Swifter than a crossbow bolt. More powerful than castle walls. Soaring over moats and fortifications. Look... up in the sky... our end. 
- — Constantine src
John Constantine is the court mage, advisor and spymaster to King Jefferson and later Queen Anissa of the Kingdom of Storms. He prophesied the coming of the White Martians when he was a boy.
History
Origins
John Constantine was born into the Kingdom of Storms as a peasant. One day he feel into a trance and began speaking a prophecy. This prophecy foretold the coming of "demons" in the shape of men and the end of the world. Hearing of the prophecy King Jefferson and his scribe rode out to record what Constantine was saying, seeing it as a prophecy for the end times.[1]
Loving the King
When the House of El revealed themselves to the world, Jefferson believed that they were the demons from another world that Constantine had prophesied and took the young man into his service.[2] John became Jefferson's chief advisor and the Pierce's court mage. He served Jefferson loyally for years and also fell in love with him, although he kept his feelings a secret.[3]
As the years went by, John began to doubt his own prophecy and became more ambivalent towards the Kryptonians, believing that the Bat-Prince was behind their more hardline actions. On Jefferson's orders he hired the Green Man and an archer named Oliver to assassinate Jor-El.[4] However he also allowed Timothy Drake, an El spy in the court, to learn of the plot, hoping he could prevent Jor-El's death.[3] John feared a direct attack on the Els could be met with retaliation and was seemingly proven right when Prince Jacob was murdered by a White Martian impersonating Zala Jor-El.[4]
After Jacob's death, Jefferson and John travelled to Amazonia to enlist the aid of the Amazons for a war against the Els. Despite the objections of Princess Diana, who was Zala's lover, Queen Hippolyta agreed to join the Kingdom of the Storms if war proved inevitable. As they were sailing home their ship was attacked by a Martian disguised as Zala, who stabbed Jefferson through the heart with a chunk of wood. As he lay dying, Jefferson told John that his daughter Anissa was now queen and would need him to guide her.[5] Unfortunately, after seeing the man he loved die in his arms, John wanted revenge and his grief drove him to reckless actions when he had previously advised caution.
A New Monarch
When he returned to the Kingdom of Storms, John shut himself away in his chambers and drowned his sorrows with wine, mourning Jacob and Jefferson. On the day of Anissa's coronation, Timothy came to find him and John revealed that he knew the boy was a spy, blasting him away with his magic. Princess Jennifer wanted to kill Timothy for his treachery but John took pity on the boy and convinced her to let him go, telling her he was just a pawn.
The next day, John summoned the necromancer Ra's al Ghul and asked him to bring Jefferson and Jacob back to life. As Jefferson's heart had been destroyed Ra's could not raise him but said he could bring Jacob back to life. As payment, John told him that he could find a group of magically gifted children called the Titans at the Kent Farm in the Lands of El.[3] Ra's resurrected the young prince as promised, and John told Jacob that together they would take revenge on the Els.[6]
Anissa mobilised the Kingdom of Storms to attack the Lands of El. John accompanied the army, bringing Jacob with him hidden in a wagon. They joined up with Hippolyta and the Amazons at the border, and Hippolyta's advisor Lois came to see him. She told John that she believed the kingdoms were being manipulated into war, and told him that Zala's recent actions did not match the girl she knew. Lois asked for his help in talking their monarchs out of their course of action, but John was utterly driven by his desire for revenge and wouldn't listen to her.
At the edge of Hobb Forest, the armies were met by Queen Lara's advisors Harley Quinn and General Waller. The two tried to negotiate some kind of peaceful solution but Hippolyta and Anissa told them they would only be satisfied if the Els surrendered and handed themselves over for judgement, which they could not accept. John tried to prevent the emissaries leaving, despite the queens telling him that it would be dishonourable to take them prisoner, but before he could do anything the armies were attacked by magical vines, conjured by the Lady of the Forest. The Lady was too strong for John's magic to fight but the Green Man, who was watching from above, knocked her unconscious and told them to keep moving.
The Martian War
When the armies reached the Castle of El, Diana and Zala flew down from the battlements and once again tried to convince the armies to depart in peace. At John's instruction, Jacob created rain inside Zala's lungs and began to drown her. Jacob wavered as, having experienced death he he was unwilling to kill another, but John urged him to continue. Queen Lara suddenly flew down out of the sky and landed in the middle of the confrontation. The impact knocked over the carriage and Jacob suffered a head injury. This broke his focus, stopping the rain in Zala's lungs. While John and Jacob were down, Lara murdered Hippolyta.[7]
The three armies charged into battle against each other. Meanwhile, the Green Man turned on his ostensible allies and began attacking both sides indiscriminately. With his plan for revenge foiled, and realising that all-out war would destroy all three kingdoms John sat slumped by the wagon in despair. Just before the two sides made contact, the Bat-Prince flew in on a dragon and ordered both sides to stop, a shock to John as he had never prophesied any such thing. The Bat-Prince was able to briefly force the armies to hold, but broke off from this to confront the El prince Kal-El on the ground. Lois ran to Constantine and once again told him that they were being manipulated. He admitted she was right and that Lara's actions made no sense.
With all sense of discipline destroyed the three armies fell into a chaotic melee which could destroy all of them. Suddenly Lara was tackled down to Earth by her exact doppleganger. The battle paused as the three armies stopped fighting and for a moment stared in silent shock at the two Lara's. The Lara who killed Hippolyta was shot in the chest with a flaming crossbow bolt and burst into flames. She reverted to her true Martian form, which John recognised as one of the "demons" from his prophecy, and flew away.[8]
The leaders of the armies gathered at the edge of the battlefield, where the El's Master-at-arms Alfred revealed that he was also an alien. Diana tried to attack him but the El princes defended him and convinced her to use a magic rope to compel him to tell the truth. Alfred assured them that he meant none of them any harm and John suggested that they that they all take a moment to calm down and reassess the situation. Diana turned her anger on him, saying that everything that had happened is the fault of him and his prophecy. Privately, John agreed with her, believing that he had lead both Jefferson and Anissa astray. Anissa and Jennifer briefly defended him, until Jacob stumbled over to them. They were overjoyed to see him but realised Constantine must have some something terrible to bring him back and demanded to know what it was.[9] John was forced to reveal his deal with Ra's to bring back Jacob.
John met with Lois and Harley Quinn in a small chamber of the Castle of El. They all acknowledged that they had been played and had failed their monarchs and kingdoms, but also agreed to work together and come up with a plan to foil the invaders.[10] Constantine came up with the idea to use the Pierce's powers to trigger an eruption of Mount Kristoff, a volcano that Jor-El and Lara had saved the Lands of El from when they first revealed themselves; and rain fire down on the Martians. The advisors presented their plan to the queens and they agreed. When the Martians attacked just before dawn the next day, the El's and Diana drew the Martians away to Mount Kristoff, where Anissa and Jennifer triggered the eruption while Jacob protected the castle with a rainstorm. The Martians were defeated and banished to a Realm of Phantoms.
A week later, the three kingdoms decided to unite into a League. At the treaty signing ceremony, John said they should celebrate saving the world, but Lois told him there were still many threats they needed to prepare for. Constantine jokingly suggested that they could drink and plot at the same time.[11]
Powers and Abilities
Powers
- Magic: John is a natural born sorcerer, able to use magic.
- Divination: He can see into the future.[1]
- Force Field[7]
- Pyrokinesis[3]
- Summoning: John was able to summon the demon Etrigan with runic magic.[3]
Abilities
Notes
- John Constantine was created by Alan Moore and Steve Bissette, first appearing in Swamp Thing (Volume 2) #37. However, the Dark Knights of Steel version of John Constantine first appeared in Dark Knights of Steel #1 by Tom Taylor and Yasmine Putri.
Trivia
- John was in love with King Jefferson.[3]
Related
- 11 Appearances of John Constantine (Dark Knights of Steel)
- 3 Images featuring John Constantine (Dark Knights of Steel)
- 6 Quotations by or about John Constantine (Dark Knights of Steel)
- Character Gallery: John Constantine (Dark Knights of Steel)
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Dark Knights of Steel #1
- ↑ Dark Knights of Steel #4
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 Dark Knights of Steel #6
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Dark Knights of Steel #2
- ↑ Dark Knights of Steel #3
- ↑ Dark Knights of Steel #7
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Dark Knights of Steel #8
- ↑ Dark Knights of Steel #9
- ↑ Dark Knights of Steel #10
- ↑ Dark Knights of Steel #11
- ↑ Dark Knights of Steel #12
  This character has been a member of the Justice League of America, or the Justice League in any of its various incarnations, sworn by a duty to act as guardians of America and the world by using their skills and/or superpowers to protect Earth from the clutches of both interstellar and domestic threats. |