John Ross (fictional character)
Encyclopedia
John Ross is a fictional character
from the Word/Void
series by Terry Brooks
.
, and eventually discovered the mysterious Fairy
Glen in the countryside of Betws-y-coed
in Wales
. There he met The Lady (the voice of the Word) and discovered that he was the descendant of Owain Glyndwyr, a Welsh "patriot and warrior" who also served the Word. He then became a "Knight of the Word" and returned to America
to await the Word's instructions.
He was visited at his home by O'olish Amaneh
, a Native American
who was also a servant of the Word. O'olish, also known as Two Bears, gave John a rune-carved staff, and upon touching it, John was immediately crippled in his foot. The staff gave John his magic powers, but he requires it to walk, a reminder of how he is also dependent on the Word.
John has two primary magical abilities. The first is the ability to fire powerful energy waves from his staff which can disable almost any enemy. The second power, which is both a blessing and a curse, is his ability to see into the future in his dreams. Whenever John sleeps, he experiences his life decades into the future — a future in which demons have overrun the world. In these visions he receives information about the past, information that he can use to hopefully change the outcome. The Word shows him in these visions what his next mission is, and he finds clues about how to accomplish it. During these experiences, John is a powerful, uncrippled Knight, able to destroy flocks of enemies with his magic, but he must remain alive in the future or he will die in the present as well. Complicating this is the fact that if he uses his magical staff in the present, he will lose the use of his magic for the duration of his next dream, leaving him vulnerable and in great peril.
Three times, John has crossed paths with Nest Freemark
and each time both of their lives have been significantly changed as they fight battles on behalf of the Word. The last time they teamed up, a battle with the demons Findo Gask, Penny, and Twitch claimed his life due to a powerful demonic poison. As the poison claimed him, he was visited by the Lady of the Word who healed him of his cripple and took him to be with her.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
from the Word/Void
Word/Void
The Word & Void series by Terry Brooks is a trilogy of dark urban fantasy novels primarily set in Illinois in the late 20th and early 21st century....
series by Terry Brooks
Terry Brooks
Terence Dean "Terry" Brooks is an American writer of fantasy fiction. He writes mainly epic fantasy, and has also written two movie novelizations. He has written 23 New York Times bestsellers during his writing career, and has over 21 million copies of his books in print...
.
Biography
As a postgraduate student, John Ross was unsure of what he wanted to do with his life. He traveled to EnglandEngland
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, and eventually discovered the mysterious Fairy
Fairy
A fairy is a type of mythical being or legendary creature, a form of spirit, often described as metaphysical, supernatural or preternatural.Fairies resemble various beings of other mythologies, though even folklore that uses the term...
Glen in the countryside of Betws-y-coed
Betws-y-Coed
Betws-y-Coed is a village and community in the Conwy valley in Conwy County Borough, Wales. It has a population of 534. The name Betws or Bettws is generally thought to be derived from the Anglo-Saxon Old English 'bed-hus' - i.e. a bead-house - a house of prayer, or oratory...
in Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
. There he met The Lady (the voice of the Word) and discovered that he was the descendant of Owain Glyndwyr, a Welsh "patriot and warrior" who also served the Word. He then became a "Knight of the Word" and returned to America
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
to await the Word's instructions.
He was visited at his home by O'olish Amaneh
O'olish Amaneh
O'olish Amaneh is a fictional character from Terry Brooks' Word/Void and Genesis of Shannara series, both prequels to his Shannara novels....
, a Native American
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
who was also a servant of the Word. O'olish, also known as Two Bears, gave John a rune-carved staff, and upon touching it, John was immediately crippled in his foot. The staff gave John his magic powers, but he requires it to walk, a reminder of how he is also dependent on the Word.
John has two primary magical abilities. The first is the ability to fire powerful energy waves from his staff which can disable almost any enemy. The second power, which is both a blessing and a curse, is his ability to see into the future in his dreams. Whenever John sleeps, he experiences his life decades into the future — a future in which demons have overrun the world. In these visions he receives information about the past, information that he can use to hopefully change the outcome. The Word shows him in these visions what his next mission is, and he finds clues about how to accomplish it. During these experiences, John is a powerful, uncrippled Knight, able to destroy flocks of enemies with his magic, but he must remain alive in the future or he will die in the present as well. Complicating this is the fact that if he uses his magical staff in the present, he will lose the use of his magic for the duration of his next dream, leaving him vulnerable and in great peril.
Three times, John has crossed paths with Nest Freemark
Nest Freemark
Nest Freemark is a fictional character from the Word/Void trilogy of novels by Terry Brooks, written as a prequel series...
and each time both of their lives have been significantly changed as they fight battles on behalf of the Word. The last time they teamed up, a battle with the demons Findo Gask, Penny, and Twitch claimed his life due to a powerful demonic poison. As the poison claimed him, he was visited by the Lady of the Word who healed him of his cripple and took him to be with her.