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I, Demodocus the bard (//Bardus//, if you like latin), will now tell you the story of the first hero in Europe who undertook a great journey. This journey was none other than the quest for the golden fleece, in which a band of adventurers were led by a man named Jason. He supposedly lived a generation earlier than the most famous Greek traveler, the hero of the Odyssey. Apollonius of Rhodes spread the whole //The Quest for the Golden Fleece// story, except the part of the story about Jason meeting Pelias, which was provided by Pindar.
However, as I have grown old, I might not be able to remember all the details. If I get lost, just try to use your own good common sense and tell me what you think would happen, eh? Stories are often loaded with good ol' common sense anyways. (Unless they are //fanfictions//, avoid ''those'' like the plague.)
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Anyways, let's continue our story.
It's good to note that no roads really existed during the time of the story, so the journey was mostly done on waterways. (Ironically our adventurers prayed to //Zeus// and not Poseidon before they went on their trip.)
Our tale begins with the greek king Athamas, who grew tired of his wife Nephele. He decided to marry another, Princess Ino (who eventually ends up as the sea nymph Leucothea). Nephele feared that Ino would try to kill her two children. She especially feared Ino would try to kill her son in line for the throne, Phrixius.
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Nephele's worrying was not misplaced. Ino somehow got possession of the seed-corn and tainted it before the farming men went out for sowing. Thus, there was no harvest at all. The king sent a messenger (//nuntius//) to consult an oracle, but the messenger was bribed to tell the king that the corn would not grow again until the young Prince was offered up as a sacrifice. The people, with the pressure of starvation, forced the king to permit the boy's death.
Gruesome right? The later Greeks probably thought so too. (Imagine having this as a bedtime story.) As the story was passed down, people almost always changed the sacrifice to something less shocking. As the story is now, just as the boy was about to be sacrificed...
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You probably guessed it. The moment the boy was about to be sacrificed, a fabulous ram with a fleece made of pure gold swooped in and brought the boy to safety in a foreign land. The ram was sent by Hermes in response to his mother's prayers. While they were crossing the straight that separated Europe and Asia, a girl named Helle fell and drowned into the water. This body of water was then named the sea of Helle, or Hellspont.
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Eventually Phrixius arrived at the hostile country of Colchis; they didn't like outsiders. However, for some strange reason their king, Æetes, showed hospitality to Phryxius. To thank the gods for saving him, (more irony ahead) the boy sacrificed the lamb that saved him from being sacrificed. The ram's fleece was taken away and stored in a Colchis. Æetes, their king, allowed Phryxius to marry one of his daughters (//filiae//), and the golden fleece of the sacrificed ram remained in the country of Colchis, guarded by a dragon (//draco//).
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(''Hero Journey Step 1: Ordinary Life Hero Has Mixed Status'')
Phrixius had an uncle who was a rightful king in Greece, but his kingdom (//regnum//) was taken away by his nephew Pelias. The king's son, Jason, originally lived with his parents Aeson and his mother. Jason had been secretly sent away to live with Chiron, a centaur who educated him in arts, hunting and medicine.
(''Hero Journey Step 2: Call to Adventure/Departure'')
When Jason grows up, Chiron the centaur (//centaurus//) tells Jason how he is the rightful heir to the throne of Iolcus, but Pelias has wrongfully seized the throne from (Jason's father) Aeson. This triggers Jason to travel to Iolcus to retrieve his throne. Jason now decides to...(my memory is spotted here so I can't remember what exactly happens.)
[[<img src="http://orig08.deviantart.net/7677/f/2017/007/7/9/take_back_the_throne__by_lawnmovver-daum9rq.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Journey Begins]][[<img src="http://orig11.deviantart.net/f9fa/f/2017/007/1/3/wait_in_preparation__by_lawnmovver-daum9ot.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Jason Stays]]
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Jason decides to claim the throne from Pelias the usurper. On his way to Iolcus, he encounters an old woman who needs to cross a river. He helps her, but loses a sandal (//solea//) in the process. He now decides it is better to...
[[<img src="http://orig15.deviantart.net/981b/f/2017/007/6/0/lose_the_sandal__by_lawnmovver-daumgx1.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Jason Continues but loses a Sandal]][[<img src="http://orig15.deviantart.net/0195/f/2017/007/0/9/lose_the_woman__by_lawnmovver-daumgzi.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Jason receives divine punishment]]
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Jason waits at an area that we won't define for Chiron's privacy purposes. (I seriously feel bad for celebrities with stalkers.) After another day of preparation and rest, he then decides to...
[[<img src="http://orig08.deviantart.net/7677/f/2017/007/7/9/take_back_the_throne__by_lawnmovver-daum9rq.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Journey Begins]][[<img src="http://orig11.deviantart.net/f9fa/f/2017/007/1/3/wait_in_preparation__by_lawnmovver-daum9ot.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Jason Stays2]]
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Jason prepares his "Top Ten Cool lines to Say to Pelias once he Gets to Iolcus and says cool lines." Jason waits at an area that we won't define for Chiron's privacy purposes. After another day of preparation and rest, he then decides to...
[[<img src="http://orig08.deviantart.net/7677/f/2017/007/7/9/take_back_the_throne__by_lawnmovver-daum9rq.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Journey Begins]][[<img src="http://orig11.deviantart.net/f9fa/f/2017/007/1/3/wait_in_preparation__by_lawnmovver-daum9ot.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Jason Stays3]]
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At this point, Jason is getting really unmotivated and takes out his greek yogurt. Jason waits at an area that we won't define for Chiron's privacy purposes. After another day of preparation and rest, he then decides to...
[[<img src="http://orig08.deviantart.net/7677/f/2017/007/7/9/take_back_the_throne__by_lawnmovver-daum9rq.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Journey Begins]][[<img src="http://orig11.deviantart.net/f9fa/f/2017/007/1/3/wait_in_preparation__by_lawnmovver-daum9ot.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Jason Stays4]]
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STOP MAKING JASON A LAZY BUM AND START WITH THE STORY ALREADY. Jason has been resting for too long and is gaining weight at an extremely unhealthy rate now. Jason waits at an area that we won't define for Chiron's privacy purposes. After another day of preparation and rest, he then decides to...
[[<img src="http://orig08.deviantart.net/7677/f/2017/007/7/9/take_back_the_throne__by_lawnmovver-daum9rq.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Journey Begins]][[<img src="http://orig11.deviantart.net/f9fa/f/2017/007/1/3/wait_in_preparation__by_lawnmovver-daum9ot.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Jason Stays5]]
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Chiron tells Jason to get going already, and says Jason has the strength and willpower to succeed. Jason takes these words to heart and gladly decides to depart. (Chiron is glad Jason has stopped freeloading and depleting his greek yogurt supply.) A mast from a civilian boat breaks and falls on Jason's head.
<font color=#d017e6;>"Ouch!" <font color="white">Jason exclaims, <font color=#d017e6;>"that could really kill someone!"
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Jason realizes the dangers of a ship mast falling on someone. Now Jason must...
[[<img src="http://orig08.deviantart.net/7677/f/2017/007/7/9/take_back_the_throne__by_lawnmovver-daum9rq.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Journey Begins]]
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(''Hero Journey Step 3: Jason Encounters his helper'')
Jason helps the elderly woman across. Before asking if she needed anymore help, he realizes she is already gone. Unknown to Jason, the elderly woman he just helped was the goddess Hera in disguise. Jason's decision to help her will play a huge role in Jason's quest.
Meanwhile, Pelias is told by an oracle that he will die by the hands of one of his own kinsmen, and should beware of a man with only one sandal...
[[<img src="http://orig15.deviantart.net/da35/f/2017/006/2/b/continue_by_lawnmovver-dauh9bg.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Encounter with Pelias]]
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After already losing one incredibly valuable, diamond studded sandal, Jason decides his sturdy sandals are more important than the task at hand. He ditches the old wom— wait a second, do you really think Jason would actually do that? This is a ''HERO'' story, not an ancient comedy. (Heck, we had enough of that from //The Acharnians//.)
Let's try that again.
[[<img src="http://orig08.deviantart.net/66bc/f/2017/007/c/e/rewind_by_lawnmovver-daumewg.png" width=410px; height=137.33px;>|Journey Begins1]]
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Okay so... let's start again from around here.
Jason decides to claim the throne back from Pelias the usurper. On his way to Iolcus, he encounters an old woman who needs to cross a river. He helps her, but loses a sandal in the process. He now decides it is better to...
[[<img src="http://orig15.deviantart.net/981b/f/2017/007/6/0/lose_the_sandal__by_lawnmovver-daumgx1.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Jason Continues but loses a Sandal]]
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Jason arrives at Iolcus to retrieve his throne, and no one knows who he is as he draws nearer to the castle. Pelias realizes Jason is missing one sandal. Hiding his fear, Pelias approaches Jason and asks:<font color="green"> "What country is your fatherland? No hateful and defiling lies, I beg you. Tell me the truth."
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Jason responds...
[[<img src= "http://orig02.deviantart.net/0cbf/f/2017/015/7/c/by_requesting_the__kingdom__by_lawnmovver-davkc44.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Pacifist I]][[<img src="http://orig07.deviantart.net/bb7e/f/2017/015/1/9/by_seizing_the__kingdom__by_lawnmovver-davkc1j.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Violence I]]
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Jason responds with gentle words, <font color="orange">"I have come to my home to recover the ancient honor of my house, this land no longer ruled aright, which Zeus gave to my father. I am your cousin, and they call me by the name of Jason. You and I must rule ourselves by the law of right—not appeal to brazen swords or spears. Keep all the wealth you have taken, the flocks and the tawny herds of cattle and the fields, but the sovereign scepter and the throne release to me, so that no evil quarrel will arise from them." <font color="white">(In Undertale this would be considered the "True Pacifist Route".)
[[<img src="http://orig15.deviantart.net/da35/f/2017/006/2/b/continue_by_lawnmovver-dauh9bg.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Pelias's Response]]
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Jason responds with a challenge, <font color="orange">"I have come to my home to recover the ancient honor of my house, this land no longer ruled aright, which Zeus gave to my father. I am your cousin, and they call me by the name of Jason. You and I must rule ourselves by the law of right—I challenge you to a duel for the throne!"
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Drawing their swords, both men are ready to attack the moment they have a chance. <font color="red">Pelias, in all his trickery, signals for his royal guards to attack. Unknowing, Jason immediately charges forward and slays Pelias, severing his head from his shoulders. The wicked guards, with no regard for life, burrow their weapons into Jason's back.<font color="white"> Within his last moments, resenting his enemies' trickery, Jason yanks his sword out of Pelias and makes a prayer to the deathless gods, and the queen of Olympus, Hera. He sees a bright white light and he is...
[[<img src="http://orig08.deviantart.net/66bc/f/2017/007/c/e/rewind_by_lawnmovver-daumewg.png" width=410px; height=137.33px;>|Jason Continues but loses a Sandal1]]
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(''Hero Journey Step 3: Jason Encounters his helper'')
...is finishing up helping the elderly woman cross the river. Before asking if she needed anymore help, he realizes she is already gone. Unknown to Jason, the elderly woman he just helped was the goddess Hera in disguise. Jason's decision to help her will play a huge role in Jason's quest. (Hey, anybody other than me feeling a strange sense of Déjà Vu here?)
Meanwhile, Pelias is told by an oracle that he will die by the hands of one of his own kinsmen, and should beware of a man with only one sandal...
[[<img src="http://orig15.deviantart.net/da35/f/2017/006/2/b/continue_by_lawnmovver-dauh9bg.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Encounter with Pelias]]
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Pelias responds with a soft answer: <font color="green">"So shall it be. But one thing must first be done. The dead Phrixius bids us bring back the Golden Fleece and thus bring back his spirit to his home. The oracle has spoken. But for me, already old age is my companion, while the flower of your youth is only now coming into full bloom. Do you go upon this quest, and I swear with Zeus as witness that I will give up the kingdom and the sovereign rule to you."<font color="white">
He spoke these words, believing in his heart that no one could make attempt such a journey (//iter//) and come back alive.
[[<img src="http://orig15.deviantart.net/da35/f/2017/006/2/b/continue_by_lawnmovver-dauh9bg.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Quest for Golden Fleece Begins]]
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(''Hero Journey Step 4: Threshold to Adventure'')
Jason, excited by the idea of such an adventure, accepts without hesitation. As Jason accepted the challenge and let it be known across Greece, many other heros were inspired by Hera to be brave and join in his adventure. Hercules, the greatest of all heros, joined the quest; Orpheus, the master musician; the two brothers Castor and Pollux; Achilles' father, Peleus; and many other heros joined in the adventure.
Jason took out a golden goblet and poured out libations of wine to Zeus so that they could travel quickly. Then, the heros set sail on the ship //Argo//. However, there were perilous obstacles ahead, and many of these heros would pay the ultimate price: their lives.
[[<img src="http://orig15.deviantart.net/da35/f/2017/006/2/b/continue_by_lawnmovver-dauh9bg.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Argo takes off.]]
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After setting sail, Jason and the argonauts land at the island of Lemnos, a strange island where only women live. Long ago, the women had risen up against the men and killed all the men except the king, whom they sent on a raft to safety. Despite this, the women of Lemnos welcome the argonauts and display proper xenia. (Hospitality and gifts.)
Soon after leaving Lemnos, Hercule's armor bearer, Hylas, when dipping his pitcher in a spring, was pulled underwater by a nymph who wanted to kiss him. (Basically, he drowned.) Hylas is an extremely dear friend to Hercules. When Hercules realizes Hylas is missing, he goes deep into the forest to frantically search for his friend, and does not return. The argonauts decide to...
[[<img src="http://orig13.deviantart.net/55db/f/2017/016/1/4/leave_him__by_lawnmovver-davnf8h.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Harpies and Phineus]] [[<img src="http://orig05.deviantart.net/4f96/f/2017/016/b/7/search_for_him__by_lawnmovver-davnf4q.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Argo stays]]
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Jason tells the other heros that Hercules will not be found. Hesitantly, the argonauts set sail once again, and land on the island of the Harpies: A land of frightful flying monsters with hooked beaks and claws. Here lived an old prophet (//propheta//) named Phineus, a seer who could predict even the gods' actions. Zeus wanted his actions to be a surprise, however, and he punished Phineus by sending the Harpies to eat his food and leave a horrible stench. When the Argonauts arrived, Phineus foresaw that two men on the Argo, the sons of Boreas, could help defend him against the Harpies.
[[<img src="http://orig15.deviantart.net/da35/f/2017/006/2/b/continue_by_lawnmovver-dauh9bg.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Prophecy Comes True.]]
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The argonauts do not find Hercules. After they get a good night of sleep, they decide to...
[[<img src="http://orig13.deviantart.net/55db/f/2017/016/1/4/leave_him__by_lawnmovver-davnf8h.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Harpies and Phineus]] [[<img src="http://orig05.deviantart.net/4f96/f/2017/016/b/7/search_for_him__by_lawnmovver-davnf4q.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Argo stays]]
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While other Argonauts set forth food for him, Boreas' sons stand beside him and guard him with drawn swords. The harpies come to eat Phineus' food, leaving a terrible stench behind, but the brothers chase them down with their swords. The two men would have killed all of the flying creatures if Iris, the rainbow messenger of the gods, had not stopped them. Iris did, however, swear by the river styx that the Harpies, the Hounds of Zeus, will never again bother Phineus. Phineus is finally able to eat his food, and he feasts with the argonauts all night. Thankful to the Argonauts, Phineus gives them advice for their journey. He tells them about the Symplegades, giant rocks that roll perpetually against one another, crushing many ships that have tried to cross them. Phineus tells them to send a dove across the two clashing rocks before sailing across.
[[<img src="http://orig15.deviantart.net/da35/f/2017/006/2/b/continue_by_lawnmovver-dauh9bg.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Clashing Rocks]]
<font color="white"><p align="center"><font size=3px>(''Hero Journey Step 5: Entering another world'')
The next day, Jason sends a dove across the clashing rocks, the Symplegades, and the dove returns with only the very tips of its tail feathers crushed by the rocks. Jason then orders the argonauts to follow the dove through the rocks. The ship makes it through, but the tip of the ship, the very tip of the stern ornament was ripped off by the rocks. After barely surviving the crushing rocks, the sea around them calmed and the rocks stopped moving, allowing future sailors to safely travel past them.
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The argonauts travel past the Amazons, Caucasus, and Prometheus. However, they stopped for nothing, and by sunset reached the country of Colchis.
[[<img src="http://orig15.deviantart.net/da35/f/2017/006/2/b/continue_by_lawnmovver-dauh9bg.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Enter Colchis]]
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Now, the country of Colchis wasn't the friendliest place, and was actually hostile to most outsiders. Hera, worried about the danger the argonauts were in, asked Aphrodite for help. Aphrodite was surprised, as Hera wasn't her friend, but nevertheless helped her: she convinced Cupid to shoot an arrow at a princess at Colchis, Medea.
When Medea saw Jason, Cupid shot her and made her fall in love. After giving them the proper Xenia of food and drink, king Æetes asks the heroes who they are and why they came.
[[<img src="http://orig15.deviantart.net/da35/f/2017/006/2/b/continue_by_lawnmovver-dauh9bg.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|King Æetes ragemode]]
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Jason responds that the argonauts are all men of noblest blood, sons of grandsons of the deathless gods themselves. He also tells the king they came from Greece to ask him for the golden fleece. Æetes, however, is filled with anger, as he does not like foreigners. He says to himself, <font color="Red">"If these strangers had not eaten at my table I would kill them."<font color="White">
In silence Æetes ponders what he should do, and he thinks of a plan.
[[<img src="http://orig15.deviantart.net/da35/f/2017/006/2/b/continue_by_lawnmovver-dauh9bg.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|King Æetes challenge.]]
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(''Hero Journey Step 6: Tests for a special treasure or reward'')
Æetes tells Jason he will yield to him the golden fleece, if he or one of his crew could yoke two fire-breathing bulls, use them to plow a field; and plant the teeth of a dragon, which would then grow into a crop of hostile, armed men. Æetes claimed he has done this himself, and he would <font color ="red">"Give the fleece to no man less brave than he himself."<font color="white">
Jason accepts the challenge, and lets no argonaut but himself do the challenge. In his bravery, he states, <font color="orange">"I will make the trial, monstrous though it is, even if it is my doom to die."<font color="white">
But then, suddenly...
[[<img src="http://orig15.deviantart.net/da35/f/2017/006/2/b/continue_by_lawnmovver-dauh9bg.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Æetes Son to the Rescue.]]
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...one of Æetes' sons, whom Jason had saved, comes to Jason and gives him advice. He says, <font color="blue">"If only you could persuade my sister Medea, a mage who could do almost //anything//, would you be able to survive the challenge my father has set forth for you."<font color="white">
Meanwhile, Medea worries for Jason, yet she is ashamed that she worries for Jason, a foreigner she barely knows. She takes out a poison casket, ready to commit suicide, but then realizes she still wants to live. She leaves her chamber to find her nephew, the prince Jason had saved. The prince asks her to help Jason, something she had already decided on doing.
[[<img src="http://orig15.deviantart.net/da35/f/2017/006/2/b/continue_by_lawnmovver-dauh9bg.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Medea meets Jason.]]
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Medea goes to where Jason is. Jason speaks first and implores her to be kind to him. Medea gives him an ointment. After a few moments, Medea gains the courage to speak to him, telling him how to use the ointment. She tells him, <font color="green">"If you sprinkle the charm on your weapons, it will make the weapons, as well as you, invincible for a day. If the dragon-teeth men overwhelm you, throw a stone in their midst and they will kill eachother."<font color="white">
Medea tells Jason to never forget her, as she will never forget him. She then returns to palace and weeps over her treachery to her father. (Still a better love story than Twilight.)
[[<img src="http://orig15.deviantart.net/da35/f/2017/006/2/b/continue_by_lawnmovver-dauh9bg.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Jason does Trial.]]
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Jason tries the ointment, made from a plant that sprung from Prometheus' blood, and feels a terrible, irresistible power surge through him. He then goes to the field where king Æetes and the Colchians were waiting.
Bulls rush from their lair, breathing out scorching flames. Jason withstands these terrifying creatures, and forces them down on their knees, putting a yoke around their necks. He then drives the bulls across the fields, and casts the dragon's teeth into the furrows that he plowed. The crops sprung up, armed men rushing to attack him. However, Jason threw a stone in their midst, causing them all to fall upon their own spears. Jason had won the trial, and king Æetes bitterly planned his next treachery.
[[<img src="http://orig15.deviantart.net/da35/f/2017/006/2/b/continue_by_lawnmovver-dauh9bg.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Medea saves all.]]
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(''Hero Journey Step 7: Peak Experience'')
Medea, realizing that her father (Æetes) was planning something, begs the argonauts to let her join them, and to leave immediately. Medea then leads Jason to where the fleece is, and Jason promises to make Medea his wedded wife when he returns to Greece. A fearsome guardian serpent guards the fleece, hung on a tree, but Medea charms it to sleep with a magical song. Jason then takes the golden fleece from the tree, and the argonauts make their way back to Greece.
However, king Æetes, catching sight of this news, sends his son Apsyrtus in pursuit. Apsyrtus decides to... (I'm pretty sure depending on the story there were multiple options here.)
[[<img src="http://orig00.deviantart.net/30c4/f/2017/016/4/e/pursue_them__by_lawnmovver-davp52r.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Pursue]][[<img src="http://orig07.deviantart.net/5199/f/2017/016/5/3/join_them__by_lawnmovver-davp56e.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Join them.]]
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Apsytus' army is much larger than the argonaut crew. Thus, Medea sends a message to Apsyrtus telling him she longs to return home and would give him the fleece if he met her at a specific spot. He comes unsuspecting, but Jason leaps out and cuts him down, Apsyrtus' blood splashing all over Medea's silvery robe. The argonauts are able to escape. (When did this become Friday the 13th?!?)
Now the argonauts were almost finished with their journey, but they still had a few more trials to undergo. They crossed by the 6-headed Scylla and the whirlpool Charybdis, but Hera had sea nymphs guide them to safety. They also passed along Crete, where Talus lived. He was a creature made of all bronze except on one ankle. Medea prayed to the hounds of Hades to kill him. When Talus was about to hurl a boulder at the //Argo//, he grazed his ankle and he died. The heroes then rested at Crete and refreshed themselves.
[[<img src="http://orig15.deviantart.net/da35/f/2017/006/2/b/continue_by_lawnmovver-dauh9bg.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|End of Path1]]
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Apsyrtus decides to join the //Argo// instead of pursuing it. Æetes, in all his anger, pursues the //Argo// himself with a huge fleet. As Æetes' ship gains on the argonauts, Medea kills Apsyrtus and cut him into pieces, throwing the pieces into the sea. Æetes has to stop and gather to pieces, allowing the argonauts to escape. (Nevermind Twilight, this is an R-rated horror movie.)
Now the argonauts were almost finished with their journey, but they still had a few more trials to undergo. They crossed by the 6-headed Scylla and the whirlpool Charybdis, but Hera had sea nymphs guide them to safety. They also passed along Crete, where Talus lived. He was a creature made of all bronze except on one ankle. Medea prayed to the hounds of Hades to kill him. When Talus was about to hurl a boulder at the //Argo//, he grazed his ankle and he died. The heroes then rested at Crete and refreshed themselves.
[[<img src="http://orig15.deviantart.net/da35/f/2017/006/2/b/continue_by_lawnmovver-dauh9bg.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|End of Path1]]
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(''Hero Journey Step 8: Return with a Gift'')
The heroes leave Crete and arrive at Greece. Upon reaching Greece, the argonauts disband, and all of the heroes return home. Jason and Medea bring the Golden Fleece to Pelias. However, when they arrive, they find that Pelias had forced Jason's father to kill himself by drinking the blood of a bull, and his mother had died of grief. (N.B Dying from //grief// was not uncommon in older Greek epics. You could even call it an //epic//demic, if you will.)
For revenge against Pelias, Jason turned to Medea for help.
[[<img src="http://orig15.deviantart.net/da35/f/2017/006/2/b/continue_by_lawnmovver-dauh9bg.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Revenge]]
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This would be a good point to end our story. A story of would-be human sacrifice turned into a hero journey. Jason is really brave and takes dangerous challenges, but he basically relies on Medea for everything during the second half of the story anyways: During Æetes's trial, the only reason he survived was because of Medea, and the only reason he escaped from Colchis was because of her too. (The story could even be called "//Medea// Getting the Golden Fleece", but the early greeks weren't exactly feminists.) As you see, Medea did all of these things for him, and Jason himself promised to be with her forever.
Sounds like a happy ending, right? "They lived happily ever after..."
[[<img src="http://orig07.deviantart.net/5046/f/2017/016/5/4/credits_by_lawnmovver-davpafg.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Real Ending]]
But our story doesn't necessarily have a happy ending. After getting revenge on Pelias, Pelias' son, Acastus, chases Jason and Medea out of Iolcus, and they go to Corinth, where they have two children. Jason, wanting to improve his relations with the king of Corinth, Creon, decides to marry a princess of Corinth, Creusa or sometimes called Glauce, and puts away Medea. Medea, enraged at his ingratitude, spoke words that made the king of Corinth think she would harm the princess. After Medea is exiled, Jason comes to visit her to give her gold so that she may leave the country safely. Medea, however, refuses the gold. Medea then tells Jason about all the pain she went through to help him, but Jason says that it was the help of Aphrodite, as she causes Medea to love him. Medea, plotting revenge, then sends a poisoned robe as a gift to Creusa. When the princess wears the robe, a fire melts her flesh and she dies. Then, to get revenge on Jason, she murders her own two children. When Jason comes to kill her, Medea flees on a serpent drawn chariot. Jason curses her for what came to pass, but never realizes what was also his own fault.
Later, Jason and Peleus defeat Acastus, and Jason reclaims the throne of Iolcus. However, as a result of breaking his promise with Medea, he loses Hera's favor, and he thus died in his sleep when the mast of the rotting //Argo// fell on him.
The real end.
[[<img src="http://orig07.deviantart.net/5046/f/2017/016/5/4/credits_by_lawnmovver-davpafg.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Credits Sequence]]
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<center>CREDITS</center><font size=5px><img src="http://pre02.deviantart.net/a876/th/pre/f/2017/019/7/b/creditsside_by_lawnmovver-daw13fb.png" height=535.5px width=330px img align="right">
Story Writing - Brad Yuan/Hunter Haglid
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Editing - Dennis Chang/Jeremy Grunat
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Research - Jeremy Grunat/Zach Rippas
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Game Art - Hunter Haglid/Brad Yuan
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Story Telling - Demodocus the Bard
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Medea went to Pelias' daughters, and convinced them she knew the secret to immortality. She cut an old worn ram into many pieces, put the pieces into a pot of boiling water, uttered a charm, and then a young ram sprung out of the pot. Convinced, they had Medea gave Pelias a potent sleeping-drug, and persuaded the daughters to cut him into pieces. They cut Pelias into pieces, and then turned for Medea to turn him young again, but she was already gone. Horrified that they had killed their own father, Jason had gotten his revenge.
[[<img src="http://orig15.deviantart.net/da35/f/2017/006/2/b/continue_by_lawnmovver-dauh9bg.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|End of Path 2]]
Latin Words Used:
Bard- Bardus, Bardi
Messenger - Nuntius, Nuntii
Daughter - Filia, Filiae
Dragon - Draco, Draconis
Centaur - Centaurus, Centauri
Sandal - Solea, Soleae
Journey - Iter, Itineris
Prophet - Propheta, Prophetae
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This would be a good point to end our story. A story of would-be human sacrifice turned into a hero journey. Jason is really brave and takes dangerous challenges, but he basically relies on Medea for everything during the second half of the story anyways: During Æetes's trial, the only reason he survived was because of Medea, and the only reason he escaped from Colchis was because of her too. (The story could even be called "//Medea// Getting the Golden Fleece", but the early greeks weren't exactly feminists.) As you see, Medea did all of these things for him, and Jason himself promised to be with her forever.
Sounds like a happy ending, right? "They lived happily ever after..."
Seems like you didn't quite catch the gist of things. This story isn't over yet.
Our story doesn't necessarily have a happy ending. After getting revenge on Pelias, Pelias' son, Acastus, chases Jason and Medea out of Iolcus, and they go to Corinth, where they have two children. Jason, wanting to improve his relations with the king of Corinth, Creon, decides to marry a princess of Corinth, Creusa (or sometimes called Glauce), and puts away Medea. Medea, enraged at his ingratitude, spoke words that made the king of Corinth think she would harm the princess. After Medea is exiled by the king, Jason comes to visit her to give her gold so that she may leave the country safely. Medea, however, refuses the gold. Medea then tells Jason about all the pain she went through to help him, but Jason says that it was the help of Aphrodite that helped him, as she caused Medea to love him. Medea, plotting revenge, then sends a poisoned robe as a gift to Creusa. When the princess wears the robe, and a fire melts her flesh and she instantly dies. Then, to get revenge on Jason, she murders her own two children. When Jason comes to kill her, Medea flees on a serpent drawn chariot. Jason curses her for what came to pass, but never realizes what was also his own fault.
Later, Jason and Peleus defeat Acastus, and Jason reclaims the throne of Iolcus. However, as a result of breaking his promise with Medea, he loses Hera's favor, and he thus dies in his sleep, lonely and unhappy, when the mast of the rotting //Argo// falls on him.
The end.
[[<img src="http://orig07.deviantart.net/5046/f/2017/016/5/4/credits_by_lawnmovver-davpafg.png" height=103px width=307.5px>|Credits Sequence]]