Myth of Glemen Fortis

=== The Myth of Glemen Fortis, the Titan of the Forge ===
In the ancient land of Thalor, there was once a time when the gods still intervened in the affairs of mortals, and the world was divided into warring kingdoms. Among these kingdoms, there was one known as Virelan, a realm of stone and iron, where men and women toiled day and night in the great forges that powered the kingdom’s might. Yet, despite its strength, Virelan was ruled by weak and corrupt kings, each one more interested in their own lavish pleasures than the wellbeing of their people.
In this land, born beneath the shadow of the great Blackmount peaks, there came a child who was unlike any other—Glemen Fortis. His mother, Vira, was a humble blacksmith’s daughter, and his father, a warrior who had fallen in battle, had left no inheritance but his strength and his name. From an early age, Glemen displayed a power beyond mortal comprehension. As a boy, he was able to lift the heaviest anvils with ease, break boulders with his bare hands, and shape iron as though it were clay. His feats were so extraordinary that they quickly became the subject of myth and song across the land.
But Glemen was not content to be a mere legend of strength. Though he could crush stone with a single blow and bend steel with his bare hands, it was his heart that set him apart from the warriors who sought power through violence. He was driven by a sense of justice, a burning desire to unite the fractured realms and free his people from the grip of tyranny.
One fateful day, as Glemen labored in his forge, the sky darkened with the arrival of the god Rowik, the divine craftsman of the gods. Rowik, his limbs covered in soot from the forge and his hands still glowing with the heat of creation, descended from Mount Rowik on wings of fire. The god, seeing in Glemen a strength and fortitude that mirrored his own, spoke in a voice like the clang of a thousand hammers.
"Mortal, you have the strength of ten men, but your true test lies not in your brawn, but in your will. Take this hammer, forged in the heart of the sun itself. With it, you may shape not only metal but the very fate of the world. You will rise to build a kingdom that shall endure for eternity. But know this—your path will not be easy, for you will face trials that will test both your body and your soul."
And so it was that Glemen took the Hammer of Suns, a weapon of divine power, and set forth on a journey that would change the course of history. His first trial came when he reached the kingdom of Havros, a land ruled by the warlord Draekon, a tyrant who had enslaved the people and whose cruelty was whispered of even in the halls of the gods.
With the Hammer of Suns in his grip, Glemen strode into the city of Havros, his steps shaking the very earth beneath him. Draekon’s soldiers met him at the gates, but they were no match for the force of Glemen’s wrath. With a single strike of his hammer, he cleaved through the ranks of the soldiers, scattering them like chaff in the wind. When Draekon himself appeared, clad in black iron and wielding a sword forged in the depths of hell, he challenged Glemen to single combat.
The battle between them raged for hours, the very sky crackling with the force of their blows. Draekon’s sword struck like thunder, but Glemen, driven by an unshakable resolve, parried each blow with the divine hammer. At last, with a final swing, he shattered Draekon’s blade and struck the tyrant down. The people of Havros, seeing their oppressor fall, rose in joyous rebellion, and the first of Glemen’s victories was secured.
From there, Glemen traveled from kingdom to kingdom, conquering those who sought to subjugate the people and defeating warlords whose greed knew no bounds. His name spread across the land, whispered in awe by the oppressed and with fear by those in power. In his wake, he left not destruction, but rebirth—a new way of life for the people, built on the foundation of justice and strength.
Yet, the gods did not remain idle. Senes, the king of the gods, who ruled from his throne atop the mightly heavens, took note of Glemen’s growing power. Jealous of the mortal’s ability to inspire such loyalty, Senes called forth the Veng, vengeful spirits who torment those who rise too high. He ordered that they test Glemen’s resolve, for he feared that the mortal’s strength could rival even that of the gods.
One night, as Glemen rested in the hall of a newly freed kingdom, the Veng descended upon him like a storm. Their wailing cries echoed through the night, their claws tearing at his flesh, their venomous whispers seeking to break his spirit. They sought to drive him mad, to make him question his worth, to make him falter.
But Glemen, though exhausted, did not yield. He raised the Hammer of Suns and struck the earth, calling upon the divine strength granted to him by Hephaestus. With each blow, the Veng recoiled, their power dimming in the face of his will. Finally, with one mighty strike, Glemen shattered their influence, and the Veng vanished back into the darkness.
Seeing his strength and fortitude, Senes was forced to concede. He could not break Glemen Fortis, for the mortal had the heart of a titan and the will of a god. In recognition of his valor and tenacity, Senes himself appeared before Glemen, offering him the crown of kingship over all the lands of Thalor. But Glemen, ever humble, refused the offer of divine rule.
"I seek no throne, nor crown. I will build an empire not from the power of gods, but from the strength of the people. I will forge a kingdom where all men may stand equal, where justice and strength are shared by all, not held by the few. That is my true empire."
And so, Glemen Fortis became the first Emperor of Virelan, not through divine inheritance, but through his own strength and vision. His empire stood as a beacon of hope for the oppressed and a symbol of what could be achieved through unity and will. The Hammer of Suns, now enshrined in the great forge of the capital, was a reminder of the mortal who had risen above the gods themselves.
The legend of Glemen Fortis endures to this day, a myth passed down from generation to generation. It is said that the Hammer of Suns still rests in Tirymor( Current day Virelan), waiting for a new hero who, like Glemen, will rise to forge a future worthy of the gods.