Not long after King Aeetes got the Golden Fleece, an expedition was formed to take it from him. A man named Jason, heir to the throne, needed to accomplish a dangerous task to boost his self-esteem. As a kid he read countless stories or daring deeds and courageous adventures. However, he was a rather wimpy kid who was picked on even in kindergarten. When he heard about the Golden Fleece, Jason vowed to face all dangers and bring it bravely back to Greece. So he gathered a group of explorers called the Argonauts to go with him (The Argonauts were named after the ship - Argo - that bore them to the fleece. The group included such A-listers as Heracles, Orpheus, Castor and Pollux. The Argo was also an old constellation covering the southern sky now broken up into 6 modern constellations).
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Medea, a woman possessed |
After facing Harpies, pointy rocks, and mild seasickness Jason made it to the King Aeetes. Aeetes, of course, didn't want to give the fleece away. It still had that new fleece smell. But the King's daughter Medea, caught under a spell from Aphrodite, stood up for Jason. Medea helped him plow a field with fire-breathing bulls, defeat warriors that grew from dragon's teeth, and put a stalwart dragon to sleep to finally gain the fleece. In fact, Medea did all the work - mixing potions to entrance her enemies. Jason took the fleece and Medea back home with him where they did not live happily ever after. Once Aphrodite's spell wore off, Medea and Jason broke up... Alas, love is so fickle.