Solon

Solon
Thassa's labyrinth
Details
Race	Human
Birthplace	A small city on the outskirts of Meletis, Theros
Lifetime	Mending Era
Sources
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Solon is a scholar, an athlete, a Champion of Oxus, and famous on Theros for having completed the labyrinth of Thassa.

History

Solon saw it as his duty as the Champion of Oxus to pass through the Sea God's Labyrinth and claim her Dekella at the end of the maze. He trained for seven years, then packed the necessary gear and brought a map of the first part of the maze. He spent the first few days on the outer parts of the maze, which was well-tended and green with tall hedges. Further in, the maze grew wilder, and he discovered the skeleton of Praxitelius, the previous Champion of Oxus, and on it, an intriguing and bright-shining dagger. He continued, and after being chased by a growling beast and then sunburnt in the tireless sunlight, he discovered a foreboding stone door leading down into the darkness of an underground section of the labyrinth. With no choice but to go on, he entered the gloomy passages beneath. He wandered the darkness hopelessly lost for two days, stumbling over skeletal remains and crawling insects and vermin, lightheaded from thirst before he finally emerged above ground in the next part of the maze, swampy and overgrown. On the ninth day of wandering the maze, a storm roiled in and provided water.

In the swampy part of the maze, Solon fended off a deadly snake with Praxitelius's dagger, evading quicksand, and poison plants, while running low on rations. He crafted the dagger into an arrow and shot a stag with it, granting him food and renewed strength. He continued, the labyrinth turning dry like a desert with high walls of rock. On the thirteenth day of exploring the maze, Solon managed to climb onto a section of the wall and discovered the center of the maze nearby. On his way there, he encountered a minotaur and managed to kill it with his only arrow. Finally arriving at the center of the maze, Solon discovered it featured a deep well, with something glinting in the deep beneath. Offering a prayer to Thassa and a gift of a pearl dropped into the well, Solon dove down to retrieve the bident. It seemed to stay out of reach, no matter how deep he swam, and just before he started to drown, he was approached by swimming naiads who gave him air and guided him out through an underground passage into the depths of the open sea. Thassa was there and told Solon "Time is long, and the lives of men are but a shadow passing in the night. What came yesterday is soon to be lost, like a mote of dust in the sun. What comes tomorrow is the only mission of our fragile lives." Thassa then drew a pattern of light into the skin of Solon's entire body and withdrew. Later, Solon washed up on an island, naked but alive - without the bident Dekalla, but forever marked and blessed by his god. He later returned to Meletis and was hailed as a great warrior, but his true gift would be the wisdom to shape a greater future for his people and to contribute to their edifice of knowledge.

The stories of Solon's exploits quickly spread across Theros, and his name rose to fame as the man who braved a labyrinth to retrieve Dekella, the bident of Thassa and lived to tell the tale.

Story appearances

Title	Author	Publishing date	Set	Setting (plane)	Featuring
The Sea God's Labyrinth, Part 1	Jeremiah Isgur	2013-11-13	Theros	Theros	Solon, Thassa, Praxitelius
The Sea God's Labyrinth, Part 2	Jeremiah Isgur	2013-11-20	Theros	Theros	Solon, Thassa, Praxitelius
Desperate Stand	Matt Knicl	2014-04-16	Journey into Nyx	Theros	Vinack, Aesrias, Solon, Kedarick VI, Kytheon Iora, Erebos, Athreos