End of the 6th century BC. The ruler of the Persian Empire, “King of Kings” Darius I, having restored peace and order in his state, felt the need for a major—and of course, victorious—war that would bring together the diverse tribes of his realm and at the same time test the solidity of this union. He planned a campaign against the Scythians of the Black Sea region and around 512 BC invaded the Northern Black Sea region with a huge army. But not only the Scythians rose to fight the invader—almost all the peoples between the Don and the Dnieper took up arms. A special contribution to the defeat of the Persians came from a small but brave tribe of the Janians, whom their neighbors called “lords of wolves” for their ability to form alliances with these proud and merciless beasts!