[center][img]https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRya6ltFGA8BJjBWvIw4Ppbrb5if9QjHe5Cd9-BwNwRx46jXd15[/img]

[color=A1A6AA][sub]JONAH   DECKER[/sub][/color][/center]
	[color=BABABA][sub]P R E L U D E[/sub][/color][hr][indent][color=A1A6AA]Jonah was born in Atlanta, Georgia to a teenage girl with no means of supporting herself, much less her newborn son. Left with little choice, she relinquished Jonah to the care of the state. For most of his childhood, Jonah bounced between various foster homes across Georgia. Despite doing well in school, the boy was involved in a number of altercations with his peers, earning a reputation as an unrepentant, albeit gifted, troublemaker from the school administration. 

However, after spending a brief stint in juvenile hall, Jonah was permanently adopted by Scott and Maria Decker at the age of fourteen. He took quickly to the couple and their biological son Ian, who was near his own age. Scott was a military veteran and police officer, whose firm but fair demeanor ensured that Jonah's disciplinary issues all but evaporated within a matter of weeks following his adoption.

Following in his father's footsteps, Jonah enlisted with the United States Army as an infantryman following high school graduation, volunteering for service with the 75th Ranger Regiment. He was assigned to the 3rd Ranger Battalion, serving with distinction in Iraq and Afghanistan. After four years with the Rangers, Decker transitioned to the Special Forces community. Jonah served as a Green Beret Weapons Sergeant before working his way up to become an Intelligence Sergeant, qualified sniper, and member of an elite CIF Company. Hendrix participated in multiple combat deployments overseas, earning a variety of commendations for valor and meritorious service; he was considered to be on the "fast track" for recruitment to the Army Compartmented Element (i.e. "Delta Force") or even the Central Intelligence Agency. 

However, three years ago, Jonah's career took a drastic turn. His six-man Special Forces team was attached to a unit of Afghan National Army soldiers and dispatched deep into the Hindu Kush mountains in order to locate & capture or kill a high-value Taliban spiritual leader. As the unit advanced to contact in the dead of night, they were ambushed. In addition to conventional weapons fire, they were assaulted by otherworldly forces. Though Decker didn't know it at the time, the so-called "spiritual leader" was in fact a powerful Mystic who had thrown his lot in with the Taliban, lording over them as a prophet.

Now he turned that power on Jonah's comrades. In the ensuing skirmish, blood was shed on both sides. Jonah was the sole survivor of his team. Despite receiving a crippling injury to his left leg, he succeeded in his mission and the Mystic was eliminated. Decker was recovered via medevac and transported to a field hospital, where his left leg was amputated below the knee to later be replaced by a prosthesis.

Over the next several days, Jonah was debriefed by his superiors as well as numerous intelligence outfits. He recounted his tale of supernatural intervention, which was dismissed as the ranting of a victim of severe PTSD and survivor's guilt. However, word of his experiences reached the Department of Paranormal Surveillance, who were already keeping tabs on the operation. Following his mental and physical rehabilitation, Jonah was approached by recruiters for the DPS who offered him a slot within the Division. Jonah accepted.[/color][/indent]

	[color=BABABA][sub]I D E O L O G Y[/sub][/color][hr][indent][color=A1A6AA]Jonah is at first glance the consummate "quiet professional": soft-spoken, determined, and detail-oriented. Though these are qualities he is sometimes praised for by his superiors, he has been described by many of his peers as tense, though one less generous might call him uptight. However, those who manage to make it into his "inner circle" (through criteria known only to him) find a surprisingly warm friend given to the occasional display of self-deprecating humor. 

Though raised Catholic, Jonah is an agnostic atheist. His peers within the DPS are sometimes surprised to discover that he is generally unwilling to launch into speculation at length regarding the nature of the Void. Though he'll study it religiously in order to become better at his job, by outside appearances that's all it is to him: a job. A duty. Decker sees the Division as the next step in his career of service to his country, one he feels particularly compelled to follow after witnessing the fates of his comrades overseas. Jonah believes that he can make a greater difference as part of the vanguard against the otherworldly forces of the Void than he ever could as a Soldier.

In truth, Jonah continues to fight a constant mental and emotional struggle. Though cleared by Division psychologists for duty, he is nonetheless afflicted by moderate post-traumatic stress disorder, though he does his best to hide the effects. Decker is intent to the point of near-obsession with the goal of proving himself as a capable member of the Division, despite the apparent handicap of his prosthesis.[/color][/indent]

	[color=BABABA][sub]A P P E A R A N C E[/sub][/color][hr][indent][color=A1A6AA]Jonah makes for a rather imposing figure, standing at 6'4" and weighing roughly 250 pounds. His frame is broad-shouldered, with an athletic build. He keeps his dark brown hair relatively close-cropped, with a well-trimmed beard adorning his jawline. His eyes are a shade of steely gray. A half-sleeve tattoo depicting the insignia of the Army Special Forces is on his upper left arm, while his right features the crest of the 75th Ranger Regiment.[/color][/indent]

	[color=BABABA][sub]W A R F A R E[/sub][/color][hr][indent][color=A1A6AA]Jonah's standard sidearm of choice is a Gen4 Glock 17 worn in a holster on his belt, while a Ruger LCR revolver is carried in a concealed ankle holster on his left instep. A folding tactical knife and multitool are often on his person.

Should the situation call for a more forceful response, Decker gears up in body armor and tactical load-bearing equipment, along with breaching tools, a field medical kit, etc. His favored long gun is a suppressed short-barreled HK416 assault rifle, fitted with a variety of accessories. When the situation allows for clear sight lines favorable to his background as a sniper, Decker opts for a LaRue OBR semi-automatic sniper rifle or -- in truly dire scenarios -- a Barrett Model 95 anti-materiel rifle loaded with armor-piercing high-explosive incendiary ammunition.[/color][/indent]

	[color=BABABA][sub]T R I V I A[/sub][/color][hr][indent][color=A1A6AA][list]
[*] Thirty-five years old.
[*] His middle name is "Alan". 
[*] He has repeatedly attempted to track down his birth parents, to no avail.
[*] Speaks with a slight Southern drawl at times, though he actively attempts to mask it.
[*] Proficient in Spanish and Arabic, able to speak Dari and Pashto well enough for basic conversation.
[*] Graduated from multiple military and civilian sniper schools.
[*] Holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice.[/list][/color][/indent]