It was 8 am when the ship finally docked on the island. Most of the passengers disembarked right away upon our arrival. But not me. Instead I was standing on the main deck with four others. Three of them were roughly the same age as me, two boys and one girl. We were all wearing matching attire, a sign that we all came from the same place.

The remaining individual among us was a man who looked like he was in his late thirties. He wore a neat black jacket and had a pair of shades covering his eyes. The four of us only knew him as Coulson. He was our “caretaker” of sorts.

“Has anyone seen Fifty-three?” Coulson questioned. “I instructed you all to meet here by the time the ship docked, did I not?”

The four of us responded with a shrug of indifference. I hadn’t seen Fifty-three since dinner last night on the ship, and I suspected the same was true for the others. None of us were especially close with each other, especially considering we had only first met a month ago. We didn’t know where they were and we didn’t care.

Coulson let out a sigh. “Damn her. What does Fifty-three think she’s doing? Fifty-five, go and-”

“Sorry for being late.”

I turned with the others and saw the girl designated as Fifty-three walking out onto the main deck. She let out a yawn as she made her way towards us. However, despite her drowsy expression, none of us missed the faint red stains on her shirt. And although it wasn’t strong, there was a trace of a familiar scent coming from her. We all had no trouble discerning what the stain and scent belonged to. Blood.

Coulson looked at the girl with narrowed eyes. “Care to explain why you’re late, Fifty-three?”

“Someone ambushed me in the hallway of the ship. Another potential Player I assume.” Fifty-three shrugged. “Probably trying to kill off some of the competition.”

“Did you dispose of the body?”

“Sinking to the ocean floor as we speak.”

“Very well then.” Coulson said. “Now that everyone’s here, let’s get going.”

Not saying another word, we followed after Coulson and walked off the ship. The news of the attempted murder on Fifty-three didn’t shake any of us in the slightest. We had all been warned well in advance that it wasn’t unheard of for passengers heading to the island we were on to try and kill someone on the way. That said, none of us were so weak that we’d fall victim to a wannabe assassin. The program had made sure of that.

Fifty-three wasn’t our companion’s actual name of course. It was the name she was designated with after graduating from the program, like the rest of us. The number was a sign of the order we had graduated in. As such, Fifty-three was the fifty-third person to graduate from the program. She likely didn’t even remember her birth name. Part of the program was designed to make us lose all interest in ourselves from before our training, right down to the names we were given when we were born. Our pasts didn’t matter. All that mattered was completing our mission at any cost.

My number was Fifty-two, the lowest of the five graduates here that ranged from my number all the way to Fifty-six. All others before us had already made it this far in the past. Now it was our turn.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

As we walked, I could see the hundreds of people that had gathered here. Nearly every one of them was here for the same reason as us. A chance to get into the floating city above us known as Genesis. A multitude of ships had come from around the world and were taking turns unloading passengers at the docks.

It had been a little over twenty years by this point. One day out of nowhere, a woman proclaiming herself as a goddess descended upon the world. To prove her claim, she created a floating city out of thin air. She named the city Genesis and made a declaration onto the world.

“All thou who think themselves worthy, come to my city. Rich or poor, young or old, I care not. In this city, the only ruling authority shall be the games played inside its borders. To thou who can make their way to me and defeat me in a game, I shall grant any one wish thou heart desires.”

It didn’t take long before most of the world’s population believed the goddess’s words and tried to make their way to Genesis. Of course, Genesis could only hold so many people. So a set of rules were drafted up by the goddess. Only a total of one thousand challengers, a term that came to be known as Players, could be inside Genesis at any time. And to enter, one had to pass a trial examination. Every month, a new trial examination was held on the island we were on to replace whatever number of Players had died since the last exam.

Every now and then there were months where no one had died and no exam was held. However such months were very much in the minority. Most months had at least a few slots open. After all, the chance to get a wish granted by the goddess was something many were willing to fight - and in some cases kill - for.

This month there were apparently a total of twelve slots available, meaning twelve Players had died in the past month. In some ways it was a staggering fact. However, for those of us looking to take the exam, it only meant a better chance of getting in.

Unlike the floating city above us, the island we were on was naturally made. Ever since becoming the site for the entrance exams, its original name had been forgotten. It was now referred to simply as Gateway Island. An appropriate name as it was the only way to get to Genesis. The same veil surrounding the city that made it next to impossible to see anything concrete inside the city from a bird’s eye view also acted as a forcefield that prevented anyone from entering directly from the skies.

The island itself didn’t seem to have much. There were various stalls set up by vendors looking to make some quick cash. The only actual building on the island however was a large one near the center of the island that was where the trial examination was administered.

Not much was known about the trial exams other than the fact that they were rarely ever the same. Nobody was allowed to view them other than those administering the test, underlings of the goddess known as Admins. Those that failed the tests but survived told fantastical tales of what they had gone through. Some might find it hard to believe if it wasn’t for the fact that the very existence of Genesis stretched the boundaries of what was “believable” these days.

Coulson led the way as we walked inside the trial exam building. From there, the five of us waited in a long line to register for the exam. Once we made it to the front, we filled out a form. It had all of the usual things one would expect for an exam. Name. Age. A waver that you were aware that you might die during the exam and couldn’t blame it on anyone but yourself. Normal stuff.

After I handed in my form, the person at the desk gave me a small gray device. It was rectangular in shape and didn’t seem to have anything other than a blue button on one side. They told me it was part of the exam and to keep it on my person.

Once we were each finished registering, the five of us went to the gates that led to the waiting room for the applicants. We stood together as Coulson addressed us.

“I’m not allowed to accompany you any further than this. You’re all on your own from this point forward. But no matter what, you must not forget your mission. Enter Genesis, defeat the goddess, and make the wish, no matter the cost. Your country is counting on you.”

The five of us responded in unison. “Yes sir.”

“Good. Now go.”

With that, I silently turned around with the others and advanced. Pushing the doors open, we walked in, not knowing what would be awaiting us on the other side.