Khuq'uks Niv'i

A matter of survival

Lyt'Chwaer are a relatively long lived species who reach physical maturity at around fifty years of age. Amongst Scax'uk's people this is the time each Lyt'Chwaer must undergo Khuq'ucks Niv'i, loosely translated into Universal as Become or do not. When all members of a clutch reach maturity they must undergo this coming of age ritual to prove their knowledge and ability to survive.

A deadly neighbour

Scax'uks' people are known as Icthan Lyt'Chwaer as they live in the Icthan swamplands. The swamplands are a miles long stretch of waterways, tiny islands and massive trees. The people live up in the tree tops in a sprawling city of ingenious engineering, as they share the swamp with a very deadly creature. This creature is fortunately not a very good climber, but there are things the Lyt'Chwaer need that can only be found on the ground.

Survive together

Whenever a clutch's members have all reached maturity, they must spend a day and a night surviving on the swamp floor, with only their wits and some essential survival gear. The goal is not only to survive, but to traverse the swamp in search of a particular mineral which can only be found in a very specific set of conditions. Each member of the clutch must bring back a sample of this mineral, in order to be considered an adult. The clutch must apply all the knowledge and skills they have learned while growing up in order to complete Khuq'ucks Niv'i.
It is rare that an entire clutch returns unscathed, but also just as rare for an entire clutch to never return at all. As long as they work together and put their collective skills to use to benefit the whole group, then the clutch is more than likely to return victorious. The Lyt'Chwaer have survived on a planet filled with many deadly creatures, by learning to work together as communities. A lone Lyt'Chwaer is more often than not a dead Lyt'Chwaer, so the ritual is also designed to test the group's cohesion and ability to work together.

Fun Fact

Scax'uk never completed Khuq'uks Niv'i, on the night They were sent out with Their clutch, They snuck away to try and get a closer inspection of a cool new spaceship which had landed just that morning. Scax'uk assumes that Their people probably just think Them dead, and although They pretend to be an adult when encountering other Lyt'Chwaer, back home They would still be considered an adolescent, and treated as such.