“God decreed that the world is a game without end, and I shall add one rule to it: None shall taste Elation save those who challenge!”
— Asat Pramad
Three lives, three masks. In his despair, the man glimpsed the universe's cold and inevitable end. Beyond the madness where all things inevitably decay comes nothing but an eternal, hollow void.
Masked Fool: Enroute
In the stories passed down through the tavern, “Enroute” was once hailed as the most elated of the Masked Fools, one who reveled in witnessing the brilliance of humanity shine through suffering. Countless worlds were saved in his wake, and countless faces found their smiles once moroe.
Stealing the shadow of a leviathan, vanquishing Rubert's creations… The legends tied to “Enroute” are countless, yet they all share the same ending. This legendary figure of the Second Prosperity had witnessed too much of the rot that prosperity breeds, where the virtuous were left unrewarded and the wicked free from punishments. He began to question the meaning of the Elation, and so he walked away from the ever-corrupting tavern, setting out for the edge of the world in search of answers.
Navigator: “Starseer” Isee
The Nameless who boarded the Express at the end of the Second Prosperity was tolerant and easygoing, placing wholehearted trust in every friend. It was a joyous journey, and this ex-Fool even came to regard the Trailblaze as the cure for the Elation, until Akivili fell.
Many of the Nameless left the Express, and the legacy of the gods drove the Trailblaze's fellowship to turn on one another… Isee had no choice but to take on the role of Navigator, maintaining the connections between worlds across a solitary voyage spanning several Amber Eras. He honored the promise Akivili had made with him before vanishing, ensuring the path of the Express could carry on, and finding a worthy successor to entrust it to: Falcon Amundsen.
But the long road had since worn away Isee's patience, and he abandoned the Trailblaze. Amidst Nanook's apocalyptic flames, Isee found a way to save the Elation, and so he died, as a Lord Ravager was reborn from the ashes.
Lord Ravager: Asat Pramad
Some say Asat Pramad is the most human of the Overlords, while others argue he's the least. Rarely seen on the front lines, he prefers to orchestrate from afar, more chess master than warlord, moving his legions with methodical precision.
Asat Pramad immerses himself in playing different roles across various worlds, visiting upon them both despair and the opportunity to challenge themselves. In doing so, he savors humanity's defance across the long stretch of time. For it is only when faced with his most vicious jests and trials that they can break free from the beastly nature he so abhors, and reveal, for one fleeting moment, a distinctly human brilliance: dying with dignity.
Known as the one who destroys Elation, Asat Pramad embraces the title. When his work is done, he scorches a giant smiling face into the surface of every dead planet. It is as if he's mocking the very idea of life, or perhaps mourning everything that once was.