Prologue
Disclaimer: Disclaimers don't actually mean or do anything, but tradition is tradition. I do not claim any ownership of Naruto.
Preceding Authors Note: This segment will provide the inciting event that will be the Point of Divergence from the regular Naruto canon. However, these changes will not manifest until the protagonist sets them in motion thus leaving the full Naruto Canon intact until the changes made by the protagonist directly affect. Please enjoy, and thank you for taking the time to read this work of mine. I hope to meet and exceed whatever expectations I create.
October 14th 2:23am Local Time, 1916
Bermuda Triangle
Aboard SS Fairfield
Captain Charles White frowned as he took stock of the updated weather reports that had been flowing in from ships and land-based weather stations. When combined with his own meteorological data taken by his crew one conclusion became clear, the heavy storm his freighter, the SS Fairfield, was about to get a lot worse. His crew and ship were going to take a heavy battering, and to what end? To drag a platoon of Royal Marines, a hold full of supplies and scientific equipment, and a cadre of enigmatic scientists out to the middle of nowhere. Charles was a patriot, but he failed to see the purpose of this little adventure.
Rain battered the bridge of the Fairfield, falling like sheets upon the flat deck of the Fairfield. It was going to be a rough night and it was going to get worse. However, his crew were up to the task of navigating this storm. The question was would they be up to the task of going wherever the scientists directed them? He hoped the answer was a yes.
"Navigator, are we still on course for navigational point A?" Charles queried.
"Yes, Captain," responded the navigator.
"Excellent, XO you have the conn, hold course," Charles ordered.
"Yes Captain," executive officer Mullins responded.
"I'm going to deliver these reports to our guests," Charles remarked as he scooped up the weather reports and headed for the ladder to the lower decks.
"Maybe it'll help them find their sanity and let us divert out of this storm?" One of the bridge officers quipped.
"Not bloody likely, they have to get stories for cocktail parties somehow," A different officer remarked. A course of chuckles echoed through the bridge as Charles descended down into the heart of the ship. The ship swayed as it fought against the growing swells of the storm.
Entering the ward room he was greeted with the site of his pain in the ass guests sitting around a table. Papers covered in numbers and words were strewn across the table as his guests looked over and wrote on them.
"I have the weather reports as requested." Charles said, holding up the bundle of papers.
"Ah thank you Captain, I'll take them." Outstretching a hand was the esteemed Dr. Fowler, Charles offered the documents which Dr. Fowler started to flip through.
"Seems your timetable was correct Professor Hisakawa, can you double check if these numbers change the expected time of the phenomena occurring? Dr. Sobol here are some of the energy estimates you asked for, I presume they fall in life with the prediction? Dr. Labelle, can you pinpoint the phenomena's occurrence location with this? Dr. Cipriani, help me with fine tuning the model for phenomena?" Dr. Fowler rattled off requests and handed out documents to his team. Charles felt a bit awkward as the scientists ignored his presence as they seemed to get lost in their work and discussions.
Charles managed to lock eyes with the only other person in the room without a PHD. Colonel Bowman, he had intense grey eyes who seemed to stare through Charles, it sent a shiver up his spine.
"Will this really help the war effort?" Charles asked, breaking eye contact.
"That is none of your concern Captain, but yes it will help the war effort if we can accomplish our mission. I will come get you if you are needed," Colonel Bowman spoked with icy hardness. Apparently being dismissed Charles departed the ward room, a lump of concern growing in his stomach.
October 14th 2:40am Local Time, 1916
Bermuda Triangle
Aboard SM UL-10
Captain Conrad Bachman squinted as he eyed the meandering merchant ship through his periscope. Why he had been sent to tail this specific merchant ship and not sink it was beyond him. Nevertheless, his boat was here following the SS Fairfield and being battered by the storm just as much as the merchant liner.
"Target is holding its course. Helm, keep on bearing 335," Conrad ordered.
"Keep on bearing 335 Aye," echoed the pilot.
"Dr. Hutmacher, could you perhaps shed some light as to why we are out here?" The one stipulation in his orders was that he was to take some scientist aboard and listen to him. So far he had kept his lips sealed, to the surprise of Conrad Dr. Hutmacher answered.
"They are hunting a possible natural phenomena that, if it exists, could provide a way to win the war or at least a decisive advantage. We are here to see if they truly find anything and if they do, make sure they cannot put any use to it." answered Dr. Hutmacher.
"Sounds like madness to me," replied Conrad.
"Hopefully it is fanciful madness, however if it is real we must be here to prevent its employment against us, at any cost," Dr. Hutmacher added darkly.
October 14th 3:45am Local Time, 1916
Bermuda Triangle
Aboard SS Fairfield
Captain White was snapped out of self-reflection by a tap on his shoulder. Spinning around in his chair he found that the Colonel and the scientists were now on his bridge.
"Captain, we believe the Phenomena shall occur shortly. It is advisable that you bring your crew to general quarters." The stern voice of Colonel advised.
"Why what's going to happen?" Charles asked, the lump in his stomach growing tighter.
"You'll see," deflected Colonel Bowman.
"XO, sound general quarters," Charles ordered.
"Yes captain," replied the XO. He triggered the knob that rang the general quarters alarm. The distinct "BONG BONG BONG" of the alarm brought all those on the ship to full alertness. Sailors woke from their bunks, rapidly dressed, and then headed towards their action stations. In five minutes the entire ship went to full readiness.
"So what is it we are looking for?" Charles asked.
"You'll know it when you see it," Colonel Bowman replied. An uneasy five minutes passed in relative silence as the storm raged around the Fairfield. Charles was just about to ask for clarification when a shout came out from the lookouts on deck.
"Disturbance spotted! Portside! In the clouds!" Screamed a lookout. Charle's head whipped to his left, his eyes scanning the horizon. He didn't see anything. His eyes drifted skyward and they locked on what seemed like a glowing ball of light.
"What the fuck?" He mumbled right before a bolt of lighting shot down from the orb and hit the sea below. Another followed after, and another one, and another. Soon lighting was smashing into the sea in a constant cacophony of light and sound. The sky lit up as lighting seemed to race all across the sky towards the ball and forming pillars of light. Clouds began to rush towards the epicenter of the event.
"It's happening!" Shouted one of the scientists.
A pillar of light spiked down from the sky and impaled the sea. It was a pillar of solid blinding light, it grew to massive proportions.
"The gateway stabilized! The calculations were correct!" The one of the scientists yelled in apparent joy.
"Captain, take us towards the pillar." The Colonels hand gripped Charles' shoulder in a vice grip.
"W-what?" Charles croaked.
"We must enter into that pillar to find what we came here for," the Colonels grip tightened.
"Are you mad? That's insanity! Are you trying to get us all kil-" Charle's went silent when he saw the gun barrel aimed right between his eyes. Shouts of outrage or fear erupted around him.
"Take us into the pillar yourself, become a hero and a rich man or die and I do it myself." The colonel's hand was motionless, his brown eyes staring into Charles own eyes. The choice was horrible, and it was obvious.
"XO, t-take us through the pillar," his voice shook from fear.
"Yes Captain," credit to his XO, his voice did not quiver as he guided the SS Fairfield onto a course that intersected with the pillar within a minute.
What in god's name had he gotten himself into?
"Good choice Captain," the Colonel holstered his gun as he stared into the pillar.
"You've killed us all, you know that?" Charles snarled.
"Incorrect Captain, we are going to be hero's who will bring an end to the war. You'll soon see," the Colonel replied.
'Please God protect me' prayed Charles as the Fairfield's bow entered the pillar. His last thoughts before entering the pillar was of his mom and how she would be broken by his death.
October 14th 4:01am Local Time, 1916
Bermuda Triangle
Aboard SM UL-10
"It seems we are unlucky Captain Bachman," Dr. Hutmacher stated with finality.
"So it seems Doctor. Helm change bearing to 305 degrees," ordered Bachman.
"Change bearing to 305, Aye." Helm acknowledge before making the course change. The boat heaved as it came inline with the pillar.
"We must stop them," mused the Doctor.
"We will stop them," affirmed the Captain. "No matter the cost." The bow of the UL-10 slipped through the pillar of light.
"May god protect us all."
Anteceding Author's Note: This is the inciting element to a story I hope to write that will be able to walk the fine line of OC's falling into a new world without upsetting the balance of story events too much, while also allowing the OC's protagonist to cut out their own niche. I will do my best to try and keep the characters as close to what they are in canon, though I will surely make missteps. I will try to introduce my own setting elements and total settings, however I can promise you that it will not break into the level of pure power fantasy or wish fulfillment that author introduced elements tend to lean into. Overall though I hope to create a decent work that will both entertain and prompt readers to think. I hope I succeed. The first chapter should be posted within 3-6 hours of the Prologue going live, it will introduce the Protagonist and get him on the path of his adventure.