Submersion
A coming of age practice carried out by the Forsaken people of the Sulphurous Sands in the Deep Underdark, Submersion involves immersion of an individual in the lake of sulphuric acid at the centre of the Sulphurous Sands, to honour the suffering of their ancestors and the lake that gives them life in the Underdark.
Execution
The ritual is simple in its execution. Firstly the individual coming of age will don a set of protective undergarments, designed to protect their genitals and they will also wear a protective eye covering to ensure that they do not douse acid in their eyes. Then they simply walk into the lake of sulphuric acid at the heart of the Sulphurous Sands until they have waded in deep enough to completely submerge themselves, which they do so for only a matter of seconds. In most cases the individuals will be accompanied by two others, who will keep time for them and who will help to pull them out and get them back to shore once the ritual is complete.
Afterwards, the individual is given a potent mix of Yellow Bread Algae liquor to numb the pain and help counteract the effects of the acid, and a salve made from the same algae is applied to the burns to sooth them. This treatment afterwards ensures that all those who undergo Submersion suffer no lasting ill effects, other than the scarification of their skin, though it is still by no means a pleasant process.
Participants
Submersion is an act that is naturally focused around the individual that is turning of age, but there is no restriction around who can be present at the event. Indeed, as the Forsaken exist in a society that values the collective over the family, it is common for as many people as possible who are available to travel down to the shores of the sulphuric acid lake at the centre of the Sulphurous Sands to watch the event and offer their support.
Observance
The act of Submersion is carried out whenever one of the Forsaken comes of age, on the eve of their twentieth birthday.
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