HISTORY

Marisa Carvalho was born in Sao Paulo, Brazil on 22 October 2099. Her childhood was a pleasant one, as her family was well off and she wanted for little. She spent her teen years mesmerized by the news stories of the Second Luna War and the Io Conflict. Carvalho was so impressed by the stories she heard of the Coalition's brave feats that she resolved to join their ranks when she was old enough. Against the wishes of her parents, she passed up her acceptance at university, instead enlisting in the Brazilian military in 2117.

Carvalho spent her first year doing everything she could to develop the skills she'd need for offworld military service. She proved to be a remarkably quick study and excelled in weapons training and zero-g maneuvers. She is also proficient in many forms of martial combat (notably capoeira, savate, judo, and penjak silat), and was the Brazilian military unarmed combat champion within a year of her enlistment. Her superiors recognized her talents and transferred her to space duty and the combat post she'd dreamed of: Luna, and the Lunar insurrection.

By the time she reached the Coalition space station in orbit around Earth, Derek Fisk had signed the Luna Treaty and the fighting had stopped. Though happy to be in space, Carvalho was bitterly disappointed not to be fighting.

Certainly there was still work for the Coalition to do. In the aftermath of several years of war, order needed to be restored and the Coalition was the organization to do it. Yet, these endeavors failed to appeal to Carvalho, who had hoped for something much more “exciting.”

The talented young woman retreated inward, shutting out the world around her. Her friends noticed she had ceased to be the vibrant, go-getter that had enlisted in the military so willingly. Instead, she became sullen and introspective. Her attention to detail and her dedication began to falter. Carvalho even began to reconsider her decision to join the military in the first place.

Then, in 2120, Carvalho was forced to snap to her senses. Carvalho had been assigned to the Coalition craft Courser patrolling the Asteroid Belt. While near the asteroid Amor, the patrol craft detected an unauthorized vessel on its surface. The vessel failed to respond to repeated attempts to hail it. The commander of the Coalition ship ordered it down to Amor to investigate.

On the asteroid's surface, the Marines discovered that Amor was the location of a previously unknown pirate band, the Brethren of the Belt. In addition to the craft already detected, there were two more, each possessing more weaponry than the Courser.

Nevertheless, Carvalho's commanding officer saw this as a unique opportunity to capture three pirate vessels in one fell swoop. The Courser landed on the far side of Amor and deployed its soldiers (including Carvalho, who commanded the spearhead squad). The commander and a pilot remained aboard the ship and planned to provide air support for the troopers. The mission was simple: march across the surface of Amor and surprise the pirates before they had an opportunity to respond, one of many military plans that did not survive direct contact with an enemy.

The “pirates” turned out to be a GigaCorp scout element surveying the Belt for Crimson Shield forces. The corporate troops on Amor were well-armed, well-trained and well-equipped. Their scanners had already alerted them to the presence of the Coalition forces and when Carvalho and her companions moved into position for the attack, they were ambushed.

The combat was quick and deadly, and the Coalition troops took the worst of it. Most of them died from decompression or weapons fire in the first 30 second of the engagment, with the rest breaking off and moving under cover. Marisa Carvalho barely survived the first wave of the ambush, though her suit was holed and only the timely intervention of her surviving squadmate allowed her to survive.

As her teammate moved to scout out the enemy position, she attempted tried to contact the Courser, to no avail. She could only assume that it too had been destroyed. Worse, her teammate never returned.

The GigaCorp forces remained on Amor for only a couple more days before leaving the area. During that time, Carvalho did her best to avoid detection, salvaging air from her fallen comrades' tanks. After the enemy withdrew, she was marooned, and fully expecting to die on the unforgiving ball of rock.

Fortune favored her, however. When the Courser failed to report in, another vessel, the Palomino, was dispatched to the Belt to look for the missing craft. Carvalho was rescued and quickly sent back to a Coalition station. After a brief period of medical leave, she returned to duty with a renewed sense of purpose. She had seen the follies of entering a situation unprepared and vowed never to be caught by surprise again.

In the years since, Carvalho has dedicated herself to training the Coalition's recruits. She considers it her driving purpose to make certain that the young men and women who enlist know what they are getting into and what they are up against. Although she can be a stern taskmistress, she is also quick to praise those who show foresight and clear thinking. Like many Coalition soldiers, she has an intense dislike for GigaCorp (and, by extension, corporations in general), a dislike she inculcates in her underlings.

Since the destruction of Earth, Carvalho has spent more time in the field than she had previously. While her skills as an instructor are unmatched, she is also an extraordinary Marine as well, with several notable victories to her credit. Her superiors occasionally worry that her personal hatred of the corporations may cloud her judgment, though Carvalho does her best to ensure that she never act rashly or without deliberation. Consequently, her record since returning to combat duty is as exemplary as her time as an instructor. Because of her outstanding record, she has since attained the rank of Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps, the highest rank of enlisted personnel.

PHYSICAL APPEARANCE

Marisa Carvalho is not outwardly the stereotypical Coalition soldier. Standing a mere 155 cm in height, it is easy to mistake her for a Coalition base administrator, or other support staffer. Despite her appearance, “The Sergeant Major,” (a not-quite-affectionate nickname awarded her by her troops) is every bit the battle-hardened veteran Marine.

Although diminutive in stature, Sergeant Carvalho is broad-shouldered and muscular, possessing superior agility, strength and endurance. The Sergeant Major has been known to offer to settle disputes with her underlings in hand-to-hand combat; not surprisingly, few take her up on such offers.

A native Brazilian, Carvalho is short and dark. Her penetrating eyes have a look of intense seriousness to them that is hard to mistake. Indeed, even her own superiors find themselves somewhat unsettled by the stern looks for which she is well known. Carvalho's skin is tanned and is beginning to show the wrinkles that come with middle age. She proudly wears several deep scars on her right arm (from the engagement on Aron). Sergeant Carvalho keeps her black hair short, in the utilitarian style favored by female Coalition commanders.

The Sergeant prefers to wear her combat fatigues when at all possible. It's not that she feels uncomfortable wearing a standard Coalition uniform; rather, she places great stock in her ability to don her combat armor on a moment's notice. Her obsession with preparedness is legendary and its effects filter down to those who serve under her command.