I am Moloch looking down. I have only killed
one person in bad faith. This isn’t a topic up
for discussion. I am Artemis scalping him.
I have eaten every lover I ever captured.
The crossbeam on a gallows is religion.
I am Baphomet when totally relaxed.
Fig leaves in pink bathwater. Syrah
in a shrunken skull. I sip from its
polished mandible. I am Eden
playing alone with her silver
fingers. I hung myself deep
purple from the sole vine
dangling in the apple
tree. I am Adam’s
perfectly defiled
fester of corpse:
obliterated,
smiling.
~~~
Nicholas Alti is a bartender in Atlanta who holds an MFA from the University of Alabama. His chapbook is Inhale the Ghost (Spoon River Poetry Review, 2026). Recent publications include Jersey Devil Press, Apocalypse Confidential, and Chrome Baby. He’s from a rural place near Lake Michigan. Nicholas’s website is 3bluntzatonce.com.
