Stasis

Above: Polarian in fetal position characteristic of stasisBelow: Eye of Polarian in stasis

Stasis describes a coma-like state which a Polarian may enter when under physiological stress so severe that death is imminent. In order to enter stasis, the injury or illness must come on somewhat gradually (for example, an immediate killing blow to the head with the Polarian's weakness would induce instant death, not stasis). As well, the Polarian must have an adequate amount of Nitrogen in their system before undergoing stasis, so physiological stress induced by an anitric state would also not induce stasis. The intent of stasis is to attempt to remove the Polarian from the harmful area, to protect them from further damage, and to keep them in an extremely low-energy state until a more favourable environment can be found. Most Polarians belive that stasis is a burst of latent power and connection to the star that they were originally birthed from. There are three major states of stasis:

### Induction of Stasis:

A Polarian experiences extreme injury or illness which begins to induce stasis. After experiencing a near-death state for too long, the Polarian becomes unrousable, listless, and their eyes become half-lidden and unseeing. The Polarian begins hyperventilating to increase their blood nitrogen levels. If adequate nitrogen cannot be achieved, the Polarian will not enter stasis and will die. Next, the Polarian's eyes will begin to change a galaxy-like form, as seen to the right. The Polarian fully loses all connection to the outside world and will move into a fetal position, raise a few centimetres off the ground, stiffen up, and fully enter stasis. The Polarian's eyes are typically half lidded but completely unseeing and galaxy-like.

### Maintenance of Stasis:

Once in stasis, a Polarian's ability to withstand injury, including injury by weakness, dramatically increases (though the body can still be destroyed), and the Polarian no longer requires any nitrogen. In this state, the Polarian's body will attempt to leave any planet it is on through rising upwards and reach space, where it will be able to be maintaned indefinitely. The Polarian's body will also attempt to move away from any source of weakness. The body of the Polarian will remain in stasis until adequate Nitrogen and favourable conditions are found.

### Exiting stasis:

Once adequate supplies of Nitrogen, favourable temperatuers, and absence of any weakness have been achieved, the Polarian's body begins to leave stasis. For friends of a Polarian in stasis, this process can be accelerated through supplemental nitrogen levels and increased warmth. The process usually takes a few days. At the end of this few day period, the Polarian will begin to rouse, moving slowly and shifting all muscles gradually for about a day, they will become mildly responsive to pain and touch, and their eyes will begin to return to normal - this period is called the Re-circulation period. At the end of this period the Polarian will wake up, though will still be groggy, and will have a number of deficiencies - including:

1. Sensitivity to low nitrogen, low temperatures, and their weakness (lasts around 50 days)
2. Inability to speak (lasts around 2 days, returns gradually after this)
3. Amnesia and confusion (lasts around 3-4 days, with level of amnesia being variable, from amnesia to the event, to amnesia of friends but not Polaris, to total amneisa)
4. Inability to use aura sensors or powers (lasts around 5 days)