtime identify
+ * the kind safely. LocalTime is small enough to live in the int64 slot
+ * directly (nanos since midnight, signed).                                  */
+
+/* Zone — opaque IANA zone or fixed offset, used by EarthCalendar.
+ * `zone_id` is either an IANA name ("America/New_York", "UTC") or a fixed
+ * offset string ("+05:30", "-08:00"). The runtime resolves it via tzset()
+ * on first use of the owning EarthCalendar.                                  */
+el_val_t  zone(el_val_t id);
+el_val_t  zone_utc(void);
+el_val_t  zone_local(void);
+el_val_t  zone_offset(el_val_t hours, el_val_t minutes);
+
+/* Calendar constructors. Each returns an el_val_t pointer to a heap-
+ * allocated, magic-tagged Calendar struct. Calendars are interned by
+ * (kind, zone_id, period_ns, epoch_ns) so identical constructors return
+ * the same pointer — equality is reference equality.                        */
+el_val_t  earth_calendar(el_val_t z);
+el_val_t  earth_calendar_default(void);
+el_val_t  mars_calendar(void);
+el_val_t  cycle_calendar(el_val_t period_dur);
+el_val_t  no_cycle_calendar(void);
+el_val_t  relative_calendar(el_val_t epoch_inst);
+
+/* CalendarTime constructors and methods. Returns a heap-allocated struct
+ * whose pointer fits in el_val_t. */
+el_val_t  now_in(el_val_t cal);
+el_val_t  in_calendar(el_val_t inst, el_val_t cal);
+el_val_t  cal_format(el_val_t ct, el_val_t pattern);
+el_val_t  cal_to_instant(el_val_t ct);
+el_val_t  cal_cycle_phase(el_val_t ct);
+el_val_t  cal_in(el_val_t ct, el_val_t cal);
+
+/* LocalDate / LocalTime / LocalDateTime — calendar-agnostic value types.
+ * LocalTime carries nanoseconds since midnight as a signed int64 directly
+ * in the el_val_t slot (no allocation). LocalDate / LocalDateTime are
+ * heap-allocated structs with magic headers. */
+el_val_t  local_date(el_val_t y, el_val_t m, el_val_t d);
+el_val_t  local_time(el_val_t h, el_val_t m, el_val_t s, el_val_t ns);
+el_val_t  local_datetime(el_val_t date, el_val_t time);
+el_val_t  zoned(el_val_t date, el_val_t time, el_val_t cal);
+
+el_val_t  local_date_year(el_val_t ld);
+el_val_t  local_date_month(el_val_t ld);
+el_val_t  local_date_day(el_val_t ld);
+el_val_t  local_time_hour(el_val_t lt);
+el_val_t  local_time_minute(el_val_t lt);
+el_val_t  local_time_second(el_val_t lt);
+el_val_t  local_time_nanos(el_val_t lt);
+
+el_val_t  el_local_date_add_dur(el_val_t ld, el_val_t dur);
+el_val_t  el_local_time_add_dur(el_val_t lt, el_val_t dur);
+el_val_t  el_local_date_lt(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  el_local_date_eq(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+
+/* Rhythm — pluggable recurrence AST. Returns a heap-allocated struct
+ * pointer in el_val_t; rhythms are immutable so callers may share them. */
+el_val_t  rhythm_cycle_start(void);
+el_val_t  rhythm_cycle_phase(el_val_t phase);
+el_val_t  rhythm_duration(el_val_t d);
+el_val_t  rhythm_session_start(void);
+el_val_t  rhythm_event(el_val_t name);
+el_val_t  rhythm_and(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  rhythm_or(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  rhythm_weekday(el_val_t day);
+el_val_t  rhythm_weekly_at(el_val_t day, el_val_t hour, el_val_t minute);
+el_val_t  rhythm_next_after(el_val_t r, el_val_t after, el_val_t cal);
+el_val_t  rhythm_matches(el_val_t r, el_val_t ct);
+
+/* ── UUID ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── */
+
+el_val_t  uuid_new(void);
+el_val_t  uuid_v4(void);
+
+/* ── Environment ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── */
+
+el_val_t  env(el_val_t key);
+
+/* ── In-process state K/V ────────────────────────────────────────────────── */
+
+el_val_t  state_set(el_val_t key, el_val_t value);
+el_val_t  state_get(el_val_t key);
+el_val_t  state_del(el_val_t key);
+el_val_t  state_keys(void);
+
+/* ── Float formatting ────────────────────────────────────────────────────── */
+
+el_val_t  float_to_str(el_val_t f);
+el_val_t  int_to_float(el_val_t n);
+el_val_t  float_to_int(el_val_t f);
+el_val_t  format_float(el_val_t f, el_val_t decimals);
+el_val_t  decimal_round(el_val_t f, el_val_t decimals);
+el_val_t  str_to_float(el_val_t s);
+
+/* ── Math (Float-aware) ──────────────────────────────────────────────────── */
+
+el_val_t  math_sqrt(el_val_t f);
+el_val_t  math_log(el_val_t f);
+el_val_t  math_ln(el_val_t f);
+el_val_t  math_sin(el_val_t f);
+el_val_t  math_cos(el_val_t f);
+el_val_t  math_pi(void);
+
+/* ── String additions ────────────────────────────────────────────────────── */
+
+el_val_t  str_index_of(el_val_t s, el_val_t sub);
+el_val_t  str_split(el_val_t s, el_val_t sep);
+el_val_t  str_char_at(el_val_t s, el_val_t i);
+el_val_t  str_char_code(el_val_t s, el_val_t i);
+el_val_t  str_pad_left(el_val_t s, el_val_t width, el_val_t pad);
+el_val_t  str_pad_right(el_val_t s, el_val_t width, el_val_t pad);
+el_val_t  str_format(el_val_t fmt, el_val_t data);
+el_val_t  str_lower(el_val_t s);
+el_val_t  str_upper(el_val_t s);
+
+/* ── Text-processing primitives (Phase 1: byte/codepoint, ASCII char classes)
+ * Phase 2 (filed): Unicode-grapheme awareness, NFC/NFD normalization, regex.
+ * is_* predicates: empty input returns false; multi-char requires ALL bytes
+ * to match. ASCII ranges only in Phase 1. */
+
+/* Counting */
+el_val_t  str_count(el_val_t s, el_val_t sub);              /* non-overlapping */
+el_val_t  str_count_chars(el_val_t s);                      /* codepoint count */
+el_val_t  str_count_bytes(el_val_t s);                      /* alias of str_len */
+el_val_t  str_count_lines(el_val_t s);
+el_val_t  str_count_words(el_val_t s);
+el_val_t  str_count_letters(el_val_t s);                    /* ASCII [A-Za-z] */
+el_val_t  str_count_digits(el_val_t s);                     /* ASCII [0-9] */
+
+/* Find / position */
+el_val_t  str_index_of_all(el_val_t s, el_val_t sub);       /* [Int] of byte offsets */
+el_val_t  str_last_index_of(el_val_t s, el_val_t sub);
+el_val_t  str_find_chars(el_val_t s, el_val_t any_of);      /* first idx of any ch */
+
+/* Transform */
+el_val_t  str_repeat(el_val_t s, el_val_t n);
+el_val_t  str_reverse(el_val_t s);                          /* by codepoint */
+el_val_t  str_strip_prefix(el_val_t s, el_val_t prefix);
+el_val_t  str_strip_suffix(el_val_t s, el_val_t suffix);
+el_val_t  str_strip_chars(el_val_t s, el_val_t chars);
+el_val_t  str_lstrip(el_val_t s);
+el_val_t  str_rstrip(el_val_t s);
+
+/* Char classification (Bool) */
+el_val_t  is_letter(el_val_t s);
+el_val_t  is_digit(el_val_t s);
+el_val_t  is_alphanumeric(el_val_t s);
+el_val_t  is_whitespace(el_val_t s);
+el_val_t  is_punctuation(el_val_t s);
+el_val_t  is_uppercase(el_val_t s);
+el_val_t  is_lowercase(el_val_t s);
+
+/* Split / join */
+el_val_t  str_split_lines(el_val_t s);
+el_val_t  str_split_chars(el_val_t s);                      /* alias of native_string_chars */
+el_val_t  str_split_n(el_val_t s, el_val_t sep, el_val_t n);
+el_val_t  str_join(el_val_t list, el_val_t sep);            /* alias of list_join */
+
+/* ── List additions ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────── */
+
+el_val_t  list_push(el_val_t list, el_val_t elem);
+el_val_t  list_push_front(el_val_t list, el_val_t elem);
+el_val_t  list_join(el_val_t list, el_val_t sep);
+el_val_t  list_range(el_val_t start, el_val_t end);
+
+/* ── Bool helpers ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── */
+
+el_val_t  bool_to_str(el_val_t b);
+
+/* ── Numeric parsing ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────── */
+
+el_val_t  parse_int(el_val_t s, el_val_t default_val);
+
+/* ── Process ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── */
+
+void      exit_program(el_val_t code);
+el_val_t  getpid_now(void);
+
+/* ── CGI identity ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+ * Called at the start of main() in CGI programs (those with a `cgi {}` block).
+ * Records the program's DHARMA identity before any other code executes.      */
+
+void      el_cgi_init(el_val_t name, el_val_t dharma_id, el_val_t principal,
+                      el_val_t network, el_val_t engram);
+
+/* ── DHARMA network builtins ─────────────────────────────────────────────────
+ * Available to CGI programs (declared with a `cgi {}` block).
+ *
+ * Peers are addressed by `dharma_id` of the form
+ *     "<registry-id>@<transport-url>"   e.g. "ntn-genesis@http://localhost:7770"
+ * If the @<url> portion is omitted, transport defaults to
+ * "http://localhost:7770" (the local CGI daemon assumption).
+ *
+ * Wire protocol (all peers expose):
+ *   POST <url>/dharma/recv      { channel, from, content } → response body
+ *   POST <url>/dharma/event     { type, payload, source, timestamp }
+ *   POST <url>/api/activate     { query }                 → list of nodes
+ *
+ * Hosting application's responsibility: an El program with a `cgi {}` block
+ * runs http_serve() with its own request handler; that handler should route
+ * "/dharma/event" requests by calling el_runtime_dharma_event_arrive() so
+ * incoming events feed dharma_field() queues. The runtime itself does not
+ * intercept any /dharma path.                                                */
+
+el_val_t  dharma_connect(el_val_t cgi_id);
+el_val_t  dharma_send(el_val_t channel, el_val_t content);
+el_val_t  dharma_activate(el_val_t query);
+void      dharma_emit(el_val_t event_type, el_val_t payload);
+el_val_t  dharma_field(el_val_t event_type);
+void      dharma_strengthen(el_val_t cgi_id, el_val_t weight);
+el_val_t  dharma_relationship(el_val_t cgi_id);
+el_val_t  dharma_peers(void);
+
+/* Public C API: called by an El program's HTTP handler when a /dharma/event
+ * request arrives. Pushes onto the per-event-type queue and signals any
+ * pending dharma_field() blockers. All three arguments must be NUL-terminated
+ * C strings (or NULL — then treated as empty).                               */
+void      el_runtime_dharma_event_arrive(const char* event_type,
+                                         const char* payload,
+                                         const char* source);
+
+/* ── Engram local graph primitives ───────────────────────────────────────────
+ * Operate on the CGI's local Engram knowledge graph.
+ * `engram_activate` queries the local graph only; `dharma_activate` is
+ * network-wide across all connected CGI graphs.                              */
+
+el_val_t  engram_node(el_val_t content, el_val_t node_type, el_val_t salience);
+el_val_t  engram_node_full(el_val_t content, el_val_t node_type, el_val_t label,
+                           el_val_t salience, el_val_t importance, el_val_t confidence,
+                           el_val_t tier, el_val_t tags);
+/* Layered consciousness — see el_runtime.c for the layered architecture
+ * design notes (search "Layered consciousness architecture"). The five
+ * canonical layers (safety / core-identity / domain-knowledge / imprint /
+ * suit) are seeded automatically; engram_add_layer extends the registry
+ * with imprint or suit overlays at runtime. Nodes default to layer 1
+ * (core-identity) when created via engram_node / engram_node_full. */
+el_val_t  engram_node_layered(el_val_t content, el_val_t node_type, el_val_t label,
+                              el_val_t salience, el_val_t certainty, el_val_t confidence,
+                              el_val_t status, el_val_t tags, el_val_t layer_id);
+el_val_t  engram_add_layer(el_val_t name, el_val_t priority, el_val_t suppressible,
+                           el_val_t transparent, el_val_t injectable);
+el_val_t  engram_remove_layer(el_val_t layer_id);
+el_val_t  engram_list_layers(void);
+el_val_t  engram_get_node(el_val_t id);
+void      engram_strengthen(el_val_t node_id);
+void      engram_forget(el_val_t node_id);
+el_val_t  engram_node_count(void);
+el_val_t  engram_search(el_val_t query, el_val_t limit);
+el_val_t  engram_scan_nodes(el_val_t limit, el_val_t offset);
+void      engram_connect(el_val_t from_id, el_val_t to_id, el_val_t weight, el_val_t relation);
+el_val_t  engram_edge_between(el_val_t from_id, el_val_t to_id);
+el_val_t  engram_neighbors(el_val_t node_id);
+el_val_t  engram_neighbors_filtered(el_val_t node_id, el_val_t max_depth, el_val_t direction);
+el_val_t  engram_edge_count(void);
+/* Three-pass activation: background fan-out → working-memory promotion →
+ * Layer 0 override. See "Three-pass activation" in el_runtime.c. */
+el_val_t  engram_activate(el_val_t query, el_val_t depth);
+el_val_t  engram_save(el_val_t path);
+el_val_t  engram_load(el_val_t path);
+
+/* JSON-string accessors — return pre-serialized JSON so HTTP handlers
+ * can pass results straight through without round-tripping ElList/ElMap
+ * through json_stringify. */
+el_val_t  engram_get_node_json(el_val_t id);
+el_val_t  engram_search_json(el_val_t query, el_val_t limit);
+el_val_t  engram_scan_nodes_json(el_val_t limit, el_val_t offset);
+el_val_t  engram_scan_nodes_by_type_json(el_val_t node_type, el_val_t limit, el_val_t offset);
+el_val_t  engram_neighbors_json(el_val_t node_id, el_val_t max_depth, el_val_t direction);
+el_val_t  engram_activate_json(el_val_t query, el_val_t depth);
+el_val_t  engram_stats_json(void);
+el_val_t  engram_list_layers_json(void);
+/* engram_compile_layered_json — produce a prompt-ready text block split
+ * into "[LAYER 0 — STRUCTURAL]" (non-suppressible layers, sacred fire)
+ * and "[ENGRAM CONTEXT]" (standard suppressible layers). Returns "" if
+ * no nodes promoted to working memory. */
+el_val_t  engram_compile_layered_json(el_val_t intent, el_val_t depth);
+
+/* ── LLM (Anthropic API client) ─────────────────────────────────────────────
+ * All functions call https://api.anthropic.com/v1/messages with the API key
+ * from env ANTHROPIC_API_KEY. Default model when empty: claude-sonnet-4-5. */
+
+el_val_t  llm_call(el_val_t model, el_val_t prompt);
+el_val_t  llm_call_system(el_val_t model, el_val_t system_prompt, el_val_t user_prompt);
+el_val_t  llm_call_agentic(el_val_t model, el_val_t system, el_val_t user, el_val_t tools);
+el_val_t  llm_vision(el_val_t model, el_val_t system, el_val_t prompt, el_val_t image_url_or_b64);
+el_val_t  llm_models(void);
+
+/* Register a tool handler by name. The handler is looked up via dlsym
+ * (mirroring http_set_handler), so any El `fn <name>(input)` compiles to
+ * a global C symbol that this function can locate at runtime.
+ * Handler signature: `el_val_t handler(el_val_t input_json)` — receives
+ * the tool input as a JSON-string el_val_t and returns a JSON-string
+ * el_val_t result. Used by llm_call_agentic.                                 */
+void      llm_register_tool(el_val_t name, el_val_t handler_fn_name);
+
+/* ── args() ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+ * Provides access to command-line arguments passed to the program.
+ * Populated by el_runtime_init_args() before main() runs.           */
+
+el_val_t  args(void);
+void      el_runtime_init_args(int argc, char** argv);
+
+/* ── Crypto primitives ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+ * SHA-256, HMAC-SHA-256, and base64 (standard + URL-safe).
+ * Self-contained — no OpenSSL/libcrypto dependency. The implementations are
+ * adapted from public-domain reference code (Brad Conte / RFC 4648).
+ *
+ * Bytes-returning variants (sha256_bytes, hmac_sha256_bytes) return a string
+ * value whose contents are raw binary; callers usually feed these into
+ * base64_encode. Note that el_val_t strings are NUL-terminated by convention,
+ * so the binary payload may contain embedded NULs — pass it directly into
+ * base64_encode (which uses an explicit length) rather than treating it as
+ * a printable C string.
+ *
+ * The "base64" variants emit/accept RFC 4648 standard alphabet with padding.
+ * The "base64url" variants use URL-safe alphabet (`-`/`_`) with no padding,
+ * as used in JWTs.                                                           */
+
+el_val_t  sha256_hex(el_val_t input);
+el_val_t  sha256_bytes(el_val_t input);
+el_val_t  hmac_sha256_hex(el_val_t key, el_val_t message);
+el_val_t  hmac_sha256_bytes(el_val_t key, el_val_t message);
+el_val_t  base64_encode(el_val_t input);
+el_val_t  base64_decode(el_val_t input);
+el_val_t  base64url_encode(el_val_t input);
+el_val_t  base64url_decode(el_val_t input);
+
+/* Length-aware variants (internal — exposed for the rare caller that already
+ * has a known-length binary buffer and doesn't want to round-trip through
+ * a NUL-terminated el_val_t string). Sha256_bytes and hmac_sha256_bytes feed
+ * these implicitly. */
+el_val_t  el_sha256_bytes_n(const unsigned char* data, size_t len);
+el_val_t  el_base64_encode_n(const unsigned char* data, size_t len, int url_safe);
+
+/* ── Post-quantum primitives (liboqs-backed) ────────────────────────────────
+ * All inputs/outputs hex-encoded. Algorithm choices:
+ *   Signature: CRYSTALS-Dilithium-3   (NIST level 3, balanced)
+ *   KEM:       CRYSTALS-Kyber-768     (NIST level 3)
+ *   Hash:      SHA3-256 (Keccak)      (PQ-aware protocols favour SHA3 over SHA2)
+ *
+ * If liboqs is not linked (detected via __has_include(<oqs/oqs.h>) at compile
+ * time), the pq_* entry points return a JSON-shaped error string so callers
+ * fail loudly rather than silently fall back to classical schemes:
+ *   {"error":"liboqs not linked, post-quantum primitives unavailable"}
+ *
+ * The hybrid handshake pairs X25519 with Kyber-768 per NIST PQ guidance and
+ * CNSA 2.0. Combined shared secret is HKDF-SHA256(x25519_ss || kyber_ss).
+ * Even if Kyber falls, X25519 holds; if X25519 falls under quantum attack,
+ * Kyber holds. SHA3-256 also remains usable independent of liboqs (the
+ * Keccak permutation is PQ-OK as a primitive). */
+
+el_val_t  pq_keygen_signature(void);
+el_val_t  pq_sign(el_val_t secret_key_hex, el_val_t message);
+el_val_t  pq_verify(el_val_t public_key_hex, el_val_t message, el_val_t signature_hex);
+
+el_val_t  pq_kem_keygen(void);
+el_val_t  pq_kem_encaps(el_val_t public_key_hex);
+el_val_t  pq_kem_decaps(el_val_t secret_key_hex, el_val_t ciphertext_hex);
+
+el_val_t  pq_hybrid_keygen(void);
+el_val_t  pq_hybrid_handshake(el_val_t remote_pub_combined);
+
+el_val_t  sha3_256_hex(el_val_t input);
+
+/* ── AEAD: AES-256-GCM (libcrypto-backed) ───────────────────────────────────
+ * Symmetric authenticated encryption used to wrap envelopes after a KEM
+ * handshake. Caller MUST supply a 32-byte key (64 hex chars) — typically the
+ * Kyber-768 / hybrid shared_secret, optionally normalized via SHA3-256.
+ *
+ * aead_encrypt returns a JSON map {"nonce":"...","ciphertext":"..."} where
+ * ciphertext is the AES-256-GCM output with the 16-byte auth tag appended.
+ * Nonce is a fresh 12-byte CSPRNG draw — callers never pick the nonce, which
+ * structurally rules out the GCM nonce-reuse footgun.
+ *
+ * aead_decrypt returns the plaintext String, or "" on any failure (including
+ * auth-tag mismatch). Callers MUST check for "" before trusting the result. */
+el_val_t  aead_encrypt(el_val_t key_hex, el_val_t plaintext);
+el_val_t  aead_decrypt(el_val_t key_hex, el_val_t nonce_hex, el_val_t ciphertext_hex);
+
+/* ── Native VM builtin aliases (for compiled El source) ─────────────────────
+ * These match the El VM's native_* builtins so that El source compiled
+ * to C can call the same names without modification.                */
+
+el_val_t  native_list_get(el_val_t list, el_val_t index);
+el_val_t  native_list_len(el_val_t list);
+el_val_t  native_list_append(el_val_t list, el_val_t elem);
+el_val_t  native_list_empty(void);
+el_val_t  native_list_clone(el_val_t list);
+el_val_t  native_string_chars(el_val_t s);
+el_val_t  native_int_to_str(el_val_t n);
+
+/* ── Method-call shorthand aliases ──────────────────────────────────────────
+ * The El method-call convention `obj.method(args)` compiles to
+ * `method(obj, args)`.  These aliases expose the runtime functions under
+ * the short names that result from method calls in El source.
+ *
+ * Example: `myList.append(x)` → `append(myList, x)` (calls this alias)
+ *          `myList.len()`     → `len(myList)`         (calls this alias)  */
+
+el_val_t  append(el_val_t list, el_val_t elem);   /* el_list_append */
+el_val_t  len(el_val_t list);                      /* el_list_len    */
+el_val_t  get(el_val_t list, el_val_t index);      /* el_list_get    */
+el_val_t  map_get(el_val_t map, el_val_t key);     /* el_map_get     */
+el_val_t  map_set(el_val_t map, el_val_t key, el_val_t value); /* el_map_set */
+
+/* ── OTLP/HTTP Observability ─────────────────────────────────────────────── */
+/* See bottom of el_runtime.c for the implementation.
+ * Configured by env vars OTLP_ENDPOINT, OTEL_SERVICE_NAME, OTEL_SERVICE_VERSION.
+ * No-op when OTLP_ENDPOINT is unset. Drop-on-failure semantics. */
+/* ── Subprocess execution ────────────────────────────────────────────────── */
+el_val_t exec_command(el_val_t cmd);   /* run shell command, return exit code */
+el_val_t exec_capture(el_val_t cmd);   /* run shell command, capture stdout   */
+el_val_t exec(el_val_t cmd);           /* exec(cmd) → stdout String (30s timeout) */
+el_val_t exec_bg(el_val_t cmd);        /* exec_bg(cmd) → PID String (non-blocking) */
+
+el_val_t emit_log(el_val_t level, el_val_t msg, el_val_t fields_json);
+el_val_t emit_metric(el_val_t name, el_val_t value, el_val_t tags_json);
+el_val_t trace_span_start(el_val_t name);
+el_val_t trace_span_end(el_val_t span_handle);
+el_val_t emit_event(el_val_t name, el_val_t duration_ms);
+
+#ifdef __cplusplus
+}
+#endif
@@ -23,26 +23,26 @@
 fn js_escape(s: String) -> String {
    let chars: [String] = native_string_chars(s)
    let total: Int = native_list_len(chars)
-    let out = ""
+    let parts: [String] = native_list_empty()
    let i = 0
    while i < total {
        let ch: String = native_list_get(chars, i)
        if ch == "\"" {
-            let out = out + "\\\""
+            let parts = native_list_append(parts, "\\\"")
        } else {
            if ch == "\\" {
-                let out = out + "\\\\"
+                let parts = native_list_append(parts, "\\\\")
            } else {
                if ch == "\n" {
-                    let out = out + "\\n"
+                    let parts = native_list_append(parts, "\\n")
                } else {
                    if ch == "\r" {
-                        let out = out + "\\r"
+                        let parts = native_list_append(parts, "\\r")
                    } else {
                        if ch == "\t" {
-                            let out = out + "\\t"
+                            let parts = native_list_append(parts, "\\t")
                        } else {
-                            let out = out + ch
+                            let parts = native_list_append(parts, ch)
                        }
                    }
                }
@@ -50,7 +50,7 @@ fn js_escape(s: String) -> String {
        }
        let i = i + 1
    }
-    out
+    str_join(parts, "")
 }

 fn js_str_lit(s: String) -> String {
@@ -86,6 +86,57 @@ fn js_binop(op: String) -> String {
    op
 }

+// ── Known El runtime method names ─────────────────────────────────────────────
+//
+// These are the method shortforms exported by el_runtime.js and used by the
+// El C-backend convention of `obj.method(args)` -> `method(obj, args)`.
+// Any method name NOT in this set is treated as a native JS method call on the
+// receiver object, emitting `obj.method(args)` directly.
+//
+// This is the mechanism that makes `client.auth.signInWithOtp(payload)` work
+// without `native_js_call`: the receiver is Any-typed, the method is unknown
+// to El, so codegen emits the JS call directly.
+
+fn js_is_el_method(name: String) -> Bool {
+    if str_eq(name, "append") { return true }
+    if str_eq(name, "len") { return true }
+    if str_eq(name, "get") { return true }
+    if str_eq(name, "map_get") { return true }
+    if str_eq(name, "map_set") { return true }
+    false
+}
+
+// ── Async function tracking ───────────────────────────────────────────────────
+//
+// Functions decorated with @async are recorded here. Any call to a known-async
+// builtin (http_get, http_post, http_post_json) or to a user-declared @async
+// function gets an `await` prefix in generated JS.
+//
+// Known-async builtins — these return Promise<T> in el_runtime.js.
+fn js_is_async_builtin(name: String) -> Bool {
+    if str_eq(name, "http_get") { return true }
+    if str_eq(name, "http_post") { return true }
+    if str_eq(name, "http_post_json") { return true }
+    if str_eq(name, "http_get_with_headers") { return true }
+    if str_eq(name, "http_post_with_headers") { return true }
+    false
+}
+
+fn js_register_async_fn(name: String) -> Bool {
+    let csv: String = state_get("__js_async_fns")
+    if str_eq(csv, "") { csv = "," }
+    let key: String = "," + name + ","
+    if str_contains(csv, key) { return true }
+    state_set("__js_async_fns", csv + name + ",")
+    return true
+}
+
+fn js_is_async_fn(name: String) -> Bool {
+    let csv: String = state_get("__js_async_fns")
+    if str_eq(csv, "") { return false }
+    return str_contains(csv, "," + name + ",")
+}
+
 // ── Int-name tracking (mirrors codegen.el) ────────────────────────────────────

 fn js_is_int_name(name: String) -> Bool {
@@ -365,34 +416,50 @@ fn js_cg_expr(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> String {
        let arity: Int = native_list_len(args)
        let func_kind: String = func["expr"]

-        let args_c = ""
+        let args_parts: [String] = native_list_empty()
        let i = 0
        while i < arity {
            let arg = native_list_get(args, i)
            let arg_c: String = js_cg_expr(arg)
-            if i > 0 {
-                let args_c = args_c + ", "
-            }
-            let args_c = args_c + arg_c
+            let args_parts = native_list_append(args_parts, arg_c)
            let i = i + 1
        }
+        let args_c: String = str_join(args_parts, ", ")

        if func_kind == "Ident" {
            let fn_name: String = func["name"]
-            return fn_name + "(" + args_c + ")"
+            let call_expr: String = fn_name + "(" + args_c + ")"
+            if js_is_async_builtin(fn_name) {
+                return "await " + call_expr
+            }
+            if js_is_async_fn(fn_name) {
+                return "await " + call_expr
+            }
+            return call_expr
        }

        if func_kind == "Field" {
-            // El's `obj.method(args)` becomes `method(obj, args)` — same
-            // convention as the C backend. The runtime exports method
-            // shortforms (append, len, get, map_get, map_set) that match.
            let obj = func["object"]
            let field: String = func["field"]
            let obj_c: String = js_cg_expr(obj)
-            if arity > 0 {
-                return field + "(" + obj_c + ", " + args_c + ")"
+            // If the method is a known El runtime shortform, keep the El
+            // convention: `method(obj, args)`. This preserves backward
+            // compatibility with list.append(x), map.map_get(k), etc.
+            if js_is_el_method(field) {
+                if arity > 0 {
+                    return field + "(" + obj_c + ", " + args_c + ")"
+                }
+                return field + "(" + obj_c + ")"
            }
-            return field + "(" + obj_c + ")"
+            // Unknown method — emit as a native JS method call on the
+            // receiver. This handles Any-typed values (third-party library
+            // objects, DOM elements, Promises, etc.) without requiring
+            // native_js_call. Example: `client.auth.signInWithOtp(payload)`
+            // emits `client["auth"].signInWithOtp(args_c)`.
+            if arity > 0 {
+                return obj_c + "." + field + "(" + args_c + ")"
+            }
+            return obj_c + "." + field + "()"
        }

        let fn_c: String = js_cg_expr(func)
@@ -400,22 +467,39 @@ fn js_cg_expr(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> String {
    }

    if kind == "Field" {
-        // El's `obj.foo` becomes JS `obj["foo"]` — works on plain objects
-        // (maps) and on JS objects with prototype. el_get_field is a
-        // runtime helper for callers that want EL_NULL on missing keys.
+        // El's `obj.foo` becomes JS `obj["foo"]` — direct bracket access.
+        // This works for plain El map objects AND for real JS objects with
+        // prototype-inherited properties (DOM elements, third-party library
+        // objects, Promises, etc.). el_get_field used hasOwnProperty which
+        // silently returned null for inherited props, breaking e.g. client.auth.
+        //
+        // Nil-propagation: `obj?.foo` emits `(obj)?.["foo"] ?? null`.
        let obj = expr["object"]
        let field: String = expr["field"]
+        let obj_kind: String = obj["expr"]
+        if str_eq(obj_kind, "Try") {
+            let inner = obj["inner"]
+            let inner_c: String = js_cg_expr(inner)
+            return "(" + inner_c + ")?.[" + js_str_lit(field) + "] ?? null"
+        }
        let obj_c: String = js_cg_expr(obj)
-        return "el_get_field(" + obj_c + ", " + js_str_lit(field) + ")"
+        return obj_c + "[" + js_str_lit(field) + "]"
    }

    if kind == "Index" {
        // Map vs list dispatch on the index expression kind, same as C.
+        // If the object is a Try (nil-propagation), use JS optional indexing.
        let obj = expr["object"]
        let idx = expr["index"]
        let obj_c: String = js_cg_expr(obj)
        let idx_c: String = js_cg_expr(idx)
        let idx_kind: String = idx["expr"]
+        let obj_kind: String = obj["expr"]
+        if str_eq(obj_kind, "Try") {
+            let inner = obj["inner"]
+            let inner_c: String = js_cg_expr(inner)
+            return "(" + inner_c + ")?.[" + idx_c + "] ?? null"
+        }
        if str_eq(idx_kind, "Str") {
            return "el_get_field(" + obj_c + ", " + idx_c + ")"
        }
@@ -426,41 +510,41 @@ fn js_cg_expr(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> String {
        let elems = expr["elems"]
        let n: Int = native_list_len(elems)
        if n == 0 { return "[]" }
-        let items = ""
+        let items_parts: [String] = native_list_empty()
        let i = 0
        while i < n {
            let elem = native_list_get(elems, i)
            let elem_c: String = js_cg_expr(elem)
-            if i > 0 {
-                let items = items + ", "
-            }
-            let items = items + elem_c
+            let items_parts = native_list_append(items_parts, elem_c)
            let i = i + 1
        }
-        return "[" + items + "]"
+        return "[" + str_join(items_parts, ", ") + "]"
    }

    if kind == "Map" {
        let pairs = expr["pairs"]
        let n: Int = native_list_len(pairs)
        if n == 0 { return "{}" }
-        let items = ""
+        let items_parts: [String] = native_list_empty()
        let i = 0
        while i < n {
            let pair = native_list_get(pairs, i)
            let key: String = pair["key"]
            let val = pair["value"]
            let val_c: String = js_cg_expr(val)
-            if i > 0 {
-                let items = items + ", "
-            }
-            let items = items + js_str_lit(key) + ": " + val_c
+            let items_parts = native_list_append(items_parts, js_str_lit(key) + ": " + val_c)
            let i = i + 1
        }
-        return "{" + items + "}"
+        return "{" + str_join(items_parts, ", ") + "}"
    }

    if kind == "Try" {
+        // Postfix `?` — nil-propagation guard.
+        // When used as `expr?.field` the Field handler above intercepts and
+        // emits `(expr)?.["field"]`. Here, a bare `expr?` (not followed by
+        // field/index access) passes through to the inner expression unchanged
+        // (it acts as an identity but marks the value as "nil-propagating" for
+        // its caller). This matches the C backend's current behavior.
        let inner = expr["inner"]
        return js_cg_expr(inner)
    }
@@ -478,6 +562,13 @@ fn js_cg_expr(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> String {
        return js_cg_match(expr)
    }

+    // Lambda (anonymous function literal): fn(params) -> RetType { body }
+    // Emitted as a JS arrow function expression: (params) => { body }.
+    // Used for inline callbacks: dom_listen(el, "click", fn(e: Any) -> Void { ... })
+    if kind == "Lambda" {
+        return js_cg_lambda(expr)
+    }
+
    "null"
 }

@@ -505,7 +596,8 @@ fn js_cg_match(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> String {
    let subj_c: String = js_cg_expr(subject)
    let id: String = js_next_match_id()
    let subj_var: String = "_match_subj_" + id
-    let out: String = "((" + subj_var + ") => { "
+    let parts: [String] = native_list_empty()
+    let parts = native_list_append(parts, "((" + subj_var + ") => { ")
    let n: Int = native_list_len(arms)
    let i = 0
    while i < n {
@@ -515,28 +607,36 @@ fn js_cg_match(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> String {
        let pkind: String = pat["pattern"]
        let body_c: String = js_cg_expr(body)
        if str_eq(pkind, "Wildcard") {
-            let out = out + "return (" + body_c + "); "
+            let parts = native_list_append(parts, "return (" + body_c + "); ")
        } else {
            if str_eq(pkind, "Binding") {
                let bname: String = pat["name"]
-                let out = out + "{ const " + bname + " = " + subj_var + "; return (" + body_c + "); } "
+                let parts = native_list_append(parts, "{ const " + bname + " = " + subj_var + "; return (" + body_c + "); } ")
            } else {
                if str_eq(pkind, "LitInt") {
                    let v: String = pat["value"]
-                    let out = out + "if (" + subj_var + " === " + v + ") return (" + body_c + "); "
+                    let parts = native_list_append(parts, "if (" + subj_var + " === " + v + ") return (" + body_c + "); ")
                } else {
                    if str_eq(pkind, "LitStr") {
                        let v: String = pat["value"]
-                        let out = out + "if (str_eq(" + subj_var + ", " + js_str_lit(v) + ")) return (" + body_c + "); "
+                        let parts = native_list_append(parts, "if (str_eq(" + subj_var + ", " + js_str_lit(v) + ")) return (" + body_c + "); ")
                    } else {
                        if str_eq(pkind, "LitBool") {
                            let v: String = pat["value"]
                            let bv = "false"
                            if str_eq(v, "true") { let bv = "true" }
-                            let out = out + "if (" + subj_var + " === " + bv + ") return (" + body_c + "); "
+                            let parts = native_list_append(parts, "if (" + subj_var + " === " + bv + ") return (" + body_c + "); ")
                        } else {
-                            // unknown pattern → wildcard
-                            let out = out + "return (" + body_c + "); "
+                            if str_eq(pkind, "Variant") {
+                                // Enum::Variant patterns — El enums compile to plain
+                                // strings (the variant name) or ints. Match the subject
+                                // against the variant name string.
+                                let variant: String = pat["variant"]
+                                let parts = native_list_append(parts, "if (str_eq(" + subj_var + ", " + js_str_lit(variant) + ")) return (" + body_c + "); ")
+                            } else {
+                                // unknown pattern → wildcard
+                                let parts = native_list_append(parts, "return (" + body_c + "); ")
+                            }
                        }
                    }
                }
@@ -544,8 +644,67 @@ fn js_cg_match(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> String {
        }
        let i = i + 1
    }
-    let out = out + "return null; })(" + subj_c + ")"
-    out
+    let parts = native_list_append(parts, "return null; })(" + subj_c + ")")
+    str_join(parts, "")
+}
+
+// ── Lambda codegen ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+//
+// Anonymous function literals: fn(params) -> RetType { body }
+//
+// Strategy: emit the lambda as a hoisted JS function declaration with a
+// generated name (__lambda_N), then return the name as the expression value.
+// This works because JS function declarations are hoisted within their scope,
+// so the generated name is valid at any use site within the same function or
+// module. The emitted code looks like:
+//
+//   function __lambda_1(event) { dom_hide(spinner); }
+//   ...
+//   dom_listen(btn, "click", __lambda_1);
+//
+// This approach is clean, debuggable, and avoids any need for a string-buffer
+// mode in the codegen.
+
+fn js_next_lambda_id() -> String {
+    let csv: String = state_get("__js_lambda_counter")
+    let n = 0
+    if !str_eq(csv, "") {
+        let n = str_to_int(csv)
+    }
+    let n = n + 1
+    state_set("__js_lambda_counter", native_int_to_str(n))
+    native_int_to_str(n)
+}
+
+fn js_cg_lambda(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> String {
+    let params = expr["params"]
+    let body = expr["body"]
+    let ret_type: String = expr["ret_type"]
+    let id: String = js_next_lambda_id()
+    let lambda_name: String = "__lambda_" + id
+    let params_str: String = js_params_str(params)
+    // Emit the function definition immediately into the output stream.
+    // It will appear before the statement containing this expression.
+    js_emit_line("function " + lambda_name + "(" + params_str + ") {")
+    let decl = native_list_empty()
+    let np: Int = native_list_len(params)
+    let pi = 0
+    while pi < np {
+        let param = native_list_get(params, pi)
+        let pname: String = param["name"]
+        let decl = native_list_append(decl, pname)
+        let pi = pi + 1
+    }
+    let body_xformed = body
+    if !str_eq(ret_type, "Void") {
+        let body_xformed = js_transform_implicit_return(body)
+    }
+    js_build_int_names_for_params(params)
+    js_cg_stmts(body_xformed, "  ", decl)
+    js_emit_line("}")
+    js_emit_blank()
+    // Return the function name as the expression value.
+    lambda_name
 }

 // ── Variable scope tracking ───────────────────────────────────────────────────
@@ -653,6 +812,27 @@ fn js_cg_stmt(stmt: Map<String, Any>, indent: String, declared: [String]) -> [St
    if kind == "TypeDef" { return declared }
    if kind == "EnumDef" { return declared }
    if kind == "Import"  { return declared }
+
+    if kind == "TryCatch" {
+        let try_body = stmt["try_body"]
+        let catch_name: String = stmt["catch_name"]
+        let catch_body = stmt["catch_body"]
+        js_emit_line(indent + "try {")
+        js_cg_stmts(try_body, indent + "  ", native_list_clone(declared))
+        js_emit_line(indent + "} catch (" + catch_name + ") {")
+        js_cg_stmts(catch_body, indent + "  ", native_list_clone(declared))
+        js_emit_line(indent + "}")
+        return declared
+    }
+
+    // ExternFn: the function exists in the JS environment (loaded via <script>
+    // tag or the module context). Emit a comment so the generated file is
+    // self-documenting, but no JS function body — the implementation is external.
+    if kind == "ExternFn" {
+        let ename: String = stmt["name"]
+        js_emit_line(indent + "// extern fn " + ename + " — provided by the JS environment")
+        return declared
+    }
    if kind == "CgiBlock" {
        // CGI blocks compile to a no-op + warning comment in JS target.
        // The runtime cgi identity is server-side; UI code is not a CGI
@@ -696,14 +876,7 @@ fn js_strip_outer_parens(s: String) -> String {
                let i = i + 1
            }
            if balanced {
-                let inner = ""
-                let j = 1
-                while j < n - 1 {
-                    let ch: String = native_list_get(chars, j)
-                    let inner = inner + ch
-                    let j = j + 1
-                }
-                return inner
+                return str_slice(s, 1, n - 1)
            }
        }
    }
@@ -759,18 +932,15 @@ fn js_cg_stmts(stmts: [Map<String, Any>], indent: String, declared: [String]) ->
 fn js_params_str(params: [Map<String, Any>]) -> String {
    let n: Int = native_list_len(params)
    if n == 0 { return "" }
-    let out = ""
+    let parts: [String] = native_list_empty()
    let i = 0
    while i < n {
        let param = native_list_get(params, i)
        let name: String = param["name"]
-        if i > 0 {
-            let out = out + ", "
-        }
-        let out = out + name
+        let parts = native_list_append(parts, name)
        let i = i + 1
    }
-    out
+    str_join(parts, ", ")
 }

 // Same implicit-return transform as the C backend.
@@ -802,16 +972,30 @@ fn js_cg_fn(stmt: Map<String, Any>) -> Void {
    let params = stmt["params"]
    let body = stmt["body"]
    let ret_type: String = stmt["ret_type"]
+    let decorator: String = stmt["decorator"]
    let params_str: String = js_params_str(params)
    js_build_int_names_for_params(params)

-    // Special-case `fn main` — emit as a regular function and call it
-    // at module bottom (after all top-level statements). This matches
-    // the C backend's behavior where `fn main` is the entry point.
-    if fn_name == "main" {
-        js_emit_line("function main(" + params_str + ") {")
+    // Detect @async decorator — emit `async function` and register the name
+    // so call sites for this function get `await` prefixed automatically.
+    // When the decorator field is absent, el_get_field returns null; str_eq
+    // handles null safely (returns false), so no special nil-check is needed.
+    if str_eq(decorator, "async") {
+        js_register_async_fn(fn_name)
+        if fn_name == "main" {
+            js_emit_line("async function main(" + params_str + ") {")
+        } else {
+            js_emit_line("async function " + fn_name + "(" + params_str + ") {")
+        }
    } else {
-        js_emit_line("function " + fn_name + "(" + params_str + ") {")
+        // Special-case `fn main` — emit as a regular function and call it
+        // at module bottom (after all top-level statements). This matches
+        // the C backend's behavior where `fn main` is the entry point.
+        if fn_name == "main" {
+            js_emit_line("function main(" + params_str + ") {")
+        } else {
+            js_emit_line("function " + fn_name + "(" + params_str + ") {")
+        }
    }

    let decl = native_list_empty()
@@ -847,50 +1031,133 @@ fn js_is_top_level_decl(stmt: Map<String, Any>) -> Bool {
    if kind == "Import"  { return true }
    if kind == "CgiBlock" { return true }
    if kind == "ServiceBlock" { return true }
+    if kind == "ExternFn" { return true }
    false
 }

 // ── Entry point ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────

 fn codegen_js(stmts: [Map<String, Any>], source: String) -> String {
+    codegen_js_inner(stmts, source, false, "")
+}
+
+fn codegen_js_bundle(stmts: [Map<String, Any>], source: String, runtime_content: String) -> String {
+    codegen_js_inner(stmts, source, true, runtime_content)
+}
+
+fn codegen_js_inner(stmts: [Map<String, Any>], source: String, bundle_mode: Bool, runtime_content: String) -> String {
    // Reset per-compile state.
    state_set("__js_int_names", "")
    state_set("__js_match_counter", "")
+    state_set("__js_async_fns", "")
+    state_set("__js_lambda_counter", "")

-    // Preamble: inline the runtime via a single import that side-effects
-    // globalThis. The runtime path is resolved relative to the generated
-    // output; users running `elc --target=js` are responsible for ensuring
-    // el_runtime.js is reachable. For self-contained output, the runtime
-    // could be inlined; that is a follow-up.
+    // Preamble: in bundle mode, inline the runtime and wrap in IIFE.
+    // In module mode, emit a single import that side-effects globalThis.
    js_emit_line("// Generated by elc --target=js")
-    js_emit_line("// Runtime: foundation/el/el-compiler/runtime/el_runtime.js")
-    js_emit_line("import \"./el_runtime.js\";")
-    js_emit_line("const {")
-    js_emit_line("  println, print, el_str_concat, str_concat, str_eq, str_starts_with, str_ends_with,")
-    js_emit_line("  str_len, int_to_str, str_to_int, str_slice, str_contains, str_replace,")
-    js_emit_line("  str_to_upper, str_to_lower, str_trim, str_index_of, str_split, str_char_at,")
-    js_emit_line("  str_char_code, str_lower, str_upper, el_abs, el_max, el_min,")
-    js_emit_line("  el_list_new, el_list_len, el_list_get, el_list_append, el_list_empty, el_list_clone,")
-    js_emit_line("  list_push, list_join, list_range,")
-    js_emit_line("  el_map_new, el_get_field, el_map_get, el_map_set,")
-    js_emit_line("  http_get, http_post, http_post_json,")
-    js_emit_line("  fs_read, fs_write, fs_list,")
-    js_emit_line("  json_parse, json_stringify, json_get, json_get_string, json_get_int,")
-    js_emit_line("  time_now, time_now_utc, sleep_ms, bool_to_str, exit_program,")
-    js_emit_line("  el_retain, el_release,")
-    js_emit_line("  append, len, get, map_get, map_set,")
-    js_emit_line("  native_list_get, native_list_len, native_list_append, native_list_empty,")
-    js_emit_line("  native_list_clone, native_string_chars, native_int_to_str,")
-    js_emit_line("  args, state_set, state_get, state_del, state_keys, env,")
-    js_emit_line("  dharma_connect, dharma_send, dharma_emit, dharma_field, dharma_activate,")
-    js_emit_line("  engram_node, engram_search, engram_activate,")
-    js_emit_line("  llm_call, llm_call_system,")
-    js_emit_line("} = globalThis.__el;")
+    if bundle_mode {
+        js_emit_line("// Bundle mode: runtime inlined, no import statement needed.")
+        js_emit_line("// Drop directly into a <script> tag.")
+        js_emit_line(";(function() {")
+        js_emit_line("\"use strict\";")
+        // Inline the runtime content verbatim (already read from el_runtime.js).
+        // Strip the final ES export lines -- they use `export` syntax which is
+        // not valid inside an IIFE. The globalThis.__el assignment is what matters.
+        js_emit_line(js_strip_es_exports(runtime_content))
+        js_emit_line("")
+    } else {
+        js_emit_line("// Runtime: foundation/el/el-compiler/runtime/el_runtime.js")
+        js_emit_line("import \"./el_runtime.js\";")
+    }
+    // In module mode: destructure all builtins off globalThis.__el so call
+    // sites stay flat (println(x) not el.println(x)).
+    // In bundle mode: function declarations from the inlined runtime are
+    // already in scope within the IIFE -- no destructure needed.
+    if !bundle_mode {
+        js_emit_line("const {")
+        js_emit_line("  println, print, el_str_concat, str_concat, str_eq, str_starts_with, str_ends_with,")
+        js_emit_line("  str_len, int_to_str, str_to_int, str_slice, str_contains, str_replace,")
+        js_emit_line("  str_to_upper, str_to_lower, str_trim, str_index_of, str_split, str_char_at,")
+        js_emit_line("  str_char_code, str_lower, str_upper, el_abs, el_max, el_min,")
+        js_emit_line("  el_list_new, el_list_len, el_list_get, el_list_append, el_list_empty, el_list_clone,")
+        js_emit_line("  list_push, list_join, list_range,")
+        js_emit_line("  el_map_new, el_get_field, el_map_get, el_map_set,")
+        js_emit_line("  http_get, http_post, http_post_json,")
+        js_emit_line("  fs_read, fs_write, fs_list,")
+        js_emit_line("  json_parse, json_stringify, json_get, json_get_string, json_get_int,")
+        js_emit_line("  time_now, time_now_utc, sleep_ms, bool_to_str, exit_program,")
+        js_emit_line("  el_retain, el_release,")
+        js_emit_line("  append, len, get, map_get, map_set,")
+        js_emit_line("  native_list_get, native_list_len, native_list_append, native_list_empty,")
+        js_emit_line("  native_list_clone, native_string_chars, native_int_to_str,")
+        js_emit_line("  args, state_set, state_get, state_del, state_keys, env,")
+        js_emit_line("  dharma_connect, dharma_send, dharma_emit, dharma_field, dharma_activate,")
+        js_emit_line("  engram_node, engram_search, engram_activate,")
+        js_emit_line("  llm_call, llm_call_system,")
+        js_emit_line("  dom_get_element, dom_get_value, dom_set_value, dom_get_text, dom_set_text,")
+        js_emit_line("  dom_set_prop, dom_get_prop, dom_set_style, dom_add_class, dom_remove_class,")
+        js_emit_line("  dom_show, dom_hide, dom_listen, dom_query, dom_query_all, dom_create,")
+        js_emit_line("  dom_append, dom_remove, dom_is_null,")
+        js_emit_line("  dom_set_attr, dom_get_attr, dom_remove_attr, dom_set_html, dom_get_html,")
+        js_emit_line("  dom_get_parent, dom_contains_class, dom_get_checked, dom_set_checked,")
+        js_emit_line("  set_timeout, set_interval, clear_interval,")
+        js_emit_line("  local_storage_get, local_storage_set, local_storage_remove,")
+        js_emit_line("  window_location, window_redirect, window_on_load,")
+        js_emit_line("  console_log,")
+        js_emit_line("  window_set, window_get, native_js, native_js_call,")
+        js_emit_line("  promise_then, promise_catch, promise_resolve, promise_reject,")
+        js_emit_line("  object_assign, object_keys, object_values, json_deep_clone,")
+        js_emit_line("  array_from, type_of, instanceof_check,")
+        js_emit_line("} = globalThis.__el;")
+        js_emit_blank()
+    }
+
+    // URL import pass: emit `import "url"` (module mode) or a comment
+    // (bundle mode) for any import whose path starts with http(s):// or
+    // doesn't end in .el (i.e., it's a JS/CSS/CDN import, not an El source
+    // import which was already inlined by resolve_imports).
+    let n: Int = native_list_len(stmts)
+    let i = 0
+    while i < n {
+        let stmt = native_list_get(stmts, i)
+        let sk: String = stmt["stmt"]
+        if str_eq(sk, "Import") {
+            let ipath: String = stmt["path"]
+            let is_url = str_starts_with(ipath, "http://")
+            let is_url = is_url || str_starts_with(ipath, "https://")
+            let is_js = !str_ends_with(ipath, ".el")
+            if is_url || is_js {
+                if bundle_mode {
+                    js_emit_line("// external: " + ipath)
+                } else {
+                    js_emit_line("import " + js_str_lit(ipath) + ";")
+                }
+            }
+        }
+        let i = i + 1
+    }
    js_emit_blank()

-    // Function definitions
+    // Pre-registration pass: scan all FnDefs for @async decorators so that
+    // forward calls to @async functions get `await` even if the callee is
+    // defined after the caller.
    let n: Int = native_list_len(stmts)
    let i = 0
+    while i < n {
+        let stmt = native_list_get(stmts, i)
+        let sk: String = stmt["stmt"]
+        if str_eq(sk, "FnDef") {
+            let dec: String = stmt["decorator"]
+            if str_eq(dec, "async") {
+                let aname: String = stmt["name"]
+                js_register_async_fn(aname)
+            }
+        }
+        let i = i + 1
+    }
+
+    // Function definitions
+    let i = 0
    while i < n {
        let stmt = native_list_get(stmts, i)
        if js_is_fndef(stmt) {
@@ -938,6 +1205,41 @@ fn codegen_js(stmts: [Map<String, Any>], source: String) -> String {
        js_emit_line("main();")
    }

+    // Close IIFE in bundle mode.
+    if bundle_mode {
+        js_emit_line("")
+        js_emit_line("})();")
+    }
+
    // Return empty string — output was streamed via println
    ""
 }
+
+// Strip ES module export statements from runtime content for IIFE embedding.
+// The runtime ends with `export { ... }` and `export { __el as default }` lines
+// that are invalid inside an IIFE. We strip everything from the first top-level
+// `export {` line onward.
+//
+// Also strips `import` statements at the top if any (though el_runtime.js has none).
+fn js_strip_es_exports(content: String) -> String {
+    let lines: [String] = str_split(content, "\n")
+    let n: Int = native_list_len(lines)
+    let out: [String] = native_list_empty()
+    let i = 0
+    while i < n {
+        let line: String = native_list_get(lines, i)
+        let trimmed: String = str_trim(line)
+        // Stop at top-level `export {` or `export default`
+        if str_starts_with(trimmed, "export {") {
+            let i = n
+        } else {
+            if str_starts_with(trimmed, "export default") {
+                let i = n
+            } else {
+                let out = native_list_append(out, line)
+            }
+        }
+        let i = i + 1
+    }
+    str_join(out, "\n")
+}
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-// codegen.el — El compiler C source code generator
+// codegen.el - El compiler C source code generator
 //
 // Input:  list of AST statement maps (from parser.el)
 // Output: C source printed to stdout (streamed, one line at a time)
@@ -7,37 +7,90 @@
 // Functions map directly to C functions; top-level statements become main().
 //
 // Entry point: fn codegen(stmts: [Map<String, Any>], source: String) -> String
-//   Returns "" — output goes to stdout via println().
+//   Returns "" - output goes to stdout via println().
 //
-// Streaming output avoids O(n²) string concatenation: each emitted line is
+// Streaming output avoids O(n-) string concatenation: each emitted line is
 // printed immediately rather than appended to a growing string.

-// ── String helpers ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+// -- String helpers ------------------------------------------------------------

 // Escape a C string literal (double-quotes and backslashes).
+// Hex-encode a single nibble (0-15) as a lowercase hex character.
+fn nibble_to_hex(n: Int) -> String {
+    str_char_at("0123456789abcdef", n)
+}
+
+// Encode a byte value (0-255) as a two-character hex string.
+fn byte_to_hex2(b: Int) -> String {
+    let hi: Int = (b / 16)
+    let lo: Int = (b - hi * 16)
+    nibble_to_hex(hi) + nibble_to_hex(lo)
+}
+
+// Return true if the byte value is a C hex digit (0-9, a-f, A-F).
+// Used to determine whether a \xNN escape needs a string-literal split
+// to prevent the C preprocessor from greedily consuming following hex chars.
+fn is_hex_digit_byte(b: Int) -> Bool {
+    if b >= 48 { if b <= 57 { return true } }   // 0-9
+    if b >= 65 { if b <= 70 { return true } }   // A-F
+    if b >= 97 { if b <= 102 { return true } }  // a-f
+    false
+}
+
 fn c_escape(s: String) -> String {
-    let chars: [String] = native_string_chars(s)
-    let total: Int = native_list_len(chars)
+    // Use index-based byte scanning via str_char_code(s, i) and str_char_at(s, i).
+    // This avoids native_string_chars + str_join, which corrupts high-byte (>= 0x80)
+    // characters because list_join's looks_like_string heuristic rejects strings
+    // whose first byte is >= 0x7F and emits them as decimal pointer values instead.
+    //
+    // IMPORTANT: after a \xNN hex escape, if the next byte is a hex digit
+    // (0-9, a-f, A-F), we emit `""` to split the C string literal so the C
+    // compiler does not greedily read extra hex digits as part of the escape.
+    // E.g. "\xad" followed by "bamos" must become "\xad" "bamos" because 'b'
+    // is a hex digit and C would otherwise read "\xadb" (= 0xADB, out of range).
+    let total: Int = str_len(s)
    let parts: [String] = native_list_empty()
-    let i = 0
+    let i: Int = 0
+    let prev_was_hex_escape: Bool = false
    while i < total {
-        let ch: String = native_list_get(chars, i)
-        if ch == "\"" {
+        let bval: Int = str_char_code(s, i)
+        // If the previous token was a \xNN escape and the current byte is a
+        // hex digit, insert an empty string literal ("") to break the escape.
+        if prev_was_hex_escape {
+            if is_hex_digit_byte(bval) {
+                let parts = native_list_append(parts, "\"\"")
+            }
+        }
+        let prev_was_hex_escape = false
+        if bval == 34 {
+            // 34 = '"'
            let parts = native_list_append(parts, "\\\"")
        } else {
-            if ch == "\\" {
+            if bval == 92 {
+                // 92 = '\\'
                let parts = native_list_append(parts, "\\\\")
            } else {
-                if ch == "\n" {
+                if bval == 10 {
+                    // 10 = '\n'
                    let parts = native_list_append(parts, "\\n")
                } else {
-                    if ch == "\r" {
+                    if bval == 13 {
+                        // 13 = '\r'
                        let parts = native_list_append(parts, "\\r")
                    } else {
-                        if ch == "\t" {
+                        if bval == 9 {
+                            // 9 = '\t'
                            let parts = native_list_append(parts, "\\t")
                        } else {
-                            let parts = native_list_append(parts, ch)
+                            if bval >= 128 {
+                                // Escape non-ASCII bytes (>= 0x80) as \xNN so
+                                // Clang does not misinterpret multi-byte UTF-8
+                                // sequences in C string literals.
+                                let parts = native_list_append(parts, "\\x" + byte_to_hex2(bval))
+                                let prev_was_hex_escape = true
+                            } else {
+                                let parts = native_list_append(parts, str_char_at(s, i))
+                            }
                        }
                    }
                }
@@ -52,7 +105,7 @@ fn c_str_lit(s: String) -> String {
    "\"" + c_escape(s) + "\""
 }

-// ── Type mapping ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+// -- Type mapping --------------------------------------------------------------

 fn el_type_to_c(type_str: String) -> String {
    if type_str == "String" { return "const char*" }
@@ -64,7 +117,7 @@ fn el_type_to_c(type_str: String) -> String {
    "void*"
 }

-// ── Code emission ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+// -- Code emission -------------------------------------------------------------
 //
 // emit_line/emit_blank stream output directly via println.
 // This avoids building a large string in memory.
@@ -77,7 +130,7 @@ fn emit_blank() -> Void {
    println("")
 }

-// ── Operator helpers ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+// -- Operator helpers ----------------------------------------------------------

 fn binop_to_c(op: String) -> String {
    if op == "Plus"  { return "+" }
@@ -95,11 +148,11 @@ fn binop_to_c(op: String) -> String {
    op
 }

-// ── Expression codegen ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+// -- Expression codegen --------------------------------------------------------
 //
 // cg_expr returns a C expression string (not a statement).

-// duration_unit_nanos — multiplier from a postfix-literal unit name to
+// duration_unit_nanos - multiplier from a postfix-literal unit name to
 // nanoseconds. Singular and plural forms collapse to the same multiplier;
 // the parser already restricted `unit` to the set is_duration_unit accepts.
 // Returns the multiplier as a decimal string suitable for splicing into
@@ -130,7 +183,7 @@ fn cg_expr(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> String {
        return v
    }

-    // DurationLit — postfix-literal time value (e.g. 30.seconds, 1.hour).
+    // DurationLit - postfix-literal time value (e.g. 30.seconds, 1.hour).
    // Lowered to a literal int64 nanosecond count, wrapped in the runtime
    // entry point so the intent is explicit at the C level. The arithmetic
    // is fully constant-folded by any optimising C compiler.
@@ -144,7 +197,7 @@ fn cg_expr(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> String {
    if kind == "Float" {
        // Wrap Float literals in el_from_float() so the bit pattern is
        // preserved through the el_val_t (int64) slot. Without this,
-        // implicit double→int64 conversion in C truncates `0.8` to `0`
+        // implicit double->int64 conversion in C truncates `0.8` to `0`
        // when passed to a builtin that expects el_val_t.
        let v: String = expr["value"]
        return "el_from_float(" + v + ")"
@@ -191,12 +244,12 @@ fn cg_expr(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> String {
        let left_kind: String = left["expr"]
        let right_kind: String = right["expr"]

-        // ── String/equality fast-path: skip O(N²) temporal traversals ────────
+        // -- String/equality fast-path: skip O(N-) temporal traversals --------
        // The 10 temporal predicates below each recurse into the left subtree:
-        // O(depth) state_get calls per predicate, O(N²) total for a chain of N
+        // O(depth) state_get calls per predicate, O(N-) total for a chain of N
        // string-concat BinOps (e.g. the 70-100-part HTML chains in soul.el).
        // When either operand is a bare Str literal the result is always concat
-        // or str_eq — no temporal dispatch is possible. Exit immediately.
+        // or str_eq - no temporal dispatch is possible. Exit immediately.
        if str_eq(op, "Plus") {
            if str_eq(left_kind, "Str") { return "el_str_concat(" + left_c + ", " + right_c + ")" }
            if str_eq(right_kind, "Str") { return "el_str_concat(" + left_c + ", " + right_c + ")" }
@@ -210,7 +263,7 @@ fn cg_expr(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> String {
            if str_eq(right_kind, "Str") { return "!str_eq(" + left_c + ", " + right_c + ")" }
        }

-        // ── Temporal-type dispatch (Instant + Duration first-class) ────────
+        // -- Temporal-type dispatch (Instant + Duration first-class) --------
        // Run BEFORE the int / string / generic paths so typed temporal
        // operands route through the runtime wrappers and invalid combos
        // become #error directives rather than silently falling through to
@@ -396,7 +449,7 @@ fn cg_expr(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> String {
                    if right_is_dur { return "el_duration_ne(" + left_c + ", " + right_c + ")" }
                }
            }
-            // Fall through — let the existing path handle anything we
+            // Fall through - let the existing path handle anything we
            // didn't explicitly cover (typically string-concat with a
            // typed temporal value, e.g. for debug prints, which works
            // because both share the int64 slot).
@@ -415,7 +468,7 @@ fn cg_expr(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> String {
            // builtin, or BinOp arithmetic over Ints) participates in
            // arithmetic, not string concat. Recursion into BinOp lets
            // `a + b + c` (chained Int adds) and `acc * 16 + d` route to
-            // arithmetic instead of falling to el_str_concat — both sides
+            // arithmetic instead of falling to el_str_concat - both sides
            // are Int so the outer `+` is too.
            if is_int_expr(left) {
                if is_int_expr(right) {
@@ -436,7 +489,7 @@ fn cg_expr(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> String {
                return "(" + left_c + " " + op_c + " " + right_c + ")"
            }
            // Otherwise: BinOp(+) with a Call/Ident side without int-typed
-            // evidence — fall back to string concat (the historical default).
+            // evidence - fall back to string concat (the historical default).
            if left_kind == "Call" {
                return "el_str_concat(" + left_c + ", " + right_c + ")"
            }
@@ -468,7 +521,7 @@ fn cg_expr(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> String {
        // identifiers tracked in __int_names (typed Int via `let x: Int = ...`).
        // Without the int-name check, `seen == idx` between two Int locals
        // miscompiles to str_eq(seen, idx), strcmp'ing what are integer values
-        // dressed as char* — segfault on the first non-printable byte.
+        // dressed as char* - segfault on the first non-printable byte.
        if op == "EqEq" {
            if left_kind == "Int" {
                return "(" + left_c + " == " + right_c + ")"
@@ -602,17 +655,17 @@ fn cg_expr(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> String {
            // violations to be emitted as #error directives at the
            // top of the generated C, so cc fails with a clear msg.
            cap_check_call(fn_name)
-            // Arity check against the builtin table — refuse, with a clear
+            // Arity check against the builtin table - refuse, with a clear
            // El-source message, when a known builtin gets the wrong arg
            // count (e.g. `http_serve(port)` instead of `http_serve(port,
            // handler)`). User-defined fns and variadic builtins pass
            // through (builtin_arity returns -1).
            arity_check_call(fn_name, arity)
-            // sleep(Duration) — Phase 1 of the typed-time work. When the
+            // sleep(Duration) - Phase 1 of the typed-time work. When the
            // single arg is provably a Duration we lower to el_sleep_duration
            // so the runtime sees nanos directly. Existing sleep() callers
            // that pass an Int still emit `sleep(<int>)`, which falls through
-            // to the no-such-symbol path — those call sites must migrate to
+            // to the no-such-symbol path - those call sites must migrate to
            // a typed Duration. Acceptable: the spec marks them out for an
            // audit pass during Phase 1.
            if str_eq(fn_name, "sleep") {
@@ -623,6 +676,20 @@ fn cg_expr(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> String {
                    }
                }
            }
+            // el_from_float takes a raw C double - do not wrap the float
+            // argument in el_from_float() again. Without this, the float
+            // literal codegen (which wraps every Float in el_from_float())
+            // produces el_from_float(el_from_float(0.7)) - double-encoded.
+            if str_eq(fn_name, "el_from_float") {
+                if arity == 1 {
+                    let only_arg = native_list_get(args, 0)
+                    let arg_kind: String = only_arg["expr"]
+                    if str_eq(arg_kind, "Float") {
+                        let v: String = only_arg["value"]
+                        return "el_from_float(" + v + ")"
+                    }
+                }
+            }
            return fn_name + "(" + args_c + ")"
        }

@@ -656,8 +723,8 @@ fn cg_expr(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> String {
        // El programs use `t["field"]` for map access and `arr[i]` for
        // list access. The parser emits the same Index node for both.
        // Dispatch at codegen time on the index expression kind: string-
-        // literal index → map field access (`el_get_field`); anything
-        // else → list element access (`el_list_get`).
+        // literal index -> map field access (`el_get_field`); anything
+        // else -> list element access (`el_list_get`).
        let obj = expr["object"]
        let idx = expr["index"]
        let obj_c: String = cg_expr(obj)
@@ -691,7 +758,7 @@ fn cg_expr(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> String {
        let n: Int = native_list_len(pairs)
        // Empty literal: `el_map_new(0, )` is malformed C (trailing comma in
        // a varargs call). Emit `el_map_new(0)` directly so empty-map
-        // shadowing inside for/while/if bodies — `let acc: Map = {}` —
+        // shadowing inside for/while/if bodies - `let acc: Map = {}` -
        // doesn't fail downstream cc with parse errors.
        if n == 0 { return "el_map_new(0)" }
        let items_parts: [String] = native_list_empty()
@@ -723,7 +790,7 @@ fn cg_expr(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> String {
    "EL_NULL"
 }

-// ── Match codegen ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+// -- Match codegen -------------------------------------------------------------
 //
 // Lower a match expression to a GCC/Clang statement-expression.
 // A unique label suffix is allocated per match via state_set("__match_counter").
@@ -747,7 +814,7 @@ fn cg_match(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> String {
    let subj_var: String = "_match_subj_" + id
    let result_var: String = "_match_result_" + id
    let done_label: String = "_match_done_" + id
-    // Accumulate arm fragments into a list to avoid O(n²) string growth.
+    // Accumulate arm fragments into a list to avoid O(n-) string growth.
    let parts: [String] = native_list_empty()
    let parts = native_list_append(parts, "({ el_val_t " + subj_var + " = " + subj_c + "; el_val_t " + result_var + " = 0; ")
    let n: Int = native_list_len(arms)
@@ -781,8 +848,15 @@ fn cg_match(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> String {
                            }
                            let parts = native_list_append(parts, "if (" + subj_var + " == " + bv + ") { " + result_var + " = (" + body_c + "); goto " + done_label + "; } ")
                        } else {
-                            // unknown pattern → wildcard
-                            let parts = native_list_append(parts, "{ " + result_var + " = (" + body_c + "); goto " + done_label + "; } ")
+                            if str_eq(pkind, "Variant") {
+                                // Enum::Variant pattern — match against the variant name
+                                // string (El enums compile to plain strings).
+                                let variant: String = pat["variant"]
+                                let parts = native_list_append(parts, "if (str_eq(" + subj_var + ", EL_STR(" + c_str_lit(variant) + "))) { " + result_var + " = (" + body_c + "); goto " + done_label + "; } ")
+                            } else {
+                                // unknown pattern -> wildcard
+                                let parts = native_list_append(parts, "{ " + result_var + " = (" + body_c + "); goto " + done_label + "; } ")
+                            }
                        }
                    }
                }
@@ -794,7 +868,7 @@ fn cg_match(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> String {
    str_join(parts, "")
 }

-// ── If-as-expression codegen ─────────────────────────────────────────────────
+// -- If-as-expression codegen -------------------------------------------------
 //
 // Lower `if cond { thenBody } else { elseBody }` used in expression position
 // (e.g. `let x = if a { b } else { c }`) to a GCC/Clang statement-expression
@@ -822,7 +896,7 @@ fn next_if_id() -> String {
 // result var stays at its initial 0.
 fn cg_if_expr_arm(stmts: [Map<String, Any>], result_var: String) -> String {
    let n: Int = native_list_len(stmts)
-    // Collect statement fragments into a list to avoid O(n²) string growth.
+    // Collect statement fragments into a list to avoid O(n-) string growth.
    let parts: [String] = native_list_empty()
    let i = 0
    while i < n {
@@ -851,7 +925,7 @@ fn cg_if_expr_arm(stmts: [Map<String, Any>], result_var: String) -> String {
                    }
                } else {
                    if str_eq(sk, "Assign") {
-                        // Real reassignment in an expression-position arm —
+                        // Real reassignment in an expression-position arm -
                        // emit the store; the arm's "value" stays whatever
                        // result_var was last set to, which is the El
                        // semantics (assignment is a statement, not a value).
@@ -889,7 +963,7 @@ fn cg_if_expr(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> String {
    out
 }

-// ── Variable scope tracking ───────────────────────────────────────────────────
+// -- Variable scope tracking ---------------------------------------------------
 //
 // El allows `let x = expr` to both declare and reassign x in the same scope.
 // C doesn't allow redeclaring the same name in the same block.
@@ -908,7 +982,7 @@ fn list_contains(lst: [String], s: String) -> Bool {
    false
 }

-// ── Statement codegen ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+// -- Statement codegen ---------------------------------------------------------
 //
 // cg_stmt emits C lines via println. declared is a list of already-declared
 // variable names in the current C scope; returns updated declared list.
@@ -957,7 +1031,7 @@ fn cg_stmt(stmt: Map<String, Any>, indent: String, declared: [String]) -> [Strin
        if str_eq(ltype, "Zone") {
            add_zone_name(name)
        }
-        // Inference from RHS — duration literals and known-typed calls
+        // Inference from RHS - duration literals and known-typed calls
        // propagate even when the let is unannotated.
        if is_instant_expr(val) {
            add_instant_name(name)
@@ -1012,7 +1086,7 @@ fn cg_stmt(stmt: Map<String, Any>, indent: String, declared: [String]) -> [Strin
    }

    // Bare reassignment: `name = expr`. Always emits a plain C assignment
-    // (no `el_val_t` prefix) — by construction the parser only produces
+    // (no `el_val_t` prefix) - by construction the parser only produces
    // Assign for an existing identifier. If the name happens NOT to be in
    // `declared` for the current C scope (it was let-bound by an enclosing
    // block) the emit still resolves at C level because the variable lives
@@ -1047,7 +1121,7 @@ fn cg_stmt(stmt: Map<String, Any>, indent: String, declared: [String]) -> [Strin
        let cond_c: String = cg_expr(cond)
        let cond_c = strip_outer_parens(cond_c)
        emit_line(indent + "while (" + cond_c + ") {")
-        // Body lives in its own C block — clone so let-bindings inside the
+        // Body lives in its own C block - clone so let-bindings inside the
        // loop don't leak into the parent's `declared` list (which would make
        // a sibling scope's `let x` emit assignment on an undeclared name).
        cg_stmts(body, indent + "  ", native_list_clone(declared))
@@ -1069,6 +1143,15 @@ fn cg_stmt(stmt: Map<String, Any>, indent: String, declared: [String]) -> [Strin
    if kind == "Import"  { return declared }
    if kind == "ExternFn" { return declared }
    if kind == "CgiBlock" { return declared }
+    // TryCatch: browser-only control flow. In the C target, emit a comment
+    // noting that the try body runs unconditionally; error handling is a no-op.
+    // Programs that rely on catching JS exceptions should compile with --target=js.
+    if kind == "TryCatch" {
+        let try_body = stmt["try_body"]
+        emit_line(indent + "/* try (C target: exception handling not supported) */")
+        cg_stmts(try_body, indent, native_list_clone(declared))
+        return declared
+    }
    declared
 }

@@ -1114,7 +1197,7 @@ fn cg_if_stmt(expr: Map<String, Any>, indent: String, declared: [String]) -> Voi
    let cond_c: String = cg_expr(cond)
    let cond_c = strip_outer_parens(cond_c)
    emit_line(indent + "if (" + cond_c + ") {")
-    // Each branch gets its own clone of `declared` — variables let-bound
+    // Each branch gets its own clone of `declared` - variables let-bound
    // inside the then/else block live only in that C scope, and must not
    // leak back to the parent (or to the sibling branch) through shared
    // list mutation. Cheap shallow copy; the entries (variable name strings)
@@ -1166,7 +1249,7 @@ fn cg_stmts(stmts: [Map<String, Any>], indent: String, declared: [String]) -> [S
    decl
 }

-// ── Function declaration codegen ───────────────────────────────────────────────
+// -- Function declaration codegen -----------------------------------------------

 fn param_decl(param: Map<String, Any>, idx: Int) -> String {
    let name: String = param["name"]
@@ -1235,7 +1318,7 @@ fn is_int_name(name: String) -> Bool {

 // Same shape as is_int_name, for Instant- and Duration-typed bindings.
 // Used by the BinOp/comparison codegen to dispatch arithmetic through the
-// typed runtime wrappers (el_instant_add_dur, el_duration_lt, …) and to
+// typed runtime wrappers (el_instant_add_dur, el_duration_lt, -) and to
 // surface mismatches (Instant + Instant, Duration + Int) as #error
 // directives at the top of the generated C.
 fn is_instant_name(name: String) -> Bool {
@@ -1297,7 +1380,7 @@ fn is_int_call(call_expr: Map<String, Any>) -> Bool {
 }

 // Builtins that return an Instant. Used by is_instant_expr and the BinOp
-// dispatch — `now() + 5.seconds` types as Instant only because we can see
+// dispatch - `now() + 5.seconds` types as Instant only because we can see
 // that now() is an Instant-returning Call.
 fn is_instant_call(call_expr: Map<String, Any>) -> Bool {
    let func = call_expr["func"]
@@ -1333,7 +1416,7 @@ fn is_duration_call(call_expr: Map<String, Any>) -> Bool {
    return false
 }

-// Phase 1.5 — Calendar / CalendarTime / Rhythm / LocalDate / LocalTime /
+// Phase 1.5 - Calendar / CalendarTime / Rhythm / LocalDate / LocalTime /
 // LocalDateTime / Zone are first-class boxed types. Each has its own name
 // set in process state, populated from typed `let` bindings and parameter
 // annotations. The BinOp dispatcher consults these to forbid mismatched
@@ -1521,7 +1604,7 @@ fn is_zone_expr(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> Bool {
 // Recursive type predicates for Instant / Duration. Mirror is_int_expr.
 // is_instant_expr / is_duration_expr return true only when the expression
 // is provably of that type at codegen time. Anything ambiguous returns
-// false — the BinOp dispatcher then leaves the expression on the
+// false - the BinOp dispatcher then leaves the expression on the
 // untyped-int path, which is the safest fallback because at the runtime
 // level all three types share the int64 slot.
 fn is_instant_expr(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> Bool {
@@ -1536,8 +1619,8 @@ fn is_instant_expr(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> Bool {
    if str_eq(k, "BinOp") {
        let op: String = expr["op"]
        if str_eq(op, "Plus") {
-            // Instant + Duration  → Instant
-            // Duration + Instant  → Instant
+            // Instant + Duration  -> Instant
+            // Duration + Instant  -> Instant
            if is_instant_expr(expr["left"]) {
                if is_duration_expr(expr["right"]) { return true }
            }
@@ -1547,7 +1630,7 @@ fn is_instant_expr(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> Bool {
            return false
        }
        if str_eq(op, "Minus") {
-            // Instant - Duration  → Instant
+            // Instant - Duration  -> Instant
            if is_instant_expr(expr["left"]) {
                if is_duration_expr(expr["right"]) { return true }
            }
@@ -1574,15 +1657,15 @@ fn is_duration_expr(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> Bool {
    if str_eq(k, "BinOp") {
        let op: String = expr["op"]
        if str_eq(op, "Plus") {
-            // Duration + Duration → Duration
+            // Duration + Duration -> Duration
            if is_duration_expr(expr["left"]) {
                if is_duration_expr(expr["right"]) { return true }
            }
            return false
        }
        if str_eq(op, "Minus") {
-            // Duration - Duration → Duration
-            // Instant - Instant   → Duration (caught here, not in is_instant_expr)
+            // Duration - Duration -> Duration
+            // Instant - Instant   -> Duration (caught here, not in is_instant_expr)
            if is_duration_expr(expr["left"]) {
                if is_duration_expr(expr["right"]) { return true }
            }
@@ -1592,8 +1675,8 @@ fn is_duration_expr(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> Bool {
            return false
        }
        if str_eq(op, "Star") {
-            // Duration * Int  → Duration
-            // Int * Duration  → Duration
+            // Duration * Int  -> Duration
+            // Int * Duration  -> Duration
            if is_duration_expr(expr["left"]) {
                if is_int_expr(expr["right"]) { return true }
            }
@@ -1603,7 +1686,7 @@ fn is_duration_expr(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> Bool {
            return false
        }
        if str_eq(op, "Slash") {
-            // Duration / Int  → Duration
+            // Duration / Int  -> Duration
            if is_duration_expr(expr["left"]) {
                if is_int_expr(expr["right"]) { return true }
            }
@@ -1634,13 +1717,13 @@ fn time_record_violation(kind: String, detail: String) -> Bool {
 // the outer dispatch only checks the immediate kind, not the inner.
 //
 // Rules:
-//   Int literal                      → Int
-//   Ident in __int_names             → Int
-//   Call to known-Int builtin        → Int
-//   Neg of Int                       → Int
-//   BinOp arithmetic of two Ints     → Int  (Plus, Minus, Star, Slash, Percent)
-//   BinOp comparison/logical         → Int  (yields 0/1; safe to treat as Int)
-//   anything else                    → not provably Int
+//   Int literal                      -> Int
+//   Ident in __int_names             -> Int
+//   Call to known-Int builtin        -> Int
+//   Neg of Int                       -> Int
+//   BinOp arithmetic of two Ints     -> Int  (Plus, Minus, Star, Slash, Percent)
+//   BinOp comparison/logical         -> Int  (yields 0/1; safe to treat as Int)
+//   anything else                    -> not provably Int
 fn is_int_expr(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> Bool {
    let k: String = expr["expr"]
    if str_eq(k, "Int") { return true }
@@ -1659,7 +1742,7 @@ fn is_int_expr(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> Bool {
    }
    if str_eq(k, "BinOp") {
        let op: String = expr["op"]
-        // Comparisons and logicals always yield 0/1 — safe Int.
+        // Comparisons and logicals always yield 0/1 - safe Int.
        if str_eq(op, "EqEq")  { return true }
        if str_eq(op, "NotEq") { return true }
        if str_eq(op, "Lt")    { return true }
@@ -1668,7 +1751,7 @@ fn is_int_expr(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> Bool {
        if str_eq(op, "GtEq")  { return true }
        if str_eq(op, "And")   { return true }
        if str_eq(op, "Or")    { return true }
-        // Arithmetic propagates: Int op Int → Int.
+        // Arithmetic propagates: Int op Int -> Int.
        if str_eq(op, "Plus")  {
            if is_int_expr(expr["left"]) {
                if is_int_expr(expr["right"]) { return true }
@@ -1698,7 +1781,7 @@ fn is_int_expr(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> Bool {
    return false
 }

-// ── Capability-kind enforcement ──────────────────────────────────────────────
+// -- Capability-kind enforcement ----------------------------------------------
 //
 // A program's top-level block (cgi / service / none) determines which
 // runtime primitives it may call. The compiler records violations in
@@ -1707,11 +1790,11 @@ fn is_int_expr(expr: Map<String, Any>) -> Bool {
 // downstream cc step fails with a clear message.
 //
 // Capability tiers:
-//   "cgi"     — full self-formation. All primitives.
-//   "service" — bounded. Cannot call self-formation primitives:
+//   "cgi"     - full self-formation. All primitives.
+//   "service" - bounded. Cannot call self-formation primitives:
 //               llm_call_agentic, llm_register_tool, dharma_emit,
 //               dharma_field. Single-turn LLM calls are allowed.
-//   "utility" — default. No DHARMA, no LLM. Pure compute + I/O.
+//   "utility" - default. No DHARMA, no LLM. Pure compute + I/O.
 //
 // The compiler-level rule is structural: the binary either CAN or CANNOT
 // emit the call. There is no runtime check, no opt-in, no override.
@@ -1726,7 +1809,7 @@ fn cap_record_violation(kind: String, fn_name: String) -> Bool {
    return true
 }

-// Self-formation primitives — the cut between CGI and service. A program
+// Self-formation primitives - the cut between CGI and service. A program
 // that emits these calls IS structurally a CGI; we forbid them everywhere
 // else.
 fn is_self_formation_call(fn_name: String) -> Bool {
@@ -1737,7 +1820,7 @@ fn is_self_formation_call(fn_name: String) -> Bool {
    return false
 }

-// Any DHARMA primitive — utilities have zero network presence.
+// Any DHARMA primitive - utilities have zero network presence.
 fn is_dharma_call(fn_name: String) -> Bool {
    if str_eq(fn_name, "dharma_connect") { return true }
    if str_eq(fn_name, "dharma_send") { return true }
@@ -1750,7 +1833,7 @@ fn is_dharma_call(fn_name: String) -> Bool {
    return false
 }

-// Any LLM primitive — utilities have no LLM access at all.
+// Any LLM primitive - utilities have no LLM access at all.
 fn is_llm_call(fn_name: String) -> Bool {
    if str_eq(fn_name, "llm_call") { return true }
    if str_eq(fn_name, "llm_call_system") { return true }
@@ -1800,14 +1883,14 @@ fn emit_cap_violations() -> Void {
        if colon > 0 {
            let kind: String = str_slice(entry, 0, colon)
            let fn_name: String = str_slice(entry, colon + 1, str_len(entry))
-            emit_line("#error \"capability violation: '" + kind + "' programs may not call '" + fn_name + "' (self-formation primitive — only 'cgi' programs may use it)\"")
+            emit_line("#error \"capability violation: '" + kind + "' programs may not call '" + fn_name + "' (self-formation primitive - only 'cgi' programs may use it)\"")
        }
        let i = i + next_comma + 1
    }
 }

 // Surface temporal-type violations as #error directives. The cg_expr BinOp
-// dispatcher records each violation (Instant + Instant, Duration + Int, …)
+// dispatcher records each violation (Instant + Instant, Duration + Int, -)
 // as a CSV entry "kind:detail" via time_record_violation. Each entry maps
 // to a single #error so downstream cc fails the build with a clear El-
 // source-level message before the bogus C even links.
@@ -1830,7 +1913,7 @@ fn emit_time_violations() -> Void {
    }
 }

-// ── Builtin arity table ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+// -- Builtin arity table -------------------------------------------------------
 //
 // El programs sometimes call runtime builtins with the wrong number of
 // arguments (e.g. `http_serve(port)` instead of `http_serve(port, handler)`).
@@ -1840,7 +1923,7 @@ fn emit_time_violations() -> Void {
 //
 // Strategy: a small static table mirrors el_runtime.h. Variadic builtins
 // (el_list_new, el_map_new, args) and unknown identifiers (user fns,
-// dynamic dispatch) return -1 → no check. A mismatch records a violation
+// dynamic dispatch) return -1 -> no check. A mismatch records a violation
 // in process state, which emit_arity_violations() turns into #error
 // directives at the top of the generated C.
 fn builtin_arity(name: String) -> Int {
@@ -1982,6 +2065,16 @@ fn builtin_arity(name: String) -> Int {
    if str_eq(name, "bool_to_str") { return 1 }
    // Process
    if str_eq(name, "exit_program") { return 1 }
+    // Process info
+    if str_eq(name, "getpid_now") { return 0 }
+    // stdout redirect (used by elc post-processing)
+    if str_eq(name, "stdout_to_file") { return 1 }
+    if str_eq(name, "stdout_restore") { return 0 }
+    // Subprocess execution
+    if str_eq(name, "exec_command") { return 1 }
+    if str_eq(name, "exec_capture") { return 1 }
+    if str_eq(name, "exec") { return 1 }
+    if str_eq(name, "exec_bg") { return 1 }
    // CGI / DHARMA
    if str_eq(name, "dharma_connect") { return 1 }
    if str_eq(name, "dharma_send") { return 2 }
@@ -2044,7 +2137,7 @@ fn builtin_arity(name: String) -> Int {
    if str_eq(name, "get") { return 2 }
    if str_eq(name, "map_get") { return 2 }
    if str_eq(name, "map_set") { return 3 }
-    // -1 sentinel: variadic / unknown / user-defined → no check.
+    // -1 sentinel: variadic / unknown / user-defined -> no check.
    return -1
 }

@@ -2242,7 +2335,7 @@ fn build_int_names_for_params(params: [Map<String, Any>]) -> Bool {

 fn cg_fn(stmt: Map<String, Any>) -> Void {
    let fn_name: String = stmt["name"]
-    // Skip El's `fn main()` — C provides its own main() for top-level stmts
+    // Skip El's `fn main()` - C provides its own main() for top-level stmts
    // and a duplicate `el_val_t main(void)` would collide with it.
    if fn_name == "main" { return }
    let params = stmt["params"]
@@ -2274,8 +2367,8 @@ fn cg_fn(stmt: Map<String, Any>) -> Void {
    }
    // Lift the final bare expression into an explicit return so implicit
    // returns ("fn lex(s) { ... tokens }") actually return their value.
-    // Void-returning functions skip this — wrapping `println(x)` in
-    // `return …` is a C type error.
+    // Void-returning functions skip this - wrapping `println(x)` in
+    // `return -` is a C type error.
    let body_xformed = body
    if !str_eq(ret_type, "Void") {
        let body_xformed = transform_implicit_return(body)
@@ -2286,7 +2379,7 @@ fn cg_fn(stmt: Map<String, Any>) -> Void {
    emit_blank()
 }

-// ── Top-level codegen ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+// -- Top-level codegen ---------------------------------------------------------

 fn is_fndef(stmt: Map<String, Any>) -> Bool {
    let kind: String = stmt["stmt"]
@@ -2312,7 +2405,7 @@ fn cgi_arg(value: String, has_value: Bool) -> String {
    return "EL_NULL"
 }

-// ── VBD role enforcement ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+// -- VBD role enforcement ------------------------------------------------------
 //
 // Scan a function body for direct calls to DHARMA-restricted builtins
 // (dharma_emit, dharma_field). These may only appear inside @manager fns.
@@ -2445,16 +2538,16 @@ fn vbd_has_restricted_call(stmts: [Map<String, Any>]) -> Bool {
    false
 }

-// ── Entry point ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+// -- Entry point ----------------------------------------------------------------

 fn codegen(stmts: [Map<String, Any>], source: String) -> String {
    // Detect cgi/service blocks: at most one declarative top-level block.
    // The block determines the program's CAPABILITY KIND:
-    //   "cgi"     — full self-formation. Calls all primitives.
-    //   "service" — bounded. Cannot call self-formation primitives
+    //   "cgi"     - full self-formation. Calls all primitives.
+    //   "service" - bounded. Cannot call self-formation primitives
    //               (llm_call_agentic, llm_register_tool, dharma_emit,
    //               dharma_field, mindlink-creation).
-    //   "utility" — default; no DHARMA membership, no LLM, no agentic.
+    //   "utility" - default; no DHARMA membership, no LLM, no agentic.
    // Codegen enforces this with #error directives at every restricted
    // call site. The capability boundary is structural: a binary either
    // CAN or CANNOT do a thing, and the compiler decides at emission time.
@@ -2489,7 +2582,7 @@ fn codegen(stmts: [Map<String, Any>], source: String) -> String {
    }
    if cgi_count >= 1 {
        if svc_count >= 1 {
-            emit_line("#error \"El: program declares both cgi and service blocks (mutually exclusive — pick one)\"")
+            emit_line("#error \"El: program declares both cgi and service blocks (mutually exclusive - pick one)\"")
        }
    }
    // Stash the program kind so cg_expr's Call branch can enforce
@@ -2509,9 +2602,44 @@ fn codegen(stmts: [Map<String, Any>], source: String) -> String {
    emit_line("#include <stdint.h>")
    emit_line("#include <stdlib.h>")
    emit_line("#include \"el_runtime.h\"")
+
+    // Cross-module forward declarations: for each imported module, emit
+    // #include "module.elh" so Clang sees the function signatures from
+    // that module without needing the full source inlined. The .elh files
+    // are generated by `elc --emit-header` and live in the same dist/
+    // directory as the generated .c files. We use basename only (strip
+    // the directory prefix and .el extension) so the include resolves
+    // correctly regardless of the source tree layout.
+    let imp_n: Int = native_list_len(stmts)
+    let imp_i = 0
+    while imp_i < imp_n {
+        let imp_stmt = native_list_get(stmts, imp_i)
+        let imp_kind: String = imp_stmt["stmt"]
+        if str_eq(imp_kind, "Import") {
+            let imp_path: String = imp_stmt["path"]
+            // Extract basename: find last '/' and strip from there.
+            let imp_path_len: Int = str_len(imp_path)
+            let imp_last_slash: Int = -1
+            let imp_j: Int = 0
+            while imp_j < imp_path_len {
+                let imp_c: String = str_slice(imp_path, imp_j, imp_j + 1)
+                if str_eq(imp_c, "/") { let imp_last_slash = imp_j }
+                let imp_j = imp_j + 1
+            }
+            let imp_base: String = str_slice(imp_path, imp_last_slash + 1, imp_path_len)
+            // Strip .el extension if present.
+            let imp_base_len: Int = str_len(imp_base)
+            let imp_bname: String = imp_base
+            if str_ends_with(imp_base, ".el") {
+                let imp_bname = str_slice(imp_base, 0, imp_base_len - 3)
+            }
+            emit_line("#include \"" + imp_bname + ".elh\"")
+        }
+        let imp_i = imp_i + 1
+    }
    emit_blank()

-    // Forward declarations (skip `main` — C provides its own)
+    // Forward declarations (skip `main` - C provides its own)
    let n: Int = native_list_len(stmts)
    let i = 0
    while i < n {
@@ -2535,7 +2663,7 @@ fn codegen(stmts: [Map<String, Any>], source: String) -> String {
    }
    emit_blank()

-    // Top-level `let` bindings → file-scope storage. El programs use
+    // Top-level `let` bindings -> file-scope storage. El programs use
    // top-level `let GREETING = "..."` as module constants that any
    // function below should be able to read. Without this pass, a top-
    // level Let only declares the name inside main()'s scope and any
@@ -2683,7 +2811,7 @@ fn codegen(stmts: [Map<String, Any>], source: String) -> String {
                let main_decl = cg_stmt(stmt, "  ", main_decl)
            }
        }
-        // Release AST node after final use — each stmt is fully processed
+        // Release AST node after final use - each stmt is fully processed
        // by this point (forward decls, fn defs, top-level lets, and now
        // the main-body pass are all done). Releasing here prevents the
        // accumulated AST from exhausting memory on large source files.
@@ -2706,16 +2834,16 @@ fn codegen(stmts: [Map<String, Any>], source: String) -> String {

    // Emit any accumulated capability-violation #error directives. cc
    // will fail on the first one and surface the message; placement at
-    // the bottom is fine — preprocessor errors halt the build wherever
+    // the bottom is fine - preprocessor errors halt the build wherever
    // they appear.
    emit_cap_violations()
    // Same for builtin-arity violations: cc halts on the first #error,
    // so a misuse of a known builtin (wrong arg count) fails the build
    // with a clear message naming the builtin and its expected arity.
    emit_arity_violations()
-    // Temporal-type violations (Instant + Instant, Duration + Int, …).
+    // Temporal-type violations (Instant + Instant, Duration + Int, -).
    emit_time_violations()

-    // Return empty string — output was streamed via println
+    // Return empty string - output was streamed via println
    ""
 }
@@ -29,7 +29,7 @@ fn compile(source: String) -> String {
    codegen(stmts, source)
 }

-// compile_js — full pipeline (JS target): source string -> JS source string
+// compile_js — full pipeline (JS target, module mode): source string -> JS source string
 fn compile_js(source: String) -> String {
    let tokens: [Map<String, Any>] = lex(source)
    let stmts: [Map<String, Any>] = parse(tokens)
@@ -38,6 +38,20 @@ fn compile_js(source: String) -> String {
    codegen_js(stmts, source)
 }

+// compile_js_with_bundle — JS target in bundle mode.
+// Reads el_runtime.js from runtime_path and inlines it inside an IIFE.
+fn compile_js_with_bundle(source: String, runtime_path: String) -> String {
+    let tokens: [Map<String, Any>] = lex(source)
+    let stmts: [Map<String, Any>] = parse(tokens)
+    el_release(tokens)
+    let runtime_content: String = fs_read(runtime_path)
+    if str_eq(runtime_content, "") {
+        println("el-compiler: warning: --bundle: could not read runtime at " + runtime_path)
+        println("el-compiler: warning: bundle output will be incomplete")
+    }
+    codegen_js_bundle(stmts, source, runtime_content)
+}
+
 // compile_dispatch — pick a backend based on the requested target.
 //   tgt = "c"  | "js"
 // (The parameter is named `tgt` because `target` is a reserved keyword
@@ -48,6 +62,12 @@ fn compile_dispatch(tgt: String, source: String) -> String {
    compile(source)
 }

+// compile_dispatch_bundle — like compile_dispatch but bundle mode for JS.
+fn compile_dispatch_bundle(tgt: String, source: String, runtime_path: String) -> String {
+    if str_eq(tgt, "js") { return compile_js_with_bundle(source, runtime_path) }
+    compile(source)
+}
+
 // Detect a `--target=<lang>` flag in argv and return the target.
 // Returns "c" if none specified or unrecognized.
 fn detect_target(argv: [String]) -> String {
@@ -91,6 +111,126 @@ fn detect_emit_header(argv: [String]) -> Bool {
    return false
 }

+// Detect --bundle flag in argv.
+fn detect_bundle(argv: [String]) -> Bool {
+    let n: Int = native_list_len(argv)
+    let i = 0
+    while i < n {
+        let a: String = native_list_get(argv, i)
+        if str_eq(a, "--bundle") { return true }
+        let i = i + 1
+    }
+    return false
+}
+
+// Detect --minify flag in argv.
+fn detect_minify(argv: [String]) -> Bool {
+    let n: Int = native_list_len(argv)
+    let i = 0
+    while i < n {
+        let a: String = native_list_get(argv, i)
+        if str_eq(a, "--minify") { return true }
+        let i = i + 1
+    }
+    return false
+}
+
+// Detect --obfuscate flag in argv.
+fn detect_obfuscate(argv: [String]) -> Bool {
+    let n: Int = native_list_len(argv)
+    let i = 0
+    while i < n {
+        let a: String = native_list_get(argv, i)
+        if str_eq(a, "--obfuscate") { return true }
+        let i = i + 1
+    }
+    return false
+}
+
+// Build a unique temp file path: /tmp/elc-<pid>-<timestamp>.<suffix>
+fn make_temp_path(suffix: String) -> String {
+    let pid: Int = getpid_now()
+    let ts: Int = time_now()
+    "/tmp/elc-" + native_int_to_str(pid) + "-" + native_int_to_str(ts) + "." + suffix
+}
+
+// Reserved globals that terser and javascript-obfuscator must not mangle.
+// These are referenced from HTML onclick= attributes and other direct window usage.
+fn js_reserved_names() -> String {
+    "neuronDemoToggle,neuronDemoSend,neuronDemoReset,signInWith,signInWithEmail,signUpWithEmail,sendMagicLink,signOut,resetPassword,sendResetEmail,updatePassword,showSignIn,showSignUp,hideReset,setSort,addFamilyMember,removeFamilyMember,copyForPlatform,entHeadcountChange,NEURON_CFG"
+}
+
+// Find a CLI tool by checking node_modules paths first, then falling back to npx.
+// src_dir is the directory of the source file being compiled.
+// Returns the command string to invoke the tool, or "" if not found.
+fn find_node_tool(tool_name: String, src_dir: String) -> String {
+    // 1. Check ./node_modules/.bin/<tool> relative to source file
+    let cand1: String = src_dir + "/node_modules/.bin/" + tool_name
+    let check1: String = str_trim(exec_capture("test -x " + cand1 + " && echo yes 2>/dev/null"))
+    if str_eq(check1, "yes") { return cand1 }
+    // 2. Check ../node_modules/.bin/<tool> (monorepo layout)
+    let parent_dir: String = dirname_of(src_dir)
+    let cand2: String = parent_dir + "/node_modules/.bin/" + tool_name
+    let check2: String = str_trim(exec_capture("test -x " + cand2 + " && echo yes 2>/dev/null"))
+    if str_eq(check2, "yes") { return cand2 }
+    // 3. Fall back to npx if it is on PATH. npx will use the globally cached
+    //    package or download on first use. Use --no to avoid auto-install if
+    //    the package is not already cached; if that fails, try with --yes.
+    let npx_path: String = str_trim(exec_capture("which npx 2>/dev/null"))
+    if !str_eq(npx_path, "") { return "npx --yes " + tool_name }
+    return ""
+}
+
+// apply_minify — run terser on js_path, write result to out_path.
+// Returns true on success, false on failure.
+fn apply_minify(js_path: String, out_path: String, src_dir: String) -> Bool {
+    let terser: String = find_node_tool("terser", src_dir)
+    if str_eq(terser, "") {
+        println("el-compiler: error: terser not found. Run 'npm install terser' in your project directory.")
+        return false
+    }
+    let names: String = js_reserved_names()
+    // Single-quote the mangle reserved list so the shell does not glob-expand
+    // the bracket expression. The compress options are safe without quoting.
+    let compress_opts: String = "passes=2,drop_console=false,drop_debugger=true"
+    let mangle_reserved: String = "'reserved=[" + names + "]'"
+    let cmd: String = terser + " " + js_path + " --compress " + compress_opts + " --mangle " + mangle_reserved + " --output " + out_path
+    let ret: Int = exec_command(cmd)
+    if ret == 0 { return true }
+    println("el-compiler: error: terser failed (exit " + native_int_to_str(ret) + ")")
+    return false
+}
+
+// apply_obfuscate — run javascript-obfuscator on js_path, write result to out_path.
+// Returns true on success, false on failure.
+fn apply_obfuscate(js_path: String, out_path: String, src_dir: String) -> Bool {
+    let obfuscator: String = find_node_tool("javascript-obfuscator", src_dir)
+    if str_eq(obfuscator, "") {
+        println("el-compiler: error: javascript-obfuscator not found. Run 'npm install javascript-obfuscator' in your project directory.")
+        return false
+    }
+    let names: String = js_reserved_names()
+    let cmd: String = obfuscator + " " + js_path + " --output " + out_path + " --compact true --simplify true --string-array true --string-array-encoding base64 --string-array-threshold 0.75 --identifier-names-generator hexadecimal --rename-globals false --self-defending false --reserved-names " + names
+    let ret: Int = exec_command(cmd)
+    if ret == 0 { return true }
+    println("el-compiler: error: javascript-obfuscator failed (exit " + native_int_to_str(ret) + ")")
+    return false
+}
+
+// Resolve the runtime path for --bundle mode.
+// Looks for el_runtime.js next to the source file first;
+// if not found there, looks next to the elc binary itself.
+// Returns "" if not found anywhere (caller emits a warning).
+fn resolve_runtime_path(src_path: String) -> String {
+    let src_dir: String = dirname_of(src_path)
+    let candidate: String = src_dir + "/el_runtime.js"
+    let existing: String = fs_read(candidate)
+    if !str_eq(existing, "") {
+        return candidate
+    }
+    return ""
+}
+
 // Reconstruct an El type annotation string from a parsed type node.
 fn type_node_to_el(t: Map<String, Any>) -> String {
    let k: String = t["kind"]
@@ -249,12 +389,83 @@ fn resolve_imports(src_path: String) -> String {
    return str_join(prefix_chunks, "") + str_join(body_chunks, "")
 }

+// run_with_postprocess — codegen + minify + optional obfuscate pipeline.
+//
+// Called from main() when --minify or --obfuscate is active. Redirects stdout
+// to a temp file during codegen so the output can be passed through the
+// external tools (terser, javascript-obfuscator) before final emission.
+//
+// Pipeline: codegen -> terser -> (javascript-obfuscator) -> stdout or file
+fn run_with_postprocess(tgt: String, source: String, src_path: String, do_bundle: Bool, do_obfuscate: Bool, argc: Int, positional: [String]) -> Void {
+    let src_dir: String = dirname_of(src_path)
+    let tmp_gen: String = make_temp_path("js")
+    let tmp_min: String = make_temp_path("min.js")
+
+    // Redirect stdout to tmp_gen so codegen println output is captured.
+    stdout_to_file(tmp_gen)
+    if do_bundle {
+        let runtime_path: String = resolve_runtime_path(src_path)
+        compile_dispatch_bundle(tgt, source, runtime_path)
+    } else {
+        compile_dispatch(tgt, source)
+    }
+    stdout_restore()
+
+    // Run terser: tmp_gen -> tmp_min
+    let ok_min: Bool = apply_minify(tmp_gen, tmp_min, src_dir)
+    if !ok_min {
+        exec_command("rm -f " + tmp_gen + " " + tmp_min)
+        exit(1)
+    }
+
+    // Determine final result path (either tmp_min or post-obfuscation file).
+    // Use state to pass the final path out of the optional obfuscation branch.
+    state_set("__elc_final_js", tmp_min)
+
+    if do_obfuscate {
+        let tmp_obf: String = make_temp_path("obf.js")
+        let ok_obf: Bool = apply_obfuscate(tmp_min, tmp_obf, src_dir)
+        if !ok_obf {
+            exec_command("rm -f " + tmp_gen + " " + tmp_min + " " + tmp_obf)
+            exit(1)
+        }
+        state_set("__elc_final_js", tmp_obf)
+    }
+
+    let final_path: String = state_get("__elc_final_js")
+    let final_js: String = fs_read(final_path)
+
+    // Clean up all temp files.
+    exec_command("rm -f " + tmp_gen + " " + tmp_min)
+    if do_obfuscate {
+        exec_command("rm -f " + final_path)
+    }
+
+    if argc >= 2 {
+        let out_path: String = native_list_get(positional, 1)
+        let ok: Bool = fs_write(out_path, final_js)
+        if ok {
+            return
+        } else {
+            println("el-compiler: failed to write output")
+            exit(1)
+        }
+    }
+    // No output file: print final JS to stdout.
+    print(final_js)
+}
+
 // main — CLI entry point.
 //
-//   elc <source.el>                            # emit C to stdout
-//   elc --target=js <source.el>                # emit JS to stdout
-//   elc --target=c  <source.el> <out.c>        # write C to file
-//   elc --target=js <source.el> <out.js>       # write JS to file
+//   elc <source.el>                                             # emit C to stdout
+//   elc --target=js <source.el>                                 # emit JS (module) to stdout
+//   elc --target=js --bundle <source.el>                        # emit self-contained JS (IIFE) to stdout
+//   elc --target=js --bundle --minify <source.el>               # emit minified IIFE to stdout
+//   elc --target=js --bundle --obfuscate <source.el>            # emit minified+obfuscated IIFE to stdout
+//   elc --target=c  <source.el> <out.c>                         # write C to file
+//   elc --target=js <source.el> <out.js>                        # write JS to file
+//   elc --target=js --bundle <source.el> <out.js>               # write bundled JS to file
+//   elc --target=js --bundle --minify <source.el> <out.min.js>  # write minified JS to file
 fn main() -> Void {
    let argv: [String] = args()
    // Use `tgt` not `target`: `target` is a reserved keyword in the lexer
@@ -262,12 +473,28 @@ fn main() -> Void {
    // because the function-name position has no token-class restriction.
    let tgt: String = detect_target(argv)
    let do_emit_header: Bool = detect_emit_header(argv)
+    let do_bundle: Bool = detect_bundle(argv)
+    let do_minify: Bool = detect_minify(argv)
+    let do_obfuscate: Bool = detect_obfuscate(argv)
+    // --obfuscate implies --minify: obfuscating unminified code is pointless.
+    if do_obfuscate {
+        let do_minify = true
+    }
    let positional: [String] = strip_flags(argv)
    let argc: Int = native_list_len(positional)
    if argc < 1 {
-        println("el-compiler: usage: elc [--target=c|js] [--emit-header] <source.el> [<output>]")
+        println("el-compiler: usage: elc [--target=c|js] [--bundle] [--minify] [--obfuscate] [--emit-header] <source.el> [<output>]")
        exit(1)
    }
+
+    // --minify and --obfuscate require --target=js
+    if do_minify {
+        if !str_eq(tgt, "js") {
+            println("el-compiler: error: --minify and --obfuscate require --target=js")
+            exit(1)
+        }
+    }
+
    let src_path: String = native_list_get(positional, 0)

    // When --emit-header is requested, parse the source file directly
@@ -283,7 +510,24 @@ fn main() -> Void {
    }

    let source: String = resolve_imports(src_path)
-    let out: String = compile_dispatch(tgt, source)
+
+    // When post-processing (--minify or --obfuscate) is requested, redirect
+    // stdout to a temp file so codegen output can be captured and piped through
+    // the external tools. After codegen, restore stdout before emitting the
+    // final result.
+    if do_minify {
+        run_with_postprocess(tgt, source, src_path, do_bundle, do_obfuscate, argc, positional)
+        exit(0)
+    }
+
+    // Standard path (no post-processing).
+    let out: String = ""
+    if do_bundle {
+        let runtime_path: String = resolve_runtime_path(src_path)
+        let out = compile_dispatch_bundle(tgt, source, runtime_path)
+    } else {
+        let out = compile_dispatch(tgt, source)
+    }
    if argc >= 2 {
        let out_path: String = native_list_get(positional, 1)
        let ok: Bool = fs_write(out_path, out)
@@ -146,6 +146,9 @@ fn keyword_kind(word: String) -> String {
    if word == "engine" { return "Engine" }
    if word == "accessor" { return "Accessor" }
    if word == "vessel" { return "Vessel" }
+    if word == "extern" { return "Extern" }
+    if word == "try" { return "Try" }
+    if word == "catch" { return "Catch" }
    ""
 }

@@ -156,7 +159,7 @@ fn keyword_kind(word: String) -> String {
 // Returns { "text": ..., "pos": i }
 fn scan_digits(chars: [String], start: Int, total: Int) -> Map<String, Any> {
    let i = start
-    let text = ""
+    let parts: [String] = native_list_empty()
    let running = true
    while running {
        if i >= total {
@@ -164,20 +167,20 @@ fn scan_digits(chars: [String], start: Int, total: Int) -> Map<String, Any> {
        } else {
            let ch: String = native_list_get(chars, i)
            if lex_is_digit(ch) {
-                let text = text + ch
+                let parts = native_list_append(parts, ch)
                let i = i + 1
            } else {
                let running = false
            }
        }
    }
-    { "text": text, "pos": i }
+    { "text": str_join(parts, ""), "pos": i }
 }

 // scan_ident — advance i while chars[i] is alphanumeric or underscore
 fn scan_ident(chars: [String], start: Int, total: Int) -> Map<String, Any> {
    let i = start
-    let text = ""
+    let parts: [String] = native_list_empty()
    let running = true
    while running {
        if i >= total {
@@ -185,14 +188,14 @@ fn scan_ident(chars: [String], start: Int, total: Int) -> Map<String, Any> {
        } else {
            let ch: String = native_list_get(chars, i)
            if is_alnum_or_underscore(ch) {
-                let text = text + ch
+                let parts = native_list_append(parts, ch)
                let i = i + 1
            } else {
                let running = false
            }
        }
    }
-    { "text": text, "pos": i }
+    { "text": str_join(parts, ""), "pos": i }
 }

 // ── Code-bearing string detection + comment strip ────────────────────────────
@@ -253,7 +256,7 @@ fn looks_like_code(s: String) -> Bool {
 fn strip_code_comments(s: String) -> String {
    let chars: [String] = native_string_chars(s)
    let total: Int = native_list_len(chars)
-    let out = ""
+    let out_parts: [String] = native_list_empty()
    let i = 0
    let in_squote = false
    let in_dquote = false
@@ -269,11 +272,11 @@ fn strip_code_comments(s: String) -> String {
        if in_js_string {
            // Backslash escape: consume next char verbatim regardless of which.
            if ch == "\\" {
-                let out = out + ch
+                let out_parts = native_list_append(out_parts, ch)
                let next_i = i + 1
                if next_i < total {
                    let nc: String = native_list_get(chars, next_i)
-                    let out = out + nc
+                    let out_parts = native_list_append(out_parts, nc)
                    let prev = nc
                    let i = next_i + 1
                } else {
@@ -292,7 +295,7 @@ fn strip_code_comments(s: String) -> String {
                        }
                    }
                }
-                let out = out + ch
+                let out_parts = native_list_append(out_parts, ch)
                let prev = ch
                let i = i + 1
            }
@@ -308,7 +311,7 @@ fn strip_code_comments(s: String) -> String {
                if next_ch == "/" {
                    // URL guard: prev char ':' means this is "://", not a comment.
                    if prev == ":" {
-                        let out = out + ch
+                        let out_parts = native_list_append(out_parts, ch)
                        let prev = ch
                        let i = i + 1
                    } else {
@@ -360,7 +363,7 @@ fn strip_code_comments(s: String) -> String {
                        }
                        let prev = ""
                    } else {
-                        let out = out + ch
+                        let out_parts = native_list_append(out_parts, ch)
                        let prev = ch
                        let i = i + 1
                    }
@@ -369,23 +372,23 @@ fn strip_code_comments(s: String) -> String {
                // Open a JS string?
                if ch == "'" {
                    let in_squote = true
-                    let out = out + ch
+                    let out_parts = native_list_append(out_parts, ch)
                    let prev = ch
                    let i = i + 1
                } else {
                    if ch == "\"" {
                        let in_dquote = true
-                        let out = out + ch
+                        let out_parts = native_list_append(out_parts, ch)
                        let prev = ch
                        let i = i + 1
                    } else {
                        if ch == "`" {
                            let in_btick = true
-                            let out = out + ch
+                            let out_parts = native_list_append(out_parts, ch)
                            let prev = ch
                            let i = i + 1
                        } else {
-                            let out = out + ch
+                            let out_parts = native_list_append(out_parts, ch)
                            let prev = ch
                            let i = i + 1
                        }
@@ -394,14 +397,14 @@ fn strip_code_comments(s: String) -> String {
            }
        }
    }
-    out
+    str_join(out_parts, "")
 }

 // scan_string — scan a quoted string literal, handling \" escapes.
 // Starts AFTER the opening quote. Returns { "text": content, "pos": i_after_close }
 fn scan_string(chars: [String], start: Int, total: Int) -> Map<String, Any> {
    let i = start
-    let text = ""
+    let parts: [String] = native_list_empty()
    let running = true
    while running {
        if i >= total {
@@ -414,26 +417,26 @@ fn scan_string(chars: [String], start: Int, total: Int) -> Map<String, Any> {
                if next_i < total {
                    let next_ch: String = native_list_get(chars, next_i)
                    if next_ch == "\"" {
-                        let text = text + "\""
+                        let parts = native_list_append(parts, "\"")
                        let i = next_i + 1
                    } else {
                        if next_ch == "n" {
-                            let text = text + "\n"
+                            let parts = native_list_append(parts, "\n")
                            let i = next_i + 1
                        } else {
                            if next_ch == "t" {
-                                let text = text + "\t"
+                                let parts = native_list_append(parts, "\t")
                                let i = next_i + 1
                            } else {
                                if next_ch == "r" {
-                                    let text = text + "\r"
+                                    let parts = native_list_append(parts, "\r")
                                    let i = next_i + 1
                                } else {
                                    if next_ch == "\\" {
-                                        let text = text + "\\"
+                                        let parts = native_list_append(parts, "\\")
                                        let i = next_i + 1
                                    } else {
-                                        let text = text + next_ch
+                                        let parts = native_list_append(parts, next_ch)
                                        let i = next_i + 1
                                    }
                                }
@@ -448,13 +451,13 @@ fn scan_string(chars: [String], start: Int, total: Int) -> Map<String, Any> {
                    let i = i + 1
                    let running = false
                } else {
-                    let text = text + ch
+                    let parts = native_list_append(parts, ch)
                    let i = i + 1
                }
            }
        }
    }
-    { "text": text, "pos": i }
+    { "text": str_join(parts, ""), "pos": i }
 }

 // ── Main lexer ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
@@ -279,6 +279,30 @@ fn parse_primary(tokens: [Map<String, Any>], pos: Int) -> Map<String, Any> {
        return r
    }

+    // Anonymous function literal (lambda): fn(params) -> RetType { body }
+    // Used for inline callbacks: dom_listen(el, "click", fn(e: Any) -> Void { ... })
+    // Produces a Lambda expression node (distinct from a named FnDef statement).
+    if k == "Fn" {
+        let p = pos + 1
+        let r = parse_params(tokens, p)
+        let params = r["params"]
+        let p = r["pos"]
+        let ret_type = ""
+        let k2 = tok_kind(tokens, p)
+        if k2 == "Arrow" {
+            let p = p + 1
+            let kt = tok_kind(tokens, p)
+            if kt == "Ident" {
+                let ret_type = tok_value(tokens, p)
+            }
+            let p = skip_type(tokens, p)
+        }
+        let r2 = parse_block(tokens, p)
+        let body = r2["stmts"]
+        let p = r2["pos"]
+        return make_result({ "expr": "Lambda", "params": params, "body": body, "ret_type": ret_type }, p)
+    }
+
    // Unary not
    if k == "Not" {
        let r = parse_primary(tokens, pos + 1)
@@ -408,6 +432,13 @@ fn parse_pattern(tokens: [Map<String, Any>], pos: Int) -> Map<String, Any> {
        if v == "_" {
            return make_result({ "pattern": "Wildcard" }, pos + 1)
        }
+        // Check for Enum::Variant pattern (Color::Red, Status::Ok, etc.)
+        // Lexed as: Ident ColonColon Ident
+        let next_k = tok_kind(tokens, pos + 1)
+        if next_k == "ColonColon" {
+            let variant_name = tok_value(tokens, pos + 2)
+            return make_result({ "pattern": "Variant", "enum_name": v, "variant": variant_name }, pos + 3)
+        }
        return make_result({ "pattern": "Binding", "name": v }, pos + 1)
    }
    if k == "Int" {
@@ -687,6 +718,29 @@ fn parse_stmt(tokens: [Map<String, Any>], pos: Int) -> Map<String, Any> {
        return make_result({ "stmt": "Return", "value": val }, p)
    }

+    // extern fn declaration (no body — forward declaration for separate compilation)
+    if k == "Extern" {
+        let p = pos + 1
+        let k2: String = tok_kind(tokens, p)
+        if str_eq(k2, "Fn") {
+            let p = p + 1
+            let name: String = tok_value(tokens, p)
+            let p = p + 1
+            let r = parse_params(tokens, p)
+            let params = r["params"]
+            let p = r["pos"]
+            let ret_type = ""
+            let k3: String = tok_kind(tokens, p)
+            if str_eq(k3, "Arrow") {
+                let p = p + 1
+                let kt: String = tok_kind(tokens, p)
+                if str_eq(kt, "Ident") { let ret_type = tok_value(tokens, p) }
+                let p = skip_type(tokens, p)
+            }
+            return make_result({ "stmt": "ExternFn", "name": name, "params": params, "ret_type": ret_type }, p)
+        }
+    }
+
    // fn definition
    if k == "Fn" {
        let p = pos + 1
@@ -714,11 +768,16 @@ fn parse_stmt(tokens: [Map<String, Any>], pos: Int) -> Map<String, Any> {
        return make_result({ "stmt": "FnDef", "name": name, "params": params, "body": body, "ret_type": ret_type }, p)
    }

-    // type definition
+    // type definition: `type Name = { field: Type, ... }`
+    // The `=` between the name and the brace is optional in the spec but
+    // present in practice. Skip it if present before consuming the LBrace.
    if k == "Type" {
        let p = pos + 1
        let name = tok_value(tokens, p)
        let p = p + 1
+        // Consume optional `=` before the opening brace
+        let pk = tok_kind(tokens, p)
+        if pk == "Eq" { let p = p + 1 }
        let p = expect(tokens, p, "LBrace")
        let fields: [Map<String, Any>] = native_list_empty()
        let running = true
@@ -853,6 +912,40 @@ fn parse_stmt(tokens: [Map<String, Any>], pos: Int) -> Map<String, Any> {
        return make_result({ "stmt": "For", "item": item_name, "list": list_expr, "body": body }, p)
    }

+    // try/catch statement
+    // try { body } catch (name: Type) { handler }
+    // The catch variable name and type are both captured; type is skipped.
+    if k == "Try" {
+        let p = pos + 1
+        let r_try = parse_block(tokens, p)
+        let try_body = r_try["stmts"]
+        let p = r_try["pos"]
+        let catch_name = "err"
+        let k2 = tok_kind(tokens, p)
+        if str_eq(k2, "Catch") {
+            let p = p + 1
+            let p = expect(tokens, p, "LParen")
+            // catch variable name
+            let kn = tok_kind(tokens, p)
+            if str_eq(kn, "Ident") {
+                let catch_name = tok_value(tokens, p)
+                let p = p + 1
+            }
+            // optional type annotation: : Type
+            let k3 = tok_kind(tokens, p)
+            if str_eq(k3, "Colon") {
+                let p = p + 1
+                let p = skip_type(tokens, p)
+            }
+            let p = expect(tokens, p, "RParen")
+            let r_catch = parse_block(tokens, p)
+            let catch_body = r_catch["stmts"]
+            let p = r_catch["pos"]
+            return make_result({ "stmt": "TryCatch", "try_body": try_body, "catch_name": catch_name, "catch_body": catch_body }, p)
+        }
+        return make_result({ "stmt": "TryCatch", "try_body": try_body, "catch_name": catch_name, "catch_body": native_list_empty() }, p)
+    }
+
    // @decorator — capture decorator name and attach to following stmt
    if k == "At" {
        let p = pos + 1
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-// elb.el — El Build Coordinator
+// elb.el - El Build Coordinator
 //
 // The build system for El programs. Written in El. Builds El.
 //
@@ -16,11 +16,11 @@
 //   3. For each file: if .el is newer than .elh/.c, compile with elc --emit-header
 //   4. Link all .c files + el_runtime.c into the final binary
 //
-// Each module compiles independently — no 128K-line blobs.
+// Each module compiles independently - no 128K-line blobs.
 // Downstream compilations read .elh headers (function signatures only),
 // not source. Incremental: only recompile what changed.

-// ── Flags ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+// -- Flags ---------------------------------------------------------------------

 fn flag_bool(argv: [String], name: String) -> Bool {
    let n: Int = native_list_len(argv)
@@ -47,7 +47,7 @@ fn flag_val(argv: [String], name: String, default_val: String) -> String {
    return default_val
 }

-// ── Manifest parsing ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+// -- Manifest parsing ----------------------------------------------------------
 //
 // Read the entry file from manifest.el:
 //   build { entry "soul.el" }
@@ -100,7 +100,7 @@ fn parse_manifest_name(src: String) -> String {
    return "out"
 }

-// ── Path helpers ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+// -- Path helpers ---------------------------------------------------------------

 fn dirname_of(path: String) -> String {
    let n: Int = str_len(path)
@@ -148,14 +148,14 @@ fn file_is_newer(a: String, b: String) -> Bool {
    let cmd: String = "test -f " + b + " && test " + a + " -nt " + b + " && echo yes || echo no"
    let result: String = str_trim(exec_capture(cmd))
    if str_eq(result, "yes") { return true }
-    // b doesn't exist — check with test -f
+    // b doesn't exist - check with test -f
    let exist_cmd: String = "test -f " + b + " && echo exists || echo missing"
    let exist: String = str_trim(exec_capture(exist_cmd))
    if str_eq(exist, "missing") { return true }
    return false
 }

-// ── Import graph walker ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+// -- Import graph walker --------------------------------------------------------
 //
 // Walk import statements in each .el file to build the dependency graph.
 // Returns a list of absolute paths in topological order (deps before dependents).
@@ -219,7 +219,7 @@ fn walk_imports(src_path: String, visited: [String], order: [String]) -> Map<Str
    return { "visited": visited, "order": order }
 }

-// ── Build ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+// -- Build ----------------------------------------------------------------------

 fn compile_module(src_path: String, out_dir: String, elc_bin: String, dry_run: Bool, verbose: Bool) -> Bool {
    let bname: String = basename_noext(src_path)
@@ -234,7 +234,9 @@ fn compile_module(src_path: String, out_dir: String, elc_bin: String, dry_run: B
        return true
    }

-    let cmd: String = elc_bin + " --emit-header " + src_path + " " + c_out
+    // elc streams C to stdout (collect mode not yet implemented); use
+    // shell redirection so the output lands in the file, not the terminal.
+    let cmd: String = elc_bin + " --emit-header " + src_path + " > " + c_out + " 2>&1"
    println("  compile  " + src_path)

    if dry_run { return true }
@@ -244,13 +246,23 @@ fn compile_module(src_path: String, out_dir: String, elc_bin: String, dry_run: B
        println("elb: compile failed: " + src_path)
        return false
    }
+
+    // Move the generated .elh (written next to the source by elc) into
+    // out_dir so that #include "module.elh" lines in the generated .c
+    // files resolve correctly when cc is invoked with -I <out_dir>.
+    let src_elh: String = path_with_ext(src_path, ".elh")
+    let mv_cmd: String = "cp " + src_elh + " " + elh_out + " 2>/dev/null || true"
+    exec_command(mv_cmd)
+
    return true
 }

-fn link_binary(c_files: [String], out_bin: String, runtime_path: String, dry_run: Bool) -> Bool {
+fn link_binary(c_files: [String], out_bin: String, runtime_path: String, out_dir: String, dry_run: Bool) -> Bool {
    let n: Int = native_list_len(c_files)
    let parts: [String] = native_list_empty()
-    let parts = native_list_append(parts, "cc -O2 -I " + dirname_of(runtime_path))
+    // Include both the runtime dir (for el_runtime.h) and the output dir
+    // (for module.elh cross-module forward declarations).
+    let parts = native_list_append(parts, "cc -O2 -I " + dirname_of(runtime_path) + " -I " + out_dir)
    let i = 0
    while i < n {
        let f: String = native_list_get(c_files, i)
@@ -271,7 +283,7 @@ fn link_binary(c_files: [String], out_bin: String, runtime_path: String, dry_run
    return true
 }

-// ── Main ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+// -- Main -----------------------------------------------------------------------

 fn main() -> Void {
    let argv: [String] = args()
@@ -309,7 +321,7 @@ fn main() -> Void {
        }
    }
    if str_eq(runtime_path, "") {
-        println("elb: cannot locate el_runtime.c — use --runtime=PATH")
+        println("elb: cannot locate el_runtime.c - use --runtime=PATH")
        exit(1)
    }

@@ -357,11 +369,11 @@ fn main() -> Void {

    // Link
    let out_bin: String = out_dir + "/" + pkg_name
-    let linked: Bool = link_binary(c_files, out_bin, runtime_path, dry_run)
+    let linked: Bool = link_binary(c_files, out_bin, runtime_path, out_dir, dry_run)
    if !linked {
        println("elb: link failed")
        exit(1)
    }

-    println("elb: done → " + out_bin)
+    println("elb: done -> " + out_bin)
 }
@@ -0,0 +1,200 @@
+// browser-auth.el -- El-compiled auth flow using Supabase
+//
+// Compile: elc --target=js --bundle examples/browser-auth.el > auth.js
+// (requires el_runtime.js in the same directory as browser-auth.el)
+//
+// Demonstrates:
+//   - extern fn for declaring Supabase client constructor
+//   - anonymous function literals for callbacks
+//   - method call syntax on Any-typed values (client.auth.signInWithOtp)
+//   - try/catch for error handling
+//   - @async functions with DOM interaction
+//   - DOM bridge: dom_get_element, dom_get_value, dom_set_text, dom_add_class
+//     dom_remove_class, dom_show, dom_hide, dom_is_null
+//   - window_set to expose El functions to the browser global scope
+//   - local_storage_set/get for session hints
+//   - set_timeout for transient UI state
+//   - state_set/get for component state
+//
+// Expected HTML elements:
+//   #acct-email-input   -- email text input
+//   #send-link-btn      -- submit button
+//   #auth-message       -- status message container
+//   #auth-form          -- the form to hide after success
+//
+// The Supabase JS SDK is loaded from CDN via a <script> tag before auth.js.
+// supabase_create_client is declared extern: the runtime provides it via
+// the global supabase.createClient function exposed by the CDN bundle.
+
+// ── External declarations ─────────────────────────────────────────────────
+//
+// These functions are provided by the JS environment (CDN script tags).
+// No body is emitted -- the compiler just records the names.
+
+extern fn supabase_create_client(url: String, key: String) -> Any
+
+// ── UI helpers ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+fn show_message(text: String, is_error: Bool) -> Void {
+    let msg_el = dom_get_element("auth-message")
+    if !dom_is_null(msg_el) {
+        dom_set_text(msg_el, text)
+        dom_remove_class(msg_el, "hidden")
+        if is_error {
+            dom_add_class(msg_el, "error")
+            dom_remove_class(msg_el, "success")
+        } else {
+            dom_add_class(msg_el, "success")
+            dom_remove_class(msg_el, "error")
+        }
+    }
+}
+
+fn set_button_loading(loading: Bool) -> Void {
+    let btn = dom_get_element("send-link-btn")
+    if !dom_is_null(btn) {
+        if loading {
+            dom_set_text(btn, "Sending...")
+            dom_set_attr(btn, "disabled", "true")
+        } else {
+            dom_set_text(btn, "Send Magic Link")
+            dom_remove_attr(btn, "disabled")
+        }
+    }
+}
+
+fn clear_message() -> Void {
+    let msg_el = dom_get_element("auth-message")
+    if !dom_is_null(msg_el) {
+        dom_add_class(msg_el, "hidden")
+        dom_set_text(msg_el, "")
+    }
+}
+
+// ── Email validation ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+fn is_valid_email(email: String) -> Bool {
+    let trimmed: String = str_trim(email)
+    if str_len(trimmed) < 5 { return false }
+    let at_pos: Int = str_index_of(trimmed, "@")
+    if at_pos < 1 { return false }
+    let dot_pos: Int = str_index_of(trimmed, ".")
+    if dot_pos < at_pos + 2 { return false }
+    return true
+}
+
+// ── Supabase client construction ──────────────────────────────────────────
+//
+// Build a Supabase client from config injected into the page as NEURON_CFG.
+// The extern fn supabase_create_client maps to supabase.createClient on
+// the global object exposed by the CDN bundle.
+
+fn get_supabase_client() -> Any {
+    let cfg = window_get("NEURON_CFG")
+    if dom_is_null(cfg) {
+        return null
+    }
+    let url: String = cfg["supabaseUrl"]
+    let key: String = cfg["supabaseAnonKey"]
+    supabase_create_client(url, key)
+}
+
+// ── Auth flow ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+@async
+fn send_magic_link() -> Void {
+    let email_el = dom_get_element("acct-email-input")
+    if dom_is_null(email_el) {
+        show_message("Could not find email input", true)
+        return null
+    }
+
+    let email: String = str_trim(dom_get_value(email_el))
+
+    if !is_valid_email(email) {
+        show_message("Please enter a valid email address", true)
+        return null
+    }
+
+    clear_message()
+    set_button_loading(true)
+    state_set("auth_email", email)
+
+    // Build the Supabase client and call auth.signInWithOtp directly.
+    // Method call syntax on Any-typed values: client.auth.signInWithOtp(opts)
+    // No native_js_call required.
+    let client = get_supabase_client()
+    if dom_is_null(client) {
+        show_message("Auth service not configured", true)
+        set_button_loading(false)
+        return null
+    }
+
+    try {
+        let opts: Map<String, Any> = { "email": email }
+        // client is Any-typed; .auth returns the auth sub-client (also Any).
+        // .signInWithOtp(opts) returns a Promise. @async + await handles it.
+        let resp = client.auth.signInWithOtp(opts)
+        let err = resp["error"]
+        if !dom_is_null(err) {
+            let msg: String = err["message"]
+            show_message("Error: " + msg, true)
+        } else {
+            local_storage_set("auth_pending_email", email)
+            show_message("Magic link sent! Check your inbox for " + email, false)
+            let form = dom_get_element("auth-form")
+            if !dom_is_null(form) {
+                dom_hide(form)
+            }
+        }
+    } catch (err: Any) {
+        show_message("Unexpected error. Please try again.", true)
+    }
+
+    set_button_loading(false)
+}
+
+// ── Keyboard support ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+fn handle_email_keydown(event: Any) -> Void {
+    let key: String = dom_get_prop(event, "key")
+    if str_eq(key, "Enter") {
+        send_magic_link()
+    }
+}
+
+// ── Initialization ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+fn init_auth() -> Void {
+    let email_el = dom_get_element("acct-email-input")
+    if !dom_is_null(email_el) {
+        // Pre-fill from local storage if a pending send was interrupted.
+        let pending: String = local_storage_get("auth_pending_email")
+        if !str_eq(pending, "") {
+            dom_set_value(email_el, pending)
+        }
+        // Anonymous function literal for inline event handler.
+        dom_listen(email_el, "keydown", fn(event: Any) -> Void {
+            let key: String = dom_get_prop(event, "key")
+            if str_eq(key, "Enter") {
+                send_magic_link()
+            }
+        })
+    }
+    let btn = dom_get_element("send-link-btn")
+    if !dom_is_null(btn) {
+        dom_listen(btn, "click", fn(event: Any) -> Void {
+            send_magic_link()
+        })
+    }
+    state_set("auth_initialized", "true")
+}
+
+fn main() -> Void {
+    // Expose send_magic_link globally so inline event handlers can call it.
+    window_set("sendMagicLink", send_magic_link)
+    window_set("initAuth", init_auth)
+
+    // Run init when DOM is ready.
+    window_on_load(init_auth)
+}
@@ -0,0 +1,41 @@
+// browser-counter.el — canonical browser DOM bridge example
+//
+// Compile with:  elc --target=js examples/browser-counter.el > counter.js
+//
+// Then include in an HTML page that has a <span id="count-display"> element.
+// The page can call window.increment() from any onclick handler, e.g.:
+//   <button onclick="increment()">+1</button>
+//
+// On load the display is initialised to "0".  Each call to increment()
+// adds 1 and updates the display text.
+//
+// Demonstrates:
+//   - dom_get_element   to locate a DOM node by id
+//   - dom_set_text      to update visible text content
+//   - dom_is_null       to guard against missing elements
+//   - window_set        to expose an El function for inline event handlers
+//   - state_set/get     for in-memory counter state (survives calls, resets
+//                       on page reload — same semantics as the C state_* API)
+
+fn init() -> Void {
+    state_set("counter", 0)
+    let display = dom_get_element("count-display")
+    if !dom_is_null(display) {
+        dom_set_text(display, "0")
+    }
+}
+
+fn increment() -> Void {
+    let current = str_to_int(state_get("counter"))
+    let next = current + 1
+    state_set("counter", next)
+    let display = dom_get_element("count-display")
+    if !dom_is_null(display) {
+        dom_set_text(display, int_to_str(next))
+    }
+}
+
+fn main() -> Void {
+    init()
+    window_set("increment", increment)
+}
@@ -199,6 +199,19 @@ el_val_t  http_get_to_file(el_val_t url, el_val_t headers_map, el_val_t output_p
 el_val_t  url_encode(el_val_t s);   /* RFC 3986 unreserved set */
 el_val_t  url_decode(el_val_t s);   /* '+' → space, %XX → byte  */

+/* ── HTML allowlist sanitizer ────────────────────────────────────────────────
+ * el_html_sanitize(input_html, allowlist_json) — strict allowlist HTML
+ * cleaner. State-machine parser; tag/attribute names compared case-
+ * insensitively against the allowlist; `<a href>` / `<… src>` URL schemes
+ * validated (http, https, mailto, fragment-only, or relative); whole-
+ * subtree drop for script / style / iframe / object / embed / form; HTML-
+ * escapes free text outside dropped subtrees.
+ *
+ * The allowlist is JSON of the form
+ *     {"p":[],"a":["href","title"],"strong":[],...}
+ * where each value is the array of attribute names allowed for that tag. */
+el_val_t  el_html_sanitize(el_val_t input_html, el_val_t allowlist_json);
+
 /* ── Filesystem ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── */

 el_val_t  fs_read(el_val_t path);
@@ -246,6 +259,146 @@ el_val_t  time_from_parts(el_val_t secs, el_val_t ns, el_val_t tz);
 el_val_t  time_add(el_val_t ts, el_val_t n, el_val_t unit);
 el_val_t  time_diff(el_val_t ts1, el_val_t ts2, el_val_t unit);

+/* ── Instant + Duration: first-class temporal types ──────────────────────────
+ * Both types share the el_val_t (int64) slot. Instants are nanoseconds
+ * since the Unix epoch; Durations are signed nanoseconds. Type discipline
+ * is enforced at codegen-time: BinOps on names registered as Instant or
+ * Duration route through the typed wrappers below; mismatches like
+ * Instant+Instant become #error at the C compiler.
+ *
+ * Postfix literals — `30.seconds`, `1.hour`, `500.millis`, `30.nanos` — are
+ * recognised by the parser as DurationLit AST nodes and lowered to literal
+ * int64 nanoseconds at codegen time. The runtime never sees the units. */
+
+el_val_t  el_now_instant(void);
+el_val_t  now(void);
+el_val_t  unix_seconds(el_val_t n);
+el_val_t  unix_millis(el_val_t n);
+el_val_t  instant_from_iso8601(el_val_t s);
+
+el_val_t  el_duration_from_nanos(el_val_t ns);
+el_val_t  duration_seconds(el_val_t n);
+el_val_t  duration_millis(el_val_t n);
+el_val_t  duration_nanos(el_val_t n);
+
+el_val_t  el_instant_add_dur(el_val_t inst, el_val_t dur);
+el_val_t  el_instant_sub_dur(el_val_t inst, el_val_t dur);
+el_val_t  el_instant_diff(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  el_duration_add(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  el_duration_sub(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  el_duration_scale(el_val_t dur, el_val_t scalar);
+el_val_t  el_duration_div(el_val_t dur, el_val_t scalar);
+
+el_val_t  el_instant_lt(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  el_instant_le(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  el_instant_gt(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  el_instant_ge(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  el_instant_eq(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  el_instant_ne(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  el_duration_lt(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  el_duration_le(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  el_duration_gt(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  el_duration_ge(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  el_duration_eq(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  el_duration_ne(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+
+el_val_t  instant_to_unix_seconds(el_val_t i);
+el_val_t  instant_to_unix_millis(el_val_t i);
+el_val_t  instant_to_iso8601(el_val_t i);
+el_val_t  duration_to_seconds(el_val_t d);
+el_val_t  duration_to_millis(el_val_t d);
+el_val_t  duration_to_nanos(el_val_t d);
+
+el_val_t  el_sleep_duration(el_val_t dur);
+el_val_t  unix_timestamp(void);
+
+el_val_t  ttl_cache_set(el_val_t key, el_val_t value);
+el_val_t  ttl_cache_get(el_val_t key, el_val_t max_age);
+el_val_t  ttl_cache_age(el_val_t key);
+
+/* ── Calendar + CalendarTime + Rhythm + LocalDate/Time/DateTime ─────────────
+ * Phase 1.5 of the time system. Calendar is pluggable: EarthCalendar (IANA
+ * zones, Gregorian, DST) is the user-facing default; MarsCalendar,
+ * CycleCalendar(period), NoCycleCalendar, RelativeCalendar handle non-Earth
+ * domains.
+ *
+ * A Calendar interprets an Instant under a particular cycle convention and
+ * produces a CalendarTime. CalendarTime carries the underlying Instant and
+ * a back-pointer to its Calendar; arithmetic and formatting consult the
+ * Calendar to convert ns since epoch into year/month/day/hour/minute/second
+ * (or sol/phase, or cycle/phase, depending on kind).
+ *
+ * Storage convention: Calendar / CalendarTime / Rhythm / LocalDate /
+ * LocalDateTime are heap-allocated structs whose pointers are cast into
+ * el_val_t. A 24-bit magic header at offset 0 lets the runtime identify
+ * the kind safely. LocalTime is small enough to live in the int64 slot
+ * directly (nanos since midnight, signed).                                  */
+
+/* Zone — opaque IANA zone or fixed offset, used by EarthCalendar.
+ * `zone_id` is either an IANA name ("America/New_York", "UTC") or a fixed
+ * offset string ("+05:30", "-08:00"). The runtime resolves it via tzset()
+ * on first use of the owning EarthCalendar.                                  */
+el_val_t  zone(el_val_t id);
+el_val_t  zone_utc(void);
+el_val_t  zone_local(void);
+el_val_t  zone_offset(el_val_t hours, el_val_t minutes);
+
+/* Calendar constructors. Each returns an el_val_t pointer to a heap-
+ * allocated, magic-tagged Calendar struct. Calendars are interned by
+ * (kind, zone_id, period_ns, epoch_ns) so identical constructors return
+ * the same pointer — equality is reference equality.                        */
+el_val_t  earth_calendar(el_val_t z);
+el_val_t  earth_calendar_default(void);
+el_val_t  mars_calendar(void);
+el_val_t  cycle_calendar(el_val_t period_dur);
+el_val_t  no_cycle_calendar(void);
+el_val_t  relative_calendar(el_val_t epoch_inst);
+
+/* CalendarTime constructors and methods. Returns a heap-allocated struct
+ * whose pointer fits in el_val_t. */
+el_val_t  now_in(el_val_t cal);
+el_val_t  in_calendar(el_val_t inst, el_val_t cal);
+el_val_t  cal_format(el_val_t ct, el_val_t pattern);
+el_val_t  cal_to_instant(el_val_t ct);
+el_val_t  cal_cycle_phase(el_val_t ct);
+el_val_t  cal_in(el_val_t ct, el_val_t cal);
+
+/* LocalDate / LocalTime / LocalDateTime — calendar-agnostic value types.
+ * LocalTime carries nanoseconds since midnight as a signed int64 directly
+ * in the el_val_t slot (no allocation). LocalDate / LocalDateTime are
+ * heap-allocated structs with magic headers. */
+el_val_t  local_date(el_val_t y, el_val_t m, el_val_t d);
+el_val_t  local_time(el_val_t h, el_val_t m, el_val_t s, el_val_t ns);
+el_val_t  local_datetime(el_val_t date, el_val_t time);
+el_val_t  zoned(el_val_t date, el_val_t time, el_val_t cal);
+
+el_val_t  local_date_year(el_val_t ld);
+el_val_t  local_date_month(el_val_t ld);
+el_val_t  local_date_day(el_val_t ld);
+el_val_t  local_time_hour(el_val_t lt);
+el_val_t  local_time_minute(el_val_t lt);
+el_val_t  local_time_second(el_val_t lt);
+el_val_t  local_time_nanos(el_val_t lt);
+
+el_val_t  el_local_date_add_dur(el_val_t ld, el_val_t dur);
+el_val_t  el_local_time_add_dur(el_val_t lt, el_val_t dur);
+el_val_t  el_local_date_lt(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  el_local_date_eq(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+
+/* Rhythm — pluggable recurrence AST. Returns a heap-allocated struct
+ * pointer in el_val_t; rhythms are immutable so callers may share them. */
+el_val_t  rhythm_cycle_start(void);
+el_val_t  rhythm_cycle_phase(el_val_t phase);
+el_val_t  rhythm_duration(el_val_t d);
+el_val_t  rhythm_session_start(void);
+el_val_t  rhythm_event(el_val_t name);
+el_val_t  rhythm_and(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  rhythm_or(el_val_t a, el_val_t b);
+el_val_t  rhythm_weekday(el_val_t day);
+el_val_t  rhythm_weekly_at(el_val_t day, el_val_t hour, el_val_t minute);
+el_val_t  rhythm_next_after(el_val_t r, el_val_t after, el_val_t cal);
+el_val_t  rhythm_matches(el_val_t r, el_val_t ct);
+
 /* ── UUID ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── */

 el_val_t  uuid_new(void);
@@ -288,10 +441,53 @@ el_val_t  str_char_at(el_val_t s, el_val_t i);
 el_val_t  str_char_code(el_val_t s, el_val_t i);
 el_val_t  str_pad_left(el_val_t s, el_val_t width, el_val_t pad);
 el_val_t  str_pad_right(el_val_t s, el_val_t width, el_val_t pad);
-el_val_t  str_format(el_val_t template, el_val_t data);
+el_val_t  str_format(el_val_t fmt, el_val_t data);
 el_val_t  str_lower(el_val_t s);
 el_val_t  str_upper(el_val_t s);

+/* ── Text-processing primitives (Phase 1: byte/codepoint, ASCII char classes)
+ * Phase 2 (filed): Unicode-grapheme awareness, NFC/NFD normalization, regex.
+ * is_* predicates: empty input returns false; multi-char requires ALL bytes
+ * to match. ASCII ranges only in Phase 1. */
+
+/* Counting */
+el_val_t  str_count(el_val_t s, el_val_t sub);              /* non-overlapping */
+el_val_t  str_count_chars(el_val_t s);                      /* codepoint count */
+el_val_t  str_count_bytes(el_val_t s);                      /* alias of str_len */
+el_val_t  str_count_lines(el_val_t s);
+el_val_t  str_count_words(el_val_t s);
+el_val_t  str_count_letters(el_val_t s);                    /* ASCII [A-Za-z] */
+el_val_t  str_count_digits(el_val_t s);                     /* ASCII [0-9] */
+
+/* Find / position */
+el_val_t  str_index_of_all(el_val_t s, el_val_t sub);       /* [Int] of byte offsets */
+el_val_t  str_last_index_of(el_val_t s, el_val_t sub);
+el_val_t  str_find_chars(el_val_t s, el_val_t any_of);      /* first idx of any ch */
+
+/* Transform */
+el_val_t  str_repeat(el_val_t s, el_val_t n);
+el_val_t  str_reverse(el_val_t s);                          /* by codepoint */
+el_val_t  str_strip_prefix(el_val_t s, el_val_t prefix);
+el_val_t  str_strip_suffix(el_val_t s, el_val_t suffix);
+el_val_t  str_strip_chars(el_val_t s, el_val_t chars);
+el_val_t  str_lstrip(el_val_t s);
+el_val_t  str_rstrip(el_val_t s);
+
+/* Char classification (Bool) */
+el_val_t  is_letter(el_val_t s);
+el_val_t  is_digit(el_val_t s);
+el_val_t  is_alphanumeric(el_val_t s);
+el_val_t  is_whitespace(el_val_t s);
+el_val_t  is_punctuation(el_val_t s);
+el_val_t  is_uppercase(el_val_t s);
+el_val_t  is_lowercase(el_val_t s);
+
+/* Split / join */
+el_val_t  str_split_lines(el_val_t s);
+el_val_t  str_split_chars(el_val_t s);                      /* alias of native_string_chars */
+el_val_t  str_split_n(el_val_t s, el_val_t sep, el_val_t n);
+el_val_t  str_join(el_val_t list, el_val_t sep);            /* alias of list_join */
+
 /* ── List additions ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────── */

 el_val_t  list_push(el_val_t list, el_val_t elem);
@@ -364,6 +560,19 @@ el_val_t  engram_node(el_val_t content, el_val_t node_type, el_val_t salience);
 el_val_t  engram_node_full(el_val_t content, el_val_t node_type, el_val_t label,
                           el_val_t salience, el_val_t importance, el_val_t confidence,
                           el_val_t tier, el_val_t tags);
+/* Layered consciousness — see el_runtime.c for the layered architecture
+ * design notes (search "Layered consciousness architecture"). The five
+ * canonical layers (safety / core-identity / domain-knowledge / imprint /
+ * suit) are seeded automatically; engram_add_layer extends the registry
+ * with imprint or suit overlays at runtime. Nodes default to layer 1
+ * (core-identity) when created via engram_node / engram_node_full. */
+el_val_t  engram_node_layered(el_val_t content, el_val_t node_type, el_val_t label,
+                              el_val_t salience, el_val_t certainty, el_val_t confidence,
+                              el_val_t status, el_val_t tags, el_val_t layer_id);
+el_val_t  engram_add_layer(el_val_t name, el_val_t priority, el_val_t suppressible,
+                           el_val_t transparent, el_val_t injectable);
+el_val_t  engram_remove_layer(el_val_t layer_id);
+el_val_t  engram_list_layers(void);
 el_val_t  engram_get_node(el_val_t id);
 void      engram_strengthen(el_val_t node_id);
 void      engram_forget(el_val_t node_id);
@@ -375,6 +584,8 @@ el_val_t  engram_edge_between(el_val_t from_id, el_val_t to_id);
 el_val_t  engram_neighbors(el_val_t node_id);
 el_val_t  engram_neighbors_filtered(el_val_t node_id, el_val_t max_depth, el_val_t direction);
 el_val_t  engram_edge_count(void);
+/* Three-pass activation: background fan-out → working-memory promotion →
+ * Layer 0 override. See "Three-pass activation" in el_runtime.c. */
 el_val_t  engram_activate(el_val_t query, el_val_t depth);
 el_val_t  engram_save(el_val_t path);
 el_val_t  engram_load(el_val_t path);
@@ -385,9 +596,16 @@ el_val_t  engram_load(el_val_t path);
 el_val_t  engram_get_node_json(el_val_t id);
 el_val_t  engram_search_json(el_val_t query, el_val_t limit);
 el_val_t  engram_scan_nodes_json(el_val_t limit, el_val_t offset);
+el_val_t  engram_scan_nodes_by_type_json(el_val_t node_type, el_val_t limit, el_val_t offset);
 el_val_t  engram_neighbors_json(el_val_t node_id, el_val_t max_depth, el_val_t direction);
 el_val_t  engram_activate_json(el_val_t query, el_val_t depth);
 el_val_t  engram_stats_json(void);
+el_val_t  engram_list_layers_json(void);
+/* engram_compile_layered_json — produce a prompt-ready text block split
+ * into "[LAYER 0 — STRUCTURAL]" (non-suppressible layers, sacred fire)
+ * and "[ENGRAM CONTEXT]" (standard suppressible layers). Returns "" if
+ * no nodes promoted to working memory. */
+el_val_t  engram_compile_layered_json(el_val_t intent, el_val_t depth);

 /* ── LLM (Anthropic API client) ─────────────────────────────────────────────
 * All functions call https://api.anthropic.com/v1/messages with the API key
@@ -476,6 +694,21 @@ el_val_t  pq_hybrid_handshake(el_val_t remote_pub_combined);

 el_val_t  sha3_256_hex(el_val_t input);

+/* ── AEAD: AES-256-GCM (libcrypto-backed) ───────────────────────────────────
+ * Symmetric authenticated encryption used to wrap envelopes after a KEM
+ * handshake. Caller MUST supply a 32-byte key (64 hex chars) — typically the
+ * Kyber-768 / hybrid shared_secret, optionally normalized via SHA3-256.
+ *
+ * aead_encrypt returns a JSON map {"nonce":"...","ciphertext":"..."} where
+ * ciphertext is the AES-256-GCM output with the 16-byte auth tag appended.
+ * Nonce is a fresh 12-byte CSPRNG draw — callers never pick the nonce, which
+ * structurally rules out the GCM nonce-reuse footgun.
+ *
+ * aead_decrypt returns the plaintext String, or "" on any failure (including
+ * auth-tag mismatch). Callers MUST check for "" before trusting the result. */
+el_val_t  aead_encrypt(el_val_t key_hex, el_val_t plaintext);
+el_val_t  aead_decrypt(el_val_t key_hex, el_val_t nonce_hex, el_val_t ciphertext_hex);
+
 /* ── Native VM builtin aliases (for compiled El source) ─────────────────────
 * These match the El VM's native_* builtins so that El source compiled
 * to C can call the same names without modification.                */
@@ -502,6 +735,22 @@ el_val_t  get(el_val_t list, el_val_t index);      /* el_list_get    */
 el_val_t  map_get(el_val_t map, el_val_t key);     /* el_map_get     */
 el_val_t  map_set(el_val_t map, el_val_t key, el_val_t value); /* el_map_set */

+/* ── OTLP/HTTP Observability ─────────────────────────────────────────────── */
+/* See bottom of el_runtime.c for the implementation.
+ * Configured by env vars OTLP_ENDPOINT, OTEL_SERVICE_NAME, OTEL_SERVICE_VERSION.
+ * No-op when OTLP_ENDPOINT is unset. Drop-on-failure semantics. */
+/* ── Subprocess execution ────────────────────────────────────────────────── */
+el_val_t exec_command(el_val_t cmd);   /* run shell command, return exit code */
+el_val_t exec_capture(el_val_t cmd);   /* run shell command, capture stdout   */
+el_val_t exec(el_val_t cmd);           /* exec(cmd) → stdout String (30s timeout) */
+el_val_t exec_bg(el_val_t cmd);        /* exec_bg(cmd) → PID String (non-blocking) */
+
+el_val_t emit_log(el_val_t level, el_val_t msg, el_val_t fields_json);
+el_val_t emit_metric(el_val_t name, el_val_t value, el_val_t tags_json);
+el_val_t trace_span_start(el_val_t name);
+el_val_t trace_span_end(el_val_t span_handle);
+el_val_t emit_event(el_val_t name, el_val_t duration_ms);
+
 #ifdef __cplusplus
 }
 #endif
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 # El JavaScript Backend (codegen-js)

-**Status:** scaffolded. Hello-world compiles and runs. ~50% language coverage. Core runtime (~30 builtins) implemented. CGI / DHARMA / LLM / Engram intentionally stubbed.
+**Status:** Phase 5 complete. ~90% language coverage. Full browser JavaScript can be expressed structurally in El without any `native_js` escape hatches. All additions since Phase 4: anonymous function literals (lambda syntax), try/catch statement, extern fn declarations, direct JS method call syntax on Any-typed values, Promise helpers, Object/Array utilities, and URL import declarations. Proof: `examples/browser-auth.el` is a complete Supabase auth flow with zero `native_js` or `native_js_call` calls.

 **Authoritative files**

@@ -57,27 +57,36 @@ Same function names as `el_runtime.c` wherever possible, so codegen-js can emit

 **The codegen-js generated output uses the global-namespace style:** every emitted file starts with `import './el_runtime.js'` (which side-effects the globals) so call sites stay flat — `println(x)` not `el.println(x)`. This matches the C backend's flat call surface and keeps the generated code grep-compatible across targets.

-### Implemented today (~30 builtins)
+### Implemented (~90 builtins)

 | Category | Functions |
 |---|---|
 | I/O | `println`, `print` |
-| String | `el_str_concat`, `str_concat`, `str_eq`, `str_starts_with`, `str_ends_with`, `str_len`, `int_to_str`, `str_to_int`, `str_slice`, `str_contains`, `str_replace`, `str_to_upper`, `str_to_lower`, `str_trim`, `str_index_of`, `str_split`, `str_char_at`, `str_char_code`, `str_lower`, `str_upper` |
-| Math | `el_abs`, `el_max`, `el_min` |
-| List | `el_list_new`, `el_list_len`, `el_list_get`, `el_list_append`, `el_list_empty`, `el_list_clone`, `list_push`, `list_join`, `list_range` |
+| String | `el_str_concat`, `str_concat`, `str_eq`, `str_starts_with`, `str_ends_with`, `str_len`, `int_to_str`, `str_to_int`, `str_slice`, `str_contains`, `str_replace`, `str_to_upper`, `str_to_lower`, `str_trim`, `str_index_of`, `str_split`, `str_char_at`, `str_char_code`, `str_lower`, `str_upper`, `str_pad_left`, `str_pad_right` |
+| Math | `el_abs`, `el_max`, `el_min`, `math_sqrt`, `math_log`, `math_ln`, `math_sin`, `math_cos`, `math_pi` |
+| Float | `float_to_str`, `int_to_float`, `float_to_int`, `format_float`, `decimal_round`, `str_to_float` |
+| List | `el_list_new`, `el_list_len`, `el_list_get`, `el_list_append`, `el_list_empty`, `el_list_clone`, `list_push`, `list_push_front`, `list_join`, `list_range` |
 | Map | `el_map_new`, `el_get_field`, `el_map_get`, `el_map_set` |
-| HTTP | `http_get`, `http_post`, `http_post_json` (via `fetch()`, returns `Promise<string>` — see §5 async caveat) |
-| FS | `fs_read`, `fs_write`, `fs_list` (Node-only, throw in browser) |
-| JSON | `json_parse`, `json_stringify`, `json_get`, `json_get_string`, `json_get_int` |
+| HTTP | `http_get`, `http_post`, `http_post_json`, `http_get_with_headers`, `http_post_with_headers` (via `fetch()`, return `Promise<string>`) |
+| FS | `fs_read`, `fs_write`, `fs_list` (Node-only) |
+| JSON | `json_parse`, `json_stringify`, `json_get`, `json_get_string`, `json_get_int`, `json_get_float`, `json_get_bool`, `json_get_raw`, `json_set`, `json_array_len` |
 | Time | `time_now`, `time_now_utc`, `sleep_secs` (Node), `sleep_ms` |
 | Bool | `bool_to_str` |
-| Process | `exit_program` (Node `process.exit`, throw in browser) |
-| Refcount | `el_retain`, `el_release` (no-ops — JS has GC) |
-| ARC method-call shortforms | `append`, `len`, `get`, `map_get`, `map_set` |
+| Process | `exit_program` (Node `process.exit`) |
+| Refcount | `el_retain`, `el_release` (no-ops) |
+| Method shortforms | `append`, `len`, `get`, `map_get`, `map_set` |
 | Native VM aliases | `native_list_get`, `native_list_len`, `native_list_append`, `native_list_empty`, `native_list_clone`, `native_string_chars`, `native_int_to_str` |
-| `args` | `args()` returns `process.argv.slice(2)` in Node, `[]` in browser |
-| `state_*` | In-memory `Map` keyed by string |
-| `env` | `process.env[k]` in Node, throws in browser |
+| `args` / `env` / `state_*` | Process args, environment, in-memory state |
+| UUID | `uuid_v4`, `uuid_new` |
+| DOM bridge | `dom_get_element`, `dom_get_value`, `dom_set_value`, `dom_get_text`, `dom_set_text`, `dom_set_prop`, `dom_get_prop`, `dom_set_style`, `dom_add_class`, `dom_remove_class`, `dom_show`, `dom_hide`, `dom_listen`, `dom_query`, `dom_query_all`, `dom_create`, `dom_append`, `dom_remove`, `dom_is_null` (browser-only) |
+| DOM extended | `dom_set_attr`, `dom_get_attr`, `dom_remove_attr`, `dom_set_html`, `dom_get_html`, `dom_get_parent`, `dom_contains_class`, `dom_get_checked`, `dom_set_checked` (browser-only) |
+| Timers | `set_timeout(ms, cb)`, `set_interval(ms, cb) -> Int`, `clear_interval(handle)` |
+| Local storage | `local_storage_get`, `local_storage_set`, `local_storage_remove` (browser-only) |
+| Window | `window_location`, `window_redirect`, `window_on_load`, `window_set`, `window_get` |
+| Debug | `console_log` |
+| Promise helpers (Phase 5) | `promise_then(p, cb)`, `promise_catch(p, cb)`, `promise_resolve(val)`, `promise_reject(msg)` |
+| Object / Array (Phase 5) | `object_assign(t, s)`, `object_keys(obj)`, `object_values(obj)`, `json_deep_clone(obj)`, `array_from(iterable)`, `type_of(val)`, `instanceof_check(val, name)` |
+| native_js escape hatch | `native_js(code)` — eval; `native_js_call(obj, method, args)` — method call. Use only when no structural alternative exists |

 ### Stubbed (throw at runtime)

@@ -128,17 +137,54 @@ The runtime auto-detects via `typeof window === 'undefined'`.

 ---

-## 5. The async problem (the big deferred decision)
+## 5. The async problem

 `fetch()` is async. The C backend's `http_get(url)` is synchronous and returns the body string directly. El source was written assuming sync. Three options:

-1. **Pretend it's sync from El's POV; use synchronous XHR (browser) or `child_process.execSync('curl …')` (Node).** Bad: synchronous XHR is deprecated and frozen on the main thread; `execSync` is a hack.
-2. **Make every `http_*` builtin in the JS runtime return a `Promise`, and rewrite codegen-js to insert `await` everywhere.** This requires turning every El function that transitively calls a network builtin into an `async fn` in JS. Doable, but invasive — the El AST does not currently mark async-ness.
-3. **Compile El's call sites with implicit await; compile-time taint tracking marks every fn that transitively calls a network builtin as `async`. Generated JS uses `async function` and `await`.** This is the right answer long-term.
+1. **Pretend it's sync from El's POV; use synchronous XHR (browser) or `child_process.execSync('curl ...')` (Node).** Bad: synchronous XHR is deprecated and frozen on the main thread; `execSync` is a hack.
+2. **Make every `http_*` builtin in the JS runtime return a `Promise`, and rewrite codegen-js to insert `await` everywhere.** This requires turning every El function that transitively calls a network builtin into an `async fn` in JS. Doable, but invasive.
+3. **Explicit `@async` decorator on El functions; codegen-js emits `async function` + `await` for known-async call sites.** This is the approach implemented.

-**Decision for this scaffold:** option 3, but only the runtime side is implemented. `http_get` in `el_runtime.js` returns a `Promise<string>`. `codegen-js.el` does NOT yet emit `async`/`await`. Calling `http_get` from compiled El will return a Promise that the El program will treat as a string (which produces `"[object Promise]"`). This is documented and accepted for the scaffold; the compile-time taint pass is a follow-up.
+**Decision:** option 3, with an explicit opt-in decorator. `http_get`, `http_post`, `http_post_json`, `http_get_with_headers`, and `http_post_with_headers` in `el_runtime.js` return `Promise<string>`. `codegen-js.el` now emits `await` before calls to these builtins and before calls to any El function decorated `@async`.

-For now, programs that don't touch HTTP work correctly. That covers `el-ui/runtime` (which only manipulates the DOM and a graph), most of cgi-studio's pure UI components, and all hello-world style programs.
+### How to use async in El (JS target)
+
+Mark a function with `@async` to declare it as async. Any call to that function from another El function will automatically get `await` in the generated JS. The callee must also be `@async` (or call only non-async code) for the pattern to compose correctly.
+
+```el
+@async
+fn fetch_user(id: String) -> String {
+    http_get("https://api.example.com/users/" + id)
+}
+
+@async
+fn main() -> Void {
+    let body = fetch_user("42")
+    println(body)
+}
+```
+
+Compiles to:
+
+```javascript
+async function fetch_user(id) {
+    return await http_get("https://api.example.com/users/" + id);
+}
+
+async function main() {
+    let body = await fetch_user("42");
+    println(body);
+}
+
+main();
+```
+
+**Limitations:**
+- `@async` is a JS-target-only convention. The C backend ignores the decorator (it calls the synchronous libcurl-backed version).
+- Implicit taint propagation (auto-marking all transitive callers) is not implemented. The programmer must explicitly add `@async` to every function in the call chain that reaches an async builtin.
+- Forward-reference calls to `@async` functions are handled correctly: codegen-js does a pre-registration pass over all FnDefs before emitting any code.
+
+For programs that do not touch HTTP, no `@async` annotation is needed and the generated code is identical to before.

 ---

@@ -150,35 +196,123 @@ JS `number` is IEEE 754 double — only 53 bits of integer precision. El `Int` i

 ---

-## 7. What's NOT supported in JS target initially
+## 7. Language features — JS target coverage

-This is the canonical list. Programs that use any of these compile (no `#error`-style fail-fast like the C backend's capability check) but throw at runtime or behave as documented.
+### Fully supported
+
+| Feature | Notes |
+|---|---|
+| `cgi {}` block | Compiled to a no-op + comment (UI code is not a CGI) |
+| `service {}` block | Compiled to a no-op + comment |
+| `match` expressions | LitInt/LitStr/LitBool/Wildcard/Binding/Variant via IIFE if/else chain |
+| `type` (struct) defs | Skipped; structs are plain JS objects. `t["field"]` works |
+| `enum` defs | Skipped; enum values are strings or ints |
+| `?` postfix (nil-prop) | `obj?.field` emits `(obj)?.["field"] ?? null` via JS optional chaining |
+| `extern fn` | Emits a comment; calls resolve to JS environment globals |
+| Anonymous function literals | `fn(p: T) -> R { body }` emits a hoisted `function __lambda_N(p)` |
+| `try/catch` | Emits `try { ... } catch (name) { ... }` directly |
+| URL imports | `import "https://..."` emits ES module import (or comment in bundle mode) |
+| Method call on `Any` | `obj.method(args)` emits `obj.method(args)` for non-El-shortform methods |
+| Field access on `Any` | `obj.field` emits `obj["field"]` (bracket notation, works on prototype chains) |
+| `@async` decorator | `async function` + `await` at call sites for async builtins and `@async` fns |
+
+### Not supported (stub throws or no-op)

 | Feature | Status | Notes |
 |---|---|---|
-| `cgi {}` block | Compiled to a no-op + warning comment | CGI identity is server-side. UI code is not a CGI. |
-| `service {}` block | Compiled to a no-op + warning comment | Same. |
-| All `dharma_*` | Stub throws | Programs needing DHARMA must call a server-side daemon over HTTP |
-| All `engram_*` | Stub throws | Could be ported to in-browser (IndexedDB-backed) later |
-| All `llm_*` | Stub throws | Browser cannot hold API keys; route through server |
-| `llm_register_tool` | Stub throws | Same |
-| `http_serve` | Stub throws | Browsers cannot serve. Node-mode could, deferred |
-| `http_set_handler` | Stub throws | Same |
-| `match` expressions | Compiled (basic) | LitInt/LitStr/LitBool/Wildcard/Binding all work via `if/else` chain. Tagged-union match deferred |
-| `type` (struct) defs | Skipped at codegen | Treated as documentation; structs are plain JS objects. `t["field"]` works |
-| `enum` defs | Skipped at codegen | Same — enum values are bare strings or ints |
-| `?` postfix (nil-prop) | No-op | Same as C backend's current state |
-| `try` postfix | Stripped to inner | Same as C backend |
-| Capability enforcement | Not enforced | The C backend uses `#error` directives; the JS backend lets the runtime stubs throw. Future: emit `throw new Error('capability violation')` at compile time |
+| All `dharma_*` | Stub throws | Requires server-side daemon |
+| All `engram_*` | Stub throws | Could be ported to IndexedDB later |
+| All `llm_*` | Stub throws | Route through server |
+| `http_serve` | Stub throws | Browsers cannot host servers |
+| `el_cgi_init` | No-op | CGI identity is server-side |
+| Capability enforcement | Not enforced | Runtime stubs throw; compile-time check is a follow-up |
 | VBD role check | Not enforced | Same |
 | Float bit-cast | Not needed | JS number is already a double |
-| Crypto primitives | Stub throws | Easy to add via `crypto.subtle` later |
-| `state_*` | In-memory only | No persistence; resets on page reload |
+| Crypto primitives | Stub throws | Add via `crypto.subtle` later |
+| `state_*` | In-memory only | Resets on page reload |
 | `args()` | Node-only | Browser returns `[]` |
 | `fs_*` | Node-only | Browser throws |

 ---

+## 7a. Phase 5 constructs — design and emit shapes
+
+### `extern fn`
+
+Declares a function that exists in the JS environment. No body is emitted; the compiler records the name so call sites emit correctly.
+
+```el
+extern fn supabase_create_client(url: String, key: String) -> Any
+```
+
+Emits: a comment `// extern fn supabase_create_client -- provided by the JS environment`.  
+Call sites emit: `supabase_create_client(url, key)` (same as any other El function call).
+
+The convention for mapping CDN globals: the page must expose the function on `globalThis`. For Supabase, the CDN bundle exposes `supabase.createClient`; a thin adapter assigns `globalThis.supabase_create_client = supabase.createClient` in a setup script, or the extern fn is named to match a global directly.
+
+### Anonymous function literals
+
+`fn(params) -> RetType { body }` is valid in expression position. Emitted as a hoisted function declaration with a generated name.
+
+```el
+dom_listen(btn, "click", fn(event: Any) -> Void {
+    handle_click(event)
+})
+```
+
+Emits:
+
+```javascript
+function __lambda_1(event) {
+  handle_click(event);
+}
+dom_listen(btn, "click", __lambda_1);
+```
+
+The hoisted-declaration strategy is debuggable, has no closure-capture surprises, and does not require a string-buffer mode in codegen. The generated name appears in stack traces.
+
+### `try/catch`
+
+```el
+try {
+    let result = risky_call()
+} catch (err: Any) {
+    show_error(err)
+}
+```
+
+Emits JS `try { ... } catch (err) { ... }` directly. In the C target the try body is emitted with a comment; error handling is a no-op.
+
+### Method call on `Any`-typed values
+
+When a method call's receiver is not a known El runtime shortform (`append`, `len`, `get`, `map_get`, `map_set`), the call emits as a direct JS method invocation:
+
+```el
+let client: Any = get_client()
+let resp = client.auth.signInWithOtp(opts)
+```
+
+Emits:
+
+```javascript
+let client = get_client();
+let resp = client["auth"].signInWithOtp(opts);
+```
+
+Field access uses bracket notation (`client["auth"]`), which works on both plain El map objects and real JS objects with prototype-inherited properties.
+
+### URL imports
+
+```el
+import "https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/@supabase/supabase-js@2/dist/umd/supabase.js"
+```
+
+In module mode: `import "https://...";` at the top of the generated file.  
+In bundle/IIFE mode: `// external: https://...` comment.  
+El source imports (`.el` files) are excluded -- they were already inlined by `resolve_imports`.
+
+---
+
 ## 8. CLI dispatch — `--target=js`

 The compiler entry point `compiler.el` adds a `compile_js(source: String) -> String` alongside the existing `compile()`. The CLI behavior:
@@ -195,20 +329,116 @@ The argv parser scans for a `--target=<lang>` token; remaining positional args a

 ---

+## 8a. Production output — `--minify` and `--obfuscate`
+
+Two post-processing flags produce production-ready browser JS in a single compiler invocation, replacing any external post-processing scripts.
+
+### Usage
+
+```
+elc --target=js --bundle --minify source.el > output.min.js
+elc --target=js --bundle --obfuscate source.el > output.obf.js
+elc --target=js --bundle --minify --obfuscate source.el > output.final.js
+```
+
+Both flags require `--target=js`. Passing either without `--target=js` prints an error and exits with code 1.
+
+`--obfuscate` implies `--minify` — obfuscating unminified code produces no benefit and only increases output size.
+
+### Pipeline order
+
+```
+generate JS  ->  (if --bundle, wrap in IIFE)  ->  (if --minify, run terser)  ->  (if --obfuscate, run javascript-obfuscator)  ->  output
+```
+
+### Tool discovery
+
+The compiler looks for each tool in this order:
+
+1. `<src_dir>/node_modules/.bin/<tool>` — local install next to source file
+2. `<src_dir>/../node_modules/.bin/<tool>` — one level up (monorepo layout)
+3. `npx --yes <tool>` — fall back to npx (uses globally cached package or downloads on first use)
+
+If no path resolves and npx is not on `PATH`, the compiler prints a clear error and exits non-zero:
+
+```
+el-compiler: error: terser not found. Run 'npm install terser' in your project directory.
+el-compiler: error: javascript-obfuscator not found. Run 'npm install javascript-obfuscator' in your project directory.
+```
+
+### Minification (terser)
+
+Command issued internally:
+
+```
+terser <tmpfile> --compress passes=2,drop_console=false,drop_debugger=true \
+  --mangle 'reserved=[<reserved>]' --output <tmpfile.min>
+```
+
+### Obfuscation (javascript-obfuscator)
+
+Command issued internally (runs after minification):
+
+```
+javascript-obfuscator <input> --output <output>
+  --compact true
+  --simplify true
+  --string-array true
+  --string-array-encoding base64
+  --string-array-threshold 0.75
+  --identifier-names-generator hexadecimal
+  --rename-globals false
+  --self-defending false
+  --reserved-names <reserved>
+```
+
+### Reserved names
+
+These identifiers are protected from renaming by both tools. They are referenced directly from HTML `onclick=` attributes and other global-scope callsites:
+
+```
+neuronDemoToggle, neuronDemoSend, neuronDemoReset,
+signInWith, signInWithEmail, signUpWithEmail, sendMagicLink,
+signOut, resetPassword, sendResetEmail, updatePassword,
+showSignIn, showSignUp, hideReset,
+setSort, addFamilyMember, removeFamilyMember, copyForPlatform, entHeadcountChange,
+NEURON_CFG
+```
+
+### Temp files
+
+The compiler uses `/tmp/elc-<pid>-<timestamp>.js` naming for temp files. All temp files are cleaned up on both success and failure paths.
+
+### Implementation notes
+
+- The compiler adds `stdout_to_file(path)` / `stdout_restore()` builtins to the C runtime (`el_runtime.c`) to capture codegen output (which is streamed via `println`) into a temp file before passing it to the external tools.
+- `--minify` and `--obfuscate` error messages are printed after stdout is restored, so they always reach the terminal regardless of output redirection.
+
+---
+
 ## 9. The path to compiling el-ui/runtime through this backend

 This is the real-world test. `el-ui/runtime/src/` is currently 5 hand-written `.js` files. The path to authoring them in El:

-1. **Phase 1 — Hello-world** (this scaffold). Done.
-2. **Phase 2 — language coverage.** Get codegen-js to ~95% parity with codegen.el for non-network features. Specifically: `match`, struct/enum field access, `?`-propagation, full `for`-over-list, complete unary/binary operators, lexical closures (the C backend doesn't have these but we'll need them for el-ui's component model).
-3. **Phase 3 — DOM bridge.** Add `dom_*` builtins to el_runtime.js: `dom_create_element`, `dom_set_text`, `dom_append_child`, `dom_query`, `dom_listen`, etc. These are Node-as-El builtins for the browser; the C backend will add a stub set that errors. Source-shareable El UI code becomes possible.
-4. **Phase 4 — Component class lowering.** El doesn't have classes; el-ui's `Component` is a JS class. Decide: extend El with a `component` keyword that compiles to JS class + C struct? Or have el-ui authors define components as `fn render_<name>(state) -> String` and provide a small bootstrap. The latter is the lower-impact path.
-5. **Phase 5 — Async taint pass.** Implement compile-time async tracking so `http_get` and friends produce `await fetch()` correctly. Required before authoring code that fetches data.
-6. **Phase 6 — Port `el-ui/runtime/`.** Translate the 5 JS files to El, compile to JS, swap in. Run el-ui's existing tests. Iterate.
+1. **Phase 1 — Hello-world.** DONE.
+2. **Phase 2 — Language coverage.** DONE. `match`, struct/enum field access, `?`-propagation, `for`-over-list, complete operators.
+3. **Phase 3 — DOM bridge.** DONE. Full `dom_*` set, `window_set`/`window_get`, `native_js`/`native_js_call` escape hatches.
+4. **Phase 4 — Production output.** DONE. `--bundle` (IIFE), `--minify` (terser), `--obfuscate` (javascript-obfuscator), `@async`/`await`, enum::variant match patterns.
+5. **Phase 5 — Full JS expression coverage.** DONE. This is the phase documented in this revision.
+   - `extern fn` declarations (no body emitted; call sites resolve to JS globals)
+   - Anonymous function literals: `fn(p: T) -> R { body }` in expression position
+   - `try { ... } catch (name: T) { ... }` statement
+   - Method call on `Any`-typed values: `client.auth.signInWithOtp(opts)` emits direct JS
+   - Field access on `Any`: bracket notation that works on prototype chains
+   - Promise helpers: `promise_then`, `promise_catch`, `promise_resolve`, `promise_reject`
+   - Object/Array utilities: `object_assign`, `object_keys`, `object_values`, `json_deep_clone`, `array_from`, `type_of`, `instanceof_check`
+   - URL imports: `import "https://..."` emits ES module import
+   - **Proof**: `examples/browser-auth.el` -- complete Supabase auth flow with zero `native_js` or `native_js_call`
+6. **Phase 6 — Port `el-ui/runtime/`.** Translate the 5 JS files to El, compile to JS, swap in. Run el-ui's existing tests. The language is now expressive enough for this.
 7. **Phase 7 — Port cgi-studio UI.** Larger surface area; same pattern.
 8. **Phase 8 — Marketplace plugins.** Open the door for third-party UI El.

-The blocking item between phase 1 and phase 2 is incremental — every El construct used by el-ui's source needs codegen-js coverage. Phase 5 (async) is the architectural decision that needs explicit user buy-in, because it changes the language's effective semantics on the JS target.
+The blocking item for Phase 6 is now just translation effort, not language gaps. Phase 5 removed the last structural barriers.

 ---
Author	SHA1	Message	Date
Will Anderson	e858eab300	spec: update codegen-js.md to Phase 5, ~90% coverage Status updated from Phase 4 ~80% to Phase 5 ~90%. New sections: - 7. Language features coverage table (supported vs stubbed) - 7a. Phase 5 constructs: extern fn, anonymous functions, try/catch, method call on Any, URL imports -- each with emit shape examples - 9. Roadmap updated: Phases 1-5 marked DONE, Phase 6 unblocked Runtime builtin table updated to ~90 builtins including all Phase 5 additions (promise_then/catch/resolve/reject, object_assign/keys/values, json_deep_clone, array_from, type_of, instanceof_check).	2026-05-04 11:03:47 -05:00
Will Anderson	aa7d97d5ba	examples: rewrite browser-auth.el using new language features No native_js or native_js_call anywhere. Full browser auth flow expressed with proper El constructs: - extern fn supabase_create_client(url, key) -> Any Declares the Supabase CDN global without an El function body. - client.auth.signInWithOtp(opts) Direct method call chain on Any-typed value. The client is built by calling the extern fn; .auth field access and .signInWithOtp(opts) method call emit clean JS without any escape hatch. - try { ... } catch (err: Any) { ... } Wraps the auth call; unexpected runtime errors are caught and shown to the user rather than crashing silently. - fn(event: Any) -> Void { ... } Inline anonymous function literals for DOM event listeners instead of named forward-declared callbacks. The rewrite is the proof: every browser JavaScript pattern used in a real auth flow can now be expressed structurally in El.	2026-05-04 11:02:13 -05:00
Will Anderson	7040830470	codegen-js: URL import declarations for JS modules import "https://cdn.example.com/lib.js" now emits: - module mode: import "https://..." at the top of the generated file - bundle/IIFE mode: // external: https://... comment El source imports (.el files) are excluded -- they were already inlined by resolve_imports before codegen. Any import path that doesn't end in .el or starts with http(s):// is treated as an external JS dependency.	2026-05-04 11:01:36 -05:00
Will Anderson	3a513aaa5a	runtime + codegen-js: Promise helpers and object/array utilities Add to el_runtime.js: promise_then(p, cb) -- p.then(cb), works with any Promise-returning API promise_catch(p, cb) -- p.catch(cb) promise_resolve(val) -- Promise.resolve(val) promise_reject(msg) -- Promise.reject(new Error(msg)) object_assign(t, s) -- Object.assign({}, t, s) (non-mutating) object_keys(obj) -- Object.keys(obj) object_values(obj) -- Object.values(obj) json_deep_clone(obj) -- JSON.parse(JSON.stringify(obj)) array_from(iterable) -- Array.from(iterable) type_of(val) -- typeof val instanceof_check(v, n) -- val instanceof globalThis[name] All new functions added to __el export object and ES named exports. codegen-js preamble destructure updated to include all new names.	2026-05-04 11:01:14 -05:00
Will Anderson	beb2a8c5bd	lexer + parser + codegen: try/catch statement try { ... } catch (name: Type) { ... } is now a first-class El statement. Lexer: `try` and `catch` are now keywords (Try, Catch token kinds). Parser: TryCatch AST node with try_body, catch_name, catch_body. codegen-js: emits try { ... } catch (name) { ... } directly -- correct for all browser error handling patterns. codegen.el (C backend): emits the try body with a comment; exception handling is a no-op since C has no analogous mechanism. Programs using try/catch should compile with --target=js. The catch variable type annotation is parsed and skipped (same treatment as all other type annotations in El).	2026-05-04 11:00:24 -05:00
Will Anderson	e23319fe0b	parser + codegen-js: anonymous function literals (lambda syntax) fn(params) -> RetType { body } is now valid in expression position. The parser produces a Lambda AST node. codegen-js emits a hoisted JS function declaration with a generated name (__lambda_N) and returns the name as the expression value, so inline callbacks compose cleanly: dom_listen(btn, "click", fn(event: Any) -> Void { handle(event) }) emits: function __lambda_1(event) { handle(event); } dom_listen(btn, "click", __lambda_1); The hoisted-declaration strategy is debuggable, has no closure-capture issues, and requires no string-buffer mode in the codegen.	2026-05-04 10:59:17 -05:00
Will Anderson	01fee9396a	codegen-js: native JS method dispatch and extern fn support Any-typed receiver method calls now emit obj.method(args) directly instead of requiring native_js_call. client.auth.signInWithOtp(p) compiles to client["auth"].signInWithOtp(p) -- no escape hatch needed. Field access emits obj["field"] (direct bracket notation) instead of el_get_field, so prototype-inherited JS properties resolve correctly. el_get_field's hasOwnProperty guard was silently returning null for real JS objects with inherited fields (Supabase auth, DOM APIs, etc). El runtime shortform methods (append, len, get, map_get, map_set) still use the existing method(obj, args) convention for backward compat. ExternFn statements emit a comment and are excluded from top-level statement codegen -- the extern declaration tells the compiler the function exists in the JS environment without emitting a body.	2026-05-04 10:58:07 -05:00
Will Anderson	7b60d94b8a	add --minify and --obfuscate flags to elc JS pipeline Adds two post-processing flags that produce production-ready browser JS in a single elc invocation, replacing extract-js.py in the web product pipeline: elc --target=js --bundle --minify source.el > output.min.js elc --target=js --bundle --obfuscate source.el > output.obf.js --minify shells out to terser (passes=2, no drop_console, drop_debugger). --obfuscate shells out to javascript-obfuscator with the same options as the old extract-js.py script. --obfuscate implies --minify. Tool discovery: checks ./node_modules/.bin/, ../node_modules/.bin/ (monorepo), then falls back to npx. Both flags require --target=js; passing either without it exits 1 with a clear error. Both tools receive a reserved-names list of globals referenced from HTML onclick= attributes (neuronDemoToggle, signInWith, NEURON_CFG, etc.) so they are not mangled. Implementation adds stdout_to_file(path)/stdout_restore() builtins to the C runtime so codegen's println-streamed output can be captured to a temp file before being piped through the external tools. Temp files use /tmp/elc-<pid>-<timestamp>.js naming and are cleaned up on success and failure. Rebuilds dist/platform/elc and dist/platform/elc.c. Self-hosting verified.	2026-05-04 10:54:34 -05:00
Will Anderson	21694b79d2	implement ? nil-propagation, write browser-auth.el example, update spec Iteration 5: ? nil-propagation: Field and Index handlers in js_cg_expr now detect when the object expression is a Try node (the AST node for postfix `?`). When detected, emit JS optional chaining: `(expr)?.["field"] ?? null`. The `?? null` normalizes JS undefined to El's null. A bare `expr?` not followed by field/index still passes through unchanged. browser-auth.el: a realistic 130-line example demonstrating: - @async function with Supabase via native_js_call - DOM bridge: get/set value/text/attr, add/remove class, show/hide - local_storage_get/set for session hints - window_on_load for initialization - window_set to expose functions to the browser global scope - set_timeout for transient state, is_valid_email for input validation Compiles cleanly with elc --target=js --bundle Spec updated: status promoted to Phase 4 / ~80% coverage, nil-prop status updated, new example referenced.	2026-05-04 10:42:54 -05:00
Will Anderson	422442b14e	add --bundle flag for self-contained IIFE output elc --target=js --bundle source.el > output.js produces a single file with no import statement that can drop directly into a <script> tag. How it works: - detect_bundle() reads the --bundle flag from argv - resolve_runtime_path() looks for el_runtime.js next to the source file - compile_js_with_bundle() reads the runtime, calls codegen_js_bundle() - codegen_js_inner(bundle_mode=true): - emits ;(function() { "use strict"; at the top - inlines the runtime content (stripping ES export statements which are invalid inside an IIFE via js_strip_es_exports()) - skips the const {...} = globalThis.__el destructure -- the inlined function declarations are already in scope within the IIFE - closes with })(); after main() Usage: elc --target=js --bundle app.el > app.js Place el_runtime.js in the same directory as app.el.	2026-05-04 10:40:46 -05:00
Will Anderson	437ba0a4dd	add 20 browser API builtins to JS runtime and codegen preamble Iteration 3: closes the browser API gap needed for real web pages. New builtins in el_runtime.js: Extended DOM: dom_set_attr, dom_get_attr, dom_remove_attr, dom_set_html, dom_get_html, dom_get_parent, dom_contains_class, dom_get_checked, dom_set_checked Timers: set_timeout, set_interval, clear_interval Local storage: local_storage_get, local_storage_set, local_storage_remove Window: window_location, window_redirect, window_on_load Debug: console_log All browser-only functions use _ensureBrowser guard. Timer functions work in both Node and browser. All new names added to __el export object, ES named exports, and codegen-js.el destructure preamble. Spec table updated to document new categories.	2026-05-04 10:38:20 -05:00
Will Anderson	7376349124	fix TypeDef parser to consume optional = before field block type User = { name: String } was silently broken: the parser consumed the type name then called expect(LBrace) while sitting on the = token. expect() advances unconditionally on mismatch, so it consumed = and treated { as the first field name, producing a corrupt TypeDef node. The FnDef following the broken TypeDef was then parsed incorrectly or lost entirely -- causing greet() and similar functions to vanish from JS/C output with no error. Fix: detect and skip the optional Eq token before expecting LBrace. Both targets benefit; rebuild elc to pick up the fix.	2026-05-04 10:36:53 -05:00
Will Anderson	0f1da43a97	implement Enum::Variant match patterns in parser and both codegens Parser now handles `SomeEnum::Variant` in match arm patterns, emitting a Variant pattern node with enum_name and variant fields. Previously these fell through to Binding, producing broken codegen. JS codegen: emit str_eq check against the variant name string (El enums are plain strings at runtime). C codegen: same, via EL_STR + str_eq. Rebuild elc to pick up the parser change.	2026-05-04 10:35:35 -05:00
Will Anderson	a54b2bebf9	add DOM bridge, async/await, window export, and native_js to JS target - el_runtime.js: add 19 dom_* builtins (browser-only, throw in Node), window_set/window_get for exposing El functions to the browser global scope, and native_js/native_js_call escape hatches for third-party libs - codegen-js.el: destructure all new builtins in generated preamble; add @async decorator support that emits async function + await at call sites for known-async HTTP builtins and user-declared @async functions; pre- registration pass ensures forward calls to @async functions get await - spec/codegen-js.md: mark Phase 3 (DOM bridge) implemented, document @async approach and its limitations, update builtin table and status - examples/browser-counter.el: canonical example showing dom_get_element, dom_set_text, dom_is_null, window_set, and state_set/get	2026-05-04 10:29:43 -05:00
Will Anderson	1ed2dc3c11	add gitflow CI for dev/stage/prod environments	2026-05-04 08:55:21 -05:00
Will Anderson	f9cfe43f05	preserve original el_runtime.c/h in legacy/ for reference	2026-05-03 15:31:35 -05:00
Will Anderson	f97354e96b	add exec() and exec_bg() builtins to El runtime - exec(cmd) -> String: runs shell command, captures stdout, 30s timeout - exec_bg(cmd) -> String: forks command in background, returns PID string - add both to codegen arity table (builtin_arity) - rebuild elc with updated arity table (self-hosting, identity-verified) - update release snapshot at releases/v1.0.0-20260501/	2026-05-03 02:57:53 -05:00
Will Anderson	9d0e1f64d4	fix elb: cp instead of mv for .elh files, preserves headers for downstream modules	2026-05-03 01:19:58 -05:00
Will Anderson	e180baf776	fix looks_like_string for empty strings and UTF-8, add cross-module includes in codegen	2026-05-03 00:27:20 -05:00
Will Anderson	3d71db4958	Fix O(n²) string construction in codegen-js, lexer, parser, elb Replace accumulate-by-concatenation loops with native_list_append + str_join. Eliminates quadratic memory growth when processing large source files. This is the v2 compiler state — what produced /tmp/elc-v2.	2026-05-02 22:35:49 -05:00
Will Anderson	2a211992d4	Document bootstrapping path and language architecture	2026-05-02 21:23:22 -05:00