This part of the account (mine, at least) of what happened to the Final Fantasy characters before Sora met up with them in Kingdom Hearts. Bear in mind that the situation is accurate (somewhat) in relation to the KH plot, and not that of the Final Fantasies that these characters hail from. I don't own any of these characters (sadly) but you already knew that. I know the beginning's a little wordy, but bear with me, read and enjoy. Please. And send me some feedback also! (Reviews make the story grow!) So now, without further ado,

Escape from Hollow Bastion

Mentally, they were little more than teenagers when it started.

The darkness crept up from the depths of oblivion, taking everything in its path. Slowly at first, like a predator easing into attack mode, then like a hurricane consuming all it came upon. It took their entire planet, sweeping as a wave of evil across it. It destroyed everything place by place, home by home, town by town.

Heart by heart.

It had driven them from their homes, deep in the tribulations adulthood now, they the only survivors, to the enormous castle that was the centerpiece of Hollow Bastion. The castle normally would have been an unbreakable haven, though now it was empty. Its master had left when a different breed of darkness had stolen into his world, leaving the survivors with little more than the empty shell of a fortress seemingly deserted. That was where they were now, stuck between a rock and a hard place, holding on to one another though they hadn't met before fleeing their decimated villages.

Two girls pulled at the castle's heavy doors, trying to budge their massive weight. Below them an indistinguishable wave of Heartless swarmed, climbing the rocky pedestals that would deliver them to the castle's front gates.

"They won't budge!" The smaller of the girls--the one called Yuffie--cried, sagging against the massive threshold. Her short, dark hair was plastered with sweat, her top and khaki shorts stained with dirt from the wood.

"Keep trying!" The other girl ordered. Her long pink dress was just as marred as Yuffie's clothes, though still she threw herself against the doors.

"Aerith, it's hopeless!"

"It's never hopeless," the older girl argued back and, in spite of the nagging of her muscles, shoved with renewed ferocity.

"Any luck?" That was the third of the youths that had survived the Heartless invasion. He pushed his brownish-black hair back from his eyes. It was longer than he was used to, not to mention how much darker it had gotten recently as well. His dark jean jacket billowed in the rising wind as he stood at the edge of the castle precipice, staring down with storm-gray eyes at the numerous Heartless that were clawing their way upward.

"None," Aerith resigned, joining Yuffie's lean against the doors. "I don't think anyone's home."

"Have you tried the upper floors?" He wanted to know.

"Can't reach 'em," Yuffie explained. "The floating platforms must be shut off too."

"Then we're in serious trouble," he told them, his voice quiet. Yuffie and Aerith walked over to the edge of the walkway, following his gaze down onto the mob of black beneath them.

"What do we do, Squall?" Yuffie asked. He was only a little older than she, but something about his cold, calculating demeanor made him seem like a leader to her. He motioned to the ground beside him; a glistening silver weapon laid there, its pistol-like pommel crafted with smooth black leather. "You can't keep off that many Heartless with that thing!" the young ninja shrieked. He winced in anger and turned, ready to reply, but Aerith's warning shout cut him off.

"Squall, look out!" Turning, he found the source of her worries: a shadow Heartless had made it all the way up the edge of the cliff and was already halfway through a lunge aimed directly at him. With natural skill, Squall shoved Yuffie out of harm's way and rolled to the right, dodging the creature's attack and grabbing his sword in the same fluid motion.

"Try casting Gravity on the platforms to get them down. Yuffie, help Aerith!" The girls nodded and began to cast as the boy turned, clutching the Lionheart two-handed as he readied for the shadow's next charge. The Heartless, its movements jerky, swiped its claw-like hands in a fury; Squall leapt aside each time, darting quickly from left to right. "No way am I loosing to a black blob," he informed the shadow coolly. It leapt at him, claws outstretched...

...and Squall dove behind it in the same breath, rising onto one knee and whipping the Lionheart down so forcefully its blade whistled in the whirling air. The Heartless gave a long shudder, then imploded with a small Pop! and vanished.

"It's not working!" Yuffie called again, louder now. Squall rose to his feet and replied:

"Try Gravira then!"

"Aerith doesn't know Gravira!" Squall brought his hand to his forehead, massaging the old scar that ran down over the bridge of his nose. He could hear the claws of a dozen more Heartless scraping against the rock wall just below where he was standing. If the platforms didn't move and the doors didn't open, the three of them had nowhere else to run.

Yuffie watched in silence as Squall raised the Lionheart to attack the shadow Heartless that were clambering up the side of the precipice all around him. Aerith, panting from her numerous spell attempts, came to Yuffie's side to see what she was staring at. Seeing Squall embattled, she went to charge to his aid.

"Stay back!" he shouted, not even turning in their direction. Yuffie grabbed Aerith's arm, holding her back.

"Let go, he needs help!"

"Obviously not, or he wouldn't have told us to wait," the younger girl said wisely. It was the most logical thing Aerith had ever heard her say, though it did little to appease the traitorous voice in her head that was telling her Squall wouldn't last long.

Truthfully, down below Squall found himself in an increasingly dangerous situation. There were more shadows milling around him than he could cut down. Despite the fluency with which he swung his gunblade, he never seemed to get himself free of the moving dark circle that was tightening around him. There was one larger indicator, though, that he was failing: an object thudded against him and he felt the dagger-sharp claws of a Heartless sink into his back, into the flesh over his shoulder blades. The thing's claws slid a hand's width down his back before he reacted. Straightening, he threw off his jacket, dislodging the shadow's hold and sending it back to the ground. The cuts weren't that deep, though Squall felt the painful twinge of the wounds as he pulled the Lionheart back to stem another assault. Yuffie and Aerith saw the small streaks of crimson blossom against the white of his shirt.

This is not good, Squall mused, ducking to avoid another wild swing that was aimed at his head. He spun into a 360 degree spiral that sent six of the Heartless hurtling off the cliff. A blink later, though, and ten more climbed up to take their place. It was because of his attentiveness to the shadows that Squall didn't see the lumbering giant come tromping up behind him. He had no idea until Yuffie screamed, and a low growl sounded from just behind his ear.

To be continued...as long as someone reviews...:-)