App for LabofNature
Jun. 18th, 2025 11:13 amName: Fey
Contact: Discord over at _erichthonios_
Permissions: Here
Age: 18+
Other characters?: Sunny (Omori)
Who Invited you?: I'm already here!
CHARACTER INFORMATION
Age: 16
Canon: Yu Gi Oh!
Canon point: The Past. They were fighting Zorc 3000 years before the events of the anime. He was never part of Yugi's life, nor trapped in the Millennium Puzzle.
Character Information: Wiki is HERE
Personality:
As a Pharaoh of the 18th Dynasty and last member of his bloodline, Atem is a stoic but kind ruler who never really heard about Card Games. Especially not about Card Games on Motorcycles. He will call himself Menes in the lab, since names are a rather important part of Egyptian culture and from what he gathered his own name has been used to seal away a great evil.
► What is your character's worst fear?
As someone painfully devoted to his people and his kingdom? As someone raised to be both a leader and a protector for those in his land? Atem's worst fear already became a reality when he fell to Zorc, unable to stop the "Great Evil God" and had to close his eyes in the middle of a battlefield right before waking up in the Lab. He may act like he has no fears, but the idea of failing others or letting them get hurt- it gnaws at him from the inside.
He is the Pharaoh. He is the one everyone looks up to. He is the one who should always keep the situation under control, yet his last days in Egypt have been filled with loss (Four of the six people he trusted the most passed away, some even between his arms, many innocents died as well) and uncertainty. In the end? From his point of view? He was not enough. He also died, leaving Set and Isis to face a great evil on their own.
From the TDM he learnt the world didn’t fall into darkness, but too many things don’t make sense in the story he heard so… he’s almost certain the truth has been altered. Overall, his sense of duty toward others is now stronger but he’ll be damned if he’ll ever admit there are fear and regret driving hsi actions.
► What is your character's most outstanding personality trait, and why?
He is… extremely devoted. To his people, to Kemet (Egypt), to those he trusts. He has been strictly raised by a father who loved him but also prepared him for his role before anything else. Atem comes from a world before card games, before things revolved around fake icons of the monsters they all trapped in stone tablets, and he comes from a place that has been threatened more than once by the shadows of war and destruction. He saw his father die of heartbreak after the creation of the Millennium Items, he was crowned far too young… and all he knows is that he’s the King, which is good, and that he's like the shepherd that must lead them with care.
Atem will not hesitate to let criminals be judged and condemned for the sake of keeping the kingdom safe, he’ll not look away as spirits are sealed away and he’ll not hesitate to rush into combat whenever necessary. He sees himself as a protector by divine choice and he will follow that path.
He’s more stoic and duty-oriented than his ‘modern’ counterpart, someone who was once amnesiac and indulged in Shadow Games and learnt the value of friendship. As much as he loves his guardians, they were his subordinates and looked up in his direction, there’s a long path for him to be not just ‘devoted’ to others, but actually allow them to be on his level, allow the devotion to become a mutual bond.
► What would make the character happiest? What is their ultimate goal?
His ultimate goal? Seeing Kemet and its people thrive. In a certain way he was raised to fit the role of a proper Pharaoh, between his education and the moral teachings he received… but he’s also naturally inclined to protect the weak (at least by that time’s standards) and take care of others despite his position.
He doesn’t see himself as a god, he literally says it as his last battle infuriated, but he does see himself as a leader and nothing would fill him with more happiness than knowing he did a great job.
It is worth mentioning he truly loves playing games with others… so having a chance to spend time with people he trusts, playing games with them, on a late evening after work? Maybe when there are no duties and no threats? That would also make him incredibly happy. He may not be the king of the cards (yet) but his heart is already set on considering playing games something he (discreetly) loves. He also takes great enjoyment in challenging his guardians at mock battles with the spirits they own.
► If they had to sacrifice their own life to save someone else, would they do it? Why, or why not? Where do they draw the line?
He did. From his point of view, he died in vain trying to fight Zorc, kidnapped by the Lab in a moment of weakness. From the point of view of people who know how things actually ended? Atem sacrificed his own life and his legacy to seal away a dangerous Dark One (details were lost to time) so his people could know peace.
Atem is not someone who will blindly throw his life on the line for the sake of everyone, mind you, and he (painfully) has to accept that his life is more important than some other ones, but for the greater good he’s not going to let anyone stop him.
► What was the darkest point of your character's life?
I was thinking ‘his battle against Zorc’, but I think it was the time right after being crowned Pharaoh. From a few passing comments, especially from a girl named Mana, we know he used to be a bit more carefree. He used to hide inside pots as a child and he did (at least in the anime) have strong bonds with some of his future guardians, he probably even had the kind of adventures other kids had- just with a few more layers of protection.
Having to wear the crown when he was still a child changed everything. Not only did he lose the only family he knew when his dad died, but everyone had to put some distance between themselves and the godly figure he now fully represented. He had to grow up far too soon, probably before he could fully realize what his new position could truly mean, and some people he was close with? Like Mahad? They fully stepped in a position of servitude around him.
As a child who couldn’t completely understand the weight of the crown? I think it was when he felt lonely, abandoned and scared. The battle with Bakura and Zorc took weeks at worst, adapting to a life where you’re feeling alone even if you’re never on your own… it probably took time for a child. I like to imagine that’s also when he stopped smiling and he stopped reaching for others unless necessary. The anime shows us he cried easily and searched for comfort between his father’s arms. his ‘adult’ self on the other hand comforts others while not really seeking comfort for himself- things changed with his ‘ascension’.
► Who is the most important person in your character's life? How has that person impacted them?
His father Akhenamkhanen.
The man was the only family Atem ever knew, even if his uncle and cousin were right by his side and hidden in plain sight, and it was someone Atem loved deeply. He taught Atem how to be a honorable leader and, even after his death, the Pharaoh feels his presence and his love, wanting to honor both his position and the legacy his father left to him.
Headcanons corner:
- He isn't too fond of sweets and avoids most fruits. He used to sneak dates and figs to others whenever he had a chance.
- Not fond of feasts, he only had them for pure politic reasons or when the priests informed him the Gods demanded a proper tribute in the form of one.
- He enjoys listening to music, but he doesn't really know how to play it. As a child he was allowed to practice with the Arghul, but he forgot almost everything after being crowned and having no time for that.
- He cannot dance to save himself. He avoids doing it because he WILL look ridicolous and he knows it.
- Math has always been his favorite subject (card games math, anyone?) with anything tied to stategy and tactics coming right after. Atem was not fond of studying how to read or write, though, and despite his position as the Pharaoh his calligraphy was rather poor.
- His favorite color are blue and green, the colors of the Nile. Sometimes he enjoys stopping and just looking at passing water or plants with vibrant colors.
- Atem never really experienced romantic love, even if he was a teenager by the time he died. In his position, he only allowed himself to '''love''' his guardians but he was fully aware his future wife was not going to be someone he was going to chose out of love, but someone he was going to pick out of political or religious interest. IF he had feelings for anyone? He never really noticed it.
- His hair is naturally a mess. No need for hair gel when everything stands on its own regardless- without it, though? Everything will be rather fluff at the touch.
- He thinks be died by depleting all his Ba during the battle against Zorc.
- The Pharaoh is rather warm to the touch.
- Atem may say he doesn't play favorites, but Mahad and Set do seem to have a little special corner in his heart.
The second one is so fun to duel in a mock Diaha! Atem can get him to make faces all kind of faces during their fights!
Roommates?: Surprise me! The more chaotic, the better!
Triggers/sensitive topics you'd like to avoid?: Anything noncon-related. I'm pretty much okay with anything else.
RP Samples: With Isis, with Seto, with Marik, with Set With Arrakis

