Villains Essay

Report - Villains By Necessity

Imagine an almost perfect world where Evil has been dealt a fatal blow by the forces of Good; demons have been banished, thieves become farmers, assassins become craftsman and crime altogether simply ceased to exist. All was well...or so it seemed.

Although unknown to most, the delicate equilibrium of the world had been shifted and upset and everything would be sublimated by a blinding flash of light unless the balance was restored.

A small band of villains set out on a quest to recover the Spectrum Key to save the world from sublimation. It consisted of Sam, an black-clad assassin, who had seen his services become obsolete; his thieving sidekick and companion, Arcie; Kaylana, the last Druid, whose kind had been wiped from the world; Valeriana, a Nanthuan, a demon sorceress whose power is fading; Blackmail, a dark knight, who does not seem to say anything; and Robin, a centaur minstrel, a spy for Good.

The story began in the hall of the Guild of Assassins where Sam is the last remaining member. All his fellow Guild members and Master, had disappeared, only to be found some time later ploughing fields or doing other 'honest' work. Suddenly, Sam senses someone else in the room; his silently pulled a dagger to strike and only stopped when he realises its was just Arcie, the Guildmaster of the Thieves. Together they left the Hall, and after an unscheduled stop in the city dungeons, Kaylana found them in the woods. Being a Druid, she was the one that informed them of the imbalance, so they set off to find an answer from the Gypsies. It was here that they meet Valeriana who told them of her research on the Spectrum Key and how it might restore the balance. However, to retrieve it, they needed know where each Segment of it lies. As they set to find out, they encountered a Dragon of Light and through this met a dark knight who wished to help them.

Meanwhile, Good was watching throughout and decided to send a spy. This spy could not be too Good or the druid and the sorceress would know right away, and of course could not be evil for an obvious reason; Good doesn't deal with Evil. So a minstrel centaur was chosen. Now the band was complete, with six members and six Tests to pass.

But as the days grew longer and with the forces of Good pursuing them, these villains had the odds stacked against them as they attempted to restore the world to its normal and proper state.

The main theme of this book is that the balance of Good and Evil are necessary. For there to be change in the world, the forces of Light and Dark must exist. If there was too much Good and Light, the days would be too long, plants would grow rampant and overpopulation would occur. But if there was too much Evil and Darkness, the night would become dominant, crops would not grow and eventually even the creatures of Darkness would die. So what is the point of these forces then? If everything was neutral, existence would come to a halt; plants would neither grow nor die, animals would not eat nor be eaten and the world would be plunged into perpetual twilight. So for there to be change, both Good and Evil must exist constantly in conflict. Without one, the other is nothing and as Sam, the assassin said, "In a game of chess, someone has to take the black pieces."

Light and Darkness are necessary for the presence of free will. Freedom to mankind means they should be able to do both good and evil; and people should not be forced into making their choices. Everyone, with the exception of the God and the devil, has Good and Evil within him or her. Which path they choose to follow will depend on which force is more dominant in their life. For example, criminals steal, kill, and cheat because they choose to follow the dark path; whereas the police who catch them follow the Good one. Doctor and other healers fight Evil by curing the sick and mending the wounded. Of course there are other factors in making decision than just Good and Evil. There is happiness, sadness, anger, humility, honor, courage, fear, and the list goes on and on. To those who follow a dark path, Evil is just the other side of the same coin; and it is.

Do not mistake all this as encouragement to go out and commits evil acts. All this is just to inform people that Darkness is a necessary part of the world and without it there would be no point of living if everything was fine. Nobody would not have to work, and eventually, people would become very lazy. Plants would flourish by themselves, people would never tire, and everything would reproduce until it suffocated each other. This is a call for balance in the world, not a static one, but a dynamic one.

Although this is her first book, Eve Forward has written a wonderful yet unusual tale about Good and Evil. The characters, even though Evil on the surface, have remarkable personalties. Thoughout the adventure there are generous sprinkles of humour as the villains trek across a rich and beautifully described setting. Though it is not obvious, the theme is the most interesting part as described above. If you read this novel, you will be surprised to discover yourself cheering the villains on and how well she portrays the villains as the 'good guys' fighting against the forces of Good as the 'bad guys'. That is why this book is a great read and I recommend it highly.

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