Bartholomew Fatima

Bartholomew Fatima, nicknamed Bart, is a playable character in Xenogears.

Appearance and personality
Bart has long blond hair which he wears in a braid and blue eyes. He wears a black headband over his left eye.

Bart is an aggressive young man and will not hesitate to launch an attack even if his subordinates warn against it. He is a very honest and honorable man. He greatly cares for his cousin Margie, having personally taken torture in her place and feels that he needs to help anyone he encounters that is in need. While he sometimes frustrates his elders, he is regarded by fondly by the Yggdrasil crew and is referred to as the "Young Master".

History
Bart is the son of Aveh King Edbart the IV and Queen Mariel. At the age of 6, Shakhan, one of Aveh's ministers staged a coup with the assistance of Gebler. The royal family was either killed or tortured, with Shakhan and Gebler desiring the Fatima Jasper, the royal family's secret treasure which permitted access to the legendary omnigear. Bart was held along with his cousin Margie as the last 2 survivors of the royal family and tortured as if he was a criminal. This included him shielding Margie while being whipped. That same year Bart would be rescued by Sigurd, his elder half-brother, Maison and other former supporters of his father. They were also able to steal the submarine Yggdrasil.

Staying in a hidden base, the Yggdrasil was redesigned and Bart became a sand pirate. He started training in the usage of the whip, treating it as a form of healing for the torture that he underwent. Sigurd acted as his instructor and put Bart through heavy training. He uses the whip to this day. At the age of 14 his personal Gear, the Brigandier was completed and he piloted it for the first time. At the age of 16 Bart was involved in a slave generator accident along with Sigurd. Bart's left eye was damaged, and while it is hoped that it will eventually heal, for now he wears an eyepatch over it.

In the present day, Bart acts as the leader of the Sand Pirates and Captain of the Yggdrasil. Along with Sigurd, Maison and other loyal colleagues he hopes to retake the kingdom of Aveh. His group excavates Gears, seeking to increase the Yggdrasil's attack power and will periodically attack other ships.

Present day
Bart first appears when the Yggdrasil fires upon an Aveh transport vessel that Fei and Citan are being held prisoner on. Bart aggressively launches an attack on the ship despite warnings from Maison and Sigurd. Mistaking Fei and Citan for members of the Aveh military, Bart immediately attacks the Weltall in his Gear Brigandier and the battle results in both Gears being drawn into quicksand, falling into an underground Stalactite Cave. While Bart initially wants to continue their fight underground, Fei convinces him that it is better for them to work together to seek a way out. Over the course of their time together in the cave the two gradually become friends.

Upon escaping the Stalactite Cave, Bart, Maison and Sigurd convince Fei and Citan to join them in their quest to retake Aveh, although Fei has some initial hesitations until an attack on the Pirate's Lair by Gebler. The group heads to Bledavik, the capital of Aveh such that Bart can infiltrate Fatima Castle and rescue his cousin Margie. He is able to make his way through the castle and save her, although has to fight Ramsus and Miang on the way out. From here the group heads to Nisan and Sigurd and Citan reveal their past involvement with Solaris to them, although Sigurd leaves out the fact that he is Bart's half-brother. Bart is initially suspicious, but comes to terms with the news.

Hoping to retake Aveh, Bart comes up with a plan along with the others through a strategy to draw out Gebler's forces to the frontlines of the war with Kislev and seize Bledavik. This plan unfortunately ends up being a failure; with Shakhan seeing through such plans and Id appearing on the frontlines, causing the destruction of the Yggdrasil. Bart reappears later in the game on a new vessel, the Yggdrasil 2 which he claims was found after the Yggdrasil sunk into the sand. He is still his aggressive self and shoots down the, not realizing that it was held by allies.

Bart meets back up with Citan and is introduced to Rico who is initially angry at him for shooting down the Goliath. He makes his way to the Thames where he quickly befriends the likeminded Captain. Bart has a mistrust for Elly, which is in part corroborated when she damages the Yggdrasil's engine, under hypnosis from Miang. He eventually comes around on her and treats her as a trusted ally. Bart also faces some initial conflict with Billy over his aggressive nature.

When Nisan is seized by Shakhan, Bart leads an effort to save it and and once and for all retake Aveh. He heads to Nisan and enters the Royal Mausoleum, being able to access the omnigear Andvari due to the assistance of Margie and Sigurd using the Fatima Jasper, the blue pupils of the Fatima family. Using the omnigear, Bart is able to fight off Shakhan's forces and chase him to a nearby cave where Shakhan is defeated once and for all.

Bart is crowned the 19th king of Aveh, and as part of his coronation announces he will immediately call a truce with Kislev and begin reparations for the victims of both countries. He then reveals a declaration from his father's will that he will abandon the monarchy and establish Aveh as a Republic. This greatly shocks Maison and Sigurd. That night Maison admits to Bart that Sigurd was his brother although Bart hints to already having realized this fact through his father's will mentioning a brother.

Bart remains a key member of the party and helps plan and act on attempts to destroy the Gates and access Solaris. On disc 2 he discovers the existence of a great weapon, the Yggdrasil IV and uses it to destroy the Solaris weapon Fort Hurricane. The weapon also plays a key role in the destruction of the Merkava.