Sculptured Skin

Euri Glenn

I woke from a night

of corpses in my mind

in hopes that I might save them.

They told me that I would never die if I

lied

still

 

I couldn’t shake the feeling of spiders

splitting my skin.

They were liars.

Sew my veins and weave my ligaments

stitches of delicate silk

like warpaint; it made

me hate their ilk.

 

Snakes grew from my scalp

and scared the spiders away

Wise, was she? Asking help

from her slaves.

Rebuild me

as a monster.

 

Radioactive eyes rotted the insides

of all who dared take me as their lover.

Children from her brain

battled

my snakes in vain

as they emerged

to create

art.

Author: Euri Glenn is a Jambreen/Tamborine Mountain based writer, and a third-year Creative Writing student at QUT who is currently working on a novel based in a post-apocalyptic Gold Coast Hinterland. In every story, she seeks to inspire change for the better of the world and the creatures who dwell within in. You can find more of her work in ScratchThat’s 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th Issues, QUT Glass’ 14th Issue, and @euri.chelsea.glenn on Instagram.

Artist: Irene Liao is a visual art student from Taiwan who aims to present figurative human art through her watercolour pieces.

Editors: Brock Scholte and Rory Hawkins