mending

Mending

Repair a single broken artifact - a config, a file, a build, a migration - without redesigning it.

What This Skill Does

Mending is surgical repair of a known-working artifact that has a specific, identifiable break. It is NOT:

• Triage/diagnosis: If the problem is "API is throwing 500s, figure out why" — that's investigation, not mending. Mending requires the break to already be identified.
• Formatting/cleanup: If the data is correct but looks messy (sort keys, normalize indentation) — that's formatting, not repair.
• State reset: If a flag is stuck or an alert needs clearing — that's an operational toggle, not a file repair.
• Refactoring/redesign: If the system is "fundamentally flawed" and needs redesign — that's rebuilding, not mending.
• Comprehensive cleanup: If there are "years of orphaned records" across tables — that's a data integrity project, not a surgical fix. In this grimoire, Mending is treated as a metaphorical spell with a shipping-now delivery profile. Canonical reference input: Mending (spell).

When To Use

• Trigger this spell when the request contains:
• A specific file or artifact named (e.g., .gitignore, docker-compose.yml, Makefile, package.json, migration script, manifest)
• A localized break: syntax error, typo, missing character, wrong reference, indentation issue, unclosed bracket, trailing comma, misspelled key
• Evidence the artifact was working before ("broke yesterday", "was fine last week", "worked before the merge")
• Language like: "just fix", "repair", "fix the typo", "missing semicolon", "broken reference", "indentation error", "without changing"

Prerequisites

• No extra runtime dependencies beyond Hermes Agent and the normal toolset for this session.

Procedure

1. Restate the target, the success condition, and any no-touch boundaries before taking action.
2. Confirm the break is specific and localized — name the exact file, the exact error, and what "working" looked like before.
3. Apply the minimal change that restores the original behavior — fix the typo, add the missing character, correct the reference, move the misplaced directive. Do not improve, modernize, or restructure.
4. Show a before/after diff so the repair is auditable and reversible.
5. If the break reveals a deeper structural problem (e.g., the same typo appears in 12 files, or the config format is fundamentally unsound), report it — do not paper over it with repeated patches.
6. Package the result as the deliverables below, with confidence, assumptions, and unresolved risk called out explicitly.

Deliverables

• The repaired artifact in working condition.
• A before-and-after diff showing exactly what changed.
• A note if the break suggests a deeper structural issue.

Pitfalls / Guardrails

• Keep the metaphor anchored to a real mechanism instead of drifting into lore.
• Fix the break. Do not redesign. Do not "take the opportunity to clean up."
• If the damage is too extensive for a targeted repair, say so and recommend a larger intervention.
• Preserve the artifact's original design, style, and structure.
• Do not use for: "Diagnose why production is broken" → investigation spell
• Do not use for: "Clean up formatting on this file" → formatting spell
• Do not use for: "Reset this stuck flag/alert" → operational spell
• Do not use for: "Redesign this module from scratch" → refactoring spell
• Do not use for: "Clean up data integrity across all tables" → data project spell

Verification

• Check that the result includes every deliverable promised above.
• Check that confirmed facts, assumptions, and inferences are visibly separated.
• Check that the metaphor still maps cleanly to a real operational mechanism.

Example Invocation

/mending fix this broken artifact with the smallest repair that restores it to working condition