Ritual Casting (10 minutes)

The caster gathers the recipients in a circle and produces a short reed or hollow straw — the material focus. They dip the reed in water (a canteen, a puddle, or the body of water they intend to enter) and then touch the wet reed to the lips of each recipient in turn, painting a thin line of water across their mouth. As the caster chants, each recipient feels a cool tingling in their throat and lungs — as if the air they breathe is becoming thicker, richer, more saturated with life. The transformation is subtle but profound: gills do not sprout, but the lungs adapt. Water becomes as breathable as air, flowing in and out with each breath, oxygen extracted effortlessly. The first underwater breath is always startling — an instinctive panic that quickly gives way to wonder as the body realizes it is in no danger. Some casters mark each recipient's throat with a temporary blue rune that fades when the spell ends.