📌 Author's Note:Based on many comments I've received, I want to clarify something: Chapters 6 to 10 show the modern Cyrus's(Kourosh) reflections (while Kourosh is currently a newborn) on his historical predecessor, Cyrus the Great. The purpose of these chapters is both to familiarize readers with the actual historical events and to show how Kourosh's thoughts will eventually shape his decisions and the policies he will adopt. These sections are laying the groundwork for his future choices — and the point where his path will start to diverge from real history.
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Cyrus the Great, in the simple and unpretentious home of Mithradates the shepherd, spent years in the embrace of the wild and pristine nature of the Zagros. The mountains, with their towering cliffs and vast green plains, became an unparalleled school for him. He grew up among the flocks of sheep and goats, alongside the shepherd's innocent children, learning life's lessons not from the books of the palace, but from the ruthless yet generous nature, and from the deep wisdom of Mithradates. He learned how to endure the harsh cold and scorching heat, how to form a deep connection with animals and humans, and how to find his way in the heart of the wilderness. His boundless intelligence and wisdom, evident since infancy, flourished even more in this free and unrestrained environment. In children's games, which were often simulations of small battles or the administration of a fictional tribe, he always took on the role of the leader. With his unparalleled justice and courage, he earned the respect and obedience of his playmates, as if he had been created for kingship from his earliest years.
One day, when Cyrus the Great had reached the age of ten and was playing "the kingdom game" with his shepherd friends—a game in which he played the role of the monarch and judged their disputes—a boy from a noble family who lived nearby and had come to the plain to hunt, disobeyed Cyrus's orders. This boy, accustomed to the luxury and comforts of the palace and never expecting to take orders from a shepherd's child, rejected Cyrus's verdict with pride and arrogance. Cyrus the Great, with a decisiveness and a tone far beyond his years, punished him for his disobedience and disrespect for the rules of the game. The boy, angered by this treatment and his pride wounded, immediately returned home and, with tearful eyes and a trembling voice, complained to his father about Cyrus and his "audacity." The boy's father, who was one of Astyages's influential courtiers, was surprised by this game and Cyrus's fearless leadership and reported the incident to the Median king. Astyages, upon hearing the news, immediately ordered the child to be brought before him.
Astyages, in the magnificent hall of the Ecbatana palace, was terrified upon seeing Cyrus, due to his uncanny resemblance to Mandane, his daughter, and to himself in his youth. Cyrus's piercing eyes, which seemed to hold all the secrets of the world, doubled the king's fear. He knew well that this child was the same grandson whose murder he had ordered years ago. The Median king, with anger and anxiety, questioned Mithradates the shepherd and, in a thunderous voice, demanded the truth. Mithradates, with complete courage and without any tremor in his voice, recounted the story of Cyrus's rescue and Harpagus's deception to Astyages. Astyages, enraged by this betrayal from Harpagus, his trusted commander, forgave Mithradates but swore a terrible revenge against Harpagus in his heart. A deep-seated hatred took root in the king's heart; a hatred that was to be appeased by blood.
Astyages, with a burning and deep-seated hatred raging in his heart, devised a sinister plan. He invited Harpagus to a magnificent and unprecedented feast; a feast that, on the surface, showed appreciation and respect, but in reality, was a death trap. At this feast, the Median king, with a deceptive smile and sweet words, praised Harpagus for his loyalty and told him that he wanted to treat him to a special and unique meal. Harpagus, unaware of the king's sinister plan and filled with pride from this recognition, happily accepted the invitation. He thought that after years of loyal service, he was now receiving his reward. During the feast, Astyages offered Harpagus a cooked meat dish that had been skillfully prepared and insisted that he partake of the delicious food, while a devilish glint shone in his eyes.
After the meal was finished, and while Harpagus was praising its delicious taste, Astyages, with a demonic smile and a look that shone with hatred, signaled to the servants. They slowly brought a silver bowl to Harpagus. Harpagus looked into the bowl with curiosity, but upon seeing the horrific scene, he froze with terror and grief; the severed head of his thirteen-year-old son, which had been brutally separated from his body, was hidden in the bowl. He then realized that the meat he had eaten was the flesh of his own son. Astyages, in a cold and vengeful tone that seemed to rise from the depths of hell, said, "This is the reward for your betrayal, Harpagus. You betrayed me and saved my grandson's life, now you must pay the price and taste the bitterness of betrayal."
Harpagus, though writhing in anger and pain, his heart torn apart by grief, showed no outburst and swallowed his rage, with an iron will and a firm resolve for revenge. He knew that any rebellion at that moment would only lead to his own death and would rob him of the chance for vengeance. With a voice that barely came from his throat and a look that concealed a deep hatred, he responded to the king: "Whatever is pleasing to the king is good." These words were not a sign of submission, but a hidden oath for a harsh revenge; a revenge that festered in Harpagus's heart for years and became the driving force that greatly aided in the downfall of Astyages and the rise of Cyrus the Great.
Harpagus, with a broken heart and a hidden hatred burning in the depths of his being, left that deadly feast. He outwardly maintained his loyalty to Astyages, but deep down, he had sworn revenge; a revenge that was to be appeased by the blood of the Median king. He knew he had to be patient, find the right opportunity, and strike a decisive blow against Astyages with cunning. Meanwhile, Astyages, after this brutal revenge and to be completely sure the danger was eliminated, once again gathered the Magi to decide on the prince's future. He was still fearful of the shadow of the prophecies and wanted to be certain that no further threat awaited him.
The Magi, fearing the king and seeking to save their own lives, sought a way to calm him. They reassured the king, saying, "O King, fear not! Since your grandson has been chosen as king in a game, your dream has been fulfilled, and you should have no more fear from him, for his destiny was fulfilled in that game, and he will not rule again." They advised that to stay away from any temptation and to prevent any possible future rebellion, it would be best to send Cyrus the Great away from his presence, back to Persia to his father and mother. Astyages, who was pleased with this answer and had also grown fond of Cyrus, did as they advised and sent Cyrus the Great back to Anshan, to his real parents, Cambyses and Mandane. He thought that by doing this, he had distanced himself from danger and had brought fate to its knees, unaware that this very return was the beginning of a new chapter of the same destiny he was fleeing.