Returning to the palace, Eet convened the noblest inhabitants of Colchis for a council. Long after midnight, the king consulted with them about how to destroy the Argonauts. Eet guessed that only with the help of Medea could Jason accomplish the feat. Medea felt that both she and Jason were in great danger. She could not find peace in her magnificent palaces. Sleep fled from her eyes. She rose from her bed at night and quietly left the palace of Eet. Along paths known only to her alone, she goes to the shore of Phasis, to where the bright fire lit by the Argonauts burns. Approaching the fire, she called Jason and Phrixus's youngest son, Frontis. Medea told Jason what evil forebodings were troubling her, and convinced him to immediately go with her for the fleece. Jason put on his armor and went to the sacred grove of Ares. Everything around was shrouded in darkness, only in the grove a fleece hanging on a sacred tree sparkled with a golden sheen. When Medea and Jason entered the grove, a terrible dragon rose up, spewing flames. Medea called upon the mighty god of sleep Hypnos. She whispers terrible spells and pours magic potions on the ground. The dragon fell to the ground, he still raised his weakened head, but Medea sprinkled him with a sleeping potion, his mouth closed, his eyes sparkling with fire closed, and, engulfed in sleep, he stretched out near the tree on which the golden fleece hung. Jason took off his fleece, he was in a hurry to return to the Argo as quickly as possible.
The heroes crowded around Jason and Medea in surprise, examining the Golden Fleece. But there was no time to hesitate; it was necessary to leave Colchis before Eet found out about the theft of the rune. Jason cut off the ropes that tied the Argo to the shore, the heroes grabbed the oars, and like an arrow, the Argo rushed downstream of the Phasis, to the sea. Here comes the sea. The heroes lean on the oars, the Argo flies like a bird across the waves, Colchis is moving further and further.
Early in the morning, Eet learned about the theft of the Golden Fleece and that Medea had fled with the Argonauts. Eet became furious. He called the Colchians to the seashore. But the Argo is already far away; it is not visible among the waves of the sea. Eet ordered the Colchians to gather in pursuit. He threatens them with death if they do not overtake the Argonauts. The Colchians launched ships and, with Eetus's son Absyrtus at their head, set off in pursuit of the Argonauts.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru