Little Cyrus, continuing his reflections on the family tree of the Achaemenid dynasty that he had found on the clay tablet, tied his mind to the future of this dynasty and its challenges. He knew well that even after the empire's foundation by Cyrus the Great, this dynasty would face significant internal threats; threats that could jeopardize the thousand-year stability of his dream. One of these important and pivotal events was an intrigue that occurred after the death of his son, Cambyses, in Egypt.
Cambyses, the direct heir of Cyrus the Great and the next king of the empire, marches his army to Egypt to expand the realm. But after his suspicious death on the way back, a power vacuum is created in the capital. At this critical moment, a man named Gaumata, of the Magi lineage, cunningly and deceptively impersonates Bardiya (Cambyses's brother and son of Cyrus the Great). This act plunges the empire into immense chaos, as the people and nobles are deceived by Gaumata's unbelievable resemblance to Bardiya and Cambyses's long absence.
This crisis severely threatens the empire's stability. In a situation where the government was on the verge of collapse, Darius, one of the Persian nobles and a more distant relative of the Achaemenid dynasty, belonging to the Ariaramnes branch, rises up. He, along with his six loyal companions, rebels against the false Bardiya. A bloody battle ensues, and eventually, Darius succeeds in eliminating Gaumata and reclaiming the Achaemenid throne and crown.
After gaining power, Darius inscribes his account of these events on a massive, trilingual inscription on the Behistun Mountain. [cite_start]This inscription, known as the Behistun Inscription[cite: 65], meticulously details Gaumata's rebellion, Darius's confrontation with him, and the suppression of numerous subsequent rebellions. In this inscription, Darius introduces himself as the chosen of Ahura Mazda and the savior of the empire. At the end of this epic narrative, Darius curses anyone who would lie or not believe his inscription; this decisive tone indicated the importance of legitimacy and truth-telling in his rule.
From this point on, the rule effectively passes to the Ariaramnes branch. This dynastic shift demonstrated the fragility of power and the importance of legitimacy within the empire. To consolidate his position, Darius proceeded to marry the daughters of Cyrus the Great, including Atossa. These marriages granted him greater legitimacy and linked him to the empire's founding family.
Of course, in subsequent generations, these marriages were also utilized to maintain legitimacy and connection with the two main branches. Xerxes, the grandson of Cyrus the Great (through Atossa) and son of Darius, becomes the next ruler of the empire. Little Cyrus remembered that Darius also had older sons from his other wives. Nevertheless, the courtiers and nobles considered Xerxes the rightful heir, mainly due to his mother Atossa's lineage as the daughter of Cyrus the Great. This blood tie to the empire's founder solidified his position. Furthermore, Xerxes was born when Darius had reached the pinnacle of his power and had claimed the title of "King of Kings," which also added to the legitimacy and grandeur of Xerxes's birth. Xerxes himself emphasizes this lineage in his famous inscription, stating: "I am Xerxes, the great king, king of kings, king of all lands, king of this great earth, son of Darius the king, an Achaemenid. Darius the king, my father, did much good by the grace of Ahura Mazda... My father Darius had other sons, but by the grace of Ahura Mazda, he made me the greatest after himself. When Darius the king went to his destiny, by the grace of Ahura Mazda, I became king on this land, on my father's throne." This king was, in a way, a combination of the two main branches of the dynasty, and his presence on the throne symbolized the continuity and unity of the Achaemenid family after the Gaumata crisis.
Little Cyrus, reflecting on these events and intrigues, became even more resolute in his decision to establish a stable and strong government. He did not want his empire to be so vulnerable that someone like Gaumata could impersonate a dead prince and plunge the government into crisis. He knew that he had to establish a system in which precise and swift information, transparency in succession, and unconditional loyalty would prevent any deception or internal rebellion.
These thoughts strengthened Cyrus's resolve to implement deeper reforms in the governmental, military, and intelligence structures of his empire. He intended, using his 21st-century knowledge, to design a system that would not only be powerful against external threats but also immune to internal intrigues, leaving behind an eternal legacy of stability and justice for thousands of years.