It was finished, but unlike a computer programmer I could not test and debug my code. It was a one shot, work or fail. Or partially work. Or even work in a way that I had not envisaged. The programme would be the first thing that the link detected. I’d replicated 99.9% of my signature as a header to think that it was picking me up, then the programme would run. It was essentially a 3D map of Earth with longitude and latitude measurements plotted onto it.
On this was a pre-defined point that was not my location. I was attempting to create a disparity between location of the link programming that had accepted the header of the programme as me and where the exit point was. The link had one place and my programme had given it somewhere different. It would then attempt a transition of something that was not me and fail and fall into a loop allowing me time to crash it and rewrite it there and then.
If this ruse did not work, then it would look for code that it would accept. I’d replicated the 3D map on my signature, so at the very least the link would be confused and transition would be delayed. If this was the case, then I’d only be able to perform the DNA acceptance coding and bodily reorganisation. I would also end up exiting in the same place, just a bit later than normal.
I’d managed to finish five days ahead of schedule too, so I had more than enough time to enter into negotiations. I set the clock in my head, and shifted phase to standard Stasis time.
The four presences were immediately alerted to my signature.
“Wait,” I vocalised. This was the first word that I had ever said out loud in Stasis.
They stopped. I was bombarded with a babble of confused voices, not just from the four presences but from the taken.
“Please,” I replied, “I will answer what questions I can. Time is short for me. I want to talk with the four that were sent here for me first.”
The babble stopped in accordance with my plea.
“Who are you?” said one of them. I was taken aback by this.
“I’m Eric Deacon and I am assuming that you already know this. Who are you and who do you work for?”
“I suspected that you were, but how did you build all this? And where did you go when you came in?”
“I’ll answer those questions once you have answered mine.”
“Sorry. I’m Michael and these are Jennifer, Emile and Cara. We work for Professor Patrick Nelson. Well, worked. He sent us here to try and follow you back, but we could not find you. Only what you had done here. When you suddenly appeared for those few seconds before you made a transition we tried to latch on to you but could not get back ourselves.
“We’ve been stuck here since, unable to get back. I guess that you’re our only hope.”
“Then you’re very lucky that Patrick didn’t succeed in killing me then. It’s a fair trade, so I should tell you a few things. I now believe that the constant cycle of Stasis and transition has made me able to control Stasis like I can. I was nothing on my first visit, I was essentially still the person that I was before transition.
“When I came out of Stasis for the first time, I was improved in every way imaginable – fitter, stronger, healthier and most importantly for Stasis, my brain was much more efficient. I was also subjected to what my captors called ‘Social Readjustment’ and I now suspect that they embedded subliminal learning in there that I was not aware of at the time but could recall it once I required it.
“On each visit back, I could manipulate the energy around me. It wasn’t easy at first, but I persisted through trial and error.
“As to where I go, well, I worked out how to manipulate time so that I experience time as if I was outside Stasis.”
Michael was taking all of this in very slowly. Him and his colleagues were still just energy presences whilst I had full form. I realised that this might come across as quite imposing under these circumstances, so I shifted to just energy.
“I’m still here. Also, I think I should help you and code your energy so that you are able to experience time like I can. I would like to offer a trade – my knowledge of Stasis for your information about Patrick.”
Without any hesitation Michael agreed. “I have the feeling that our lives would be in danger anyway should we ever return.”
I quickly created the code in the four of them and demonstrated to them how they would be able to independently switch between the two phases, ensured that my clocked accepted the shift and slid back into real time.
Stasis Update: A Novel 
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