TW07 The Argonaut Affair NEW Read Online Free PDF Page B

his sandal, which was swiftly carried away by the current. Jason was upset because he would have to enter Iolchos with one foot bare, looking like a beggar, but the old woman whom he had helped across the river was actually the goddess Hera, Queen of the Immortals on Olympus, in disguise and though he lost his sandal, Jason gained her favor.
    When Jason came to Iolchos and arrived for an audience with King Pelias, the king was greatly disturbed. The Oracle of Delphi prophesied that he would lose his kingdom to a man who came to him wearing only one sandal. Thinking to rid himself of Jason, Pelias promised to relinquish his throne if Jason would bring back the golden fleece to Iolchos, thereby proving his worth to rule. Pelias knew such a quest would be hazardous and he was convinced Jason would never return from it.
    Jason went to the Oracle of Delphi and asked for guidance. Speaking with the voice of Hera, the Oracle told him to seek out Argus, the shipwright, and to have him build a galley with fifty oars, then to send out a call for heroes to accompany him upon his quest. Then the Oracle told him to cut down the Speaking Oak of Dodona and give Argus the trunk to carve into a figurehead which would guide him on his voyage. Jason did as he was told and while the ship was being built, the call went out across the land for heroes to sail with him. When the ship was finished, it was named the
Argo
in honor of its builder. The crew, calling themselves the Argonauts, set sail from Iolchos on their quest for the golden fleece....
     
     
    The programming run ended and Finn Delaney sat up, massaging his temples. Cybernetic programming always left him with a slight headache. He glanced over at Steiger, lying back in the contoured chair with his eyes closed. Andre Cross sat up and frowned.
    "That was the strangest mission programming session I've ever had," she said. "Gods who walk with mortals, oracles that see into the future, flying rams, monsters, supernatural events ..." She shook her head. "If I hadn't seen the centaur for myself, I'd swear someone played a joke and slipped in a fake program."
    "I was thinking the same sort of thing," Delaney said. "It's impossible to take the story seriously. It's an ancient fable, after all. Still, there's the centaur..." He glanced at Steiger, still lying back with his eyes closed.
    "Creed? "said Delaney.
    Steiger grunted in reply.
    "What's wrong?"
    "I'm thinking," Steiger said.
    "That could be dangerous," said Delaney, grinning.
    Steiger opened his eyes, but didn't smile.
    "It was a joke," Delaney said.
    "I got that," Steiger said.
    "Right," said Delaney. "Apparently what you don't got is a sense of humor."
    "Everybody has their own way of breaking the tension just before a mission," Steiger replied. He glanced at Delaney. "Some people make jokes. I guess I'm not one of those people."
    "How do
you
handle the tension?" Andre said.
    Steiger swung his feet down onto the floor and stood. "I don't get tense."
    Andre shook her head as she watched him leave the room, heading for the Ordnance Section. "I don't quite know what to make of him," she said. "We've been involved on several missions together, yet I still can't figure him out."
    "He's been out in the cold too long," Delaney said. "Field agent Phoenix, man of a thousand lives. We've seen only two of them-Temporal Corps deserter Barry Martingale and Pathan warlord Sharif Khan. Both very different personalities. We haven't seen much of Creed Steiger yet."
    "You make him sound schizophrenic," Andre said.
    "That's one of the reasons I've always had a hard time working with T.I.A. people, especially field agents," said Delaney. "The best of them have never been too tightly wrapped. Remember our old friend, Carnehan, agent Mongoose? He was an excellent case in point."
    "That doesn't sound like a promising analysis of our new partner," Andre said.
    "Maybe it's not," Delaney said. "But on the other hand, he's a survivor. The fact that he made bird