Counterattack Terrorism, Section F, Division M
Mariko Rosebank (née Morinaga)
"Shrapnel ripped my little boy's body apart. It entered my breast and stopped three millimeters short of my heart. If there had been ten kilos... no, five kilos more of explosives, it would have killed me, just like it did my husband and child."
The main character of Desert Rose, Mariko was once an unassuming housewife until her entire family was killed in a terrorist bombing. Following that, she enlisted in CAT, and has since gone on to become leader of Division M and one of the foremost experts in fighting terrorism worldwide.
- Crusading Widow: She's been fighting terrorists the world over after they killed her husband and child, and she'll probably keep at it as long as she has breath in her body.
- A Father to His Men: A mother, more specifically. Mariko cares deeply about the women under her command and does everything she can to make sure they survive any mission that they undertake.
- Friend to All Children: Given her past history, it's not hard to see why she's protective of children, and always gets involved in hostage situations involving them.
- Heterosexual Life-Partners: She and Helga share a very close friendship, born from their time training together at CAT. It's rare to see them apart when off-duty. It gets to the point when Mariko suffers a head injury, she mutters Helga's name in a delirious haze, not her husband's.
- Improbable Age: Mariko is three-year veteran and leader at 26 years old. More improbably, she lost her family 4 years prior, meaning CAT's training turned her from a housewife into a soldier in a single year. The manga's final afterword pokes fun at this, with Mariko angrily insisting that she's 26, and "Manga characters don't age after their initial appearance".
- Light Feminine and Dark Feminine: The light feminine to Helga's dark feminine. Mariko exudes a maternal, sweet atmosphere, and acts like the gentle leader, while Helga has a cool, mature aura, and serves as Division M's taskmaster.
- Red Baron: "Marie the Rose". In fact, she has a tendency to refer to herself as "Marie" more than her real name.
- Scars Are Forever: Her rose-shaped scar on her chest, created by shrapnel. It's sometimes mistaken for a tattoo, and it never fades — indeed, when she gets emotional, the scar actually turns red.
- Signing-Off Catchphrase: She announces the end of an operation with "That's a wrap!" The others are so familiar with it that when Mariko doesn't say it, they know the mission isn't personally finished for her.
- Sherlock Scan: Good instincts and years of experience allows her to easily determine if a terrorist plot is happening, or how. In "Sold Out", she sees a bag being passed through a fence at an airport. A lack of a second bag tells her it isn't a drug deal, and seeing it getting added to the cargo immediately sends her into action. Later in the story, she uses a video recording to determine that a suspected terrorist is a woman in disguise based on how she walks.
Helga Mittelmeier
"The Berlin I knew was a city ripped asunder. Everything was sundered. History... culture... even love."
Helga serves as Division M's second-in-command and Mariko's righthand woman.
- Conveniently an Orphan: A passing remark in "Blood Bridal" mentions she has no parents.
- A Day in the Limelight: "Blood Bridal" recounts Helga's messy past as an East Berliner and what led to her escape to the West.
- Defector from Commie Land: In the past, she fell in love with a foreign reporter. On the day of their wedding, he was shot and killed, before being outed as a NATO spy. The heartbreak and humiliation she received in the aftermath disillusioned her of East Berlin, prompting her to escape to the West (though the incident wound up killing her unborn child, just to twist the knife further).
- Failed Attempt at Drama: At one point in "Blood Bridal", Helga, with her reputation ruined, tries to make a cool departure from her roommate... and winds up tripping down the stairs. The atmosphere is skewered enough that Lotte convinces her to at least spend one last night in their apartment.
- Friendly Address Privileges: According to others, only Helga is allowed to address Mariko as "Marie". Everyone else in the unit only gets to call her "Commander".
- Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Mariko. While Mariko worries over the women in Division M, Helga in turn worries over Mariko and makes sure she's taking care of herself.
- Light Feminine and Dark Feminine: The dark feminine to Mariko's light feminine, as she exudes a classy, mature aura.
- May–December Romance: When she was 18 years old, she fell in love with the 30-year-old Walter Heinz.
- The Worf Effect: As the next most important member of Division M after Mariko, as well as a frontline fighter, Helga often winds up getting incapacitated in order to drive up the stakes of a situation.
- You Are in Command Now: "Atomic Connection" and "Heaven's Gate" have Helga take over when Mariko isn't able to lead, letting her show her leadership skills.
Irene Sanders
"Do you asswipes take pleasure in interrupting a girl when she's having fun?"
Irene is in charge of small-arms and close quarters combat; in the field, this makes her the leader of Division M's vanguard, putting her in the thick of the action to cause the most trouble to terrorists.
- All Women Are Lustful: She's the most sexually active of Division M, being seen several times having sex with a man.
- A Day in the Limelight: "Call Me Queen!" gives more focus on Irene and her personal issues.
- Naughty Nuns: During "Atomic Connection", Irene winds up in a convent that thinks she's joining. Before she escapes she takes great pleasure scandalizing the others with tales of her sexual conquests.
- Vitriolic Best Buds: With Delilah and Lin. While she trades barbs with both, especially Lin, when a mission is on, they steadfastly look after each other.
Lin Ryu Hi
Lin handles hand-to-hand combat, befitting her background as an assassin-in-training, though her ditzy personality also lends her to being the group's comic relief.
- Anime Chinese Girl: A darker version than others, as her childhood in Hong Kong included training to become a "Needle Princess", eg, an assassin for Bai Kowloon. If she hadn't joined CAT she would have become your typical Dragon Lady.
- A Day in the Limelight: Lin gets a story to herself in "China Girl Syndrome".
- The Ditz: Other members tend to tease her for her foolishness, with Irene outright saying she'd be the sort to fall for obviously suspicious booby traps.
- Master Poisoner: While she hasn't had huge need of it thanks to CAT, Lin still has a supply of deadly poisons and darts at her disposal when guns aren't available.
- Team Chef: She's the best cook of the characters, meaning when they have a get together, Lin is all to happy to volunteer to make meals for them.
- Razor Floss: She keeps a wire saw hidden in her hair decorations. A swing from it lets her cut through steel, and flesh is even more effortless, allowing her to do Literal Disarming.
- Vitriolic Best Buds: With Irene, as the two always get into spats between missions, thought they are steadfast teammates when on the job.
Delilah Kankkunen
Delilah is in charge of Division M's intelligence, though when on the field, she commands the group's sniper teams.
- Cool Shades: She's seen maybe all once without her aviator sunglasses, and only because she was masquerading as a prostitute. Otherwise, those glasses are pretty much part of her face.
- Cultured Badass: She's known to pass time reading Stendhal
. - Deadpan Snarker: She's probably the most prone to giving caustic remarks of the whole group.
- In-Series Nickname: "Dela".
- Vitriolic Best Buds: She and Irene both served in the bloodthirsty Division Q before they transferred to M, and it shows in the way they're quite familiar with sniping at each other. But past that, Irene remains one of Dela's few friends, who she worries about when Irene gets brainwashed in "Call Me Queen!"
Jessica Clearkin
Jessica is Division M's foremost expert in bomb disposal, though her large frame has made her an obvious pick for carrying the Division's heavy weaponry, too.
- Brawnhilda: Unlike the classic feminine figures of the other characters, Jessica has a stocky build and large muscles. Given her past in the Soviet army, this also makes her Division M's version of the Husky Russkie.
- A Day in the Limelight: "Red Star Galil" pits Jessica against a particularly tamper-proof bomb, and it follows her struggles and examination of the titular bomb.
- The Big Guy: She is, indeed, the largest of Division M, and when she's not dismantling bombs, she's usually carrying the Division's rocket launchers.
- Demolitions Expert: This is her main job in Division M, as she focuses on taking apart bombs terrorists plant during an attack.
- Reds With Rockets: In one conversation with an old mentor, Jessica is identified as formerly serving as the Commander of Bomb Squad One, in Company Six of the First Battalion of the Soviet army.
Colleen Anderson
Colleen serves as Jessica's back up, helping her defuse bombs when an extra pair of hands are needed, which is often.
- Blood Knight: After an unfulfilling life of shooting straight through university, the dangers of working for CAT have given Colleen reason to make friends and things worth living for. That, and the thrill of defusing bombs is actually a turn on for her.
- A Day in the Limelight: "Dr. Colleen Is Busy Today" forces her to dismantle a series of bombs on her own while on a break.
- Demolitions Expert: She serves as Jessica's number two in this regard, providing Jessica with further back up.
- Teen Genius: She's the youngest member of the team, at around 23 years, but she already had a doctorate at 19 years and currently has enough field experience that the Pentagon is begging her to transfer over and begin teaching troops bomb defusal.
- Shrinking Violet: She's easily flustered and less comfortable with crowds, though her spine quickly shows when she's on a mission.
Other recurring characters
Colonel Huntsman
The leader of CAT, who Mariko meets sometimes to get new missions.
- The Faceless: He's usually either a voice on a phone, or seen from behind.
CAT Section M, Division A
A male unit of CAT, which is known for both its near-perfect success rate and equally high number of casualties, even if the actual death count is low. Their leader is Commander Arnold.
- Anti-Hero Team: Opposite Section M's heroic counter-terrorist activities, Section A's focal story in "Team A" shows them handling much more dubious contracts and shady business, which even warranted an undercover audit. Nonetheless they show a strong combination of morals and professionalism, even recognizing that their clients will likely betray them. Even their under-the-table sales of CAT equipment is so they can get favors from arms dealers when they're in a serious pinch.
Gryphon
A terrorist mastermind responsible for the bombing that killed Mariko's family. He remains a looming figure who has eluded the authorities even after all these years.
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Harold might once have been happily married to Mariko, but he threw it away to pursue a career in terrorism. By the final arc, it's revealed that Harold was working undercover as a manager of a TV network, while planning to use the network broadcasts to incite mass murder in the US.
- The Reveal: Gryphon turns out to be Harold Rosebank, Mariko's husband.
