Sorry, guys, for the long wait. The reason this chapter took so long was because I had it all written out... and then I forgot to save it, doh! So I had to rewrite almost the whole thing.
Chapter 2: Zubenhakrabi
Sheena landed just outside the cave, which (along with many other caves) was located very near to the Temple of Ice. Confidently, she swaggered into the cave (followed by a very reluctant Lloyd).
The shadows danced along the walls, there being just barely enough holes dotting the ceiling for slight visibility. Stepping lightly so as not to disturb any creature that would have made this its home, Lloyd raced in front of Sheena to stop her from going any further.
"This isn't the right way, I can feel it!" Lloyd told her.
"Well, I think it is, and I'm going on, without you or not," Sheena replied curtly, pushing him aside so she could go ahead.
"Sheena!" Lloyd exclaimed frustratedly. "You... you..." He ran after her. "Why don't you trust me!"
"It's not you I don't trust," Sheena sighed, "it's myself I trust more." She maintained a steady pace.
"Well, then, let me go on with you."
"I don't care."
The two walked on in silence for a few minutes, until they reached the end of the cave. "He's not here, and we can't go any further," Lloyd said, just a hint of smugness in his voice.
"I know I was wrong, you don't have to rub it in," Sheena replied frustratedly. "And besides, I didn't hear you coming up with any great ideas."
"If you were listening," Lloyd informed her, "Luna was saying something, but you cut her off. I thought maybe that was important."
"Shut up," Sheena snapped. "I call upon the light of the heavens... I summon thee! Come, Luna!" But there was no flash of light, and no Summon Spirit. In fact, absolutely nothing happened. "I call upon the light of the heavens! I summon thee! Come, Luna!" she shouted again, but there was still no response.
"Problem, summoner?" a deep, sophisticated voice called in a mocking voice from behind Lloyd and Sheena. They turned to see a tall man in a dark coat with long, pale green-tinted hair that looked like it'd been originally a light gray.
"Who are you?" Lloyd growled.
"That is... unimportant," the man replied curtly.
"I said," Lloyd repeated in a low, angry tone, "who are you?"
"I said, it is unimportant," the man insisted. "But if you must know... you may call me Uindo... yes, that will suffice."
"What do you want with us?" Sheena asked calmly.
"Nothing at the moment," Uindo stated. "I merely wish to... observe you. Case the joint, so to speak."
Lloyd growled angrily, and charged at the tall man. But just before the twin swords touched Uindo, the man disappeared in a small puff of pale green smoke.
"Where'd he go!" Sheena cried worriedly.
"I dunno," Lloyd replied, looking around. "Let's go back and try to find Yuan."
That evening, Lloyd and Sheena camped out in the snow-covered fields of the Flanoir region. Lloyd took the first watch (although Sheena was against having watches altogether; she didn't think it was necessary) and was awake until well-past midnight.
"You still up?" Lloyd heard Sheena's hoarse voice behind him, before she sat down beside him.
"It's not that late," Lloyd shivered, but soon betrayed himself by yawning.
"Come on, get to bed," Sheena ordered. "It's not good for you to be awake this late at night."
"I could say the same to you," Lloyd replied, his teeth chattering. "Ugh... it's really cold."
Sheena scooted closer to Lloyd - both blushed a deep red, but neither saw the other - and draped her blanket over the both of them. "...Wow, look how many stars you can see," Sheena said, attempting to change the subject.
"Yeah," Lloyd breathed quietly. "When I was a kid, Dirk would take me outside every night and teach me the names of all the stars. See, there's Antares, and over there is Al Niyat, and that one is..." he gasped, and uttered a single word: "Zubenhakrabi!"
"What!" Sheena exclaimed. "What else do you know about it? Maybe we can figure out the mystery of where Yuan is!"
"Well," Lloyd began, "it was originally in the constellation Scorpius, but then it was decided that it was too far away from Scorpius and too close to Libra, so it was moved to Libra. Some stars around it are Zubeneschamali, the 'northern claw', and Zubenelgenubi, the... 'southern claw'! Remember Yuan's note? Zubenhakrabi south! Perhaps there's a cave or something called Zubenelgenubi, and that's where Yuan is!"
"We'll have to go to Flanoir tomorrow and ask if anyone knows," Sheena thought aloud. "But for now, let's go to bed."
So, how you like?
