Dark Thunder

* Dark Thunder
* Jason Snyder

> *"You... **You are mine!**"*
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> *—Dark Thunder to Hecate before killing her*
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**Jason Terrance Snyder** was a young man born in Gotham City to an abusive father and a beaten mother. His upbringing was rough, having fights in school and being verbally and physically abused by his own father. One day on his way home from school, Jason was kidnapped by a villainous Roman Goddess named Hecate. Snyder served under her for years before gaining his own powers from her, those being in the Mystic Arts and the powers of the Wizard Shazam (although Jason's power came from the Roman Gods) and used them to smite her, becoming **Dark Thunder**.

It was at this time when Jason decided to get revenge on his father (whom at this point had killed his mother) and eventually, due to the dark magic he'd studied in for so long, became a villain in himself, wanting nothing but to destroy or rule the universe for what everyone has put him through.

Jason now operates as Dark Thunder, enhancing his own abilities in the Mystic Arts and training his own Shazam abilities in order to accomplish his goal of either universal domination, or if he cannot have that, universal destruction.

## Biography

### Early Life

#### Childhood

Jason Terrace Snyder was born in Gotham State Hospital on the 11th April 1990 to his mother Lauren Snyder (maiden name ‘Marsh’) and his father Scott Snyder. His parents themselves were both born in Hell’s Kitchen, having met in school. Jason’s father was a rather terrible person, constantly choosing to abuse his wife and son not only verbally and psychologically, but physically as well. In one instance, Scott hit Jason with a rolling pin across his jaw, fracturing and dislocating it. Scott also thoroughly beat and assaulted his wife in other ways. All Jason wanted was for his loving mother to be taken care of, which developed in Jason growing a deadly hatred for his father, wanting nothing more to murder the man who was *meant* to care for him.

#### Schooling

This also led to Jason leaving his school during his breaks between classes as well as after school to find combat trainers on the streets in the Narrows. One of the men he came across called himself ‘Knives’ due to the man cuts he’d gained across the years. He was a skilled combat artist, having been trained under ‘The Hand’, an organization within New York City and was able to teach Jason a great many skills, for a price. Every few months, Jason was given a task; usually one of criminality. A theft. An assault. A murder, even. But, so one day he could kill his own, cruel Father, Jason went along with it. Unfortunately, this gave the boy an appetite for violence. Something also rubbed off by his father.

Jason would constantly arrive at his school, the school he was enrolled at being quite poor, with bruises and cuts. Jason’s bad childhood led him to cause a lot of trouble at school, consistently getting into scuffles and skirmishes with other students and, on occasion, teachers. Alongside this, Jason seemed to have no care within his classes at all, constantly messing around and getting into fights, mainly due to yet again, his less than suitable home-life. However Jason did study outside of school when he had the chance, being able to pass all of his exams with good grades.

After Jason graduated High School, his parents not showing up to congratulate him due to his father insisting he didn’t deserve their presence, Jason decided to walk home around the back alleys of Gotham, and knowing Gotham that’s pretty dangerous. But what Jason found is something that’d affect his life… forever.

### The Goddess of Witchcraft

#### Meeting Hecate

Jason walked down the street, his cheap sneakers splashing in a deep puddle every now and then. The rain started pouring down, as if it was showing what Jason was feeling deep inside. Young Snyder was only around the age of 17 at this time, which would make him perfect for what he'd stumble into. As he walked home, he noticed something coming from a seemingly abandoned home. Something… glowing. And sparks? Being the young curious boy he was, Jason decided to go and investigate. His feet moved him across the road as he came into the house and snuck up the creaky stairs. He hesitated as he reached the door. Maybe he should go home? Ah but if those stairs were as loud as he thought, it’d already be too late… Jason opened the door. *CREEAAAKK…*

Jason’s eyes locked onto the tall and skinny woman before him. She wore a black crown and large black robes, her hands glowed a purple, looking like there was some kind of energy coming from them; she was, or at least looked like, a witch. Jason was stuck, he couldn’t move. Not only out of pure fear, but also, the dark magic the witch has conjured held Jason in place. Snyder was scared to say the least. Sweat running down his face as the woman approached, floating from the ground.

The woman introduced herself as ‘Hecate, Goddess of Dark Magic and Witchcraft’. Jason seemed confused, yet still scared. He didn’t mutter a word. Hecate would go on to explain a few things: 1, She was a reincarnation of a Roman God, or something of a reincarnation in the sense. She was a sorcerer, having lived for thousands upon thousands of years, using dark magic to allow her to grow stronger. The 2nd thing she told Jason was that he wasn’t going anywhere. Jason had already seen too much, and the boy showed promise. Even in his fear, which started to come out as attempts of violence. Yes, he’d do nicely for her. This is when Jason was taken as Hecate’s apprentice.

#### A Slave

Jason would serve under the villainous Hecate, not only learning the Dark Arts but being gifted certain abilities to allow him to progress, although he had to do her bidding, always. She would torture Jason time and time again, but he’d have to stay loyal so avoid her killing Jason’s Mother. Something he’d never allow. In the local news, Jason was declared missing. A few months later: Presumed dead. He didn’t exist anymore. He didn’t know what had become of his caring Mother, nor his bastard Father. He wanted to leave to use his abilities to help his Mother, but he couldn’t. He had to serve… Forever.

Through the time Jason served under Hecate, he grew darker, more evil. The dark magic he’d learnt encapsulated him. It was turning him. Somehow he’d grown worse than before. His hatred is brewing more and more. He’d constantly commit assaults, steal, even… murder. Jason, like the papers said, was truly dead now. All that was left was what Hecate called him. He was her Dark Thunder.

#### Attack on the Sanctum Sanctorum

One day, about 6 years into Jason’s serving to Hecate, the Goddess decided she wished to go to New York City, specifically the Sanctum Sanctorum. She needed something from there, something Jason wasn’t told about. She travelled there with her latest apprentice. The pair attacked the Sancturom with surprising ease, mainly thanks to Hecate’s training to Jason and her own ungodly powers. They ripped the Sancturom apart before they found what they were looking for. A book. A single book. God knew how to pronounce it’s name, but you could sense the power from it. All it had on it was a single insignia: a lightning strike.

#### Dark Thunder

##### Gifted Power

As the Goddess and Jason went back to the devil ridden, abandoned, cold building they called a temple. It was here Jason was informed he was destined for something greater. He’d be enhanced, physically. The Goddess had never done this to anyone before, but she didn’t want to tell Jason that. Of course not, it’d worry the poor boy, or now, man. Hecate began to perform the spell, carefully beginning in a language of tongues that Jason didn’t understand. All he could make out was the last part: **“The power of the great Wizard: SHAZAM! The Rage of Jupiter, Wisdom of Athena, Swiftness of Mercurius, Courage of Virtus, Power of Cratus, Darkness of Summanus! And with that: UMBRA!!”**

Then, quite suddenly, a dark thunderbolt crashed down through the ceiling and onto Jason. But rather than pain, Jason felt power. His body grew to an even larger extent, larger than his usual and already impressive physique. There Jason stood- No, not Jason: DARK THUNDER.

He stood before Hecate as his eyes and entire body fizzled with yellow lightning, a new black and gold super-suit of sorts appearing on his body as well as a white cape. Now, Jason wasn’t the sort of person to become a hero, no, he’d become something else. Not a Superhero like anyone else. No… He was something new entirely. He was, at heart and thanks to Hecate… a villain. The man stood as he began to float. An evil grin appeared on his face.

##### The Death of a Goddess

Hecate went on to explain everything. His powers, what’d happened to him and how to control the powers. Suddenly, Hecate began to look weary. Something was wrong, but Jason didn’t care. Not a single bit. The woman, no, the witch who’d tortured him and taken him from his home - from his mother. She was dying. The spell must’ve gone wrong. Jason didn’t just feel the powers of Shazam, he felt hers too. Surging through him. His hands glowed a purple before turning to a yellow as he cackled. She began to rapidly age, her body turning to a corpse. Jason floated over to her as he bound her in magic. He then gave a smile and said, softly in her ear: **“You… You’re mine.”** And with that Jason suddenly summoned a massive lightning bolt from the sky as he struck her down as she turned to complete ash. He was free. And with the powers of a God! Multiple Gods! He’d be unstoppable!

### Present

And, years after his encounter, is where we meet our hero… Or not a hero, our villain. He did what he wanted, he’d killed his father after finding out his mother had been beaten to death by the monster. He tortured him for months beforehand, inflicting every bit of pain Jason and his mother had endured from his father. And then, he killed him. Jason now had a new goal. He needed to learn his powers. Enhance his abilities. Take over all he could and rule supreme. Too long had the world stepped on him, now was his time to do what needed to be done. Strike the entire world, the entire universe with a **Dark Thunder!**

## Personality

Jason is quite a brash and violent person, often getting into fights in his youth during school. He can also be quite cold, seeming to show no sympathy for others at all. This was all before his encounter with Hecate. After the encounter with the Goddess, Jason began to show no sympathy towards anyone at all, showing mainly violence for those who apposed him. He constantly commits murders and other crimes without a second of thought nor guilt, showing his now evil and cruel nature.

## Physical Appearance

Jason is a 5 foot 8 inch tall 164 pound, muscular male with Brown hair and Blue eyes. Jason, when he's not in his Dark Thunder persona, simply wears a leather jacket with simple jeans, a T-shirt and black boots. However in his Dark Thunder form, he transforms into a black super-suit akin to the rest of the Shazam Family's. That being a large black suit of sorts with Golden arm-bands, a golden shoulder-lad, a large white cape to the side of him along side Golden plated boots, a black strap across his chest and directly on his chest a large golden glowing lightning bolt.

## Powers and Abilities

### Powers

* **Power of the Roman Gods***:* Rage of Jupiter, Wisdom of Athena, Swiftness of Mercurius, Courage of Virtus, Power of Cratus, Darkness of Summanus
	+ To activate these powers, Jason must call the word: “UMBRA!” (A Roman [Latin] word for Darkness)
	+ All of these powers give him identical abilities to those of the Shazam Family members such as Black Adam or Shazam himself, his powers being on their same level.

### Abilities

* **Combatant**: Jason is a good fighter, having trained in many combat forms in his youth through his rough childhood.
* **Mystic Arts**: Jason is also gifted in the arts of magic, having learnt under the dark witch “Hecate” as her apprentice and ‘muscle’ for a long while and through absorbing all of her power, he’d become similar if not greater in strength to her. This gave him abilities on par and even surpassing Doctor Strange and Doctor Fate, causing Jason to become one of if not the most powerful sorcerer in known existence, in terms of raw power.

## Weaknesses

* **Lightning Attacks**: Lightning attacks can cause damage and can cause Dark Thunder to revert back to Jason Snyder (if powerful enough), If Jason says his trigger word he is reverted back to his regular human form.
* **Arrogance and Stubbornness**: One of Jason's flaws are the fact that his Arrogance and Stubbornness to complete his goal can sometimes be his downfall, allowing him to be beaten.

## Equipment

* **Combat Knife**: Uses his father’s old military knife as a combat weapon when he is not in his Dark Thunder form.

## Relationships

### Family

* Scott Snyder † - Abusive Father
* Lauren Snyder † - Mother

### Enemies

* Hecate † - Roman Goddess of Witchcraft and Darkness, former Slave Master to Jason
* Justice League
* Avengers

### Frenemies

* Shazam Family
	+ Shazam (Billy Batson) - Team Leader
	+ Darla Dudley
	+ Eugene Choi
	+ Lady Shazam (Mary Bromfield)
	+ Pedro Peña
	+ Shazam, Jr. (Freddy Freeman)
	+ Black Adam

## Trivia

* Jason was born in Gotham but now lives in an apartment in Metropolis
* Jason is technically apart of the Shazam Family due to him sharing their powers, although he gets them from a different source and slightly different Gods, making his place similar to Black Adam's.
* Jason's favourite song is 'Sympathy for the Devil' by the Rolling Stones