Roulette (Wild Cards)
Encyclopedia
Roulette is a fictional character from the Wild Cards
"mosaic novel
" Wild Cards III: Jokers Wild. She was created by Melinda M. Snodgrass
.
Roulette Brown-Roxbury did not know that she carried the Wild Card virus until she gave birth to a horribly deformed, stillborn
Joker. Her upper-class husband Josiah refused to believe that he too carried the Wild Card, insisting that Roulette must have had an affair, and finally divorced her. Spiralling into depression, Roulette eventually became a prostitute to support herself. She then discovered the other effect of the Wild Card; she sometimes produced a deadly neurotoxin
during sex, and in time earned the nickname "Russian Roulette
" among those patrons who knew of her ability. Sex with her became a risky status symbol, like that of eating Fugu
fish in Japan
. Eventually, she learned to produce this poison at will by concentrating on the horrific memories of giving birth.
It was then that she was discovered by The Astronomer
, who (as he had with Demise
), offered to erase her painful memories if she worked for him. And, just as with Demise, he had no intention of doing so as long as she proved useful.
First, on September 15, 1986, Wild Card Day (the anniversary of Jetboy
's death) the Astronomer had Roulette kill an Ace hero named "The Howler", who had taken part in one of the Astronomer's previous defeats. The Howler's death was merely the first of many tragic stories to make the news that fateful day.
Next Roulette was told to seduce and kill Dr. Tachyon
, the alien inventor of the Wild Card virus. At first she was quite determined to get her revenge on the man ultimately responsible for the suffering of herself and many others. But after spending time with Tachyon, seeing how "human" he actually was, how guilt-stricken and how dedicated to helping the virus' victims, she came to gradually care for him. When the Astronomer was finally killed, Roulette chose to leave Tachyon alive, and to leave town to try to live with her own memories.
In the fifth book of the series, Down and Dirty
, Roulette returns to New York and becomes infected with Typhoid Croyd
's mutated strain of Wild Card virus, resulting in her death. Her infection is what convinces Tachyon that the virus can now reinfect Jokers and Aces.
Wild Cards
Wild Cards is a science fiction and superhero anthology series set in a shared universe. The series was created by a group of New Mexico science fiction authors, but it is mostly pulled together and edited by best-selling author George R. R. Martin with assistance by Melinda Snodgrass, also a...
"mosaic novel
Mosaic novel
A mosaic novel is a novel where individual chapters or short stories share a common setting or set of characters with the aim of telling a linear story from beginning to end, with the individual chapters, however, refracting a plurality of viewpoints and styles.Examples of mosaic novels as opposed...
" Wild Cards III: Jokers Wild. She was created by Melinda M. Snodgrass
Melinda M. Snodgrass
Melinda M. Snodgrass is a professional writer best known for her work in science fiction for print and television media....
.
Roulette Brown-Roxbury did not know that she carried the Wild Card virus until she gave birth to a horribly deformed, stillborn
Stillbirth
A stillbirth occurs when a fetus has died in the uterus. The Australian definition specifies that fetal death is termed a stillbirth after 20 weeks gestation or the fetus weighs more than . Once the fetus has died the mother still has contractions and remains undelivered. The term is often used in...
Joker. Her upper-class husband Josiah refused to believe that he too carried the Wild Card, insisting that Roulette must have had an affair, and finally divorced her. Spiralling into depression, Roulette eventually became a prostitute to support herself. She then discovered the other effect of the Wild Card; she sometimes produced a deadly neurotoxin
Neurotoxin
A neurotoxin is a toxin that acts specifically on nerve cells , usually by interacting with membrane proteins such as ion channels. Some sources are more general, and define the effect of neurotoxins as occurring at nerve tissue...
during sex, and in time earned the nickname "Russian Roulette
Russian roulette
Russian roulette is a potentially lethal game of chance in which participants place a single round in a revolver, spin the cylinder, place the muzzle against their head and pull the trigger...
" among those patrons who knew of her ability. Sex with her became a risky status symbol, like that of eating Fugu
Fugu
is the Japanese word for pufferfish and the dish prepared from it, normally species of genus Takifugu, Lagocephalus, or Sphoeroides, or porcupinefish of the genus Diodon. Fugu can be lethally poisonous due to its tetrodotoxin; therefore, it must be carefully prepared to remove toxic parts and to...
fish in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. Eventually, she learned to produce this poison at will by concentrating on the horrific memories of giving birth.
It was then that she was discovered by The Astronomer
The Astronomer (Wild Cards)
The Astronomer is a character from the Wild Cards series of books. He first appeared in the short story "Pennies from Hell" by Lewis Shiner in Wild Cards II: Aces High, though his presence was earlier implied in "The Long, Dark Night of Fortunato" in the first volume of the series...
, who (as he had with Demise
Demise (Wild Cards)
Demise is a fictional character from the Wild Cards book series. He was created by Walton Simons, and first appeared in the story "If Looks Could Kill" in Wild Cards II: Aces High....
), offered to erase her painful memories if she worked for him. And, just as with Demise, he had no intention of doing so as long as she proved useful.
First, on September 15, 1986, Wild Card Day (the anniversary of Jetboy
Jetboy
Jetboy is a fictional character from the Wild Cards book series. He appeared in the short story "Thirty Minutes Over Broadway!" by Howard Waldrop, but is referenced throughout the Wild Cards series. Jetboy is based on pulp magazine and Golden Age "air ace" characters, particularly Airboy...
's death) the Astronomer had Roulette kill an Ace hero named "The Howler", who had taken part in one of the Astronomer's previous defeats. The Howler's death was merely the first of many tragic stories to make the news that fateful day.
Next Roulette was told to seduce and kill Dr. Tachyon
Dr. Tachyon
Dr. Tachyon is a character from the Wild Cards series of books. He was created for the books by Melinda M. Snodgrass. Tachyon is a geneticist from the planet Takis, whose people naturally developed various telepathic powers...
, the alien inventor of the Wild Card virus. At first she was quite determined to get her revenge on the man ultimately responsible for the suffering of herself and many others. But after spending time with Tachyon, seeing how "human" he actually was, how guilt-stricken and how dedicated to helping the virus' victims, she came to gradually care for him. When the Astronomer was finally killed, Roulette chose to leave Tachyon alive, and to leave town to try to live with her own memories.
In the fifth book of the series, Down and Dirty
Down and Dirty
Down and Dirty is the fifth book in the Wild Cards anthology series, set in the same shared universe as the other Wild Cards novels and collections. It was edited by George R. R...
, Roulette returns to New York and becomes infected with Typhoid Croyd
The Sleeper (Wild Cards)
The Sleeper is a fictional character from the Wild Cards series of books.In September 1946, ninth-grader Croyd Crenson, native of an unspecified borough of the New York City metropolitan area, was one of the first victims of the alien virus dubbed "the Wild Card", which generates random mutations...
's mutated strain of Wild Card virus, resulting in her death. Her infection is what convinces Tachyon that the virus can now reinfect Jokers and Aces.