Nymphomation
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| Author | Jeff Noon |
|---|---|
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Series | Vurt series |
| Genre(s) | Novel |
| Publisher | Doubleday |
| Released | 1997 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback) |
| ISBN | ISBN |
| Preceded by | Automated Alice |
| Followed by | Pollen |
Nymphomation is a novel by British author Jeff Noon, first published in 1997.
In terms of publishing history Nymphomation is the 4th novel in Noon's 'Vurt' series, following publication of Vurt (1993), Pollen (1995) and Automated Alice (1996) (itself simultaneously a 'trequel'[sic] to Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass), though being set predominantly in 1999 it can be considered properly as a prequel to Vurt: in terms of fictional chronology of characters and settings the Vurt sequence runs Autmomated Alice, Nymphomation, Vurt then finally Pollen.
[edit] Plot introduction
Nymphomation primarily tells the story of a lottery in Manchester involving dominoes and a group attempting to crack the secrets of that lottery, but it also sets the background for much of the mythology found in Noon's previous novels.
[edit] Plot summary
BACKGROUND
Manchester,1999.
The AnnoDomino Company has been granted a 12-month trial period to run a lottery in Manchester, before rolling it out across the rest of the country should it prove successful. The head of the company is the mysterious character known only as Mr Million. Adult players are able to purchase dominoes displaying two constantly changing numbers for one puny each. Once a week these numers will solidify, at the same time as that weeks winning numbers are displayed on television by Lady Cookie Luck and presenter Tommy Tumbler. One lucky winner who's domino exactly matches these two numbers will win 10 million lovelies; a number of others who can only match one of the two domino numbers wins 100 punies. Anyone who wins with a double-six becomes the new Mr Million; anyone who wins with a double-blank will win the 'Joker Bone'. The air of Manchester is alive with the sound of blurbflies: organic/mechanic creations of the AnnoDomino company that call out their adverts to the populace.
GAME 40
Daisy Love is an 18 year old mathematics student studying under Professor Max Hackle. She rents a room above 'The Golden Samosa' curry house, where she is doted on by the head-chef's son and physics student Jazir Malik. On arriving at her job in a bookshop Daisy habitually gives spare change to homeless 8 year old child Celia Hobart who has a 'begging hole' outside. Celia spends time with the adult Eddie Irwell, a fellow homeless person who buys her dominoes on her behalf. Celia had previously won a half-match domino, but Eddie Irwell took her winnings from her. Other players are the students Joe Crocus, DJ Dopejack and Sweet Benny Fenton. None are winners this week.
GAME 41
During his job as waiter at 'The Golden Samosa' Jazir has an altercation with a group of racists led by fellow student Nigel Zuze, though customers Joe Crocus and Sweet Benny Fenton come to his defense.
Daisy is contacted by her father Jimmy, who first got her interested in mathematics (and cured her muteness) after teaching her dominoes after her mother's accidental death in a car accident.
Jazir has been earning money by constructing his own short-lived blurbflies and selling them. Jazir is in computer contact with 77 year old ex-maths teacher Miss Sayer, who has promised to pass on her knowledge of numbers to him.
GAME 42
Celia Hobert wins another half-match domino and is chased by the other jealous tramps who want to steal her winnings.
Jazir tricks his way into the university librabry, and using a password hacking virus finds out information on Daisy on the university computers. While there he also manages to capture one of the AnnoDomino Companies blurbflies.
Daisy lunches with Sweet Benny Fenton at the local Whoomphy bar, where she refuses his offer to examine her future by sampling her DNA. During an incident with a rogue piece of meat however Benny accidentally injured her with a fork, and ends up with a blood soaked-handkerchief. Benny's blurbfly gets into a fight with another, and he flees from the Whoomphy sponsored burgercops.
Jazir attempts to learn the secret of blurbfly construction by dissecting his captured specimen, which bites him in the process, but finds only organic 'gloop' inside, a sample of which he keeps.
Celia flees from the other tramps by seeking protection at the bookshop with Daisy (to whom she gives the half-match domino) though Daisy is sacked in the process.
Joe Crocus and Sweet Benny Fenton perform a Black Math ritual to try to win the domino lottery but are unsuccessful.
Daisy visits her now alcoholic father, where he beats her at dominoes. Her father reveals he was at school with Professor Max Hackle.
DJ Dopejack backs famous singer Frank Scenario at the Snake Lounge club. Daisy meets Jaz at the club, before trading the half-match domino for the return of her blood-soaked handkerchief from Sweet Benny Fenton. Jaz bargains for entry into Joe Crocus' Black Math fraternity by offering him the organic blurbfly innards.
GAME 43
Following a question set by Professor Max Hackle Daisy finds references on the university computers to numerous probability number documents by Hackle, including bizarre theories about breeding numbers called nymphomation and the percentages of players 'playing to win' and 'playing to lose'. Hackle reveals that he plans to destroy the lottery system and conscripts Daisy to help him. Hackle believes that naturally lucky people who keep winning half-matches are being murdered by the AnnoDomino company, who are trying to breed out good luck. Hackle also thinks he knows the real identity of Mr Millons as Paul Malthorpe, a childhood rival who was a fellow mathematics pupil taught by Miss Sayer. Hackle reveals to Daisy the rest of the group he plans to use to bring down the lottery: Joe Crocus, DJ Dopejack, Sweet Benny Fenton and Jazir Malik.
Daisy heads with Jazir to his home. The blurbfly bite has somehow infected Jazir, so that the blurbflies are attracted to him and do his bidding. Jazir shows Daisy the blurblfy 'gloop' which he christens Vaz, showing how this biotech can affect various mechanical devices, acting as a universal lubricator. When spread on a disc and examined on a computer it is revealed as a form of artificial life, a constantly replicating nymphomation. Jazir and Daisy end up sleeping together.
Daisy reads various articles by Professor Hackle, learning about love labyrinths: computer mazes where information packages with more love for the pathways can increase the odds of finding the centre ('playing to win') while those who fall out of love with the pathways lose their way ('playing to lose'), and how the crossbreeding of these information packets would produce nymphomation with various properties, the strongest of which would thrive. Daisy learns that these magazine articles were produced by numerous members of Hackle's old school class, including Paul Malthorpe and her father.
GAME 44
Cecilia Hobart wins another half-bone.
Hackle's group of domino-breakers (now going under the name the Dark Fractal Society) use Vaz to break into AnnoDomino's computer systems list of winners, and discover Cecilia's latest half-win.
Daisy learns more from her father about Miss Sayer's maths class, how she introduced them to Black Maths number spells, and how Georgie Horn - the only classmate who didn't become a maths genius - informed on her and led to her dismissal.
Daisy and Jaz visit the Room of Holes - the homeless registery at the town hall - and thanks to Vaz and Jaz's influence with the adminblurb they discover the location where Cecelia Hobart and Eddie Irwell have been staying.
After collecting Cecelia's winnings Eddie was arrested by Inspector Crawl of the Manchester Police for cheating, and delivered to the House of Chances - the AnnoDomino headquarters - where they test him for genetic traits of being lucky. Finding nothing they instruct Inspector Crawl to find his accomplice.
Daisy waits for Cecelia at her hideout, but is discovered by the police.
Jazir realizes that somehow the naturally lucky repeat winners must be transmitting something through their hands to the dominoes. Increasingly affected by the blurbfly's bite he smears his naked body with Vaz and launches himself into the air outside his window, only to crash into the street below.
Daisy's father is informed of her arrest by Inspector Crawl and visits her.
After the visit Jimmy Love reminisces: in the late 1970's Jimmy meets up with a group of his old classmates who publish the Number Gumbo magazine: Paul Malthorpe, Max Hackle, Susan Prentice and Georgie Horn - who consistently loses the games of dominoes they play together. Max Hackle introduces Jimmy to his invention of randominoes - dominoes with constantly shifting numbers that set only when the pieces are played - and now Georgie Horn invariably wins.
Jimmy Love meets up with Max Hackle, and Hackle pays Inspector Crawl to release Daisy.
A homeless woman called Mama Mole informs Jazir of Cecelia's whereabouts, and Joe Crocus and Daisy Love go to collect her from an underground bus station that is being used as a beggars' lair, where they find her alongside the dead body of Eddie Irwell. Joe and Daisy take Cecelia to Max Hackle's house to meet the rest of the Dark Fractal Society, but they are observed by undercover cops. Inspector Crawl informs Mr Millions of the group's whereabouts, and receives his reward.
Cecelia is kept at Hackle's house, where tests are performed on her. While there she sees Hackle having an affair with Joe Crocus.
Max Hackle and Jimmy Love track down their old classmate and Number Gumbo colleague Susan Prentice, who informs them that she last saw Paul Malthorpe ten years ago when he was having an affair with Miss Sayer.
DJ Dopejack x-rays the dominoes and discovers that the dominoes' innards remain alive even after the numbers have set, but is immediately ambushed by Nigel Zuze.
Eddie Irwell is buried.
GAME 45
The winning domino numbers come up as a double blank - the 'Joker Bone' booby prize where the winner is the loser.
Max Hackle tells Daisy Love more about his past with the Number Gumbo group: The computer Hackle Maze wanderers became more intelligent and started to breed as nymphomation after being given DNA structures. The group built a physical maze in the cellars of Hackle's house as an analogue of the computer Hackle Maze - Georgie Horn would wander this maze while hooked up to the computer maze; the original 'lucky bleeder' his brainwaves affected the information packet wanderers - the wanderer linked to Georgie is nicknamed Horny George. In time the others followed Georgie in hooking themselves up to the Hackle Maze. To increase the knowledge of the nymphomation Georgie initiated a math ritual where he would make love with Susan Prentice while they are connected to the maze, but Paul Malthorpe joins them, killing Georgie in an act of erotic asphyxiation, and infecting the nymphomation with a cocktail of sex and death.
Nigel Zuze - the winner of the 'Joker Bone' - tries to escape Manchester, but is apprehended by a skeletal figure accompanied by a blurbfly called Horny George, is bitten and taken over. The infected Zuze drives to DJ Dopejack's house where Dopejack is in turn infected, before he himself kills Zuze. Angered by Joe Crocus' affair with Max Hackle, Sweet Benny Fenton leaves the Dark Fractal Society and heads to DJ Dopejack's house, where he becomes the next in line to be infected by Horny George.
Jazir tells Daisy that he is in contact with Miss Sayer, and that his own blurbfly infection is leading to a greater connection with the creatures, with Jazir sensing that some of them want to be liberated from the AnnoDomino company. Jazir can also see through the blurbflies' eyes, and senses something bad has happened to DJ Dopejack.
Jazir and Daisy go to DJ Dopejack's house, finding only the police and ex-Inspector Crawl, who is now a public relations officer for AnnoDomino.
Sweet Benny Fenton returns to the Dark Fractal Society and makes up with Joe Crocus, overcoming his urge to infect him with the Joker nymphomation. Knowing that he in turn must die by the hands of whomever he infects Benny instead chooses to stab himself in the heart outside the gates of the House of Chances.
Joe Crocus leaves the Dark Fractal Society, taking Cecilia Hobart with him.
Daisy uses some of Jazir's vaz to break in to DJ Dopejack's house, and uses more vaz to break into his computer harddrive and find a last message from the infected Dopejack. Joe Crocus and Cecilia arrive and decipher the message regarding Zuze winning the Joker and it being passed on to Dopejack, along with Dopejack's message that the real identity of Mr Millions is an old member of Miss Sayer's maths class called Adam Jagger.
Max Hackle visits the gravely ill Sweet Benny Fenton in hospital, and Fenton bites and infects Hackle with the Joker nymphomation before he dies.
The rest of the Dark Fractal Society leave Max Hackle and take up residence at DJ Dopejack's old house. Miss Sayer comes through on Dopejack's computer screen and helps unlock information stored there, which leads the Dark Fractal Society to deduce that Georgie Horn's information packet is the Joker, and that Adam Jagger (aka Mr Millions) is the real name of Max Scenario.
The Joker nymphomation has been mutating and carrying the knowledge of each of its victims through to the next. Infected with the knowledge of the previous victims Max Hackle goes to The House of Chances to confront Mr Millions, where he is expected.
GAME 46
The remains of the Dark Fractal Society return to Max Hackle's desterted house, where they try again to win the weekly domino game. Aided by the online presence of Miss Sayer Joe Crocus activates the computer Hackle Maze, and Jimmy Love gives him a 'Theseus' equation designed to sterilize the nymphomation.
Cecilia Hobart tells Daisy Love about her life before she ran away, how she had a sister called Alice who used to fantasize she was the heroine of Lewis Carroll's Alice books (see Noon's Automated Alice) and how Cecelia left home to look for her parrot Whippoorwhill who flew out of her house when Alice left the window open. Cecelia asks Daisy to give Jazir one of Whippoorwhill's feathers for luck. When Cecelia goes to Jazir she finds him completely engulfed in a mass swarm of blurbflies. Jazir's blurbflies are infected with the Theseus virus. Covered with the blurbs Jazir flies out of the window.
Daisy and Jimmy begin to play dominoes, Jimmy hooked up to the Hackle Maze and controlling his own wanderer, while online Miss Sayer ensures the maze duplicates the AnnoDomino maze. As Max Hackle heads towards his meeting with Mr Million and Jazir enters the House of Chances with the help of the blurblfies they both beome visible as icons in the Hackle Maze. The Hackle Maze becomes unstable as it starts to constantly mutate, but Jimmy and Daisy match and lock onto it by shifting play to their set of randominoes.
The TV show starts and Tommy Tumbler appears in the maze. Hackle becomes lost in the maze and kills the Horny George blurbfly, which bites him as he dies. Time in the maze becomes fluid as Daisy and Jimmy desperately try to keep up. Hackle encounters Cookie Luck in the maze and time shifts, sending him back to the start.
The computers in the Hackle house freeze as Max Hackle meets Mr Million/Frank Scenario/Adam Jagger. Adam reveals that he was jealous of Paul Malthorpe, who along with Miss Sayer came to him requesting funding to continue the Hackle Maze experiments. Jagger drags Hackle to a pit where the blurbflies deposit and feed dreams to the 'Domino Beast', which in turn excretes dominoes to be collected by the blurbs. The Domino Beast itself is a mutant containing the twin forms of both Paul Malthope and Miss Sayer, who ask Hackle for help. Hackle wrestles with Jagger, and they both fall into the Beast's pit. Jazir also enters the pit and feeds the Theseus infected blurbflies (and Whippoorwhill's feather) to the Domino Beast. Back at the Hackle household the computers come back online and Joe Crocus activates the Theseus equation which kills the Domino Beast; at the same time Daisy wins the game of dominoes with her father with a double-six - the same number on the last domino that the Domino Beast excretes before it dies. Cecelia's domino also freezes on the winning double-six number: she has won the lottery and so becomes the new Mr Million.
Jazir retrieves Whippoorwhill's feather from the remains of the Domino Beast. Jagger is dropped from a height by the blurbflies and is killed. All over the city the dominoes hatch and split open, as they are revealed to be eggs: from them come a swarm of new blurbflies, spreading dreams throughout the city and beyond.
Jimmy reveals to Daisy why she is a natural player - she is not his daughter after all, but Georgie Horn's, conceived at the moment of his death as he took part in the nymphomation sex ritual with Daisy's mother.
Joe Crocus rushes to claim Cecelia's winning domino bone, only to find everyone has won the double-six.
Jazir gives Cecelia Hobart back her Whippoorwill feather.
