NOT MY ART! -
Artist: http://nwitchgun.deviantart.com/
https://www.weasyl.com/~nwitchgun

Affiliation: CCA (Former), Troika (Current Rank: Sgt)

Skill Set: Highly athletic, Water Breathing (gills), Martial Arts/Bladed Weapon Expert, Springer Sharpshooter, Small Unit Tactician
Power: Rift Portal-

A mobility increasing warp ability by creating volatile portals. Works similar to a quick dash, but is instantaneous, and can transport Jay as far as he has line-of-sight. Since it is a portal, he does not actually traverse the full path of travel, rather just the start and end point so obstacles do not hinder this ability. They also cancel any momentum he had prior to entering. The entry portal, once created, essentially pulls Jay in and he is launched out of the exit side. The entry portal is always created directly in front of Jay, between where he is and where he wants to go, sending him in a straight line from one location to the next.
Due to the volatile nature of the portals, any creature or object in contact with the entry or exit portal will be ripped apart violently due to the unstable and intense forces. Jay is able to selectively choose what goes through the portal with him, so any object or person he is in contact with AND chooses to allow through the portal will be unharmed.
Primarily used as a means to quickly cover distance or move to hard to reach locations, however with careful application it can be used as a devastating weapon. Downside is Jay will need to get very close to the target (either warping to, or away from an enemy) in order to be used in this manner. It also has the chance of harming his allies if used too close.

Story:

Jay was born to relatively well-off (middle-class), but controlling parents from the Ruskol District of Anduruna. Most of his early life was dictated for him, from the schools he went to, which activities he participated in, all in order to develop him into a worthy heir. To them, their son was little more than an investment, something that would pay off in the future. However, Jay had no interest in pursuing his parent’s dream. Instead he would would choose to do as he pleased in spite of them, often skipping his classes and sneaking out whenever he could, usually to the neighboring Talocan District where he found the energetic atmosphere far more appealing. Physically-gifted, sharp-witted, and with a strong sense of justice, he quickly found a niche protecting others from bullies and thugs. As time went on, his parents went to greater lengths to keep him in line. Hitting the breaking point, Jay escaped once more with no intention of returning. Cutting their losses on a "failed investment", his parents shortly after disowned him. Living on his own and fending for himself, he eventually completed his education at a different school by forging new enrollment papers and adopting a new last name; Kessler.

Upon reaching the appropriate age, Jay joined the CCA hoping to protect the people of the city, more so than he could have before dispensing vigilante justice in the streets.He was tragically unaware of the true intent of the organization. His first few years in the CCA were relatively uneventful, quelling the occasional grievance or gang incident. However, over time he grew more concerned how much their enforcement came down on ordinary citizens, though never bringing his concerns up around his coworkers or superiors. Jay would often try to convince himself he was just overly sensitive about it, but could never shake the feeling that something was very off. Due in large part to his impressive evaluation scores and field performance, Jay was given an offer to join the (CCA Special Tasks Group?), a specialized division of the CCA tasked specifically with covertly tracking and eliminating threats to public safety. Optimistic that this might be his chance to finally make a difference, Jay eagerly accepted. After a period of specialized training, Jay was finally sent on his first (and last) mission.

Being a rookie to the unit, he was attached to a squad with a relatively simple assignment. The team was to enter and clear a location described as a "Criminal Hideout", and to ensure that all targets were eliminated without drawing the attention of the public. The last thing they wanted was a panic, so better to send in a specialized team instead of a platoon of Storm Troopers. All targets considered "extremely dangerous killers", and lethal force was authorized for the mission.

What Jay saw next would change him for life. The target location was no hideout, but a home. The targets, a family. Husband. Wife. Children. And he couldn’t save any of them. If he had to guess, it was far more likely this was a political assassination or cover-up op rather than any criminal threat. That would explain the secrecy. At this point he didn't care. He had seen enough and wanted nothing to do with this.

Jay deserted the CCA that night.

For several months after the incident Jay went underground, using all the skills at his disposal to evade the CCA who were now hunting him in full force. This went on for about half a year before he was finally cornered. He would have died if he was not being hunted down by another faction. The Troika.

Helping him to escape the CCA ambush, the Troika brought Jay to their base. They has been seeking him out after getting word of a rouge CCA agent, and seeing the potential for a valuable asset set off to track him down first. Shortly after, Jay joined the Troika in earnest, hoping for a chance to make amends for his past wrongs and finally help people as he had always intended to. He does not fully believe the members of the Troika trust him, but he is resolute in his decision to join and has no intention to let them down.
Jay was able to discover his power under the tutelage of the Troika, and found himself with a very useful (albeit unstable) warp ability. (See description in intro for power specifics). While it greatly improved mobility, it was also risky to use in close proximity to allies and civilians due to the violent effects of portal creation. On top of that, once he arrived in a new location he would still need to rely on traditional weapons and skills in a fight.

In order to overcome the limitations of his power, Jay instead focused on “un-powered” combat training. A master of martial arts and springer rifle marksmanship, Jay eventually set the standard for Troika training in these areas. He now heads the training program for new recruits, and stands ready for the chance to put his skill and power to use in the fight against the rising Nightmare menace.

Personality:

-Jay always was something of a fun-loving goof. Developed mostly in contrast to his parents ever stern and serious nature, Jay much preferred enjoying life and having fun while doing so. Also genuinely enjoying others being happy, he is often one to do or say something for the sole purpose of getting others to smile or laugh. Hates to see innocent people suffer, and had dedicated his life to protecting others.
Generally very friendly and easy to get along with, as long as you don't cross him.
(Despite being very sociable, he has difficulty creating close relationships with others. Tends not to confide in others or share his struggles with "friends".)
-While his past weighs on him heavily, he tries to maintain his upbeat and outgoing nature; though it may just be his way of coping with his past.
(Spends as much time interacting with other people or working as possible. When left alone or idle he tends to ruminate on certain events of his past, causing him to train excessively in order to avoid this.)

-Despite his goofy nature, he knows fully well when its time to be serious and can switch it on when need be. He is also far more intelligent than his humorous persona may let on. This is an intentional ruse, allowing him an upper hand in many situations as enemies will likely underestimate his abilities. Those who know better are far more cautious.

-The events that ended his affiliation with the CCA left deep mental scars, and Jay secretly struggles with a great deal of depression and regret. He goes to great lengths to keep this side of his personality secret. Likely suffers from PTSD as a result of that event, and blames himself for not intervening.

-Slow to anger and very patient with others, making him ideal as an instructor.
-In combat, Jay relies far more heavily on strategy, mobility, and skill than brute force. Always on the lookout for ways to gain the upper hand.

Combat Style:

-Jay has focused a great deal of his training efforts on being able to fight without the aide of his power. While he is very skilled with all forms of Springer weapons, he tends to favor traditional methods of combat to include Hand-to-Hand, knives, and swords; with his go-to weapons being his trusty dual short-swords. He utilizes high mobility and speed in order to close distance, attack, and retreat before the enemy has a chance to retaliate. Also able to effectively use blades as thrown weapons.

-His Hand-to-hand skills allow for non-lethal combat options, if a low body count is desired. Will often opt for this if given the choice. For obvious reasons, Nightmares can expect no such mercy.

-Despite training a great deal in order to not need it, he has learned to use his power in tandem with his regular combat skills to achieve devastating effect. The ability to warp any distance he can see essentially makes long-range attacks useless against him, as he can simply close the gap instantly while simultaneously evading attack.

-The damaging nature of his portals on other objects can also be very useful, but is difficult and sometimes dangerous if not used carefully and with great precision. The damaging effect of the portals has a relatively small area of effect (~1m or less radius around either portal), but a high chance of fatality for anything caught in it. Jay must be careful not to use it too close to his allies in order to avoid harming them, but at the same use it close enough to an enemy to have any effect. One particularly effective (yet gruesome) technique is to grab hold of an enemy before warping; by choosing not to synchronize the enemy with his portal the unfortunate individual is torn apart in transit, leaving nothing left of them to exit the other side. (He is essentially creating a miniature wormhole through which to travel. Anything not "in sync" with the unique and erratic energy and gravitational forces is simultaneously pulled all directions at once on a molecular level.)

-When working with a team, he focuses his efforts on distracting and pulling the enemy's attention away from his allies, while also causing a great deal of damage through his guerrilla tactics. With his ability to safely transport select people and objects with him through his portals by synchronizing them with the portal energy, he can also get team members or equipment to strategically superior locations. Jay must both be in physical contact with the person or object and consciously synchronize them with the portal to travel safely.