F3 Magic Potion

            Alchemy, the study of transmuting materials, most notably of attempting to turn lead into gold, was dangerous. The antique flask sat on the table in front of me. The glass was thick and imperfect with a dawb of lead on the side. Some kind of seal had been pressed into the metal, but I couldn’t make it out, now. Lines of brass emerged from the lead seal to wind their way around the neck of the glass all the way to the top.

            I had poured in a small amount of water. Nothing happened immediately, but the flask had quickly warmed to the touch, then had gotten hot enough for the glass to glow a light yellow color, making the water match.

            The counter began to smolder, so I quickly grabbed barbecue tongs and oven mitts to move the flask onto my oven rack. Moments later frost built up on the flask and remained that way for twenty minutes. I couldn’t fire up my frozen lasagna from Giuseppe’s while it was in there, and my stomach voiced it’s disapproval.

            After the frost disappeared, I pulled the flask out. The liquid inside was thicker, like honey, but had a bluish tinge and black flecks in it. It smelled like a mixture of cherry and orange blossoms, too. My instinct was to drink it, but I quashed it down. I poured a small sample in a small jar, and poured the rest in a Tupperware. At least it didn’t explode on me.