Atropos is one of the major antagonists of Stephen King's novel Insomnia. He is an agent of those "Higher Powers" which cut the lifelines prematurely, known as the "Random" in the upper dimensions. He is essentially the same as the Atropos of Greek mythology, the Moirae who cuts the life line, but unlike his mythological counterpart, he is male. His colleagues, Clotho and Lanchesis, are also male, except they work together as agents of the "Purpose," which carefully selects those who are about to die of natural causes.