Word: Flagitious

flagitious

[ fluh-jish-uh s ]

adjective

shamefully wicked, as persons, actions, or times.

heinous or flagrant, as a crime; infamous.

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               “So, what do you do for a living?” Jess asked. 

               It seemed like the right question to ask, given that it was a first date.  Plus, Adam was very well dressed.  He clearly had money to spare, and it would be nice to know how he got it.

               “I’m a supervillain.” He said with a completely straight face. 

               Jess froze.  Was he being serious?  There was no way.  He had to be joking.  No self-respecting super villain would just come out and admit it, would they?  Not even superheroes did that, and they were not being hunted by every authority in the world.

               Adam’s face contorted for a moment before he broke out in quiet laughter.  Jess tried to relax, but found it hard to do so.

               “Oh man, you should’ve seen your face.  A super villain, really?  Did you actually fall for that?”

               “I do try and keep a healthy level of caution around people who would call themselves super villains.”

               “Of course, of course.  Sorry, it was a joke in poor taste.”

               Jess chuckled weakly.  “So, what do you do.”

               “I’m a career criminal.  Not a joke this time, I really am the scum of the Earth.  I run a large corporation, and well, let’s just say my paycheck is 50% paid for by white collar crime.”

               “You know, you could’ve just said you’re a businessman.  Less…blatantly illegal.”

               “Now why would I do that?  I’m not ashamed of what I do.  Sure, I won’t go admitting it to any cops or governments, but isn’t that the same for anyone in my position?  Most of the business world is dominated by criminals.  It’s practically expected that if you have over five million in the bank, you’ve broken at least a few laws.  Really, we business owners are just as bad as the actual super villains.  We’re just more subtle.”

               Jess swirled the glass of wine around before taking a small sip.  It was high quality stuff, but the fact that it was paid for by ill gotten money soured it for her. 

               “You know, most people don’t go around claiming they have any similarity to a group of people known for massive destruction, murder, and attempts at either world domination or destruction.”

               “And that is a real shame.  I mean it.  I personally don’t think they’re all that bad.  In fact, I dare say super villains are, if anything, more necessary than their caped counterparts.”

               The very idea made her skin crawl.  She very firmly thought that the world would be a better place if the few supers in the world would all agree to not use them for committing crimes.

               “Oh?” She said.

               “You see, a villain, super or not, is, by definition, an agent of chaos.  Now, most people consider that a bad thing, since chaos is usually associated with destruction, death, that sort of thing.  But, it’s also progress.  Change.  Development.  We have more advanced tech than we ever thought possible, and most of it is because of villains.  Either developed by the so-called bad guys, or as a response to them.  Now, for comparison, heroes are, of course, agents of order.  That’s usually seen as good.  Peace and stability and all that.  But order is also oppression and stagnation.  A fully ordered society won’t do anything other than exist.”

               Jess considered his words for a moment. 

               “Personally, I think heroes do just fine as both order and chaos.” She said.  “Heroes protect the peace, sure, but that’s only on an individual basis.  As an idea, heroes inspire.  They push people to be their best selves.  To advance and create and develop more than they otherwise would.  And they’d do that without villains.  There would still be disasters, still problems that require the aid of a superhero to overcome.  Villains don’t do this.  They are selfish, cruel beings who seek only to advance their own goals.  Goals which, I might add, are only there because of heroes.”

               “Do tell.” Adam said.  He folded his hands under his chin and rested his elbows on the table.

               “Well, let’s take the two who fought just recently, Dr. Green and White Light.”

               Jess swore she saw Adam grimace and fidget uncomfortably for a moment.  “Yes, I know that one.  It was all over the news.” He said.

               “Right, well, Dr. Green was going to do something insane to try and take over the world but was stopped by White Light.”

               “Personally, I think she shouldn’t have even interfered.  I’d like to see what a man like him could do at the helm.”

               “Yes, what would he have done had he succeeded?  Won the fight and taken over the world.  What then?  What was his goal after that?”

               Adam looked thoughtful for a moment, like he was considering the question as more than just a thought experiment.

               “I…don’t know.” He admitted.

               “Exactly my point.  Villains are too short sighted.  They only see the goal of how to beat the hero or fulfill some long-standing desire they have.  It’s like the dog chasing the car.  What’ll it do if it catches the thing?  It doesn’t know, and neither do villains.  They’re motivated more by the hero than their original goals.”

               “So, what, villains need heroes, but heroes don’t need villains?”

               “Exactly.”

               “Ah, but let’s go back to your example and look at White Light.  What would she do if she did not have to stop a villain every so often?”

               “Probably live comfortably and work on whatever career she maintained on the side.” Jess said with a wistful smile on her face.

               “So, be a normal person.  Do you really think that someone with that kind of power would be content to just sit around and, I don’t know, be an office worker?  No.  No she would not.  She’d seek out another outlet for her gifts.  And those might not be as productive as you seem to think.  Superheroes are still human, and still have human faults.  They’d look to show off, be seen by the public.  And some of them might turn to crime to do that, and thus, the cycle begins again.”

               “So…” Jess thought about it for a moment.  “I guess heroes and villains need each other to function properly.  Chaos and order all keeping things running.”

               “I suppose they do.” Adam said with a nod.  He took his wine glass and raised it.  “Well then, I guess to the order of villains.”

               Jess copied the motion and followed suit.  “And the chaos of heroes.”

               Both drank their wine slowly, letting their thoughts stir.  Adam was the one to break the silence.

               “I’m still not going to apologize for what I do though.”    

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 Both heroes are villains are made by each other.  A hero without a good villain isn't terribly interesting, and a villain who isn't opposed by a well designed hero is quickly forgotten.