This is the first TTGL fic I've written, so forgive me if everyone's ooc. It's kind of AU, but anyway, here's a better summary:

Aristocrats Adiane and Cytomander have a taste for cruelty, and their slave Viral knows that all too well. Frankly, he's had enough. There seems to be no hope for him, that is until two very ambitious men come crashing into his life one night... Kamina and Simon break him out of his prison and take him to their camp, unaware of his beastman status. Things go awry once they arrive at the rebellion's camp. No one there wants to be in cohorts with a beastman, except for Kamina, it seems. Viral spirals into depression in the one place he thought he could be free as everyone rejects him wholeheartedly, but he finds an unexpeceted comfort in the one man he never thought he'd get it from: Kamina.

Viral scratched at the shock collar around his neck, his claws somehow finding their way past the studded diamonds that sparkled there. Those, of course, were not their for his personal benefit. They only disguised the fact that the collar was not meant for fashion. Undoubtedly, for he had proven this true many times before, he would receive a sharp pain throughout his body if he strayed too far from his master, or in this case, masters.

Adiane and Cytomander. Two aristocrats with a passion for fame, glory, and personal gain. As far as they were concerned, Viral existed only to aid them in their quest for power, whether he wanted to or not. They didn't care if the handcuffs he wore at night rubbed his wrists raw. They just hid them under the sleeves of his tuxedo. What did they care if he was growing out of all of his clothes? They had some perfectly nice towels he could run around in. On second thought, maybe those were a little too nice. He could survive with a napkin.

At that very moment, the cloth of his suit was certainly too tight for his liking, pressed up against his pale skin, and the thick silver of his shock collar was digging into his neck. He could feel the slow, pulsating tingle of electricity running through it already; he had probably strayed too far from Adiane at this point. But what could he say? This party was pathetically dull. The sickly scent of wine hung heavy in the air, making Viral's eyes water. It was a familiar smell by now, one that harbored unhappy memories. As did laughter. It was no longer a happy sound to him. After too many nights of drunken chuckles and unreasonable orders, it was hard to think of laughing as a good thing. To him, it just meant that either he had done something incredibly stupid and everyone had noticed, or that things were about to get a whole lot worse. That didn't sit very well with him considering how many parties Adiane and Cytomander dragged him to on a regular basis.

Speaking of the two slave drivers, there they were. Viral could see their slender figures through a break in the crowd. Adiane's dark ruby scorpion tail stood out among all of the plainly dressed party goers (as it always did, making her the life of the party) as did her ear to ear smile. Actually, it was more of a dark grin, but Viral was the only on who really noticed that. She appeared to be laughing at something someone had said, but by the looks of the other around her, it was obvious that the poor sap had not actually intended on being funny. But Adiane was like that. She enjoyed other people's pain, thrived in their misery. Their misfortune was her gain. Viral recalled this all too well as he uncharacteristically pitied the group of people she was currently with.

He winced when Cytomander snaked a wiry arm around her waist, his toothy grin as fabulous as ever. Memories of that same thin arm crept into his mind despite his internal protests to stop them. He couldn't. Viral dejectedly remembered that same arm shooting toward his face, its bony fingers scraping across his cheek.

"Viral!" Cytomander's shrill voice cut into his thought like a jagged knife. Looking up to see the man's glittering grin, Viral remembered just why he hated him so much. On the outside, the aristocrat was fabulous. That was the only word for it. His outfit, a deep emerald color, was lined with grand, sparkling feathers. His nose, stuck high in the air in a position it never left, was finely sculpted. Though it was Viral's blatant opinion that he looked more like a bird that had been vomited upon.

Glittery vomit.

But on the inside, he might as well have been a monster. Certainly, he was a beastman just like Viral and everyone else above the underground, but he was more beastly than the others. And Adiane was even worse. He hated them both.

"Viral, come here," Cytomander repeated. Viral noted with a faint jolt that that sharp edge in his voice was there again. It always appeared when he got irritated. It was only a matter of time before he started yelling and spitting all over the place. Reluctantly, Viral pushed away from the column he was leaning on and, without uncrossing his arms, sulked over to where Cytomander and Adiane were standing. He was supposed to put on a good face for his masters' friends, but he didn't feel like it that night. Besides, what would they do? Hit him in public? Ruin their image? Of course not. Most likely, they'd save his punishment for when they got home, just like the last time he hadn't smiled at the woman that Cytomander was going out with behind Adiane's back. He still had bruises from that one.

"Viral, this is our friend, Thymilph," Adiane chimed, her voice feigning innocence. "Thymilph, this is our chauffeur, Viral," he was, of course, in no way their chauffeur (they knew he'd drive them all off some bottomless cliff if he could drive) but Thymilph had no trouble whatsoever believing the lie. He was living proof that one could not have both brains and brawn. At least not at the same time.

He was quite large. That was the first thing Viral noticed about him. He then realized that his skin was somewhat blue and wondered why he hadn't seen this first. Wasn't having blue skin stranger than being large? That's what Viral would've thought, but after living so long in a world of splendidly designed beastmen (even he himself was quite slender) he supposed that being larger than a skinny man was quite abnormal. He was almost surprised that his dark blue suite fit his massive chest.

"Pleasure to meet you, my boy," Thymilph boomed, jutting out a huge hand. Viral lifted his own and grasped Thymilph's firmly, smirking at the look of surprise on his face. People were always shocked at the sight of his large, clawed hands. It was just one of those constants in his life. At first it had hurt his feelings. But then, he began to enjoy how easily he could surprise others. Now, it was trite and irritating, something he wished he could live without. It was like they forgot he was a beastman at all, and his hands forced them to realize that he only looked human. Well, for the most part. But his sharp teeth were easily hidden, unlike his claws, which wouldn't fit into any glove. Besides, didn't they know how ridiculous the very notion of humans on the surface was? It was unbelievable.

"The pleasure is mine, sir," Viral mumbled quietly, his mouth a soft frown on his face. He hated meeting new people.

Cytomander glanced at the dazzling watch on his wrist as Thymilph all too eagerly released Viral's hand. "Well, it looks like Adiane and I must be going now, please excuse us," The only time Viral ever appreciated Cytomander was when he announced their leave. Sure, that meant that they were going back to the mansion where he was sure to get scolded for something, but it also meant going to the car, the one place where they couldn't hurt him. While the two sat up front, Viral was free to sit in the back seat behind the sound proof privacy screen. It was a nice change after a party like this one.

He followed as Adiane and Cytomander, their arms linked, stalked away from the crowd, out of the fancy building, and into their small vehicle. Viral crawled into the back seat and slammed the door shut behind him. He knew from experience that Cytomander and Adiane were babbling about something unimportant in front of him even though he couldn't hear it, and he was happy for the first time that day. Just in time for night, too. The sky outside his window was almost pitch black, telling him that it was past midnight. Well that explained why he was so tired all of a sudden. As the luxurious car began to smoothly roll forward, Viral relaxed against the back rest, his eyes closing steadily. He knew that falling asleep in the car probably wasn't such a good idea, but that night he just couldn't bring himself to care.

"Papa!" The little girl cried joyfully as her father threw her in the air and caught her with a quick laugh. She happily placed the crown of flowers that she had made earlier onto his head and he smiled gratefully.

"Thank you very much, my princess," he said, setting her down in the tall grass with a graceful bow. "Care for a dance?"

THWACK!

Viral's hands instinctively flew to the point of impact (this time, it was his head). Judging from the pain in his skull and the look on Adiane's face as she pulled her tail out from inside the car, Viral guessed that she had startled him out of his dream with a swift blow from her tail.

"Oh," she said with obvious contempt. "and I thought you might have died," Viral watched her strut away, chuckling to herself. His mouth slightly parted, he lifted himself from the car and took in the sight of the large, looming mansion before him. He had slept through the whole ride back here, only to have that same dream again, the one that had continually been haunting his sleep as of late.

He took a quick glance around; the deep blue lake was completely still, its surface glittering with the reflection of the moon. Directly next to it was the Helix Manor part two. The grand manor was the second in a trio of royal mansions. The first was the largest, as it belonged to the Helix King himself. The second and third, belonging to his four most trusted advisors, were of the same size though they were far apart. Viral had to wonder what the King's mansion looked like; as he was, he couldn't imagine anything being fancier than Adiane and Cytomander's place.

"Viral!" Adiane barked. Viral turned his head to see her standing under the doorway's large, golden arch, her coat draped over her arm. To be blunt, she didn't look very happy. In detail, her thin eyebrows were arched dramatically, her nostrils were flared, and her rouge lips were pursed. Viral knew that look, and it sent tremors down his spine. Tonight was going to be rough.

"Are you going to make me wait all night? Get in here!" she shrieked. His heart thudding in anxious anticipation, Viral clenched his rather large fists and started forward, begging to whatever god that was out there to let Adiane go easy on him. Punishments were never easy. Cytomander's were never fun. But Adiane's were never tolerable. They were what kept Viral up at night, too afraid to drift off into sleep. Some children were afraid of monsters, some of rejection, and some of the dark. Adiane was all three. Viral had nowhere to hide.

At night, he would curl up in his corner, his amber eyes wide open, carefully surveying the darkness, searching for Adiane. She had once told him that she was always near, lurking, watching his every move. That had been one of her crueler nights, and he had believed her. And now, as he walked into the mansion, right past Adiane's piercing glare, he hated himself for not being able to stop his hands from shaking as he crossed his arms. His pride once again left him as he crossed back into enemy territory.

He hated to see himself as the terrified victim. It insulted him. But in this case, he was ashamed to say that he fit the bill perfectly. What had happened to his pride? Things like that don't just disappear without a trace, but somehow, his had. Adiane had beat it out of him.

He followed her down the hallways, further, further, aiming for his "bedroom". Really, it wasn't a bedroom at all. It was more like the empty storage space that no one needed. That was why he had the privilege of using it; because no one needed it. Viral was just grateful they hadn't stuffed him in a closet instead. Though the closets were relatively large, the storage space was a bit bigger. And emptier. Unlike the manor's many closets, Viral's room wasn't filled with luxurious suits and dresses. The only thing in there was his mattress, which was obviously intended to be slept on. Viral appreciated it, seeing as it was the only thing he owned (apart from his suit that he wore to parties and his own rather farfetched outfit). Though he had never said "thank you" for it, of course. In his opinion, that would be crossing the line over to sanity.

After the car, his room was his favorite place to be. When Adiane wasn't in there badmouthing him, he could be alone and relax, even though that usually didn't last long.

It would just be him and his mattress, in quiet peace.

Unfortunately, it would not be like that tonight. Viral had to remind himself of that as they walked into the storage space. Time seemed to slow down as Adiane turned to face him, grinning. Viral could read her excitement just by looking at her eyes. The whole world around him spun out, spiraling around and around until it disappeared and he was lost in darkness. He knew what was happening; this was his newfound overreaction to fear. That emotion was one he had never experience before coming to live with Adiane and Cytomander. But now, he was dominated by it.

Viral steadied himself, his fists tightly clenched, when he heard a loud ring, brief and sharp. The sound was familiar, yet it wasn't strong enough to break through to him. Though judging by the scowl on Adiane's face, it was good news for him. Then he remembered; the doorbell. Maybe there really was a god. He hated to be trite, but he had literally been saved by the bell. Distracted by this sudden interruption, Viral began to wonder who could have saved him. Of course, it wouldn't be the police; they were too smitten with King Genome to ever dare get two of his favorite advisors thrown in prison. So who could it be at the door, and would they distract Adiane's attention from him for much longer? Turns out he was unlucky. He could tell by the sounds of multiple footsteps, doors slamming, and hearty voices that Cytomander had answered the door. The next second, he had poked his frilly head around into the room where Viral could see him, and both of their expressions were thoroughly annoyed though for different reasons.

"It's Guame," Cytomander grumbled, knuckles white as they clutched at the door frame. "He wants to see you," Viral tried not to look too hopeful as he imagined the short and portly man, the one that was always eyeing him strangely while sipping his tea and prodding his walking stick at anyone that so much as glanced at him funny for being small and green. At least Guame didn't beat Viral for fun, although it disturbed Viral that he'd probably like to…

"Tell him I'm busy," Adiane spat. She looked around fervently for something to throw at the glamorous bird-man and twitched when she discovered that her search was in vain. So, she resorted to flinging snide remarks at him instead.

"Why don't you talk to him instead? I'm sure you'd both like that,"

Cytomander, his eyes narrowed, chose to ignore her blatant rudeness. "I knew you'd say something like that," he mumbled before waltzing into the room in full. Viral noticed with an almost overpowering irritation that Cytomander had touched up on his "beauty" since they had gotten home. Clearing his throat frivolously and adding a flourishing gesture with his hand, Cytomander grinned and continued on his quest to badger Adiane…