An Alchemist's Admission

By Cody Nienhuis

Published in the 2023 journal.

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Alone in the shadows, I sit and stare as golden light faintly flickers across my face. My

triumph remains. It’s shining bubbles buoy to the top and expire in the air, their fleeting life

devoted to find a finite moment of freedom. And out of the throes of supposed wisdom and

prideful purpose, I emerge shaken as the past sneers at me. Arrived at the final fulcrum, I beg epiphany, ignorant if floating to freedom myself will only lead back to him, wearing a different face, hand outstretched for the toll I now must pay one black rose at a time.