Starting a new life isn't easy—not when you carry a grave offense on your back and have stolen something sacred in the process. My mind was still a mess, unsure how to move forward. But one thing was clear: I had to avoid the Argo, the sea, Jason, and the Golden Fleece at all costs.
Why, you ask?
Because Lachesis, the Fate Sister herself, assigned me the role of a crew member aboard the Argo, sailing under the famously handsome hero named Jason. Which meant the Moirai would definitely send someone after me. I was sure of it.
And if I were captured and dragged back to the Arena of Fate, I couldn't begin to imagine what horrifying destiny Lachesis would craft for me next. A thousand times worse than before, no doubt. If I were lucky, Atropos might just cut my thread and end it quickly. But that wasn't exactly the ideal outcome either.
So why on earth would I board the Argo and wait for the Sisters to come claim me? No chance.
You agree with me, don't you?
The first thing I had to do was get as far away from the port as humanly possible.
The city I currently found myself in was called Iolcus, located in the region of Thessaly, ruled by an old king named Pelias. This king had all the traits of a classic villain, in full and grotesque glory.
Cruel. Ruthless. Deceptively cunning.
From what I knew, Pelias once led a coup against his own brother, the virtuous King Aeson, and usurped the throne. As a result, Aeson and his wife Alcimede fled into hiding with their newborn son—Jason.
Afraid that Pelias would one day discover their refuge and slaughter everyone there, the royal couple entrusted Jason to the famous centaur Chiron. They commanded him to raise the boy and teach him all the arts, so that one day he might return and avenge his parents.
A few days before I was reborn into this world, King Pelias held a grand festival in Iolcus to honor the gods. I wasn't entirely sure why he even bothered. In the near future, he'd end up meeting a grisly end in a boiling cauldron.
Of all the deities he worshipped with such fanfare, did any ever come to his aid?
Nope.
The ceremony might have gone off without a hitch if the old king hadn't crossed paths with a man wearing only one sandal (weird flex, right?). That man, of course, was Jason. The color drained from Pelias' face the moment he recognized his nephew, the rightful heir come to reclaim his stolen throne.
What surprised me most was that Pelias didn't immediately order Jason's execution. Would've been the smart move, right? I mean, he's the villain here, after all. But no—instead, he invited Jason into the palace and sent him off on a quest to retrieve the Golden Fleece. (Why? I have no idea.)
Predictably, that decision came back to bite him. Jason became the spear in his side, the loose thread that unraveled his reign, leading to his inevitable, miserable death.
Moral of the story? If you get a chance to eliminate a threat to your survival—take it. Don't be like King Pelias. Or you'll live just long enough to regret it.
Then again, maybe Pelias didn't really have a choice. Maybe he was just following the fate written for him by the Three Sisters of Destiny. Maybe, deep down, he didn't even want to make those foolish decisions.
Which brings me back to my own story—the fate I was given before I made my escape. A fate that said I was to become a crewman on Jason's journey for the Golden Fleece.
And now I wasn't so sure I could outrun it.
Being part of Jason's crew might just lead to my early death.