Jason and the Fleece of Hoenn
Chapter 9 – Goldenrod City
When Jason woke up, he was lying in a bed. He was covered by a warm blanket. He stirred.
"How do you feel?"
It took a while for the question to register, and longer for Jason to work out who said it. He opened eyes. Lucario was leaning over him.
"Lu…cario?" Jason croaked.
He tried to get up but he felt sore. He tried again, but every muscle in his body complained. His first thought was that he had trained too hard the previous day. But he knew he had to get up and do his morning chores.
"Take it easy. You're at Argo's house."
"Argo … who was that again?"
"Ruby's uncle's. We made it."
Ru's uncle? That was strange. When he woke up, he was sure that he and Lucario were in their cabin in the Viridian Forest. Hadn't he been playing with Buff? He looked around him, and the room did not look familiar. It was true, he was not at home.
He tried to remember. Slowly, recollections formed ... coming to Johto, meeting Ru, Alph, the crazy forest, the raft … The raft! Suddenly everything dumped itself into his consciousness in a series of mental flashes. He sat up in a panic, fighting the stiffness and soreness.
"Is everyone OK?" he shouted.
"Yes, we're all here. I believe we're safe in this house … for now."
Then the worst memory of all came to him. His eyes opened wide. He gripped the bed and mouthed the worst horror he could imagine.
"Buff?" He made no effort to hide his emotions. He let them out in a surge of panic and pain. "Is she all right? Did she make it?"
"Settle down, Jason. I said we're all fine."
Jason's panic eased, but he was still anxious to see her.
"She was in a bad way when they rescued her," Lucario went on. "At first we didn't know if she would live. But she's strong—she still needs rest, but she'll pull through."
Jason nodded and took a deep breath. Having fully awoken now, he looked around the room. It was a small, shabby room with bits of old furniture including the bed he was laying on. It had a musty, unfamiliar smell. Rays of sunlight from a half-opened window spread warmth into the room. Unfamiliar items lay here and there, as if the room belonged to someone else.
He also now started noticing his bodily needs.
"I'm busting," he said. "And I'm so thirsty … and hungry too."
"Oh, apparently this house has a … what was it … a 'toilet'," said Lucario. "And we're in a city, bigger than Viridian Town. It's so demeaning. I can't go outside and dig a hole—I have to use a human toilet!"
Jason looked around to identify the door. He got out of bed, but instantly felt weak and off balance. Lucario caught him by the arm. Jason winced at the pain in his muscles. Lucario let Jason lean on him as he helped him to the door.
The door led to a small corridor, at one end of which a set of stairs ran down. Apparently they were in a two-storey house, the first time he had ever seen such a thing. Lucario got a good grip on Jason and helped him down the stairs. At the bottom was another small corridor, one door of which was open and from which conversation could be heard.
Lucario led Jason to the open door. It looked like a kitchen with a table in the centre. Around the table sat Ru, a young woman a few years older than Jason, and an adult woman. Like the people in the village, and unlike the people of Alph, their clothes looked old, worn, and patched, but at least they were not dirty.
When they noticed Jason, they turned to look at him.
"Jason, my dear boy?" said the woman, then gasped. Ru smirked, and the young woman looked like she couldn't make up her mind whether to look at him or not. Jason couldn't figure out why they reacted like that. He was sure he didn't do anything.
"Oh my, I washed your clothes," said the woman. "Wait here, I'll get them. They should be dry by now."
"It's OK, I don't feel cold," said Jason.
She gave him a queer look. "I'll get them all the same," she said as she got up and walked out another door at the other end of the kitchen.
"Where's that … place where I have to go to pee?" asked Jason.
The young woman giggled but tried to hide the fact. Jason couldn't figure out what was wrong with her. Didn't everyone need to do that?
"That way," said Ru, pointing back into the corridor. "Here, Lu, I'll take him," he said to Lucario.
Lucario made sure Jason was steady before entering the kitchen and taking a seat at the table. Meanwhile Ru got up and led Jason to a small room at the opposite end of the corridor. Inside the room there was a low bench with some sort of flat, round object on it. Next to it on the ground was a small box.
"That's a toilet," he said. "Actually, I haven't used one in years."
Ru stepped over and lifted the object which turned out to be a lid and placed it to the side. Under the lid Jason saw a hole cut into the bench. What struck Jason the most, though, was the stench coming out from the hole.
"It smells bad! What is this place?"
"You squirt in there," Ru said, pointing to the hole. "Don't get any on the floor or people are gonna get mad at you. If you need to poo, you sit on it and afterwards wipe yourself with leaves that are in that box.
"So I can't just go behind a tree or dig a hole outside?" Jason complained.
"No you can't," Ru replied firmly.
"But why does it smell so bad?"
"There's a sewer under there. But this isn't bad really coz we're next to the sea. Inland they have public toilets where you gotta do it in pots. They stink a lot worse than this."
"The pot didn't smell so bad at Praxis' house," Jason said.
"That's because we were special guests and they gave us clean ones."
Jason could barely believe what he was about to be put through. Living in the forest was so much easier.
"By the way, what's a … 'sewer'?" he asked.
"It's like a river that people've dug under the city. It carries away the … stuff that goes down the toilet," Ru replied and left Jason to his business.
Jason resigned himself to what he had to put up with. He would never had guessed that life in a city would be so different, so demeaning, compared to living in a forest. He shrugged, tried not to breathe too much, aimed very carefully, and squirted. He sighed happily at the feeling of relief. It must have been a whole day since he last went.
"Hey, keep the curtain shut when you're doing it," said Ru, sounding somewhat annoyed as he came back and pulled the curtain shut.
"Why?"
"You're weird," was the only reply Jason would get.
When Jason finished, he decided he should put the lid back on. Then he went back to the kitchen, by which time the woman had given him his clothes which were clean and dry. He put them on and seated himself with the others. He was offered food and drink, which he consumed hungrily.
He looked up at the woman. She was smiling at him, as if pleased he was eating.
"Thanks," he mumbled, his mouth full. He paused for a moment and considered. "Um … who are you?"
"I'm Auria, Argo's wife," she replied. "Last time I saw you, Jason, you were just one year old, so you don't remember me."
Jason took the opportunity while she was talking to swallow his mouthful and gulp down some water.
"Uh … pleased to meet you … uh … again, sort of." Jason had never met many strangers in his life, and he suddenly discovered that he didn't quite know how to introduce himself. It was yet one more thing he'd have to figure out. "So Argo has a ship, is that right?"
She considered him for a moment before replying.
"Yes, that's right. We'll get to that when he comes home. For now, don't you want to know the rest of the family?" she asked.
Jason nodded while stuffing more food into his mouth.
"This is my daughter, Aristea," Auria said, gesturing to the young woman who was also sitting at the table. "I have an older daughter, Athelia, who's married and lives in Ecruteak Town. And Argo is at sea but we're expecting him home tonight. He'll be so happy to see you at last."
Jason looked at Aristea. She seemed nice enough. She resembled her mother, although Aristea seemed more shy. Auria seemed less reserved than her daughter and was happy to do what she could to please Jason. He started liking her already.
"Only thing, Jason," said Auria, "it looks like you lost one of your sandals. The other one is outside still drying, but it won't be much use to you."
Jason was disappointed to hear that. At the time he had lost it, he was in no state to notice, but thinking back, it must have happened when he fell into the water. Thinking of the incident made him wonder what had happened, and how he and the others were saved.
"So what happened after I fell off the raft?" he asked.
"There was a big wave that lifted us high," said Ru, "and then we came crashing down. I was almost knocked off, but I managed to hold on. But then when I looked to see if everyone was OK, you and Buff and Praxis weren't there."
"I saw Praxis lose hold and hit you," said Lucario. "You both fell into the water. I managed to grab hold of Praxis, but I couldn't reach you. After that, it was too dark to see you and Buff in the water."
"The rest of us were managing to hold on until the ship came over," said Ru. "I pointed to where I thought you and Buff must be. Fortunately from deck they managed to spot Buff so they rowed over and got you. After that they came back for the rest of us."
"It was a foolish thing you did," said Auria.
"Aw, auntie," Ru replied, "we couldn't think of another way to get into town."
"Well you're all extremely fortunate," she replied. "And you were lucky the captain who rescued you is on our side, although most of them are, thankfully. If it was one of the king's ships, you would all be in prison right now."
"So Lucario, you said Praxis fell in but you managed to hold onto him?" Jason asked.
"That's right. He was injured in the fall."
"So where is he now? And where are the other Pokémon?"
"The Pokémon are outside in the garden," Auria answered. "The other boy is asleep upstairs in my bed. And that's another thing. What if the king finds out an Alphic boy is in Goldenrod?" She lifted her hands to her cheeks. "Then he'll know Alph helped you. Goodness knows those poor people don't need more trouble."
Everyone was silent at that point. Jason couldn't help pondering what might happen and how they would go about keeping Praxis' identity secret.
"Oh, which reminds me," she added. "His clothes should be dry. I better take them to him. We don't want any more naked teenagers walking around the house."
Jason was surprised at that comment. Did he do something strange coming down with no clothes on? A long time ago, he realized that, unlike Pokémon, people wore clothes. He often went around without clothes in the cabin and sometimes even in the forest if it was very hot, and Lucario never said anything. But then, Lucario was a Pokémon, and Pokémon didn't wear clothes. But then again, when they were playing in the creek a few days ago, and when they were learning to swim, all three of them had to take their clothes off to go into the water, and neither Praxis nor Ru said anything to suggest that it was unusual. Jason found it very confusing.
Moments later, when Auria came back, she held up Praxis' chiton at arms length, shook her head and said, "Anyone sees this, they'll know where he's from. We'll have to find him some old Johto-style clothes from somewhere. But he's too small for Argo's clothes."
As she was about to take Praxis his clothing, Jason asked if he could go with her. Feeling recharged somewhat but still sore, he took the stairs slowly and followed her to the room. The room was not much larger than the room he had been in, and had a bed that seemed to be very big. In fact, it was big enough to fit two people. Jason started to wonder why someone would need such a large bed, but his attention was quickly diverted to the figure lying on it.
Praxis was asleep. He was covered by a sheet up to his chest. Underneath, Jason could see his arm was bandaged up. While Auria laid his chiton on a piece of furniture, Jason walked closer to have a look at him. As he did so, the floor creaked, and Praxis stirred.
Auria looked at Jason and held a finger to her mouth. Jason knew by now that the gesture meant to not to say anything. But Praxis opened his eyes and mumbled something.
"How do you feel, dear?" said Auria.
"Uh … OK, sort of. My arm's still sore," he said with a wince and an attempt to wriggle his arm.
"Keep it still," she said. "We want the bone to heal properly."
Praxis noticed Jason was there and smiled at him. "Guess the raft wasn't such a good idea after all," he said. In spite of all that happened, Praxis was still cheery, and it offered Jason some encouragement.
"I'm sorry," said Jason.
"No, no," said Praxis, "we were all in it together." He sighed. "My parents are going to be mad at me when they find out, though."
"Well I'm mad at Ruby for getting you all into this," said Auria. "You could've all drowned! Anyway, I'm not here to scold anyone. We need to get you mended, dear boy. We can't send you back to your parents with your arm in this condition!"
"Is it broken?" asked Praxis meekly.
"Not badly broken. But you're young, and I've splinted it up for you, so you'll be fine in a few weeks. You just need to keep it still so it doesn't hurt."
The mention of pain reminded Jason of his backpack and the medications that Mrs Green had given him.
"Is my backpack OK?" Jason asked.
"It was a job to wash it, with all that ruined food in it," replied Auria.
"Inside there was a package with small bottles," said Jason.
"Yes, yes, we didn't know what they were. I have them downstairs."
"Can I have them?" asked Jason.
"All in good time. We have to get this young man down for some food. I put your piece of clothing over there, dear. Can you manage the stairs?"
"I don't know," replied Praxis. "It hurts when I move it."
"Well keep your arm in the sling, dear."
"Auria," said Jason, "I might have something that can help with the pain."
"What? How is that possible?"
"I have an ointment that's made from stun spore," Jason answered. "If I put it on his arm, it'll make it not hurt so much."
A few minutes later, after some urging from Jason and some hopeful pleading from Praxis, Auria agreed to fetching Jason's medicines, and she unbandaged Praxis' arm to reveal a very nasty bruise. He applied the ointment at the site of the injury and bandaged it up again. Once the ointment had taken effect, Praxis was much happier, while Auria was amazed. She had never heard of such a thing before. She then helped Praxis on with his clothes, took him downstairs, sat him at the table and gave him some food and water.
Jason went outside into the small garden and spent some time with his Pokémon, especially taking time to thank Buff for risking her own life to save him. Ru joined him and they played around with Happy, teaching him a few tricks, until it was dark.
Soon after they went inside, they heard the front door open and shut. Argo had arrived. He was a solidly built man with a decent height, and had piercing eyes. He looked almost fierce at first, but quickly turned out to be warm and friendly. After greeting his wife and daughter, he turned his attention to the three boys, saying that he heard from the captain who saved them about their unusual attempt to enter the city and their dramatic rescue. He had been very eager to meet them.
"Ruby," he said proudly, "it's been too many years. Look how you've grown."
After smothering his nephew in a big bear hug at which Ru feigned a protest, Argo turned to Jason. "And Jason, last time I saw you—"
"I was a baby," Jason put in with a smile, soaking in the attention. Argo embraced Jason also, which was a novelty for Jason but somehow it warmed his heart.
"And this is the Alphic boy?" he said.
"I'm Praxis, sir," Praxis replied.
"What are we going to do with you, boy?" He shook his head as if to disapprove, but Jason could see in his eyes that Praxis was most welcome in his house. He tousled Praxis's hair, much to the latter's annoyance. "Ah well, time for my dinner, and then we'll talk more."
However, Argo didn't end up doing much talking apart from asking a few questions. He was understandably tired after a some days at sea, so he was mainly interested in finding out Jason's history in Kanto, his journey to Johto, how he met up with Ru, and what happened at Alph. As for how Jason should approach the king and what Argo could do to help Jason, that was left for the next day. Sleeping arrangements were a bit of a challenge, with so many people and Pokémon to accommodate, but Argo's family were very hospitable and did everything they could to make their guests comfortable.
The next morning, Auria gave Praxis a set of Johtian style clothes that she stayed up late to make by adjusting some of Argo's old clothes. They were raggedy, but she said that they would stand out less than brand new clothes, which she couldn't afford for him anyway. Since there were now many mouths to feed, she sent the three boys after breakfast to go to the market to get more food, with strict orders for all of them to stay out of trouble and not do anything to attract attention. Actually, Jason couldn't see what was so hard about it. It wasn't like he'd never gone to a shop before. Jason rode on Fluff since he didn't want to walk barefoot, and Ru took Happy with him also. Praxis had to walk with his arm in a sling, but soon got used to it.
"I wish I could send a message home," sighed Praxis.
"Sorry, you heard what Uncle Argo said," Ru replied.
When Praxis said that he wanted to send a message to his family to tell them where he was, Argo told him not to. The mail service was under the king's control, and any message sent to Alph would be reported. The only way to send a message there was either by a messenger in person, or by someone who had their own pidgey or other Pokémon that was trained to fly to Alph, and Argo knew of no-one that had such a Pokémon.
Ru led them to the market by way of the wharves so they could see Argo's ship. But when he noticed that soldiers were posted here and there around the docks, Jason started getting worried.
Ru shrugged. "Act natural," said Ru to the others.
Jason looked at Ru and noticed that he did indeed look completely normal, as if he was going about his business. Jason felt nervous but had no idea how to imitate how Ru was acting. He looked at Praxis, and he looked only slightly nervous.
"What are they doing here?" Praxis asked.
"It's what I expected," Ru said quietly. "They're keeping their eyes and ears open for any sign of you-know-who. Goldenrod City was his home town, plus it's a port so it's an obvious way into the country."
"So then, how did you get us off the boat last night," Jason asked, "with Quil and Lucario with us?"
"It was dark, and it was in the middle of a heavy storm, plus it wasn't the only boat having problems. It wasn't too hard to sneak everyone in. We put some of you in boxes with the cargo."
"I had to pretend I was a box of onions," said Praxis. "My arm was killing me but I had to keep absolutely still and quiet."
"Wow," said Jason, impressed by their bravery. "Thanks for everything you guys."
"Hey, isn't she hot!" Ru said suddenly.
Jason looked at where Ru was looking. A short distance away, a couple of girls were walking by, accompanied by a small blue Pokémon with a ball on the end of its tail. It was obvious that Ru seemed to like the appearance of one of them, but Jason didn't understand what "hot" meant.
"Do you mean the one that's not wearing much?" he asked. "Is that how you can tell she's feeling hot?"
"What!?" Ru exclaimed, "What are you on about?"
"They're nice," Praxis put in, "but I like the girls in Alph better."
Ru turned to him and looked him in the eye. "Inbred!" he called.
Praxis looked shocked, but instantly responded, "Pervert!"
Jason was befuddled by the strange terms his friends were throwing around. "What?" he asked.
They both turned to him and said, in unison, "Weirdo!" That only confused Jason even more.
When the girls looked like they were about to walk off, Ru hastily said to Jason and Praxis, "Wait here," while he strode up to the girls and started talking to them. Happy ran up behind him. Jason and Praxis were left stranded and could do nothing but wait for him.
"Why does he have to go chat up a chick now of all times?" Praxis said to Jason. "I'm nervous. I just want to get the food and go back as soon as possible."
Jason didn't understand all of what Praxis said, but he was nervous too. He looked around as innocently as he could. There were two soldiers not far away and walking closer. He wondered whether he should go over and get Ru, but, riding on Fluff, he thought it might attract too much attention.
Just then a man who had just unloaded a box from a ship lost his balance and dropped the box. It broke open and fruit fell out. A couple of people near him helped him collect the fruit, but one or two pieces fell into the water, and a couple more rolled away.
One piece of fruit landed near where Ru and the girls were standing. Both Happy and the blue Pokémon went for it at the same time. They bumped against each other and both of them squealed. Happy adeptly brought his tail around and grabbed the fruit, at which the blue Pokémon objected and started squealing complaints. Happy started running away but the blue Pokémon followed and squirted him with a shot of water from its mouth. Happy was knocked over and fell under the feet of someone who was helping to carry another box that was being unloaded from another ship. The sailor tripped, the box fell and broke open, and fish flew all over the dock. Meanwhile, Happy, annoyed at his mishap, turned back and started slapping the blue Pokémon with both his paws. The blue Pokémon lost its balance and slipped on one of the fish and rolled under someone else's feet, who also lost his balance and slipped on another fish.
Leaving the other girl behind, Ru and the girl he was talking to both rushed over and tried to calm their Pokémon, but by then, the soldiers were rushing over to try and restore order. Ru signalled something to the girl. They both started rushing towards Jason and Praxis, Pokémon in tow.
As soon as the soldiers noticed them running away, one of them tried to chase them, but Happy deftly pushed a fish under his feet and the soldier slipped and crashed on his back. The other soldier noticed that Ru and the girl were heading towards Jason and Praxis, so he called out to them to stop them. Jason didn't know what to do so he stood there trying to think of something. By that time, Ru, the girl and their two Pokémon ran past them. A crowd gathered to see what was going on, but Ru and the girl pushed their way through. By the time the soldier reached Jason, Ru and the girl were out of sight. The soldier that had slipped was back on his feet and not far behind. Both of them looked angry, and Jason couldn't blame them.
"Why didn't you stop them?" the first soldier barked at Jason and Praxis.
Jason was wondering what to say, when Praxis answered first, "Look, I've got a broken arm. How can I stop them."
"What about you?" the soldier shouted at Jason.
"I … uh …" Jason didn't know what to say.
"Look," said Praxis, "he's barefoot and that's why he's riding. He didn't have time to get off."
"That's right," Jason quickly put in with a nod.
One of the soldiers looked like he was sizing the boys up, one barefoot and the other dressed in threadbare, patched up clothes. Jason was worried about whether he would try to do something to them. The soldier turned to Jason and asked, "What are you doing here?"
"We're just taking a look at the ships," said Jason.
"Why?" demanded the soldier. Jason looked at him and the other soldier but he couldn't read their faces.
"We were looking for a job," said Praxis.
The soldier looked at Jason's feet and then felt Praxis' worn out clothing.
"You're not from around here," he said. "You come looking for work?"
Praxis nodded. Jason followed his lead and nodded also, but he was nervous that he might not be so convincing.
The soldier poked Jason's chest and arms. Jason was offended and drew back, but wasn't sure about what he could and couldn't get away with. The man and his companion looked very strong, and they were armed with swords. He wouldn't win a fight. He could get away on Fluff but where would that leave Praxis? This incident was the last thing he needed.
"How would you like a job where you had all the shoes and clothes and food you need?" the soldier asked Jason. Jason was taken aback. He had just thought he was about to get into some kind of trouble, but instead he was being offered a job. If it was a job for the king, he wouldn't want it, but how could he turn it down without a reason that wouldn't give him away? He looked at Praxis for support but he looked blank.
"You look pretty tough. Ever lost a fight?" the soldier went on.
"I … haven't been in a fight," Jason said. Except the one the time he met Ruby, Jason didn't want to add.
The soldier looked at him oddly and said, "A guy who can't afford shoes? You've never had to fight people you've robbed, or someone who's scrambling with you for the same bit of food?"
What a horrible thought, thought Jason. The soldiers, and obviously the king, knows that people have to resort to thieving and scuffles to survive, and do nothing to help? Maybe the king wanted it that way for some reason.
"Look, we've only just become poor," said Praxis. "And if you give him a job, how will it help me?"
The soldier shrugged. "It's up to him how he shares his pay." He turned to Jason. "What's your name, kid?"
Huh-oh, thought Jason. No-one had prepared him for this eventuality. He had to make up something quickly, but he was to nervous to think what to say.
"My name's Jaxus," he said finally. He heard Praxis stifle a gasp.
"So where are you from … 'Jaxus'?" enquired the soldier.
"We're from Violet Town," lied Praxis. "Both our parents were from Alph but they left and moved to Violet Town. But they … got sick and died and we had no-one to take us in, so we thought we would come to the nearest port to see if there was any work on ships."
The soldier looked at his companion. They shared a look like they knew they wouldn't get a straight answer to any question they put to the two boys. The other soldier shrugged as if to say they were wasting their time.
The first soldier turned back to Jason. "Think about it." He poked Jason in the chest with his index finger. "I'll be around here all week. If you want a good job, come and find me." Then they turned and left.
Jason waited until the soldiers were out of earshot and breathed a sigh of relief.
"You know he was trying to recruit you as a soldier, don't you?" Praxis asked.
"I wasn't sure, but I thought it must be something like that." Jason replied. "Anyway, let's get out of here."
"What about the shopping?" said Praxis.
"What about the shopping?" said a voice from behind them. It was Ru. He was back. He grabbed Praxis by his good arm and pulled him away. Jason could do nothing but follow.
"Let's get away from the wharves," said Ru. "We'll get the food quickly and go back home."
The atmosphere on the road to the marketplace was completely different to the seafront. Jason saw people lying on mats along both sides of the road. They were extending their arms, asking for food or money or anything. Jason looked into their faces and saw suffering, anguish and despair. Up to now, he had not seen many Johtians at all, and most of those he saw were poorer than the people of Viridian Town but not desperate. Now suddenly he came face to face with the real cost of the king's mistreatment of his people. This must be the reason why he was called.
If it was one or two people like that, it might've been different, but there must have been hundreds. He was in shock. He couldn't bear to look at them, all the more because he had no money or food himself to give them. He whispered to Ru, "How come all these people are here?"
"This is the place where people come to buy food, so this is where they'll find money and something to eat. It wasn't so bad when I used to live here, but I guess it gets worse every year."
Jason looked more carefully. Some people were obviously lame or injured or sick. Many of them were children. Most were dressed in filthy, torn rags. Some people's bones were poking through their skin, as if they were barely alive. Some had wounds with flies on them. The more he saw, the more horrified he became.
"Why can't the sick people get medicine?" he asked.
"What's that?" asked Ru.
"It's like herbs you can eat, isn't it?" asked Praxis. "We have some herbs in Alph that can help you like when you've got a fever."
"You've never heard of medicine? Like the stuff I put on Praxis's arm to stop the pain. And there are other things for making wounds with pus better, or helping you sleep, and all kinds of medicine."
"I guess we can't afford stuff like that in Johto," said Ru. "When people are so sick they can't work, they gotta to come to places like this and beg."
A young girl came up to Jason and asked for some food. It broke his heart, but Jason had to say that he didn't have any. But then he turned back.
"Hey, wait!" he called out. "Come with us, he said."
"What are you doing?" said Ru. "We can't draw attention to ourselves."
"I can't bear it. I have to do something to help someone. That's why I came to Johto, wasn't it?"
When they got their shopping, Jason gave a little to the girl. She thanked him and left.
"Argo" might be a bit confusing. The name of Jason's boat in the original story was the Argo (Ἀργώ), which was named after its builder, Argus (Άργος). Since I'll rarely if at all mention the name of the boat, I'll use Argo instead of Argus for the builder since it feels more natural to me. In my version of the story, I've also made Argo the captain of the ship since Jason is too young and does not have the background to have that role.
I had to look up about ancient Greek toilets. I found a website about the history of toilets; I can only assume that its historically accurate. I hope you don't mind the "toilet humour". I'm not trying to be crude, just funny and informative.