He had led the first failed invasion of Greece in 492 BCE under the rule of Darius, so he convinces Xerxes to go to war. So, like Xerxes, Mardonius is driven by revenge. Mardonus also boldly exaggerates his successes in 492 BCE to support Xerxes' decision. Artabanus is Xerxes' uncle and Mardonius' counterpart. Artabanus is against the war on Greece. Herodotus tended to describe Xerxes as a ruler who had absolute power and exercised it in a cruel or oppressive way, but this is not one hundred percent correct. Xerxes may be a ruthless ruler with all the power, but he didn't make decisions completely alone. He would go to Mardonius and Artabanus to ask for help, advice and talk to them. He would tell them his thoughts and they would give feedback. Now they may not have had a direct say or impact in the decision, but they could persuade Xerxes, as shown at the beginning of the book, towards a certain