The Ward | Part 1

Hey, everyone. This is Christoph. And this is Robin. And you are listening to our fourth special edition story. This one is called The Ward. Yeah, so this is the introduction of the character Lissette, who you may know from The Leviathan Chronicles, as well as the star of our spinoff series, The Rapscallion Agency. And this is actually the first appearance of Lissette. Yeah, when she comes into The Leviathan Chronicles in the beginning of season two, This, you know, this sweeping character kind of comes in to rescue Harlequin out of nowhere. And I knew in writing it, like, this is going to be this great relationship, but you can't quite understand what the context of their relationship is. And that was really the point and the hope of the ward, the special distance story that you're about to hear today, to really go into the origins of how Lisette and Harlequin met and what their relationship is all about. And yeah, so this story was originally produced, I think, back in 2012 or 2013. And like I said, it is the first appearance of the character, Lisette. And it is old enough that it actually predates us casting Claire Dodin, who played Lisette in the Leviathan Chronicles and the Rapscallion Agency. So you'll hear it's actually a different actress. We had not met Claire yet when we made this episode. And Lisette is supposed to be a little girl in what you're about to hear. So it makes sense. This is meant to be a younger version of Lisette than Claire portrayed. Yeah. And if you've been listening along with these re-releases of our special edition stories, you'll know that we've been talking about, Oh, we wish if we could do this again, we wish we could change such and such when we re-released it. And we've done some like light remastering. But this episode is actually the first one where we we actually went back and made a few more noticeable changes. Now, one of those changes is we actually did think about re-recording all of Lisette's dialogue in this with Claire so that we could have the voice you're more familiar with for Lisette in the episode. But again, because she's supposed to be a little girl, it kind of made more sense. Claire sounded a little too adult when we cut her into the episode. Yeah, yeah. But keen listeners who were fans of our show, The Rapscallion Agency, will notice that another character from The Rapscallion Agency appears in the very beginning of this episode. We don't say who it is by name, so you'll have to listen and see if you can recognize it. But it was a voice that was not originally there when we made this episode back in 2012. But yeah, we figured out this fits so well into the larger story when we made this slight characterization change. But to your point, Robin, this episode came out more than a decade ago. just technically it was very difficult for you to insert this voice yeah i mean luckily i still had some of the files or project files when we produced the episode but i didn't have everything and uh a lot of the software i was using back then is different and doesn't exist in the same form it did uh when when i first made this and also like i've just improved in the way i organize things a lot so So just getting this project open and, you know, cutting in a new character who has, you know, a few minutes of time in the episode was, you know, took 10 times as long as I might have anticipated. But I'm really happy with the results. well it is and i think one of the things that's that's i really enjoyed re-listening to the ward again was how interconnected for an early special edition story how interconnected this is to the rest of the leviathan lore we mentioned that there's a character in the beginning that ties directly to the rapscallion agency you'll hear later a harlequin talking to a very special friend has named Elizabeth, who we also see in one of the many episodes that we have on Patreon. That was like a little like five to 10 minute vignette that we did that kind of explains another piece of technology that's used between Lisette and Harlequin. We'll let you listen to the episode in a second. But just one thing I wanted to bring up with you, Christoph, because I was hit by a wave of nostalgia when I listened to this episode for the first time, because this episode opens with a very specific sound effect that I remember you telling me about and saying how much you wanted this sound effect in there, which was a particular cultural reference from, I think, your childhood. And I'm curious, do you know what I'm talking about? It's one of the first things you hear after the theme song. Gosh, I have a suspicion. My first guess was something around the Thomas Crown affair. That is not it. Then I realized there was something a little bit more specific. Could it be the Duran Duran, Hungry Like the Wolf Laugh? That is exactly what it is. Oh, my God. You're going to hear it in just a moment. It opens with the sound of a champagne cork popping and then a woman laughing. And when we were making this way back when, you kept telling me, I want it to sound just like this. And you would play me the- It's so evocative. It's so evocative. for people who don't know what we're talking about if you're not a fan of British synth pop from the 80s British synth pop from the 80s the song Hungry Like the Wolf which was a big hit by Duran Duran opens with this like you're saying very evocative sound of a woman laughing it just shows decadence it's like the audio concentrated drop of decadence I don't know you can launch whatever you want from there anyway I immediately thought of that sometimes I had these little cues that I used for each scene, but I'm like, that's what we're going to do because it had a little bit of lightheartedness and I tried to bring that in into the first scene a little bit. I think we did a fun job of creating that party scene. So now, a little bit of fun trivia. The music video for Duran Duran's Hungry Like the Wolf, which features that laugh. One of the greatest videos of all time. So, was directed by, I don't know how I know this, but I do. It's directed by a guy named Russell Mulcahy, who is probably most famous for... How do I know that director? I'll tell you why he knows. He's most famous for a movie that I have a feeling was a pretty big inspiration on Leviathan. Maybe the most famous sci-fi series about immortals. He directed Highlander. That's... Oh, what a great tie-in. What a great tie-in. So, yeah. Directed Highlander. If you haven't seen that, one of the cheesier 80s action movies, but also- The best movie ever. It's great. I actually watched it maybe less than two months ago. It's a good time. It's about a bunch of immortal people sword fighting and trying to kill each other. But that director, Russell Mulcahy, another thing he's famous for, which has an even more direct connection to Leviathan, is he was the executive producer of a TV show adapted from another 80s franchise, Teen Wolf. Teen Wolf. Which features a guest appearance by the original director of Leviathan Chronicles, Nobi Nakanishi. That's true. Plays a small role in the Teen Wolf TV show. Oh my God, did you pull that together? That is excellent. Full circle from the Duran Duran laugh at the beginning of this episode, back to the director of Leviathan Chronicles. Back to Nobi. That is great. Well, now, guys, you're going to really enjoy listening to this week's special edition story. So enjoy The Ward. Part 1 Paris, 1996 Excusez-moi. Pardon, mesdames, messieurs. Pardon, s'il vous plaît. Thank you. Thank you. Please. Let me start by saying what an honor it is to be recognized as tonight's gala chair. A few months ago, Geneviève called me and said she wanted to ask me for two favors. The first was if VTEC would be tonight's lead sponsor. And two, would I please not wear my lab coat to the gala? Mesdames et Messieurs, tonight has been a record-setting event with over 400,000 francs raised in just ticket sales alone. Their generous donations not only sustain the ongoing beautification of Saint-Chapelle, but also provide vital support to the Church's philanthropic efforts. This year, the Heaven Sanctuary for Young Girls has been chosen as the beneficiary of the highest-needs-grant program of the Church. Under the direction of Madame La Liberté for the last 20 years, this charitable school has been a home to some of Paris' youngest orphans and at-risk girls. In addition to having 95% baccalaureate completion, I'm proud to say that some of heaven's girls have even been adopted by the kind patrons of this event. St Chapelle a venerable Parisian cathedral built by a devout Louis IX was once a host to hundreds of holy relics of great importance in the Catholic Church But through the years most of those coveted relics had moved to more prominent display at the larger Notre Dame Cathedral while other smaller churches' relics found their home back in St. Chappelle. Whilst a modest church, it contained over 50 artefacts of great religious significance in the Catholic Church. One of its most significant pieces lay in a glass case on the church's second floor, where rested a hand-sized dark leather whip that was said to have touched and cut the flesh of Jesus Christ. Catholic legend stated that every weapon that touched Christ retained his holy blood and thus cannot be cleaned. By 1996, the cathedral had evolved into more of a museum than a functional parish, and now was mostly used for lavish benefits such as this evening's gala event to benefit poor Parisian orphans. The church hosted the upper crust of Parisian and London society, as well as others of the moneyed class who possessed power, poise and charm. But despite the formality of the event, not everyone in the room had elected to stand on ceremony. Monsieur Arlequin, we shouldn't do this. What if someone sees us? It's your fault wearing that dress tonight. Your perfume is driving me mad. What if we're seen? The head curator should have a private office nearby, shouldn't she? Please tell me it's close by. Oui, oui. This way. Tell me, how did a woman as young and as gorgeous as yourself manage to become the curator of some of the Catholic Church's holiest relics? I'm very talented, responsible, and intelligent. You're also ravishingly beautiful and quite a bit tipsy. Who was the one handing me glasses of champagne all night? Guilty as charged, I'm afraid. I was hoping to get you alone to tell you how much I admire your cathedral here. My cathedral? I suppose you're interested in my flying buttresses. I was more interested in your security systems. Harlequin quickly took this opportunity to unfasten a button on Helene's blouse, pushing his double entendre. She giggled and allowed his advances. He slowly nibbled on her slender, fragrant neck as his fingers made quick work of her clothing that fell swiftly to the floor of the richly appointed office. Harlequin grabbed the back of Helene's sumptuous thighs and lifted her up into his mouth as she wrapped her legs around his waist. The two of them hungered for each other as their hands urgently explored their intertwined bodies. Harlequin carried the naked Helene to the edge of her desk, where the young woman renewed her lust for his mouth and yearned to taste every bit of him. Harlequin continued the passionate seduction as he visually catalogued the room. New security system. Windows equipped with sensor locks, motion detectors on the sides, probably connected to the main panel, the hall, no cameras. Is that a film image? In a moment of passion, Harlequin shoved the scut of papers lying on the desk aside, while he carefully noted two folders with red tape bands around them. Helene was oblivious to this, enraptured by the effects of the champagne and the touch of Harlequin's bettering fingers. With some deft shifting of Helene's live body, Harlequin slipped to his knees, making sure he could reach the drawers beneath the desk. He softly pushed Helene's knees apart and pressed his head gently forward and dedicated his mouth to her pleasure, efficiently distracting her as his hands rifled through the desk drawers. He deftly unlocked the bottom right dresser, feeling for the crinkly thin paper typically used by architects for blueprints. Harlequin could easily identify what he was searching for by touch and swiftly removed the folded document from the desk drawer and placed it beside his knees under the desk. When he was confident that he had found everything he was looking for, he redoubled his effort upon the ecstatic young woman before rising from his knees and holding her tightly. Oh my! We really must host more benefits like this at our little church. Just tell me what cause you would like to support next, Monsieur Arlequin. I am certain there are more needs somewhere. That must be my... Ah, mon petit chou. I get great pleasure from being a philanthropist at these benefits. I believe I was created to give. I can surely attest to that. Helene gently hopped off her own desk and quickly attended to herself, putting her clothes back on and examining her face in her compact mirror. We should not be seen leaving together, should we? No, no, you're right. You should go first before they notice you're gone. After all, it is your night to shine. And currently you have a glow that the crowd should not be denied the pleasure of witnessing. Go. I'll be three minutes behind you. As you say. But if you are ever interested in my philanthropic efforts, you can call me anytime, Monsieur Arlequin. My dear, you have already given me far too much already. And are entirely too trustworthy. Or maybe that's just the champagne. Now, let's see exactly what we're dealing with. Harlequin carefully walked the perimeter of Helene's office to make sure no hidden cameras were recording his actions. As soon as he felt secure, he quickly opened the blueprints he had pilfered from her desk. Hmm, this looks like a standard Holyfield system. Motion detectors, thermal imaging, guards stationed here and here. Hold on. Well, this is something new. A pheromone detector sensor net. Aren't we getting fancy? This might necessitate a little bit of homework. Harlequin glanced at the two folders with red tape that sat on Helene's desk and quickly stuffed them into the inside of his double-breasted Xenia tuxedo jacket. I'll just consider these a party favor. Harlequin discreetly opened the door to Helene's office and quietly exited into the corridor of the restricted administrative wing of the church's rear section. He was about to make a left to re-enter the benefit gala when he suddenly ducked behind a statue of St. Julian of Breude. Well, what have we here? From between the arms of the statue, He spied a short body in a white blouse moving nervously through the restricted area of the church. He peeked his head out slightly and was able to determine by her frame that she was a young girl, not more than 10 or 11 years of age. She was small, with short dark hair. As Helene was the only person at the benefit with a key, this young girl should not have been in the back office section of the church. Harlequin assumed she was one of the orphaned Haven girls and decided to follow her. The small girl urgently approached the long corridor of office suites and quickly twisted each doorknob to determine if it was locked. Almost every sweep was, but finally one of the doors opened, allowing the girl inside. This is where it gets interesting. The girl was inside for less than 20 seconds, but proudly emerged holding a platinum Mont Blanc Meisterstruck pen that she quickly tucked into her pocket. Harlequin hung back further, allowing the girl to retrace her steps before she opened the previously locked office door and returned to the main hall of the Benefit Gala that was being held in her orphanage's honour. Harlequin discreetly followed her back out and made a swift feline to the bar to secure himself both a proper cocktail and the best vantage point from which to observe more of the audacious girl's larceny. Valka Gimlet on the rocks? Hmm. I feel like I'm at the movies. The young girl wandered the party, picking up dirty dishes and stray trays, as did many of the orphaned girls that were present at the gala. The church and orphanage decided to have several of the young girls in attendance, to have the generous patrons understand exactly where their lavish donations were being spent. The girls also performed several charming songs and dance routines for the amusement of the guests. When the young girl Harlequin had been watching helped clear some of the half-empty wine glasses at one table, one of the elderly patrons who remained seated called the girl over to speak to her closely. The young girl kneeled in front of the Grand Dame and smiled sweetly while the elderly woman, who was covered in opulent jewelry, bestowed kind compliments upon the young girl, telling her how polite and pretty she was. It took a keen eye to see the young girl slip her hand into the patron's purse and remove a diamond-crusted cigarette case. Harlequin had planned on leaving the party early after obtaining the schematics he needed, but decided to stay a little while and see what this intriguing young girl would do next. He watched, sipping his gimlet at the end of the bar and making idle conversation with those who drifted by, always keeping the girl in the corner of his eye. Later in the evening, she sang a short French song with three other girls and accepted small tips with grace and embarrassed humbleness. She was utterly charming in the public eye and disappeared into the crowd when she wanted to. She seemed to target mostly English philanthropists, taking bracelets, wallets and even a necklace in one inspired lip that involved a dropped tray and a deftly-aimed stumble. Finally, he grew bored with the game she was playing and slipped quietly from the benefit into the Maserati Ghibli KS he had waiting outside. outside. On his way out, he reached to drop off some money to support this promising young girl, but then learned she'd already helped herself to his wallet. He considered going back inside to confront her, but instead stopped and just shook his head. He respected fellow thieves too much, and she was already a master. Welcome to the Realms of Peril and Glory. Explore the mechanically magical vistas of Vale, the paranormal mysteries of liminal London, and the cyberpunk chaos of Cyborg. Be awed by our incredible guests from familiar shows like Oxventure and No Rolls Barred. Search realms of peril and glory to find out more. Ah, the Regency era. You might know it as the time when Bridgerton takes place, or it's the time when Jane Austen wrote her books. The Regency era was also an explosive time of social change, sex scandals, and maybe the worst king in British history. Vulgar History's new season is all about the Regency era, the balls, the gowns, and all the scandal. Listen to Vulgar History Regency era wherever you get podcasts. Hi this is Rob Benedict And I am Richard Spate We were both on a little show you might know called Supernatural It had a pretty good run. 15 seasons, 327 episodes. And though we have seen, of course, every episode many times, we figured, hey, now that we're wrapped, let's watch it all again. And we can't do that alone. So we're inviting the cast and crew that made the show along for the ride. We've got writers, producers, composers, directors, and we'll of course have some actors on as well, including some certain guys that played some certain pretty iconic brothers. It was kind of a little bit of a left field choice in the best way possible. The note from Kripke was, he's great, we love him, but we're looking for like a really intelligent Duchovny type. With 15 seasons to explore, it's going to be the road trip of several lifetimes. So please join us and subscribe to Supernatural then and now. London, England. The morning after next, Harlequin sat in his study and leisurely read over the information he had stolen in St. Chappelle. From the oversized windows in his office, he could watch people strolling through the gardens of Hyde Park. The spring bloom of the cherry blossoms that lined the serpentine had occurred a week ago, and the bright sun of the warm April day brought picnickers and tourists to the inviting green lawns of the park. But Harlequin's focus couldn't have been further from the bucolic activities just outside the doorstep of his mansion. Instead, he sipped on a glass of iced coffee with chicory and pondered how to get back what he firmly viewed as his. From a beautiful church that once held a piece of the true cross, to a bureaucratic office during the French Revolution, St. Chappelle Cathedral had been through a great deal of renovations in the past 800 years. The Gothic architecture was stunning, with some stained glass dating back to its original construction. Much of the lower chapel was a restoration, after the brutally violent use of the church during the French Revolution. But its structural beauty remained. Despite its historic aesthetics, it was the newly installed security systems that interested Harlequin the most. The motion detectors were standard and the locks laughably easy to pick. And Harlequin had long ago designed a series of specialized infiltration tools to deal with the thermal imaging cameras that lined the exhibit hall and the entryways of the church. The systems ran off a redundant generator in the church's basement, so it wouldn't be a case of simply cutting the power to the church, but Harlequin had certainly dealt with worse. but what concerned him most was the olfactory component, a scent-based security system that he had never faced before in his long career as a thief. His goal was simple. His old church, the one in Scotland, had been home to many relics of religious importance, and whenever Harlequin found those relics in residence in other places, he worked to recover what he thought of as his own. In St. Chappelle, he wanted the historic whip that had been supposedly used on Christ himself, with holy blood that could not be washed off. But right now, his desires were being thwarted by a novel security system he had never encountered. Now this is new. Pheromone detection is the latest state-of-the-art in security measures. Innovative thieves have bypassed most of the protection systems created in the 20th century. And no one can control their body. The array of olfactometers present have a computer-controlled detection system that's over 10,000 times more sensitive than the blood. Astounding. Scan the air to find as little as one part in 100 million. That's pretty damn difficult, I would imagine. I honestly don't know what the star stone did to our pheromones. Evangeline might know, but tragically we don't talk very much these days. Harlequin spent the morning doing scientific research on pheromones and human scent, chasing down a memory he had filed away decades before when he spent time with some biologists in Tasmania. Some believed that while sexually immature children would be able to recognise pheromones on other people, they gave out little of their own scent until they entered puberty. Harlequin laughed aloud as he realised the perfect opportunity that had fallen into his lap. He locked up the blueprints in his desk and picked up his phone to make an important call. Elizabeth, hello my love, it's Harlequin. How are you? Ah, jumping right to the point, are we? Oh, I certainly don't mind if we dispense of the pleasantries and get right to the point. If you do not wish to pretend that we left on good terms, I can certainly drop the facade. Yes, the point. I was getting to that. Remember that favor you owe me from the little border incident in Israel in 1984? Yes, I'm going to need to cash in on that. Oh, don't be like that, my pet. It's nothing too stressful, my dear. I merely need a French passport for a young girl around 11. No, I don't have a photo yet, but I can send you a digital one in about six hours. I'll need it in Paris as soon as you can. Yes, and by that I do mean today, just as you needed my help on the same day service man of 15 years ago. Oh, Elizabeth, I am certain your unique and considerable skills will allow you to fulfill this small favor, and then you... Oh, it's not flattery, my dear. I have the utmost respect for your skills, as well as your particular brand of vulgarity. It is always a delight to be on the receiving end of your acidic tongue. Yes, fine. If you agree to do this, we will be even and I will never call again. But if you should need a favor in the future, please do not hesitate. Hmm, she hung up on me. How cheeky. There was little Harlequin liked more in the world than cashing in on debts, especially decades later. He liked reminding people that he didn't forget things. After the brief exchange with Elizabeth, an old ally he had helped out of Israel after an incident concerning her illicit passport business, he began making arrangements to travel yet again. He had to go back to Paris. Paris, later that evening. The thick clouds of the wet sky allowed just enough light from the pale crescent moon to illuminate the dirt that covered the sidewalk. Shiny cockroaches skittered to and from the stinking piles of garbage strewn along the street. In a dingy building in the warehouse district of St. Catherine's Boulevard, Harlequin sat in an ornate office at the forefront of what had looked like an industrial distribution facility from the exterior. However, in the interior of the building, everything within the office was posh and expensive, from the black Herman Miller lounge chair he sat in to the original Warhol painting that hung on the wall. A Persian tapiris rug covered the floor, and the carved wood piece over the door was handmade from a particular tribe of cannibals who used to inhabit New Zealand. Harlequin's sharp eye caught that this blatant show of wealth was not true refinery, but rather a mask over something more sinister. Monsieur Harlequin. He eyed the head of the orphanage, Madame Guinevere Lalibert, who sat opposite him with great interest. She was a small woman of about 40 with alabaster skin and short black hair that looked styled more for a fashion show than taking care of children. Her dress, a John Galliano couture, also didn't look like one she'd want to get magic marker or banana smears on. Her dark brown eyes were sharp and astutely took in his keton suit and vacca-on-constantine watch. Harlequin had also chosen his mask carefully. So you are not looking to adopt, Miss Harlequin? Not at all. I'm a bachelor, you see, and I'm sure I wouldn't know the first thing about raising a young woman. I did, however, notice your lovely girls at the benefit a few nights ago and thought one in particular may be well-suited for a specific job I have in mind and might need some help with. It was my understanding from the benefit that you appreciate donations to your charitable establishment to help train your young girls for future work and careers. I'm offering to give you a substantial donation to the orphanage in exchange for borrowing one of your girls for a day. I promise to give her my undivided attention and advance her vocational training. This is somewhat unusual, monsieur. Our girls often are available for work, of course. It helps support our happy home. However, in order not to disrupt their schooling, they are usually only available for evening rendezvous. Harlequin looked around the office again, taking in the wealth and opulence. He eyed Madame Guinevere with growing horror, wondering why he didn't realize what was going on sooner. He allowed that he had been so concerned with his own selfish goals that he had been blind to the orphanage's disgusting true purpose and suddenly became very glad that he had made the preparations to get the girl a passport just in case. Of course, I would want to employ her for the whole evening's work. And if I were to desire two evenings, perhaps a weekend, to not interfere with her schooling, how much would my, um, donation have to be? Ah, oui. The weekend employ is a popular choice among men wishing to donate towards our girl's futures. That would be 20,000 francs. Unless you want a girl untried. I was interested in a girl I saw the other night during your benefit. I couldn't stop thinking about her. Small girl. Ah. You want Lisette? She is young. 30,000 francs, then. Madame Guinevere pursed her lips and looked Harlequin up and down. He could practically hear what questionable ethics the woman had crumble under the weight of such a large sum of money. Come on, you sick slave peddler. Give me the girl. Your corrupt world has no reason to keep her innocent. 30,000 it is, then. She's to return here by Sunday, noon, and she cannot be marked in any way. Agreed. Your franks, madam. Madam Guinevere slid a piece of paper across the desk to Harlequin, and then rose elegantly from her chair and left the room. Harlequin gave the contract a cursory glance. He never read a contract closely when he was planning on violating it in the end. He was required to fill out some personal identifying information so he could be tracked down if he tried to kidnap her. Good luck with that, he thought, and quickly filled out the form with a standard alias he used. a young aristocrat living in York. He then stood as Madame Guinevere walked back into the room again. The girl with her wore a simple white dress Harlequin stomach turned as he saw how she had been dressed to look like the epitome of purity and innocence just as the madam had intended Instead of a lolita allure or even frightened the young girl looked resigned and determined. She had set her delicate jaw forward and glared up at Harlequin, challenging him. Harlequin stared back unfazed. Monsieur Harlequin, this is Lisette. Hello, Lisette. Fuck you, you pedophile. Now, now, madam, if I'm not allowed to mark her, Surely the same applies to you. Harlequin quickly moved to position himself between Madame Guinevere and Lisette. He looked down at the young girl, then bent on a single one knee to lower himself to her eye level. Lisette, my name is Harlequin. Come with me. I'm going to buy you some ice cream. Harlequin found that the girl Lisette was confident, but after centuries of studying people and their motivations, He recognized a deep-seated fear. He didn't blame her. He knew she was expecting something far more dire and childhood-destroying than what Harlequin had in mind. He realized too late that taking her for ice cream was a bad idea, as it was a textbook move for a child predator. He decided that she would respond best to a straightforward approach. Now, Lisette, what flavor would you prefer? Chocolate or vanilla? Lisette stared forward, motionless and mute. I asked you a question, Lisette, and I do expect a reply. I do not want your ice cream. I understand. Better than you know. Lisette, I only want to talk to you. Please sit down and I'm going to get you a chocolate milkshake. I said I did not want... Come, child. We have to order something. I don't have a room in Paris, so we have to talk in a cafe. Wouldn't you rather enjoy my company in a nice public place than alone in a seedy room? Lisette said nothing, but slowly sat down on the seat Harlequin offered her while maintaining her defiant eye contact. There. That's much better. Now you must listen closely to me. Before we start you must understand that I have no intention of harming or touching you in any way In fact, I would like nothing more than to get you out of that disgusting cesspool of an orphanage But right now I am going to go and order us some ice cream My back will be turned for at least a minute If you wish to run away you will have ample time But know that you will be on the street and penniless And are likely to be found by someone who will wish to use you in the same way that you believe you are escaping And you will have exchanged one master for another However, if you stay I will buy you an ice cream and then we will talk about an opportunity I have for you. You see, I need you to assist me in a particular job, a real job, that will reward you handsomely and give you the money and the resources to escape your existence with Madame Guinevere. You have no reason to trust me, but I know that you stole my wallet at the benefit a few nights ago, and I therefore have even less reason to trust you. I hope I see you when I return. Harlequin went to the counter, purposefully turning his back on the girl. He ordered their ice cream and then turned back around to face the table. Honestly surprised to see her chair empty, he sighed and realized that his ability to manipulate others still needed to be perfected. He sat down at the vacated table and quietly sipped at his chocolate milkshake, trying to decide his next move. He realized an airtight suit might beat the electric nose in the St. Chappelle Church, but as he started to think of it, wearing a full-body suit with an air tank on the back would compromise one thing thieves have relied on for centuries, the ability to run away and fast. He was making notes on a napkin when a small shadow fell over him. Lisette, I didn't expect to see you again. I had to visit the toilet. What is your job? You, Lisette, are a masterful thief. And you're what? Eleven? Nearly twelve. Do you steal for yourself or for Madame Guinevere? The Madame. She trains us all in the two skills she said will be vital to our lives. The ability to steal and... The ability to please a man? Possibly to earn his trust to steal even more? Oui. As I said before, I want none of that from you. I came to you in order to employ you for a job. Now that I know that your home is a brothel for pedophiles, I'll be keeping you away from there for good. But there is a small lesson I want to teach you. Don't steal from a thief better than you. Because nine times out of ten, he will not be as appreciative as I am. If you don't return me, she will find you. That is highly unlikely, my dear. I have spent a great many years learning how to cover my tracks quite effectively. People far smarter than Madame Guinevere have lost my trail before. You will have a new passport by this afternoon and you'll be out of the country by this evening. We will have to return back to France in a few days for the job, but she will have dispatched people to York in England to find me by then. They won't be looking in Saint-Chapelle for me. Saint-Chapelle? Will we have the benefit? Yes, my dear. You will be the first thief to break the new electronic olfactory security system. I still don't understand. Why are you helping me? Surely this is too dangerous for you. I thought I said. I need you to do a job for me. The risk of kidnapping a young girl like me from a brothel has got to be more than you expected. Madame Jean-Vierre's connections with the crime gang set with- When I was a very young man, I had my innocence stripped from me. Not exactly like what Madame Guinevere is doing, but someone took something. A part of myself from me. It wasn't theirs to take. The experience shaped my entire life since. I was very bitter and alone for a long time after that. No one deserves that, Lisette. And if I can help you, I will. But you have to let me. And you have to trust me. I promise I will never touch you. I will keep you safe and hidden for the days leading up to the job. And then, if the job is successful, then I will reward you with more money than the Crown Princess sees in a year. After that, we can talk about your future. And is it not successful? Then Paris law enforcement will catch you and either give you back to Madame Guinevere, or the state will find a new caregiver for you. Then I suppose I must be the best thief I can be. You must be a trustworthy one. You have been listening to The Ward, a Leviathan Chronicles story. This episode was made possible by the generous support of our listeners. To listen ad-free and get exclusive bonus content and behind-the-scenes footage, become a subscriber at patreon.com slash leviathanchronicles. The Ward was written by Mer Lafferty and Christoph Leputka Directed by Nobi Nakanishi Produced by Robin Shaw Executive produced by Amish Johnny Original music by Luke Allen Sound design and editing by Luke Allen and Robin Shaw Starring Michelle Ann Dunphy as Lizette William T.N. Hall as Harlequin Karen Heyman as Helene Laura Post as Madame Guinevere Lalibert and Samantha Parker as the narrator. For a full cast list and to learn more about our other audio productions, go to leviathanaudiproductions.com or follow us on social media. Thank you for supporting Leviathan Audio and thank you for listening. Leviathan Audio Production Legendary stories, awe-inspiring sound, and endless adventure. Welcome to the realms of peril and glory. Explore the mechanically magical vistas of Vale The paranormal mysteries of liminal London And the cyberpunk chaos of Cyborg Fall in love with our core cast Or be awed by our incredible guests From familiar shows like Oxventure three black halflings, and no roles barred. Ignite your imagination and discover the Realms of Peril and Glory today. Go to RealmsPod.com or search Realms of Peril and Glory wherever you listen to podcasts. The war is over and both sides lost. Kingdoms were reduced to cinders, and armies scattered like bones in the dust. Now the survivors claw to what's left of a broken world, praying the darkness chooses someone else tonight. But in the shadow dark, the darkness always wins. This is old school adventuring at its most cruel. Your torch ticks down in real time. And when that flame dies, something else rises to finish the job. This is a brutal rules light nightmare with a story that emerges organically based on the decisions that the characters make. This is what it felt like to play RPGs in the 80s, and man, it is so good to be back. Join the Glass Cannon podcast as we plunge into the shadow dark every Thursday night at 8 p.m. Eastern on youtube.com slash the glass cannon with the podcast version dropping the next day. See what everybody's talking about and join us in the dark. Oh, please, not that music. That music gives me nightmares from my childhood. Could we get something a little bit lighter, some lighter music here? Are you a fan of true crime TV shows? And what about Unsolved Mysteries, the show that jump-started all of our love of true crime? I'm Ellen Marsh. And I'm Joey Taranto. And we host I Think Not, a true crime comedy podcast covering some of the wildest stories from your favorite true crime campy TV shows all the way to Unsolved Mysteries. Baby, you will laugh, you will cry, You'll think about true crime in a whole new way. And you'll also ask yourself, who gave these people mics? 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