Ophiuchus Shaina



Ophiuchus Shaina (蛇遣い星座のシャイナ, Opyukusu no Shaina?) is one of Athena's 88 Saints. Kurumada introduced her in vol.1 of his manga, and she was teacher to Pegasus Seiya's rival Cassios.

The Strongest Silver Amazon
Shaina trained in the Sanctuary with other female trainees through her fiercely violent fighting style and nature, which earned her an infamous reputation. Shaina became a fearsome opponent due to the fact that she was perceived as the most powerful female Saint.

Two Choices: Love or Death
The Sanctuary has a certain law for the few female saints. They must wear masks, and if a man sees her uncovered face, she would be given two choices: Love him or kill him. Shaina chose to kill Pegasus Seiya, since he saw her face during the beginning of the series. The Pegasus Saint proved to be too much even for her, meaning she had to love him, and this destiny would continue to frustrate her throughout the series.

After failing several times in killing him, Shaina slowly swayed more towards Seiya's side. After finding out that that Athena was really with them, she aided the Bronze Saints in their battle against Sanctuary; it's here that her turmoil over being unable to kill Seiya is revealed. When she's almost killed for helping him, in a plot twist that leaves Seiya very shaken, he learns Shaina was a girl he once helped in the past and whom he never forgot.

Love?
Shaina first met the Pegasus Saint when they were both very young. Few after Seiya's arrival, after training during one afternoon, Shaina saw a rabbit and took her mask off because the little animal was scared and she didn't want to terrorize it more. She heard the footsteps of the young Seiya, who was still a trainee; she took a defensive stance, but reeled back since she was wounded from her previous training. Upon seeing the wound, Seiya ripped a piece of his tunic and tended to it, which left Shaina flushing. When she protested, he lectured her for not taking care of herself and insisted into helping her. Though Seiya didn't seem aware of it, it had long been a law in Sanctuary that female Saints were to cover their feminine faces with masks; should a man see a female Saint's face, she would have two choices: love him, or kill him.

The night Seiya left for Japan during the Sanctuary Saga, Shaina attacked him. The Pegasus Saint shattered her mask, only to find that Shaina was more beautiful than what he imagined. Not recognizing her, Seiya praised her beauty and spared her, which only fueled Shaina's confusion and hatred and making her one of Seiya's biggest enemies. Some time later during the same saga, after seeking a last duel with Seiya and being refused for the umpteenth time, Shaina's emotions overcame her and she hurled herself at the Lightning Plasma attack that Leo Aiolia unleashed in order to protect Seiya and tell him how she felt she had to love him. Seiya was very shocked at the revelation, and seeing Shaina injured for him gave him the courage to face Aiolia.

In the proper Sanctuary arc, Shaina was in recovery from her injuries, which upset Cassios big time. She later mourns the loss of Cassios and helps Seiya and Marin to break free from Pisces Aphrodite's poisonous roses.

In the Poseidon Arc, Seiya was wearing the Sagittarius Cloth and shot the golden arrow, but Poseidon reflected it back, thus injuring him. He tried again, but the same effect occurred, which resulted in Shaina protecting him.

In the Hades arc, she leads the Bronze saints who did not go to Mekai, so they could protect the Sanctuary.

Cloth
Shaina's cloth is the Silver Cloth of Ophiuchus which represents the constellation Ophiuchus (the snake bearer). It is depicted as half a person with a cape, holding a cobra. The anime version doesn't differ greatly, except that the head piece has been simplified and the pelvis armor have been removed.

What is interesting to note is, though the constellation Ophiuchus is in the path of the Sun during Earth's rotation, and rests between the constellations Scorpius and Sagittarius, the cloth and story behind it are not as profound as the 12 Gold Saints, whose cloths are based on the constellations that the Sun crosses over.