text: [Themes: historical]
  
  Three years have passed since you were first name regent, and in those three years, you have failed more times than any other person you know.
  
  It all started with the Thracians. Not too long after your father left on his campaign, Thrace rebelled against Macedon. Acing as regent, you immediately went to quell the rebellion. While it took some time and resources, you did eventually quell the rebellion. That part went alright. It was when your father returned that things went awry. Several different Thracian settlement began revolting, and, noting your previous success with quelling the previous rebellion, your father sent you to quell these revolts as well. You had to extend your army fairly thin, but you managed to keep the Thracians in line. Once that happened, your father told you to build up your army further, so you could help him in his next campaign against Athens.
  
  You obliged, and everything was going well until the Illyrians made their move. For several month then, they had been making demands. Threatening to invade and other such claims. You dismissed these claims as lunacy, for everyone knew that the Illyrians could barely herd cattle. Let alone build an army threatening enough to invade the Macedonian empire.
  
  You shouldn't have dismissed their claims. While the Illyrian army wasn't very large, it wasn't anything to laugh at. Especially since the majority of your army was occupied with the Thracians. Your were not nearly as well equipped to deal with the incursion as you should have been, and over half of your army was destroyed by the time your father came to intervene.
  
  It was a huge disaster, and you were immediately dismissed from your general position. Even if you were his son, Philip would not have his general be failures. He needed the best of the best, and while you could've been called that in the past, your failure relieved you of that position.
  
  You were no longer in charge of armies, and instead your father made you an ambassador. An ambassador! He would send you as far away from the battlefield as possible. Not because he cared for your safety. No, it was because he feared you would destroy all that he'd spent his life building up. You spent the last three years, until you were nineteen, settling minor disputes and brokering peace treaties among your empire with others. To your chagrin, you were rather good at it, and your father noticed this. He made you lead ambassador which carried a lot of authority, but you were away from battle. That assignment guaranteed that you would never be in charge of an army again.
  
  Well at least until now. Tensions between Athens and Macedon are at an all time high, and war between the two have all but started. The only key left to knock into place was Thebes. The two last powerful kingdoms in Greece not under you father's control were Athens and Thebes, but unlike Athens, Thebes had not yet taken a side. So, your father sent you, the lead ambassador, to see if you could win Thebes to your side. He told you this, and punctuated it with a promise. If you were able to win Thebes from Athens, then you would finally get your own army again. He must've seen that your heart still yearned for the battlefield.
  
  Those were the thoughts going through your head as you were led into the Theban palace. Similar in Architecture to the palace back home, the Theban palace stood as a beacon of hope for Athens. A beacon that you had to put out.
  
  A theban attendant led you through the palace and into the throne room of the King of Thebes. White marble walls were everywhere you looked, and the throne room even had the same marble pillars leading up to the throne itself. The throne that the king was currently seated at. He was a grey eyed man. His wasn't young, yet his black hair hadn't started to grey either. He had an air of confidence and security that only a King could muster.
  
  "Greetings majesty." You bow down slightly, as is only respectful when in the throne room of another king. That, and you are trying to win his favor.
  
  "I am Prince Alexander of Macedon. Sent here on behalf of King Philip of Macedon. I would have words with you regarding your loyalties in the coming war."
  
  The king regards you calmly. "What say you Demosthenes?"
  
  It is only then that you notice a man standing beside the Throne. Greying brown hair sits in an orderly mop atop his head, and intelligent, if arrogant, eyes bore into you from him. You inwardly cringe as you here the name. Demosthenes. One of the most influential individuals in ll of Greece, and certainly the most influential person in Athens. The Athenian ambassador got here before you did.
  
  "I would not put him away out right, your majesty, but I doubt anything he says will be of much consequence to you." You can practically feel the odds of your success stacking against you here. "He is Philip's son after all. He would only seek to control you."
  
  The king listens, but doesn't make any expressions on his face that would give way to what he is thinking.
  
  You're in a tough spot. Demosthenes already got to the king, so anything you say will most likely be second source information.
  
  > tell the "truth"
  "Your majesty," you begin. "My father only wishes for peace among us." Demosthenes scoffs. "Yes. Even with Athens. He would have us all join together and form a coalition. We would finally bring all of Greece under one banner, and we would be powerful and rich beyond compare, and best of all we'd treat each other as equals."
  
  The king looks amused, and Demosthenes looks more than a little skeptical.
  
  "A triumvirate would be formed, and all decisions would be made together. Demosthenes, you would be granted a special place therein. You would no longer have to bow to the whims of your people's so called democracy." He stands there expressionless, as if considering your offer. "We would become the most powerful empire in the world." You close with that, and anxiously await their reactions.
  
  They look at each other for a moment, before the King stands up and walks over to you. You don't allow him to intimidate you, and instead stand your ground and hold his penetrating gaze.
  
  "Alexander. You would have me believe that your father would not kill us and take emperorship for himself at the first opportunity he gets?" He laughs in your face. "That is a fool's hope. Almost as foolish as you blatantly lying in my presence."
  
  He waves his hands in a quick motion and two guards restrain and force you to your knees while a third one gives the king a sword with a gem encrusted hilt.
  
  "My father will avenge me." You say this, but you wonder if they hear the uncertainty in your voice. The king certainly does.
  
  "He won't care. You fell out of favor with him long ago. He probably won't even ask for your body."
  
  Those are the last words you hear, before the sound of a sword swinging through the air fills your ears. You don't feel any pain as the king of Thebes separates your head from your shoulders.