Tita's father. 12 years later, however, Griess resurfaced as a cyborg, forced into service by the Mafia until he learned that Andy/Balboa was still alive, and enlisted his help in taking down "Cloud Killer Whale" once and for all. In the end, Balboa shot Griess to grant him a merciful demise after the latter's cyborg life systems were critically damaged. Due to his military training, Balboa is a skilled pilot and combatant. Mei Lin Jones Medical officer on board the Cha-Cha Maru, Mei Lin Jones is charged with the health of the crew. The medical talents of this stunning beauty is tested to the limit, especially when Tita is gravely injured at the hands of Guizel. In the manga, Mei is depicted as a sister figure to Tita; Tita was raised as part of Mei's family after her father died. It is also revealed that Mei once saved Tita's life when Tita was suffering from a deadly disease called 'Ietta Fever'. She is also a skilled martial artist. Mikhail Diagilev The chief engineer of the Cha-Cha Maru, Mikhail Diagilev might be the most loyal supporter of Tita on board. His service goes back to Tita's father the previous owner of the Cha-Cha Maru. He still bears guilt of allowing Tita's father to die when he jettisoned the engineering section eleven years prior and would die rather than seeing Tita die as well. Nichol Hawking Nichol Hawking, the Cha-Cha Maru's chief pilot, has a big crush on Tita. Once he, with a little help from Roger Rogers, spied on Tita as she and Ellyse bathed (and suffered a nosebleed as a result). Tita, however, got even with the both of them. When Tita was injured by Guizel, Nichol stayed at her bedside while she healed. Nichol is an expert pilot. Although he tends to panic, he knows enough to keep a level head in a crisis situation, especially when Tita leads the Cha-Cha Maru against the rogue fleet of Guizel. In the manga, he is shown to be a natural favorite at a dangerous racing event, which he eventually wins with Tita acting as his navigator. Roger Rogers Roger is an Afro-American serving as assistant engineer aboard the Cha-Cha Maru''. While highly dependable in a crisis situation, in everyday life Roger demonstrates few redeeming qualities: He is a peeping tom who likes to spy on Tita and Mei Lin while they