A/N: Wow. With each chapter I post, the number of reviews per chapter keeps on going up and up. Thank you so much everyone!

This chapter will be the last of the heroes' trials. Following this chapter will be one more Starry Heavens section that will serve up as a wrap up for the Angel Arms.

That's enough of that. On with the show!

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Chapter 17: Starry Heavens: Sheena

The darkness was starting to get to Sheena. Although, as a ninja of Mizuho, she was trained to live in the shadows, it still didn't mean that she liked the dark. It unnerved her to no end, especially when she was alone.

"Lloyd! Where are you Lloyd!" she cried. "I can't see anything! Are you there!"

"Fear not, Grand Summoner of Symphonia," said a mysterious voice from seemingly every direction at once. "Your hero and his father are quite safe, I assure you."

Just as before with Lloyd and Kratos, the dark and empty void around Sheena into a beautiful landscape of space, littered with millions of heavenly bodies, such as stars, planets, and comets. As she looked about in complete awe, a very slow moving comet passed behind her, not very far form where she was standing. She turned just in time to see it streaking into the distance. "It's so pretty…" she said, breathlessly. She lowered her head and closed her eyes. "I wish Lloyd was here with me to see it."

Also as before, a ball of light emerged from the backdrop of space and came to circle around Sheena's head. "He is, young Sheena. As we speak, Lloyd and Kratos are in the process of 'forging' their Angel Arms."

Even hearing this didn't make Sheena fell any better. Ever since she and Lloyd first became friends, she didn't like being alone. She only hoped that she could quickly forge her Angel Arm so that she could be back together with her companions.

"So… what exactly is an Angel Arm?" asked Sheena.

"It is a truly fantastic weapon that is much like the Devil Arms in the way that it works, except that it is a weapon of light and not of darkness," said the voice. "The Angel Arm acts as a catalyst to awaken the hidden powers of the angels; powers that were last seen five-thousand years ago during the first battle against Nebilim. I am one who is bound to the creation process of the Angel Arms, meaning that I am here to help you forge your own."

She nodded. "Alright then. Sounds kinda weird, but I'll do whatever it takes to stop that monster from hurting anyone else. How do we forge the weapon?"

"With your soul," said the voice as the ball of light slowly faded away.

"Wait!" cried Sheena as she reached in vain for the ball of light. "Gone? I'm alone again…" She crouched down and closed her eyes. "What do I do now?"

"Is everything ready?" asked a very familiar voice.

Sheena looked up to see a scene resembling what appeared to be the Temple of Lightning. Several people were standing around Volt's altar, including Chief Igaguri (A/N: I think that was the name. Lil' help, anyone?) and a very young Sheena. "W-what?" asked Sheena from afar. "What's going on here?"

A man close to the chief nodded. "Everyone's here, Chief. We can begin anytime you're ready."

He nodded back and kneeled down next to his adopted granddaughter. "Sheena, are you ready?"

A look of nervousness was in her kind eyes but she nodded her head anyway. "Y-yes grandpa."

He smiled and patted her on the head. "Go ahead then, Sheena."

The young Sheena took a deep breath and stepped up to the altar. Just as she did so, a bright light flashed throughout the main hall of the temple and, from this bright light, came the Summon Spirit of Lightning: Volt. Everyone gasped when they first saw the mighty Summon Spirit. He was much larger and more powerful looking than they had first imagined.

"…" said Volt in its strange language.

Young Sheena gasped and took a step backward. "W-what's he saying? I can't understand him!"

Several hushed whispers flowed through the crowd. Chief Igaguri had no idea what was going on but decided to push on anyway. "I don't know Sheena, but try to make the pact anyway."

From her position of observation, the present-day Sheena tried to run toward the scene, but it seemed to be getting no closer, no matter how fast she ran. "No!" she cried. "Don't do it!"

"I-I am Sheena!" said young Sheena. "I, um… I ask that thou establish, ah… ah! Establish a pact with me!"

"…" said Volt, again in his unusual tongue.

"Run!" yelled the present-day Sheena. "Run while you can!"

"Please?" asked young Sheena.

"…" repeated Volt, in a much more angry tone (if one could call it a tone).

"Maybe I messed up?" young Sheena said, whispering to herself. "Ahem! I am She-"

Before she could finish, several bolts of lightning flew from the menacing Volt, striking everyone and everything that stood in their paths. Several screams of pain roared through the relatively empty hall as the surviving Mizuhoan warriors ran around in a panic, unsure of what to do now.

"No!" cried present-day Sheena as she fell to her knees, sobbing. "Not again! Please don't make me watch this again! Anything but this!"

After Volt's initial rampage, he set his sights on young Sheena, who could do nothing but shiver in fear as the mighty Summon Spirit readied another lightning bolt. She began to walk backwards, away from Volt, but tripped and landed on her back. "H-help!" she cried.

Without a moment to spare, Chief Igaguri dove in front of the bolt of lightning Volt launched at Sheena. Just as the bolt struck, both the temple scene and the starry scene surrounding it exploded into a great flash of light.

When present-day Sheena was able to see again, she saw that she was still on her knees, but that she was now in the Temple of Lightning. In front of her was the electrically burned body of Corrine, her long-time friend. Above him and not far from herself was the cause of all her nightmares: Volt.

"Corrine? Corrine! No!" she cried. "Please don't die! Please!"

Volt launched a bolt of lightning at Sheena, only to have it deflected away by what appeared to be Lloyd. "L-Lloyd!" she asked, obviously surprised. "What are y-"

"Sheena! Get a hold of yourself!" yelled Lloyd. "Don't let Corrine's death be in vain!"

A fearful look shone in Sheena's eyes. "B-but!"

Another bolt of lightning was launched and, once again, Lloyd deflected it away. "Sheena, if you don't conquer your fear now, you'll forever live in horror in Volt's shadow! You have to fight, Sheena!"

She shook her head and lowered it to the ground. She couldn't take this. The terror produced by the 'scene' was far too real for it to be a mere illusion. "I… I can't!" she cried.

A final bolt was launched by Volt. Unfortunately, Lloyd was too slow to deflect this one and, as a result, was struck by it. His body convulsed violently as his entire body shone a bright purple, Volt's high-powered lightning coursing through Lloyd's veins as it did so.

"AUGH!" he yelled out in pain. When it was all over, Lloyd's steaming body fell to the ground, lifeless.

"…Lloyd? LLOYD!" cried Sheena as she immediately rushed over to him. "Not you too! Please wake up!"

No response. "Please!" she said again.

Again, no response. She checked for a pulse but felt nothing. It was really true then. Lloyd was dead.

"NOOO! LLOYD!" cried Sheena as she brought the head of her hero and lover to her chest, sobbing as she did so. "WHY!"

"Because you were too weak," said a familiar voice from behind her.

Looking behind her, she could see all of the rest of her friends there, even Colette and Kratos, who had not been there when Sheena finally made the pact with Volt. Every single one of them shook their heads in disgust.

"You let Lloyd die!" cried Colette. "How could you!"

"Lloyd believed in you," said Zelos. "How could you let him down like that?"

Perhaps the most disgusted of everyone was Kratos. Shaking his head, he said, "I can't believe my son was in love with a woman like you. You make me sick."

Unable to take it anymore, Sheena stood up and began to run away. "It's just a dream! It's just a dream!" she kept saying to herself. "This can't really be happening!" She eventually made her way out of the temple scene and back into the Starry Heavens. Looking back, she could still see the scene, but only Volt and Lloyd's corpse were still there. '…it just can't be happening."

"But it is, you murderer!" said yet another familiar voice.

Sheena turned sharply on one heel when she heard this voice and nearly fainted when she saw her old friend Kuchinawa standing before her. However, instead of wearing his normal ninja outfit, he was wearing what looked like the chieftain's outfit given to her by her grandfather. He wore no hood, thus revealing his facial features. He had brown hair, cut in a style roughly similar to Lloyd's, but was slightly longer. His eyes were a hue of deep green and his face was adorned with three scars: one on his forehead and two in an uneven 'X' pattern on his left cheek. "K-Kuchinawa!"

Kuchinawa grinned. "What's wrong? Surprised to see me, Sheena? Or maybe it's just the outfit I'm wearing? Heh. After you ran away like a coward from the temple, no once, but twice, Tiga decided that I would make a far better chieftain that you would, after you allowed countless numbers of people to die because of your cowardice!"

Sheena shook her head violently and took a step back. "B-but I didn't mean for them to die! I-I was afraid!"

He chuckled. "What? You mean the death of our people wasn't enough to give you the courage to protect not only Corrine but Lloyd too? First my parents and the other people of Mizuho, then Corrine… and then Lloyd, the man who loved you! Loved you! All of these people died because you were afraid? Ha! What in the world was that fool Lloyd thinking?"

Sheena fell to her knees and began to sob uncontrollably. "Lloyd… Lloyd…" she kept whispering to herself, over and over again.

Kuchinawa kneeled down in front of her and lifted her chin up. He flashed a warm yet eerily unsettling smile at her. "But I'll forgive you, Sheena. I have no further interest in Volt or the mistakes of the past. Come back to Mizuho and you'll never again have to worry about Volt."

Tears still fresh in her eyes, Sheena looked up at him. "W-what? But what about-"

"Mizuho still needs you," said Kuchinawa, interrupting her. "Not as a chief, but as a warrior. Just as they did before, all of the people of Mizuho are willing to forgive you. All you have to do is come home and stop worrying about the nonsense that happens outside of our village." He stopped long enough to stand up and offer Sheena a hand. "Well Sheena, what do you say? This is your only chance to go back to living the normal life you enjoyed so much as a young child. Remember all the good times we used to have together?"

She began to sob again. "But al of those people… Corrine… Lloyd…"

"Come with me," demanded Kuchinawa quietly, his hand still offered.

An image of Lloyd's smiling face could be seen in the depths of her mind. One eye was closed and he gave her a thumbs up.

"Win or lose, I'll still believe in you Sheena."

She took Kuchinawa's hand and stood up. "Kuchinawa?"

"Yes Sheena?" he replied.

She gently let go of his hand and turned back to the temple scene. "I appreciate the offer, but…"

He tilted his head, frowning. "But?"

She began to walk away. "I've let everyone down and many people died because of it. Nothing can change that. However, even if it won't change anything, I can't let Volt get away with this. I have to stand up to him! I don't care what happens to me! "With this last statement, she broke into a sprint and made her way to the temple.

"Sheena!" yelled Kuchinawa. "You're a fool if you really believe that this will accomplish anything! Sheena!"

She ignored him. Nothing else mattered to her now. Nothing would be changed even if she did manage to defeat Volt. Yet, if Lloyd really did still believe in her, she at least felt that she had to honor his memory by at least trying.

She reached Volt and knelt down next to the corpse of Lloyd. She lifted his head once again and kissed him on the lips. "This is for you Lloyd," she whispered, tears in her eyes. "I'm sorry that I didn't have the courage to do this earlier. Please forgive me."

She set him down gently and stood up once more, staring into the wild eyes of Volt as she did so. She drew Acalantha and waved it at Volt. "You who haunts my nightmares! Be gone! Never again will you heart anyone!"

"You can do it Sheena!"

She ran at Volt, the fires of Acalantha dancing across her palms as she did so. Volt began to surge with energy, ready to strike down Sheena with a well-placed lightning bolt.

"I believe in you Sheena!"

The attacks landed at the same time. A bolt of lightning had struck Sheena in the stomach, knocking her on her back, but not before she had released a long, flamethrower-like stream of fire from Acalantha at Volt. It dropped back a bit, obviously irritated with Sheena's assault.

"That's it Sheena! Get 'im!"

Sheena wearily got up, feeling immense amounts of pain in her gut. She watched Volt, who looked virtually unfazed by Sheena's attack. "Guh. No good. I'm going to need some help if I'm going to win." She slowly drew a card with the image of a heart and large fox-like creature on it.

"I love you Sheena."

"I call upon the most powerful of the summon spirits and what he represents: Hikari no Ai! My heart and mind are one! Come, Verius!" She threw down the card, but nothing happened.

"W-what? Why di-"

A soft white light surrounded Lloyd's body. To her great surprise, and almost horror, Lloyd slowly stood up and the light subsided. He turned back and smiled at her. "Hey Sheena. Are you okay?" he said calmly, as if nothing happened.

"Lloyd!" she cried out in sheer joy. "You're okay!"

He laughed warm-heartedly. "Of course I'm okay you dork. How can I not be okay when you're around?"

She blushed. "Lloyd…"

Lloyd took a few steps to his right, faced Volt, and readied his blades. "Ready?"

Sheena took a few steps to her left and nodded, readying Acalantha once again. "Ready!"

Volt prepared yet another lightning bolt but never got a chance to fire it off. Both warriors crossed each other in front of Volt in an 'X' pattern, each unleashing their own attack on the Summon Spirit as they did so. It was enough to end it all. Volt, along with the temple, vanished, leaving Sheena and Lloyd stranded in the ocean of stars that still surrounded them.

Lloyd walked over to his lover and embraced her. "You did good Sheena. I'm sure everyone is proud of you." Then, much to Sheena's disdain, Lloyd vanished as well, leaving Sheena alone once again.

"Lloyd," she whispered to herself.

"Interesting," said the ball of light from before as it reemerged from the backdrop of stars. "A young girl, once haunted by a being of great power, has come back to conquer her fear and destroy the object of said fear. Well done, Sheena Fujibayashi. Let us begin the creation process for your Angel Arm. Now… offer me your right hand."

Without saying a word, Sheena offered her hand, her palm facing downward. "Is this okay?"

"Perfect," said the voice. "Now, try to relax." The ball of light landed upon her hand and absorbed itself into her.

"W-whoa!" said Sheena, astonished. She slowly rose into the air. "What's going on? Why am I floating?"

She received no answer as her purple wings flared into existence. Following this was a bright flash of light that temporarily blinded Sheena. When her vision returned, she looked to either side of him, only to find that her purple, spectral wings had been replaced by a pair of large, white wings made of real feathers. "Wow! They're so beautiful!" she said.

"They are, aren't they?" asked the voice. "Now you must be properly outfitted. Something humble will suit you just fine."

A lone flash of light illuminated the space around her. She opened her eyes and looked down to see that all of her clothes had been replaced by a long, elegant looking white robe that reached down to the ankles of her bare feet. When she began to twist about to examine her beautiful robe, several strands of hair began to flow into her face. Puzzled, she reached behind her head, only to discover that her hair was undone and now flowed freely down her back. With the humble appearance she now had, she truly looked like an angel.

"How do you like it?" asked the voice.

She ran her right hand down the long, soft sleeve on her right left arm, smiling. "It's absolutely beautiful."

"Indeed. Now, we must give you a fitting weapon," said the voice.

Another flash of light came, this time bringing a single card into her hand. On its edges were several strange runes that she could not read. In the center was a large heart with a picture of herself and Lloyd holding hands in front of it. "I-It's us!" cried Sheena.

"It's called the 'Heart of Symphonia'," said the voice. "It represents the unconditional love between you and Lloyd: A love the likes of which has never before been seen in the long history of Symphonia."

She closed her eyes. "The 'Heart of Symphonia'…"

"Let us finish the process," said the voice. "I shall now instill into you the power and wisdom of the ancients. Close your eyes and empty your head of all thoughts. Try to relax."

She nodded and tried to do as she was told. Without warning, her body began to convulse violently, bringing great amounts of pain to her. She screamed in pain as several images of things she had never before seen flash through her mind. "W-what is this!"

"Please try to remain calm. The process is almost complete," said the voice.

The next few moments were excruciatingly painful but Sheena managed to hold out until her body fell to the clear ground below her. "Oh, it hurts!" she cried as she rolled around.

A soft blue light surrounded her body as the pain slowly began to fade away. "Hey, that feels good," she said. "What's happening?"

"I've healed you," said the voice plainly. "Now… rise, Sheena Fujibayashi: Seraphim of Symphonia!"

She did as she was told and looked herself over once again. "Wow! I've never felt better in my life!"

"Then go, Sheena Fujibayashi," said the voice. "You have embraced the light of heaven. Use the power it offers to destroy Nebilim, once and for all! Fare thee well, and good luck, Seraphim of Symphonia!"

The voice faded away and, in its wake, left a large gate of light standing not far in front of Sheena. She smiled and glided through it.

"Wait for me Nebilim!" she said as she faded through the door. "I'll make you pay for what you've done!"

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And that's that! Everyone has passed their trials (was there any doubt?) and have acquired their Angel Arms. Following this chapter will be a wrap-up of the Angel Arms as the heroes return to Iselia to prepare for the coming battle. In your reviews for this chapter and the next, I'd like to know how much pre-battle stuff in Iselia you'd all like to see. I have a large number of ideas, but I don't know how anxious you guys are to see the final (?... just kidding!) battle. Wanna see a lot? Want me to cut to the chase? Lemme know so I can start planning! Thanks again for all the fine reviews!