Reborn In 17th century India with Black Technology

February 20th, 1658

The province of Hamedan, Safavid Empire

A large house with unique architecture stood on top of a hill on the outskirts of Hamedan City. The house, unlike all the other buildings in the Safavid empire, did not appear to be inspired by Arabic designs. Instead, its architecture reflected something more ancient and archaic.

Painted on the large house, which was more of a fortress and a castle, a symbol of a winged figure—interpreted as a divine spirit—was depicted. The image was undoubtedly the symbol of faravahar, associated with the faith of Zoroastrianism.

Atop the castle, a flag flew in colours of white and orange, where the flag depicted a divine flame covered with light. It was the flag of the Atashban family, one of the last remaining and currently the most prominent Persian Zoroastrian families within the Safavid Empire.

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Inside the castle of the Atashban family, a tense atmosphere could be felt. Patriarch Ardeshir Atashban was sitting on his chair with a gloomy expression on his face. His wife, the matriarch Mitra Atashban, had a worried look.

"Brother, I have contacted all our vassals in the surrounding cities of Sanandaj, Kermanshah, and Khorramabad. And the news I received from our contacts was not good. These vassals of ours are facing severe pressure from the Takkalu family and the Zangana family, they are unable to hold on."

"Although both families have not sent any troops into our Hamedan province, they have placed a lot of pressure on our economy since all the material imports of our province are controlled by these two families," replied Parvez Atashban, brother of the patriarch and the chief diplomat of the Atashban Dynasty, in a troubled tone.

Matriarch Mitra Atashban, being responsible for the royal family’s internal affairs and finances, immediately understood the underlying issue. "Brother-in-law, do you mean that although the Zangana family and the Takkalu family have not directly clashed over our province, they are, in fact, fighting over who can control the province’s economy the most?"

"Sister is absolutely right", Parvez gave a wry smile. "Sadly I suspect that some of our vassals have already been secretly controlled by the Zangana and Takkalu families. The surrounding cities have begun to slip from our influence. If we don’t act soon, Hamedan city will be all we have left."

The atmosphere was dignified. Just as everyone was losing hope, the voice of a rough man was heard.

"Father, Uncle is right. I have just returned from Kermanshah. The House of Faravahar has been showing unusual closeness to the Takkalu family. This can’t continue—we must take action," Kaveh Atashban, the son of the patriarch and head of the military, stated with an angry expression.

Ardeshir looked weary. "What do you suggest, Kaveh?"

"Father, we are currently at our strongest. In my opinion, we should act immediately and launch a surprise attack on the surrounding cities. By the time the Takkalu and Zangana families react, we will have firmly occupied these cities and fully fortified the province of Hamedan." He clenched his fist, his knuckles cracking, a hint of ruthlessness in his eyes.

Patriarch Ardeshir did not respond but, visibly burdened, put his hand on his forehead. However, Matriarch Mitra immediately grew annoyed with her overly warlike son. "You have grown so old, haven’t you learned anything after so many years? What is in your head—is it just muscle?"

"If we do as you said, there would be no need for the Zangana and Takkalu families to do anything. The people in the province would revolt and eat us alive with hunger."

"Our province does not grow much food. Once we launch the attack, what will be used to feed these people for a long time? Have you thought about that? Idiot."

Kaveh Atashban was immediately embarrassed. He was an excellent military general and had considered everything for the military operations, including food for the army and various strategies to take over the surrounding cities within the range of Hamedan province. However, he had neglected to consider the problem of food for the people.

Fortunately, he was used to being scolded by his elderly parents, so the embarrassment did not last long. He stood in the main hall silently, waiting for the smart people to speak up.

Just then, a woman’s voice was heard.

"Brother, how about we seek support from the Shamlu, Afshar, and Ustajlu families? These three families are against the Zangana and Takkalu families, aren’t they? Maybe they’d be interested in creating some contradiction between the Zangana and Takkalu families for their own benefit," said Shirin Atashban, the younger sister of the patriarch and also the advisor to the family.

Patriarch Ardeshir fell into deep thought but promptly shook his head. "It won’t work, sister. We are in a central landlocked position between the two dynasties of Zangana and Takkalu. If we had even a small border with the families in the Qizilbash faction, we would have more room to manoeuvre.

But now, even if the Qizilbash faction is interested in intervening in the affairs of our province, they wouldn’t be of much help since they would have to expend a lot of resources just to create a little friction between Takkalu and Zangana."

"Also, there is a possibility that with the involvement of the Qizilbash faction, the Takkalu and Zangana families would give up fighting each other, unite to kick out the Qizilbash, and finally share our province equally to avoid future disputes. This situation would be the worst for our family."

Silence returned to the hall once again. No matter how much the elders searched for a path out of their current predicament, they found it to be blocked.

Unable to bear the pressure, the son of Shirin Atashban, Dariush Atashban, suggested, "Patriarch, elders, the future of our Atashban family is looking very bleak, so why don’t we prepare in advance and leave a way out for our family? Should we consider sending a member of the main family to settle in some other province or, better yet, in some other nation?"

These words immediately caused the sad atmosphere in the main hall to be amplified manyfold. Although these words were reasonable, sadly, due to the history of their family, if this suggestion were followed, it would be nothing less than abandoning the ideology and roots of their Atashban family.

The patriarch did not respond to the suggestion, but the mother of Dariush Atashban, Shirin Atashban, scolded her son in anger. "Dariush, how dare you bring up this matter here? Do you think we are all dead? Such things can never happen." Her eyes were bloodshot. "Do you know what our family, the Atashban family, means, and do you know what our legacy represents?"

"Atashban means the guardian or the protector of the fire. It is our family, from generation to generation, that has protected the flickering amber of our Persian culture, faith, and the hope for the revival of the Zoroastrian faith."

"Leaving this land or even thinking about leaving this land is tantamount to completely disregarding the sacrifices and suffering of our ancestors, who have given their lives to protect us—the last kindling embers of the Persian Empire."

"So we will never do such a thing. We would rather cease to exist than to run away and blaspheme our ancestors and our mission."

With the deafening scream of the old lady, the hall became silent once again. Dariush Atashban, being scolded by his mother and reminded of his responsibility to the family, simply became silent. There was nothing else he could say or do that could change the minds of the elders of their family. He clenched his fist in sadness; he was ready to die with his family.

Roxana Atashban, the heir of the Atashban family and the daughter of the patriarch and the younger sister of Kaveh Atashban, who had been silent until now, suddenly chose to speak out. "We are in a very tricky situation, but in a certain sense, this precise situation is also an opportunity for our family. All the major powers of the Safavid Empire will be distracted from fighting among themselves.

We, being in the cracks between these five giants, can take this opportunity to expand our influence and win the hearts of the people who are distraught during the war."

"But the only problem we are facing, and the biggest problem, which is also the biggest hurdle, is that we have no way to increase our influence immediately in order to not only get out of this mess but also to regain the glory of our ancestors."

’This is good!’

Everyone’s spirits lit up, but it suddenly dimmed. Although as the young lady stated this was indeed an opportunity, how could they overcome their biggest problem, which was also a problem that all the elders combined couldn’t find the answer to? Isn’t the solution to their problem almost impossible to achieve?

*Sigh!* The patriarch let out a disgruntled sigh. Suddenly, a slender woman broke into the main hall. The woman was Fariba Atashban, daughter of chief diplomat Parvez Atashban and also the main intelligence chief and spymaster of the Atashban family. "Patriarch, Father, I have urgent news."