Simon Hawke - Argonaut Affair

"It may not be wise to depend too much upon the gods," said Theseus. "I have always found that the gods help those who help themselves. We should never have allowed ourselves to be separated from the others. With us here as his hostages, Aietes may try to force our friends to reveal the location of our ship."

"I do not think that Hercules would be an easy man to force," said Idmon. "Have faith, Theseus. And patience. Both are kingly virtues. We have not yet-" he stopped, abruptly. "Listen!"

"I hear nothing," Theseus said.

But a moment later, they all heard it, a distinct, low scraping sound like that of large stones grinding against one another. A portion of the wall began to swing out slowly, revealing a secret passageway that had been concealed by the mortared cracks between the stones.

Theseus unsheathed his sword and moved to stand concealed behind the hidden door as it opened slowly. Jason stood where he was, so that whoever was behind the door would see him clearly, but he too unsheathed his sword.

"Our benefactor has arrived," said Idmon and Medea came into the room.

Theseus quickly looked to see if anyone was coming through behind her, but she said, "I am alone. I have come to help you."

"Why would Aietes' daughter wish to help us?" Theseus said. "Take care, Jason, this is some sort of trick."

"No trick," Medea said. She came up close to Jason and placed her hands upon his chest. "Look into my eyes and say if you see trickery."

"What man has ever discerned trickery in a woman's eyes?" said Theseus, but his words did not stop Jason from gazing long and not at all hard into Medea's eyes.

"From the first moment that I saw you," Medea said, "I knew that you were not like other men. It took great courage to have come so far and to have marched so boldly to the palace and spoken so plainly to my father's face. I have never met another who would dare such things!"

"Would you have us believe," said Theseus, "that you would turn against your father merely because Jason has impressed you with his daring and his courage?"

"When you went to Crete to slay the Minotaur, did not Ariadne turn against her father because she was impressed with yours?" said Jason. "Is that not how I heard it from your own lips when you told the tale?"

"Well, perhaps that was not quite the same," said Theseus, uneasily.

"It is not the only reason," said Medea. "I do this for my poor grieving sister as much as for myself. She, too, has dreamed of Phrixus since he died and took it to be an omen that his spirit cannot rest. After you had gone, Chalciope came to me, weeping because her husband's spirit was tormented and heartbroken that brave men had to die because our father will not part with the golden fleece.

"He believes it to be the source of all the wealth and good fortune in our kingdom," she continued. "He wishes to keep it because it brings him fame. He has commissioned poets to compose works about it which increase his fame and bring many here to pay him tribute, yet these works also bring pirates and thieves to Colchis."

"You mean men such as ourselves," said Theseus.

"No," said Medea. "You are different. It was clear at once, even to my father, that you were not brigands. Jason came openly, in the full light of day, and spoke to my father as one ruler to another. We in Colchis have also heard the tale of Theseus, who killed the Minotaur and became the king of Athens. And who has not heard of Hercules? Among our soldiers are men who came from Thebes and know him. Aietes knows that such men do not join with pirates."

"Perhaps not," said Theseus, a bit less antagonistic now that his vanity had been appealed to. "Yet that still does not tell us why you would wish to help us."

"You do not know what it is like here," she said. "Since the golden fleece came into his possession, my father has become obsessed with it. To him, it is a token from the gods in recognition of his power. He has employed men such as Kovalos to protect it, but what protection is there from Kovalos? The mercenaries who make up the palace guard place Kovalos first, before my father, who will do anything to keep his favor. Kovalos does whatever pleases him and I fear that it would please him to have me for his wife. Chalciope has sent her sons away, fearing for their lives, yet in doing so has only made the way clear for Kovalos, who has convinced my father that they have gone away to raise an army so that they might come back and seize the throne. My father became frightened and gave him permission to recruit even more soldiers, mercenaries who came from some foreign land and care more for gold than for our kingdom. You can guess to whom those men will give their loyalty. There is only one more thing Kovalos needs to make his place secure and that is me. With the sons of Phrixus gone and Aietes' daughter as his wife, no one could dispute his right to rule in Colchis. My father knows I loathe Kovalos, but he fears him and has already promised me to him, thinking to gain his favor. You are my only chance. Tonight, while the soldiers are kept occupied watching your men and searching for your ship, Chalciope plans to escape and join her sons. I can help you get the golden fleece. All I ask in return is that you take me with you."

"How would we escape the palace?" Jason asked. "And what of my men?"

"This passageway leads to others that will take us from the palace," said Medea, "but you will need me to show the way. Chalciope can arrange to have your friends escape. There are still some soldiers in our army who remember Phrixus and will help us, but we must not waste time. I heard my father tell Kovalos to send soldiers in here through this very secret passage while you slept tonight, to put you in chains."

Jason shook his head. "It does not sit well with me, to sneak off in the middle of the night like someone running from a fight."

"Yet there is no fight to run from," Idmon said. "Under the pretext of hospitality, we have been taken prisoner. True, we have been allowed to keep our weapons, but that was only to strengthen the pretext. If an effort had been made to take our arms, or if we had been asked to give them up, we would have suspected trickery and had a chance to fight, but as it turned out that chance was denied us. We have acted honorably, no one would dispute that. It was Aietes who tricked us into this position, so that we are now his prisoners. And as prisoners, it is our honorable duty to attempt escape."

Jason pursed his lips and nodded, "Yes, that is true. I see that now. Escaping from imprisonment is not the same as running from a fight."

"Nicely done," Delaney whispered to Idmon.

"Yes, I thought so too," the soothsayer whispered back.

"But stealing the fleece like a common thief does not seem right," said Jason. "I would much rather win it in fair combat."

"But how could it be fair when my father's men outnumber you so greatly?" asked Medea.

"That is beside the point," said Jason. "A brave man does not reckon odds before he goes into a battle."

"Quite right, on both counts," Idmon said. "A brave man does not reckon odds, indeed, and that is beside the point. You yourself said that it would not be stealing if you were only carrying out the wishes of the gods. And it cannot be called stealing if you were to take from Aietes that which does not belong to him so that you might return it to its proper owner."

Jason frowned. "You confound me, Idmon. Explain what you mean."

Idmon raised his eyebrows and shrugged elaborately. "I should think it would be obvious," he said. "Does not the golden fleece rightfully belong in Iolchos? Did not the gods themselves reveal to you that it was so? And was not the ram itself, from which the fleece came, given to Nephele? As I recall the story, she sent the ram to carry Phrixus and Helle out of danger, but the story makes no mention of her giving the ram to them. For all we know, she must have told it to return to her so that she would know that Phrixus and Helle had reached safety. How was she to know the ram would die? With Nephele's own death, her possessions would have passed on to her children, but with both her children dead now, it is clear that the next of kin stand to inherit and that would have been your father, Aeson. But now, with your father gone, you are the next of kin, so the golden fleece rightfully belongs to you. Surely, a man cannot steal that which already belongs to him!"