Captain Amit Patel is the master ✣ of the operational side of the Castle Wulfenbach. In matters of running the vast airship, Patel would be subordinate only to the Baron and his heir Gilgamesh Wulfenbach, if them. (It is suspected, but not known, that naval etiquette, including the principle that a captain is the absolute master of his ship, is observed in Europan airships in general and Wulfenbach airships in particular. As such, it might be interesting to compare and contrast his position with that of the Heterodyne seneschal, except that almost nothing is known about it.) However, it is the Baron's secretary Boris Dolokhov who undertakes to run the empire at large while the Baron convalesces.
His first name is not used in the comic, but it is given in the fourth print novel[1] which also notes that he was one of many air pirates hired by Baron Wulfenbach, and that he is/was/will be the vessel's only captain before its (as yet undepicted) destruction. After being mentioned once or twice, he finally appears in person here ✣ .
...Which occurs as Agatha prepares to break the time-stop on Mechanicsburg and deal with the looming extra-dimensional visitor. Boris in particular begins to get reports that Patel is acting oddly, to the point he orders the complete evacuation of Castle Wulfenbach, even allowing the airship's untended engines to run dangerously out of control. Boris, Tweedle, and some of Agatha's other allies board the Castle and fight their way onto the bridge to determine what is going on, and find Patel there alone. He orders them to leave at gunpoint without elaboration or explanation, and immediately gets shot in the shoulder in turn.
Picture of the master of the Castle Wulfenbach as found in the PDF edition of the Secret Blueprints, Vol. I, page 18.
Possibly relevant outside information[]
The Captain's job, hairstyle and turban suggest he could possibly be a Sikh, as that religion provides for well-trained warriors who have restrictions against cutting their hair. The surname 'Patel' is not Sikh itself, being Gujarati, but originates not far from what we know of as the Sikh homeland.
Jules Verne depicted his famous submariner Captain Nemo as a man of Indian extraction. (After his original plan for him to be Polish got shot down by his editors.)
References
- ↑ Agatha H. and the Siege of Mechanicsburg p. 266, note 103