Gate : Thus The World Was Changed

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of the Manga. I'm just taking a few coins from the creators fountain of ideas, and throwing in some stones for the fun of it.

Chapter 1

The gate dominated the Ginza district of Tokyo. The sudden appearance of the gate in the middle of an intersection would naturally change the way things worked. Saying it dominated the district would suggest that it was somehow a massive and imposing structure compared to the buildings around it, but that is not the case. While it was bigger than a house, the structure of the gate was not very imposing.

The gate dominated Ginza because of the changes that it had brought about. The presence of the gate itself, in the middle of an intersection, would naturally change things. Then there was the concealing and protective dome that had been built over it. Around the dome a security perimeter had been established, to keep out the curious or potential trouble makers, and to help contain any nasty surprises that may appear from the other side. All the traffic for the district had to be shifted to account for the changes brought about.

With the Japanese Self Defense Force holding the gate and deploying through it there was a whole new kind of traffic through the district. Troops, and their logistical support traveled through Ginza on the way to another world. In addition to the expected needs of the JSDF personnel, more shipments needed to be made through the district, and on through the gate, in the form of trade goods. Most of the common, daily living items sent to the other world were for the forward area PX. Additionally there were specialty items to be used as gifts and bribes for the leaders and other persons of importance in lands beyond the gate.

The government had taken control of the area around the gate, including the buildings that towered over it. Staging areas had been set up so there would be places to organize shipments to the other world. Offices and apartments were used to house personnel, and as work places where officers and their staff could manage the management of the gate. Stores became storage space. A third of the total strength of the JSDF was deployed through the gate. Another third was posted in Ginza, mostly in support of their fellows on the other world.

The gate dominated Ginza. The gate, the security zone, and the support zone had all but reshaping the district. Ginza, once the home of the silver mint of the Empire of Japan, was once more a fountain from which riches were starting to flow. Outside the support zone for the gate was a whole new commercial zone. The government wasn't run by total fools. In order to maintain the deployment through the gate they needed the support of the people of Japan. While common goods were being sent to the other world to wow and seduce the people there, select items were being brought back to be made available to the citizens at home.

In the commercial zone there were four galleries set up to showcase the art and artifacts from the other world. Displays included samples of the craftsmanship and enlarged photographs of the people, carefully chosen to send the right messages to the Japanese people. Those samples and images had the designers and producers of Japan in high gear. The shops in the gate commercial zone were quickly filling up with merchandise inspired by life beyond the gate.

Not as visible as the shops and galleries were the other places who's occupants were focused on the gate and the world on the other side. Every major government on Earth was renting space as close to the gate as they could manage. Intelligence assets were determined to learn everything they could. Each time the doors of the dome were opened eager eyes were looking, watching. When special trucks were used to carry aircraft through the gate in slow progressions, everything was witnessed by agents with fancy, specialized equipment, and every detail was documented for their reports.

Sometimes cheek to jowl with the government agents, corporate assets performed the same work. Every major company was eager to get their share of the pie. Everybody wanted to profit from what might come through the gate. JSDF personnel could hardly buy their own drinks in the bars close to the gate, so eager were the agents to pump them for information and to suck up in hopes of making some kind of deal.

XxX

Staff Sergeant Yamada Hito had been staging in Ginza for almost three weeks before he was finally told to head for the gate. His company was being sent through to help with the exploration of the other world. He knew it was all politics. The JSDF was searching for resources to exploit. The other nations of Earth were looking for a way to get a share of whatever there was on the other side of the gate.

The United States and other ally nations understood how thinly stretched the Japanese Self Defence Force was. One major quake or typhoon and the JSDF would have to suspend any operations in the 'Special Area,' concentrating on just holding the gate, and try to deal with the problems at home. By accepting foreign support, with some side bonuses to grease the works, the Japanese government was able to continue with operations without sacrificing the safety of its citizens.

Hito was going through the gate with the Joint Forces Exploration Division. His government was letting it happen to pacify foreign powers and getting additional logistic support in exchange. He tried to not let the truth of the situation get him down.

The staff sergeant was what some people would call a gear head. He loved fast cars and powerful engines. As he waited for his turn to pass through the gate he was seated with a small grin at the wheel of a brand new vehicle. The Coyote was a new design of light, wheeled, fast attack vehicle with a multi-fuel powerplant. Produced in the United States, so its steering wheel was on the wrong side, it could run on anything from jet fuel to coal oil, and looked like a cross between a dune buggy and a Humvee. Hito was quietly wishing for an opportunity to open it up and seeing what it could really do.

He kept his attention focused on what lay ahead, and on the vehicle he was driving, to keep from thinking too much about the people riding along with him. He didn't mind the woman in the back seat. Private First Class Sato Cho was a member of the SDF, a communications specialist, and more than capable of operating the on board radio equipment. Next to her was an infantryman, PFC Ueda Goro, also a member of the JSDF. What was threatening to get under Hito's skin was the man sitting right beside him. A foreigner, and a civilian at that, was an American 'specialist' that was supposed to be some kind of researcher.

When Hito had discovered that he was being assigned to babysit the civilian he had gone to his commander to ask why. The captain simply told him it was his reward for not keeping his mouth shut when he went out drinking. The Staff Sergeant understood that somebody was going to get the job, and it was his as a form of punishment for having been too critical about politicians playing games with soldiers lives.

As he got the signal to start forward, Staff Sergeant Yamada Hito felt himself smile just a little bit more, eager to see what the future held for his new ride. There was a whole other world on the other side of the gate. The 'Special Area' had roads he had never driven on that would take him over hills he had never seen before, to show him wonders he had only dreamed of.