Gaea felt that Anika Bhanderi was perhaps the weakest choice for her ring. The F glittered on the top of the ring, though it wasn't as solid as the rest of the rings.

The yellow metal seemed to move under the right light. It was not a solid ring, instead forming a rather continuous loop of smoke around the finger of whomever wore it.

Anika was thirty-three and working as a dental assistant in New York City. She was originally from India and had plans to return there in a year's time. People had started to scare her, calling her names from the back of cars, bumping into her on the subway, calling her names she didn't have the heart to repeat.

One of her customers, Regina Anderson, had refused to let Anika touch her. "Your hands are obviously dirty. When is the last time you washed?" Regina said.

Anika had worked for Dr. Perkins for almost ten years. She expected him to stand up for her. Instead Dr. Perkins asked for Elizabeth to come into the room.

"It's for the best," Dr. Perkins said, his white smile sharper. "We want the customer to be happy."

Anika quit. She walked out. She didn't need that—bull shit. It was bull shit. So when Gaea sat beside her on the almost empty subway, she didn't look up. She was caught up in the unfairness of the while situation. She was better than Dr. Perkins and his narrow minded ignorance.

Regina was just one of those women who got what they wanted, who made others feel bad. All Perkins needed to do was stand up for Anika, take her aside and explain he didn't agree with the old bitch. But he just smiled and—Anika felt hot tears.

Gaea offered Anika a tissue. "Are you okay? Hard day at work?"

"How did you—Yeah. Yeah, I quit, a job I liked…" Anika said, taking the tissue. It smelled like lavender. "Sorry."

"Don't apologize," Gaea said. "If anything, they should apologize to you. Making you out to be a monster because of your skin color. If anything, John Perkins should be asking your forgiveness. He's fucking that girl, you know? The one who called you dirty."

Anika froze. "How did you?"

"I was there. Watching you. Waiting to see what you would do," Gaea said. She had been less impressed with Anika out of all the others. She was older, without the intriguing insanity found in the others. But the irony of *fluorine* made it at least an amusing meeting. Perhaps Anika would turn Gaea down, there was a hesitation in her that might be wisdom or fear.

"There was no one there," Anika said. "How do you know?"

Anika seemed to sense the otherness in Gaea, something that was a little bit impressive. Gaea had come in a human façade. Perhaps Anika would be the balance needed to keep some of the more volatile members in line.

"Would you kill them if you could?" Gaea asked.

Anika nodded. She didn't even think about it. The shame she felt when Regina looked at her, made her out to be a dirty little—it was there, burning under her skin, giving her a harsh sharpness to her long nose and thin lips.

It was beautiful. Gaea held out the ring.

Anika didn't even have to touch it before the smoke-and-poison circled her finger. Anika sighed, as if she had found her oldest friend after years of war. "What do I do?"

"You go back to work and make them beg for you to come back…" Gaea said. "Or just beg."

Anika nodded, standing up when the subway grinded to a halt. She got out of the metal snake and walked up the stairs. She hadn't even moved from the station, despite her long conversation with Gaea.

"Meet me back here," Gaea whispered in her ear.

Anika nodded. She had a mission, a mission Gaea would watch from a distance. Dr. Perkins and Regina Anderson would be the first to taste the power of the Tenth Ring.