Jason's Quest

A Task Of Bullish Proportions

Labor I: Plow the Fields

     Jason's bronze cuirass gleamed atop his oiled frame. As Helios blazed on Colchis, Jason met with Aeetes, whose crimson tunic flapped in the sudden wind's howl, at the edge of a barren, cracked patch of earth that had never felt the bite of the plow. Beads of perspiration trickled into pools, rivulets streaming down the hero's neck and back.

     "Your first task is embarrassingly simple," king Aeetes said. "All you must do is yoke those bulls there to the plow and till the fields."

     "That's all you require?"

     "For the first task."

     This should be easy. No beasts to wrangle with. I've yoked animals and plowed fields before. The hero straightened his breastplate and battle skirt, his skin glistening in the oil Medea had given him. He wheeled to see two hulking long-horned bulls, pawing the earth with bronze hooves. The orbs of their eyes glowed scarlet with fury and columns of flames shot from their nostrils. Jason knotted two ropes to a tethering post, assessing the beasts.

     Jason crept closer to the bulls. Bright sunlight glinted off their slick, onyx coats. Their heads lowered, broad shoulders and backs arcing to the heavens, tails whipping the air. The bulls charged forward, sounding like a stampede of thousands, dust swirling behind them.

     "Yah!" Jason yelled, turning to run, baiting them to follow.

     Jason whipped his lasso several times and successfully hooked the first bull. He then ran around a tethering post. The bull gave chase and scorching fire roared from its furnace, igniting Jason's backside before he could evade. Because of the oil Medea had given him, the fire felt like the warm rays of the sun. Nothing more. Ha! That's what the oil was for.

     The second bull reversed course, slicing through Jason's retreat angle from the first bull. Ramming into Jason's midsection, the bull sent him flying. He landed with a thud. King Aeetes bellowed laughter as Jason scrambled to narrowly avoid being trampled by the bull's sharp hooves.  

     The hero quickly rose to his feet and grabbed the second rope. He swung the lasso and missed. With the bull barreling toward him, Jason feigned a sprint to the right, and then wheeled around to his left to escape the bull's path. Jason noticed the bull tiring so he swung the lasso again, and hooked the second bull as it turned to make another charge.

     The hero stepped just out of reach of the two bulls as they hissed fury, straining against the ropes, groaning, threatening to uproot the post. Wondering if the enchanted oil would hold, he approached the snorting beasts from behind. The fiery assault continued. The oil still eased the fire's bite as Jason yoked the seething bulls to the plow and began plowing the fields. Inch by inch, and row by row; Jason's muscles trembled to control the bulls, leaving rows of tilled earth in their wake.

     "Impressive!" the King said, clearly perturbed at the ease of the task's completion. "I'm not certain how you escaped a charred backside, but that task was the easiest of the three by far."

     Jason smiled to himself, if only he knew how I'd avoided the fire's fury. The hero passed the king and Aeetes threw him a bag of seeds to sow.

     "Now, all you must do is plant these seeds," the king barked across the plain.

Labor II: Sow The Fields

     Jason cracked the whip behind the subdued bulls as they begrudgingly trudged forward. Walking behind them, he jammed his hands into the seed bag. His eyes shot around the plain of Ares, wary of any unforeseen dangers, as he grabbed a fistful of dragon's teeth and spread them evenly along the plowed lines.

     "Interesting seeds," Jason remarked, after several passes. "I wonder what they grow? Certainly there must be more to this task."

     Behind Jason as he walked, fully-grown, armed soldiers sprang from the tilled earth. The growling menaces brandished rusted iron swords and shields half eaten by age. Toward Jason they stalked. Hearing crunching footfalls behind him, Jason wheeled around.

     "Τα παιδιά της κόλασης! Children of Hades!"

     Releasing the bulls, Jason ripped his sword from its sheath and set his feet as the army of soldiers approached. With wide arcing swings, he shattered soldier after soldier. Yet for every one vanquished, three more rose in its place. Hundreds sprang from the earth, and hundreds more upon their heels.

     Jab. Thrust. Swipe. In a blur of movement, Jason whirled, cutting a wide path through the constricting mass of soldiers. And yet, still more emerged from the ground like ants from an anthill. Stepping over fallen comrades, the army of warriors threatened to encircle the hero.

     Frustrated and wearying, Jason recalled the story of Kadmos of Thebes and how he defeated the Spartoi soldiers. Suddenly, he knew how to defeat them. Quickly backtracking his steps, eluding the warriors' demonic charge, the hero searched for a substantial stone. He pried the rock from its resting place and hurled it into the middle of the charging mass. As expected, they turned on one another, every soldier ripping every other to shreds. A pile of bones heaped in short order. Σας ευχαριστώ, Κάδμος! Thank you, Kadmos!

     Jason's head swiveled to ensure that all soldiers had been accounted for. He then strode briskly to where Aeetes stood. "Very clever, King. Now unhand the fleece and I'll be on my way!"

     "I couldn't even if I wanted to," the king cackled, still peeved at the hero's success. "You see, you must still go and take it!"

     "Very well. Where shall I find it?"

     "It is just inside a cave high in the hills that guard our city." Aeetes pointed toward the rugged inclines.

     "It's in a cave?" Jason asked warily. "To simply... find and retrieve?"

     "Oh, with your proven cunning, you will likely find it. Retrieval, however, is another matter," Aeetes crooned, as he turned to leave. "I'll be waiting for you when you get there."

     Jason slowly removed his breastplate and poured water over his head to cool himself. The water snaked across his chest and rivered down his defined abdominals. Shaking his head, the hero sprayed excess water in a wide radius. His strong hands rustled vigorously through his dark curls as he walked back to his camp to grab some food before the trek into the hills.

     Peleus, Orpheus, and the twins approached their leader upon his return to camp, the return itself promising success. Yet, one final task remained. And, while this one final task seemed easy enough on its surface, Jason knew to expect the unexpected.

     Before leaving camp and trudging into the hills, the last thing he told his Argonauts was simple, "If I do not return by Eos' first light tomorrow, you must put out to sea, for I am already dead."

     Stern faces and concerned stares followed Jason as he left the camp under full daylight. But soon, dusk would threaten, and with it, tension. For, the night promised an unseen anxiety.

     The sun at his back as he climbed, Jason trekked the dry inclines. Trees offered sparse respite from the sun's swelter. Jason crested a ridge and across a shallow plateau, amidst fallen ruins, at the base of a sheer face, he saw the entrance to he cave the sought. Aeetes stood in the middle of the clearing with his arms crossed, framed by the cave behind him.

     "Fear has not overtaken you, I see," the king barked.

     "I fear none but the gods."

     "Then by all means... don't let me stand in your way." Aeetes unfolded his arms, pointing to the cave's entrance. "Inside you'll find the fleece you seek. Simply go in and retrieve it. I keep it here... under careful watch."

     "Watched by whom...?"

     "Oh, you'll see." The king laughed from his belly.