Alpha's Rejected becomes the Lycan's Obsession-Chapter 82: Wake up

***Dream realm***

Tessy couldn’t remember the exact moment she fell asleep. No, she hadn’t fallen asleep. She had been with Roman, relaxing after having the best sex of her life. And then It was just... snap—she was there. Suddenly awake in what could only be described as a living nightmare.

The first thing she felt was the heat.

Not the kind of heat you’d expect from a summer day or even from sitting too close to a fire. No—this was different. It clung to her skin like wet clothes on a humid afternoon, only much worse. It was suffocating, like being wrapped in a blanket drenched in boiling oil. Her skin stung just from being exposed to the air, and every breath felt like she was inhaling steam straight from a burning kettle.

She coughed and gasped for air, but each breath only made it worse. It wasn’t just hot—it was painful. The air crackled in her throat, scorching its way down to her lungs, making her eyes water and her chest tighten.

Then she noticed the walls.

They weren’t made of stone or brick or anything she could name. They looked... alive. The surfaces around her pulsed gently, as if they were made of flesh, like the inside of a giant creature. The floor squished unpleasantly under her bare feet—soft and wet, like stepping on a massive tongue. Every few seconds, the walls seemed to contract ever so slightly, matching the rhythm of her own breathing. It was as if she’d been swallowed whole.

It wasn’t entirely dark, but the light that existed didn’t make her feel any better. A soft, ominous red glow oozed from the ceiling and seeped through the walls, casting everything in a sickly, bloody hue. It didn’t feel like light. It felt like something rotten trying to mimic it.

And then came the smell.

It hit her like a punch to the face. A revolting mix of rotting meat, thick pools of dried blood, and sulfur—like something had died, burned, and been left to fester. Her stomach churned. The taste of the air itself made her gag. She doubled over, retching and dry-heaving, even though there was nothing in her stomach to bring up.

Her hands shook. Her heart pounded.

"What the hell is this place?" she croaked, her voice barely audible.

A low, rumbling roar echoed in the distance, deep and earth-shaking. It vibrated through the walls and floor, making the fleshy ground tremble beneath her feet. The sound wasn’t human. It wasn’t even an animal. It was something... older. Something bigger. Something that was very much awake now—and aware of her presence.

She staggered backward in panic. "No. No, no, no..."

Her instincts screamed at her to run, so she did. But no matter which way she turned, there was no real exit. No doors, no windows. Just a tunnel that stretched into darkness, narrowing the further it went. The walls along the corridor were lined with things that looked like bones—sharpened and half-buried into the soft tissue around them. Some were shaped like ribs. Others like human fingers.

She didn’t have time to stop and question any of it.

Another roar sounded—closer this time. Closer and louder. Tessy could feel it in her bones. The temperature suddenly rose even higher, and a wave of heat swept through the tunnel like wildfire. She screamed and hit the ground, covering her head.

But the fire never touched her.

She opened one eye and realized something strange. The fire had passed over and around her, leaving her completely unharmed. A faint shimmer hovered over her skin—like a shield made of stars. It flickered briefly, then disappeared before she could even process what she was seeing.

No time to dwell on it. She jumped back up and ran. However, she noticed something. This time, she had become more tired as if she had just lost a significant amount of strength.

Eventually, the tunnel widened into a cavern—a massive, dome-like space that seemed to pulse with life. Veins, thick and throbbing, lined the ceiling. In the center of the room was a pit filled with lava, bubbling and glowing bright red-orange. And above that, hanging like a grotesque chandelier, were rows of massive, curved teeth. Saliva dripped from the sharp tips into the molten pit below.

Tessy froze, heart pounding so loudly it felt like it might explode.

And then came the roar again. This time, it wasn’t far away. It was right behind her.

She spun around.

Something emerged from the shadows—huge, terrifying, and impossible. It was like a creature made of both flame and darkness. Its body flickered and shifted, never settling into a solid form. Its eyes glowed like molten gold, and long, jagged claws dragged across the ground with each step. It smiled at her, revealing a mouth full of sharp, black teeth.

"My feast, they sent you right on time," it said, its voice a terrifying blend of multiple echoes. "You’re supposed to die now and I’m supposed to dine."

Tessy backed away slowly, her hands trembling. "I don’t understand..."

The creature lunged.

Without thinking, she screamed and threw her hands up.

An explosion of light burst from her hands.

A crimson wall of energy formed between her and the creature, blasting it backward. It hit the wall of the chamber with a snarl, flailing and thrashing like a wild animal.

Tessy stared at her hands, stunned.

They were glowing. Not just glowing—her veins lit up like they were filled with molten gold, and her entire body pulsed with energy. Her heart thundered in her ears.

"What is happening to me? What is all this?"

The barrier faltered. The creature lunged again.

Tessy stumbled backward and fell straight into the pit.

Time slowed.

She was falling.

The heat of the lava rushed up to meet her.

And then something unexpected happened.

Light exploded from her back. Wings—made entirely of raw, radiant energy—burst out of her, lifting her back into the air. She hovered there, suspended by something she didn’t understand.

Then the entire world around her shattered, like a mirror breaking into a thousand pieces.

"Wake up, Tessy. Wake up," she urged herself, screaming to her very being.

But she didn’t wake up.

***

Everything settled, but she found herself in a place that was cold. Bitterly cold.

A forest stretched out around her—vast, silent, and strange. The sky overhead was a solid black with not a single star in sight. Everything around her was bathed in a cold, bluish light, like moonlight seen through thick ice.

The trees were wrong. Too tall. Their trunks twisted and gnarled like old bones. Their branches were jagged and sharp, resembling claws reaching out to scratch the sky. The ground crunched under her feet with every step, like she was walking on broken glass.

Her breath came out in thick white puffs. It was dead silent. Not even the sound of wind.

Then came the laughter. Soft and playful, a child’s laugh.

Tessy turned, her heart racing.

In the middle of the woods was... a playground. It looked completely out of place. Rusted swings swayed gently in a breeze she couldn’t feel. A merry-go-round spun slowly, creaking with every turn. A seesaw sat lopsided, one end broken.

Tessy’s every instinct told her to run away.

But her legs moved her forward.

On one of the swings sat a little girl with snow-white hair and a stitched-up face. Her eyes were solid black—no whites, no pupils, just inky voids. She smiled at Tessy with an unsettling, too-wide grin.

"You made it here, Tessy," the girl said.

Tessy tried to say something, but her mouth wouldn’t open. It felt like it had been sewn shut.

The girl stood, and as she walked, the ground behind her rotted. The grass turned black, the frost thickened, and the trees near her curled away like they were afraid.

"They’re going to cut you open," she whispered, almost gleefully. "To make your husband suffer. It’s going to hurt a lot. But if you stay here with me, you won’t get to meet them. Wanna play?"

The temperature dropped even more. The air became so cold it stung with every breath.

Tessy shook her head, horrified. She didn’t know what the girl was talking about. The words scared her, but no way she was going to stay in such a place with such a creature because the girl didn’t look human to her.

Seeing how Tessy refused her offer, the girl tilted her head and then—screamed.

Darkness fell instantly.

Shadows poured from the trees like spilled ink. They slid along the ground, stretching upward, growing limbs—twisted arms with claws. They had faces, teeth, and eyes.

They came for Tessy and she ran.

Branches sliced at her arms. Roots reached out to trip her. The forest itself seemed alive—and hungry.

Something caught her ankle. She crashed to the ground, face scraping against frozen soil.

The shadows loomed. Claws reached for her.

And then, just like the last time, a blast of searing white light erupted from her chest.

The shadows screamed, burned, and disintegrated into ash.

Tessy gasped for air. Her hands trembled as she touched her chest, where a glowing mark—a strange, ancient symbol—was burned into her skin. Then it faded.

The forest was quiet now. Even the trees leaned away from her. The girl was gone. The laughter, too.

But something else had appeared—at the very edge of the forest.

A mirror.

Tessy approached it slowly, breath hitching in her throat.

In the reflection, she saw herself. But she was... different. Her eyes glowed golden. Her skin shimmered. Light spilled from every pore like she was made of stardust.

"Who are you?" she whispered.

Her reflection smiled back.

"I am you and you need to wake up."

As soon as her reflection said that, the forest shattered around her like a broken crystal.

And she fell—again.

***

This time, she hit the ground hard.

She landed on something sharp—thorns, alive and writhing like worms. They pierced her skin, and she screamed, blood trickling down her arms. She rolled off them quickly, trying to escape their twitching grasp.

She was in a vast, echoing space. Whispers filled the air—voices she couldn’t understand. Above her, the sky spun with swirling black clouds and flashes of lightning.

The ground cracked open.

Something enormous rose from below.

A figure—towering and hooded, face hidden in shadows. It held a massive scythe that glowed red like molten metal.

"Tessy," it said in a low, powerful voice. "There is no escaping me. My world will be your end."

She turned to run, but the earth split again. Chains burst from below, wrapping around her arms and legs, pulling her toward the ground.

"No! Let me go!" she cried, struggling.

The figure approached, slow and unstoppable. The scythe lifted.

Tessy shut her eyes. She was tired, and no matter how much she struggled, she couldn’t break free. Would she truly die here? But it was a dream right? People die in dreams and wake up in the physical, right?

With that thought, she was about to give up.

But then, a voice echoed in her head.

Fight.

She recognized that voice, but she couldn’t remember who owned it at that point.

Her eyes snapped open at that very moment.

They glowed like the sun.

The chains shattered.

She rose, glowing brighter than ever before. Power surged through her, fierce and wild.

She raised a hand, and the scythe melted in the figure’s grasp.

It screamed, the sound bending the air around them. A beam of light erupted from her palm, tearing through the figure.

Silence followed.

Tessy dropped to her knees, gasping. Her body flickered, shifting between the girl she’d always been—and this one she didn’t recognize.

That voice came back again. It was speaking in a language she hadn’t heard before, but she strangely understood it.

"You have to wake up now. Try. I can’t help you in the next place. Wake up," the voice said.

Tessy tried, but still... she couldn’t wake up.