1 The Rejected Bride
Advanced Beast Era, Year 3001 on a Planet called TOI 7000 e
"Arella, have you contacted Luke? Where is he? The ceremony is about to begin!" The panicked voice of a middle-aged woman could be heard in the hall. Getting no response, she barged into the adjacent room that was reserved for the bride.
Arella Williams, the bride, sat still in front of a huge mirror. An unblemished face was seen in the mirror. Enchanting golden eyes surrounded by a halo of blue kept staring at her reflection. Soft cascading red hair, a small mouth, tender skin, a sharp jawline, and a mesmerizing face. No matter from which angle one looked, the blooming beauty was enough to stir somebody's soul.
But the look on the face was not something that a bride, on her wedding day, should have. No shred of happiness could be found on her face. Her eyes were empty. The skin looked unusually pale.
A distressed look passed through the face of the middle-aged woman. Looking at the bride who appeared as if she had lost her soul, she tried to hide her anxiety.
"Do not worry! Luke must have been called by the headquarters. He will be back soon."
The soulless beauty shifted her gaze from her reflection to the panicking woman. Being stared at made the woman a little comfortable, and guilt crept up on her face. She weakly comforted the bride and hurriedly left the room as if running away from something.
A clink was heard in the empty room, and soon her phone, kept on the dressing table, vibrated. On it were three new messages. All from the same person.
Arella clicked on the first message, and a recording started playing.
"Luke! Ah…stop…stop. You sh..should go. Today is you..your wedd…ing!"
The recording continued and exasperated voices, sultry moans, and grunts could be heard now and then. After a long time, everything went silent. And then came a sentence:
"Where should I go? Aren't you my bride!" The deep baritone voice had a strained edge to it.
The recording continued, but Arella could not hear anything. She stopped the recording with a trembling hand and immediately deleted it. Both the voices were familiar to her.
Still holding onto the crumbling hope, she checked the other messages. One was a photo of a verified pregnancy report, and another was an intimate image of two people wound around each other in a tight embrace.
The protagonists of these images were none other than her half-sister, Stella, and the missing groom, Luke.
Tears started streaming down her eyes. She could no longer hold back her broken sobs. Her straight back hunched down as if burdened by a huge weight.
Three hours later.
Arella was sitting motionlessly in front of the mirror. No hint of the emotional outburst could be seen from her impeccable makeup and wrinkle-free dress.
The door of her room opened, and the middle-aged woman appeared again, accompanied by a man. Both people had a troubled look on their faces.
"Arella, there is a sudden change. We think it won't be possible for you to get married to Luke today." The man spoke lightly.
"Father, could you tell me what happened?" Arella spoke politely as if talking to a stranger.
A sigh escaped from the man's mouth. The man was none other than her father, Arthur.
Before Arthur could respond, the door opened once again, and a crying woman ran in Arella's direction.
"Sister, I am sorry. I did not mean it. I thought I would be able to bury my love for Luke, but I could not do it. I am so sorry, sister!" Stella, Arella's half-sister cried pitifully. With tear-stained small eyes and a red nose, Stella evoked pity in everyone who saw her.
"No, my dear, it wasn't your fault!" The middle-aged woman intervened. "Who could have thought that Luke would take a liking to you? It wasn't your fault at all."
Comforting each other was her half-sister and stepmother. Arella felt disgusted by their self-directed act. Sobs filled the room. Stella cried miserably as if she was the one who was horribly wronged.
"Father, tell me what happened?" Arella ignored the acting and urged her father.
"Allow me." A deep voice was heard from the entrance. A handsome man soon walked towards them. His tight-fitting clothes revealed his muscular build. Chiseled features, light brown eyes, strong momentum, and a handsome appearance. This was Luke.
"Arella, you cannot blame anybody for this! You know how poor your aptitude is. You are about to turn twenty, yet you are still a D-level tamer. Look at Stella, she is just eighteen, and she is already a B-level tamer. You know it in your heart that you could never become my spiritual support!"
"Our family does not care about aptitude." Arthur tried to defend Arella. "It was your late parents who asked for Arella when she was just a baby. You should honor their wishes!"
"They did not know that I would become a B-level beast. Uncle, I have a bright future. I cannot compromise it by marrying a D-level tamer!" Luke burst out.
Luke and Arella were childhood sweethearts. Arella's mother and Luke's parents fixed their marriage without worrying about their aptitudes. Both families were equally matched in status and wealth.
But things went astray when Luke's parents and Arella's mother died. Then, at the eighteenth ceremony, when children received an aptitude, Arella got a tamer D rank while Luke got a Beast C rank.
Things were still acceptable. But in two years, Luke participated in a lot of military exploits and successfully raised his aptitude from C to an initial B rank. On the other hand, Arella was still a D-rank tamer.
Arthur knew it in his heart, but he still had the hope of witnessing a gentleman's demeanor from Luke. But Luke ruthlessly abandoned his dead parent's wishes and prioritized his career.
To honor a past promise or to pave a brighter future. The choice was crystal clear.
"Uncle, I know I have put you in a tight spot. Had I not been away for a military mission, I would have told you earlier. I want to marry Stella. And I am ready to marry her today. This can save both of us from the trouble of losing our reputation." Luke suggested in a warm and negotiating manner.
A troubled look appeared on Stella's face. But, she immediately hid it.
"Are you asking me to change the bride at the last minute? Do you think that won't ruin my reputation? Well, a person who abandons her fiance just like that! Who could trust you with their daughter? Let's cancel this marriage right away. I don't want any of my daughters to be entangled with you!" Father roared and declared his sovereignty.
"You might want to reconsider that. The Major General is here to attend my wedding. Are you sure you want to offend an A-rank Beast?" Luke grinned crookedly. He knew the outcome as soon as he revealed this piece of insider information.
The bloodless pallor revealed the difficulty of the father. The situation of the army was extremely bad on TOI 7000 e. Though they had quantity, only a few of those soldiers could reach either B or A beast or tamer ranks. The majority was still in the C, D, and E ranks.
Things were peaceful at the time, but it could always be challenged by other planets. In such a state, the army was doing its best to scout for talents who could be raised to higher ranks. A few had managed to rise to the B level and they were very precious to the army. Evidently, Luke's pride was not in vain.
Arthur himself was a C-level beast. So offending Luke, B rank beast was already his limit. The Major General, who was an A rank beast was not to be trifled with.
"Okay. Get Stella ready for the ceremony." Arthur muttered under his breath and left the room without looking at anybody.
Luke gave an assuring glance at Stella and left afterward. Stella showed a gloating and triumphant expression, and then, left to get ready with her beaming mother.
Nobody looked at Arella. No one comforted her. No one wanted to listen to her thoughts. None paid attention to her as if she did not exist.
She wanted to cry, but her eyes had gone dry from the initial outburst. She wanted to shout, but no voice could come out of her mouth. She wanted to ask Luke why did he do that to her! She was faithful to him, but what did he do? Hooked up behind her back with her sister! Who gave him the right to treat her this way?
Why? Why did it happen? Was it all because of her aptitude? Why was she so powerless? Why was her aptitude so low? Despite trying her best to raise it, it never moved!
Was she meant to sit and cry all her life? No. She could not let that happen! A fierce determination crossed her eyes. A burst of energy sparkled, and a faint red light started surrounding her figure.
With determination, she felt a strong pull, and her legs automatically started moving towards the door. Before she could reach it, the door burst open with a bang. And in front of her stood a man.
Blue eyes stared at Arella's golden orbs. Dark blue hair, enchanting blue eyes, a straight nose, heavenly features, and a drooling physique filled her vision.
She thought that Luke was the most handsome man she had ever seen, but no. She was so wrong. Luke was nothing in front of this man. The man standing in front of her was the epitome of beauty. It looked as if this Adonis was carefully carved by the Beast Gods themselves.
Before Arella could recover from the beauty, she heard his deep, enchanting, husky voice and felt a bolt of thunder.
All because he said, "Marry Me."
