📌 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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After his miraculous and mysterious return to Anshan, Cyrus the Great was reunited with his true parents, Cambyses and Mandane. The warm embrace of his mother and the firm, proud gaze of his father seemed to erase all the years of distance and hardship in the Zagros mountains. There, like other Persian nobles, he received a comprehensive education; but for him, with a mind full of twenty-first-century knowledge, this education had a different color and scent. The Persians had built a place called the "Alvat," where the king's palace, government buildings, and educational centers for the nobility were established. From a young age, Persian children went to the "Dab" to learn etiquette, justice, truthfulness, and patience, as the Persians considered honesty the noblest of virtues and self-restraint a great quality. Cyrus was raised just as other Persian children were until his adolescence, but in mastering every skill, from martial arts and horsemanship to ancient wisdom and courtly manners, he always surpassed his peers. His conduct showed a magnanimity and wisdom far beyond his years. In any gathering, he was a light that drew everyone's attention.
The year 559 BCE was a turning point in the destiny of Cyrus the Great and the Persians. Cambyses, the wise king of Anshan, recognizing his son's unparalleled genius and after consulting with the elders, abdicated the throne and placed Cyrus in his stead. This decision was not only a sign of a father's deep trust in his son but also the beginning of a new chapter in the history of the Persians. Cyrus the Great, a man of iron will and boundless ambition, from the very beginning harbored grand plans to strengthen the Persians and raise their banner of glory. He knew well that to have a powerful and stable kingdom, he needed a mighty and well-equipped army, and more importantly, a disciplined and loyal one. So, as his first step, he sought to create a large and powerful army that would be an arm of construction in peace as well as in war. He organized a great feast and shared his ambitious plans for strengthening Persia with the other nobles and tribal chiefs. Cyrus's words, a mixture of wisdom, courage, and foresight, impressed the elders, and they enthusiastically agreed to provide him with the necessary troops.
Now that Cyrus the Great had a considerable army at his disposal and had also gained the support of the tribes, he immediately put his plan into action. Over the course of six years, he brought the entire land of Persia, parts of Kerman, and the city of Susa, the ancient center of the Elamite civilization, under his command. These conquests were accompanied not only by military power but also by a policy of tolerance and justice that Cyrus had envisioned since childhood. Instead of plunder and destruction, he focused on development and establishing order, respecting the culture and beliefs of the conquered peoples. The fame of his magnanimous conduct, fearless courage on the battlefield, and administration of justice quickly spread among the Persian tribes and even reached the Median court. The people spoke of him as a "prince with Divine Glory" who had come to establish justice in the land. The growing influence and power of the Persians under his leadership soon reached the ears of the Median king, Astyages, and revived an old, forgotten fear in his heart; a fear rooted in his ominous dreams about his grandson's influence.
Astyages, alarmed by Cyrus's rise and his growing influence among the Persian and even Median tribes, summoned him to his throne in Ecbatana to keep a close watch on him. Cyrus, with a calmness that welled up from within, arrived in Ecbatana and once again entered the environment from which he had been cast out to die years ago. He knew well that this return was not just a simple visit, but the beginning of a dangerous game between him and his grandfather. Meanwhile, Harpagus, the former commander and kinsman of Astyages, who harbored a deep hatred for the Median king for the brutal murder of his thirteen-year-old son, approached the young prince. He recounted everything that had happened in Cyrus the Great's childhood, from Astyages's terrifying dreams to the order for his murder and his miraculous rescue at his own hands. In the eyes of Cyrus the Great, Harpagus saw not only a prince but also the hope for his own revenge.
Harpagus went on to inform Cyrus the Great of the details of Astyages's dreams and the Magi's interpretation, encouraging him to rebel by speaking of the Median king's tyranny, corruption, and oppression. To prove his claims, he revealed the chaotic state of the court and the hidden discontent among the nobles and the people of Media. Harpagus had even gathered a group of influential opponents of Astyages who were fed up with his tyranny and promised Cyrus the Great that if he disobeyed the Median king and started a rebellion, he and his allies would support him with all their might. Cyrus the Great, who had already learned of his grandfather's dream, sought the interpretation of the dream from a Babylonian astrologer living in Ecbatana for further assurance. The Chaldean, looking at the stars and interpreting the celestial signs, replied: "This is a sign of good fortune and greatness, and you will become the greatest man in Asia." These words strengthened Cyrus the Great's resolve to realize his dream of an empire.
Cyrus the Great was spending his adolescence in the glamorous but corrupt court of his grandfather. Everywhere he looked, he saw signs of the Medes' weakness, corruption, and decline; from the lazy and incompetent courtiers to the heavy taxes on the people and the lack of security on the roads. This decay had worn him down, and he was looking for an opportunity to return to his father in Persia and continue his grand plans to strengthen the Persians and establish his thousand-year empire. Fortune favored him; the Medes and the Cadusians, a warrior people in northwestern Media, had been engaged in a war of attrition for several years. The war had reached a stalemate, and both sides were tired of continuing it. This situation provided a perfect opportunity for Cyrus to escape from Ecbatana and step toward his destiny.
The Cadusian general, named Onaphernes, had lost hope of continuing the war and was seeking peace with the Medes to rebuild his forces. For this reason, he secretly sent a messenger to Astyages and requested that a trustworthy and steadfast man be sent to him to make a peace treaty. Astyages, who was tired of the stalemate with the Cadusians and was looking for a way to end it, saw Cyrus the Great as suitable for the task. He summoned his grandson and gave him the necessary instructions, from the details of the peace treaty to diplomatic etiquette. He then commanded him to return to Ecbatana within forty days after completing his mission. This mission was a golden opportunity for Cyrus the Great to escape his grandfather's clutches and return to Persia.
Cyrus the Great, who was initially hesitant and uncertain about this mission, knowing it could be his last chance to escape, went to the same Chaldean dream-interpreter for guidance. The Chaldean, who was aware of the prophecy of Cyrus the Great's future and saw him as the savior of Asia, encouraged Cyrus the Great to go on this journey and accompanied him to warn him of potential dangers along the way. When Cyrus the Great reached the Cadusian border, he saw a child with whip marks on his body, suffering from a hidden injustice. The Chaldean asked Cyrus the Great to ask the man who he was and from what land. The child replied that he was Persian and his name was "Hyberes." Cyrus was pleased and took it as a good omen, as "Hyberes" in the ancient tongue meant "bringer of good." This encounter seemed to be a sign from Ahura Mazda, paving his way to bring goodness and justice to his land.