Golden Fleece

(Art by the Underworld Painter; Photograph by Jastrow)

## Owners

### Main Owner

Aeëtes (formerly), Jason (formerly), Medea (formerly), Polyphemus (formerly), Camp Half-Blood

The **Golden Fleece**, also known as **Chrysomallos**, is a powerful magical artifact from Greek mythology and is closely associated with the myth of Jason and the Argonauts. It is currently in the possession of Camp Half-Blood and guarded by the dragon Peleus.

## Description

It has the appearance of a fleece made out of pure gold. It also said to reek of sulfur.

When under the power of the Mist, it changes into a red-and-gold high school letterman jacket with the Greek letter Omega on it.

## History

### Chrysomallos

Athamas, a founder of Halos in Thessaly and the king of the city of Orchomenus in Boeotia took the nymph Nephele as his first wife. They had two children, the boy Phrixus and the girl Helle. Later Athamas became enamored of and married Ino, the daughter of Cadmus. When Nephele left in anger, drought came upon the land.

Ino was jealous of her stepchildren and plotted their deaths. She ordered her personal servants to secretly cook the grains that were supposed to be given to the people, resulting in a famine which many believed to be a punishment from the gods, then persuaded Athamas that sacrificing Phrixus was the only way to end the punishment.

Enraged, Nephele appeared to the children with a winged ram whose fleece was of gold. The ram had been sired by Poseidon in his primitive ram-form upon Theophane, a nymph and the granddaughter of Helios, the sun-god. Poseidon carried Theophane to an island where he made her into a ewe, so that he could have his way with her among the flocks. There Theophane's other suitors could not distinguish the ram-god and his consort.

Nephele's children escaped on the golden ram over the sea, but Helle fell off and drowned in the strait that was later named after her, the Hellespont. The ram spoke to Phrixus, encouraging him, and took the boy safely to Colchis, on the easternmost shore of the Black Sea.

There Phrixus sacrificed the winged ram to Poseidon, essentially returning him to the god. The ram became the constellation Aries.

Phrixus settled in the house of Aeëtes, son of Helios the sun god. He hung the Golden Fleece preserved from the sacrifice of the ram on an oak in a grove sacred to Ares, the god of war and one of the Dodekatheon. The golden fleece was defended by bulls with hoofs of brass and breath of fire. It was also guarded by a never sleeping dragon with teeth which could become soldiers when planted in the ground. The dragon was at the foot of the tree on which the fleece was placed.

### Polyphemus' Possession

After an unknown amount of time in the hand of Medea, presumably after her death, the Golden Fleece was taken and guarded by Polyphemus the Cyclops. He used it to make his island better (for himself) and to lure satyrs there so he could eat them. The satyrs were drawn towards it's powerful healing nature magic thinking it was the god of the wild, Pan. The Fleece was hung on a tree ferociously guarded by flesh-eating sheeps.

## Abilities

* It can cure any living thing. It can make grass, flowers, and all the plants healthier. It can also heal humans and demigods, even capable of bringing someone from the verge of death back into life at full health.
	+ It can accelerate the healing process of anyone wearing it to a near god-like level.
* It can bring prosperity and good fortune to anywhere it is located.
* It can cause plant life in the area around it to grow faster than normal and produce from twice to ten times more than the normal amount. Because of it, anywhere the fleece is kept will always get a bountiful harvest unless the area was cursed by the gods.
	+ It can produce a barrier that protect said area from bad influences, such as curses or Justin Bierber concerts.
* It is sentient and have a consciousness of its own.
	+ As a son of Poseidon, the fleece is capable of giving others advices on sailing and fishing.
	+ It is in-depth in multiple schools of magic, especially in curses and potion-making, the result of its time with Medea.
* It can amplify the magical power of any magic user or magical artifact. It is currently used to strengthen the borders of Camp Half-Blood.
* It can radiate a godly aura reminiscent of a nature deity. Nature-orientated species such as satyrs and nymphs are often confused and mistook it for the divine aura of the Greek god Pan, or his Roman counterpart Faunus.