diff --git a/RUNEWAGER_FUNCTIONALITY_MAP.md b/RUNEWAGER_FUNCTIONALITY_MAP.md
index 3888a01..b73b57d 100644
--- a/RUNEWAGER_FUNCTIONALITY_MAP.md
+++ b/RUNEWAGER_FUNCTIONALITY_MAP.md
@@ -119,12 +119,13 @@ The bot uses `user.pendingAction.type` as its input state machine. Key families:
 - **Forward registration**: `await_register_chat_forward`.
 
 ### Timeouts
-- No global pendingAction auto-timeout was found for most flows.
+- Global pending-action timeout now enforced in text flow: `PENDING_ACTION_TIMEOUT_MS = 15 minutes`; expired wait states are reset with a user-facing timeout message and `Main Menu` recovery buttons.
 - SSHV sessions have TTL-based GC (`SSHV_SESSION_TTL_MS`), with stale-state normalization and recovery.
 
 ## 8. Fallback Logic & Error Handling
 
 - Permission failures: `requireAdmin` + `sendCommandError`.
+- Pending slash escapes: when a pending state exists, `/cancel` clears state; `/menu`, `/start`, and `/help` clear pending state and return user to main menu flow.
 - Invalid pending input: explicit prompts to retry (numeric checks, yes/no checks, IDs).
 - Missing entities (promo/giveaway not found): user-visible explanatory replies.
 - Announce/test flows return actionable follow-up messages.
@@ -323,6 +324,7 @@ Admin starts wizard (gwiz)
 - 2026-02-26: Added repo-wide baseline docstrings to named function declarations (runtime, helper, and test modules) and re-verified command/callback coverage.
 - 2026-02-26: Re-verified removal of `/language` command/callback surface, reran smoke/full tests, and synchronized agent-contract wording in `CLAUDE.md` with map-first/update-map/verify requirements.
 - 2026-02-26: Completed a menu-integrity pass by adding explicit `Main Menu` + `Cancel` exits to admin category keyboards and settings submenu, then revalidated smoke/full tests.
+- 2026-02-26: Added global 15-minute pending-action timeout and slash-command escape fallbacks (`/cancel`, `/menu`, `/start`, `/help`) for wait-for-input state safety.
 
 ## 25. AI Coder Contract Requirements
 
diff --git a/index.js b/index.js
index 56d815a..f7b0a05 100644
--- a/index.js
+++ b/index.js
@@ -378,6 +378,8 @@ const NON_USERNAME_WORDS = new Set([
 ]);
 
 // Slash commands implemented in this file. Used for unknown-command fallback.
+const PENDING_ACTION_TIMEOUT_MS = 15 * 60 * 1000; // 15m timeout for wait-for-input states
+
 const REGISTERED_COMMANDS = new Set([
   'A',
   'a',
@@ -4178,46 +4180,6 @@ function escapeMarkdownFull(text) {
   return String(text).replace(/[_*[\]()~`>#+\-=|{}.!\\]/g, '\\$&');
 }
 
-/**
-
- * ensureDataDir executes its scoped Runewager logic and participates in menu/command or utility flow composition.
-
- * Parameters: See the function signature for exact argument names and accepted values.
-
- * Returns: Returns the computed value or a Promise resolving to the operation result; may return void for side-effect handlers.
-
- * Side effects: May mutate runtime stores, pendingAction state, menu state, persistence files, logs, and callback progression.
-
- * Validation/safety: Uses existing guard utilities (admin checks, input checks, path checks, cooldown checks) where applicable.
-
- * Timeouts/fallbacks: Timeout and fallback behavior are controlled by the calling flow and global handler/state machine conventions.
-
- * Errors: Surfaces user-facing error replies and/or logs when inputs, permissions, or dependencies are invalid.
-
- * System fit: This function is part of the Runewager command/callback/state orchestration pipeline.
-
- */
-
-/**
-
- * ensureDataDir executes its scoped Runewager logic and participates in menu/command or utility flow composition.
-
- * Parameters: See the function signature for exact argument names and accepted values.
-
- * Returns: Returns the computed value or a Promise resolving to the operation result; may return void for side-effect handlers.
-
- * Side effects: May mutate runtime stores, pendingAction state, menu state, persistence files, logs, and callback progression.
-
- * Validation/safety: Uses existing guard utilities (admin checks, input checks, path checks, cooldown checks) where applicable.
-
- * Timeouts/fallbacks: Timeout and fallback behavior are controlled by the calling flow and global handler/state machine conventions.
-
- * Errors: Surfaces user-facing error replies and/or logs when inputs, permissions, or dependencies are invalid.
-
- * System fit: This function is part of the Runewager command/callback/state orchestration pipeline.
-
- */
-
 /**
 
  * ensureDataDir executes its scoped Runewager logic and participates in menu/command or utility flow composition.
@@ -7792,6 +7754,50 @@ bot.action('admin_cat_support', async (ctx) => {
 });
 
 
+/**
+
+
+ * adminTestsToolsKeyboard executes its scoped Runewager logic and participates in menu/command or utility flow composition.
+
+
+ * Parameters: See the function signature for exact argument names and accepted values.
+
+
+ * Returns: Returns the computed value or a Promise resolving to the operation result; may return void for side-effect handlers.
+
+
+ * Side effects: May mutate runtime stores, pendingAction state, menu state, persistence files, logs, and callback progression.
+
+
+ * Validation/safety: Uses existing guard utilities (admin checks, input checks, path checks, cooldown checks) where applicable.
+
+
+ * Timeouts/fallbacks: Timeout and fallback behavior are controlled by the calling flow and global handler/state machine conventions.
+
+
+ * Errors: Surfaces user-facing error replies and/or logs when inputs, permissions, or dependencies are invalid.
+
+
+ * System fit: This function is part of the Runewager command/callback/state orchestration pipeline.
+
+
+ */
+
+
+bot.action('admin_cat_system', async (ctx) => {
+  if (!requireAdmin(ctx)) return;
+  await ctx.answerCbQuery();
+  const user = getUser(ctx);
+  await replaceCallbackPanel(ctx, '⚙️ *System Tools*', { parse_mode: 'Markdown', ...adminSystemToolsKeyboard(user) });
+});
+
+bot.action('admin_cat_support', async (ctx) => {
+  if (!requireAdmin(ctx)) return;
+  await ctx.answerCbQuery();
+  await replaceCallbackPanel(ctx, '🛟 *Support Tools*', { parse_mode: 'Markdown', ...adminSupportToolsKeyboard() });
+});
+
+
 /**
 
 
@@ -9010,6 +9016,32 @@ bot.on('text', async (ctx) => {
 
   const text = (ctx.message.text || '').trim();
 
+  if (user.pendingAction && !user.pendingAction.createdAt) user.pendingAction.createdAt = Date.now();
+
+  if (user.pendingAction && (Date.now() - Number(user.pendingAction.createdAt || 0)) > PENDING_ACTION_TIMEOUT_MS) {
+    const expiredType = user.pendingAction.type || 'current action';
+    user.pendingAction = null;
+    await ctx.reply(
+      `⏱️ Your pending step (${expiredType}) timed out after 15 minutes. Please start again from the menu.`,
+      Markup.inlineKeyboard([[Markup.button.callback('🏠 Main Menu', 'to_main_menu')], [Markup.button.callback('❌ Cancel', 'to_main_menu')]]),
+    );
+    return;
+  }
+
+  if (user.pendingAction && text.startsWith('/')) {
+    const cmd = text.slice(1).split(/\s+/)[0].split('@')[0].toLowerCase();
+    if (cmd === 'cancel') {
+      user.pendingAction = null;
+      await ctx.reply('✅ Pending action cancelled.', Markup.inlineKeyboard([[Markup.button.callback('🏠 Main Menu', 'to_main_menu')]]));
+      return;
+    }
+    if (cmd === 'menu' || cmd === 'start' || cmd === 'help') {
+      user.pendingAction = null;
+      await sendMainMenu(ctx, user, 1);
+      return;
+    }
+  }
+
   if (!user.pendingAction && text.startsWith('/')) {
     const cmd = text.slice(1).split(/\s+/)[0].split('@')[0];
     if (!REGISTERED_COMMANDS.has(cmd)) {