Write about a building that has been reused and repurposed from its original design.— Building
Mythoversal Hellas > Boeotian Thebes
The Labyrinth Gate
A complex structure, not fully explored, with parts that predate the rest of the city.
History
When Cadmus arrived at the plateau that would become the site of his new city of Thebes, he found three strange features: the moon-white cow that had guided him there, a
dragon he would have to kill, and the ruins of an ancient city that pre-dated the one he wanted to built.
The hilltop ruins were incorporated into the new Cadmaian citadel. And at at a lower level, a mostly-intact maze of hallways and tunnels, going at least four levels deep, were incorporated into the Labyrinth Gate.
Original Purpose
Nothing is known of the original purpose of this structure, and the maze itself is one of the few clues left behind by the culture that inhabited the land before the arrival of Cadmus. Presumably, knowledge of the maze was one of the secrets gained by Cadmus upon slaying the Guardian Dragon, but that knowledge left the city with Cadmus and his wife, Harmonia, when they were later banished from the city. The couple were themselves transformed into serpents by the gods and, now Guardian Dragons themselves, still hold onto those secrets in whatever lair they have established outside the city.
A Defensive Structure
With the Cadmaian walls extended from the edges of the labyrinth, the structure earned its name as the Labyrinth Gate, one of seven that ringed the Old City. Those who knew its tricky twists and turns could navigate through in about half an hour. Those who didn't could be trapped within for days while defenders in the flanking towers rained arrows on their heads.
No enemies ever breached the Labyrinth Gate.
An Abandoned Structure
When the city expanded down the plateau, and a new seven-gated wall built around the Hypothebai neighborhoods, the gates of Old Cadmaia were opened to allow passage between sections of the new city. The Old Wall and its gates became decorative, and the Labyrinth Gate fell into disuse, now the least accessible to city residents.
A Play Structure
The Labyrinth Gate was gifted by King Oedipus to his twin sons, Eteocles and Polynieces, as a venue for their youth armies to train and battle one another. Twice weekly they stage mock battles and earn proficiency at siegecraft and urban combat.
Mysteries Remain
The lowest level of the labyrinth remains off-limits, unmapped, and unexplored. There are spooky stories, and the place tends to give people the creeps. What ancient secrets still lie down there, undisturbed in the dark? Only the reptilian spirits of Cadmus and Harmonia know for sure!
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