"Sounds like a bunch of crap," Xavier snarked.

"Um, if the sign says what I think it says, I wouldn't be calling it 'crap'," Zoe said, frozen in shock.

Jason looked at Zoe, nodding in agreement.

"And that game was called Puzzles From Hell!"

"Yes. 'Puzzles From Hell' was being literal," Jason answered.

Everyone stood still, trying to process this new information. Then, after what felt like a long time, Patrick broke the silence and yelled at Jason,

"So, let me get this straight. We're close to the GODDAMN GATE TO HELL???"

"Correct. This area guards the Inferno itself."

"I didn't sign up for this!"

"Okay, then why did you want to come to this place, to begin with?" Xavier asked. "In fact, why are we all really here? What made us come here?"

Patrick took a deep breath and responded with, "Well, my family could use some of that $100. We're not exactly the richest people in town. We do whatever it takes to make a buck or two."

Xavier looked at Patrick with a sad look on his face and said, "My family's poor, too. We've been moving from shelter to shelter for as long as I can remember. I have a feeling my family would get along with yours."

"So, we're both on the same page?" Patrick questioned.

Xavier nodded. "What about you, Zoe?"

"It's not about my family; it's about me. When I was little, my parents noticed that I wasn't like other kids socially. So, they took me to a doctor and found out I had autism. The doctor was totally unsure of my future and wondered if I would ever succeed at all in life. Since that day, I've been trying everything I can to prove him wrong. For the most part, I have been doing well. On some days, though, I feel lost in this world. That's why I wanted to do this contest, so I can maybe meet some people who are lost, like me."

At that point, she started crying. Patrick and Xavier followed after, and soon they joined together in a group hug. They remained like that for five minutes. Then, Xavier looked at the door at the end of the hallway and declared,

"Let's end this motherfucker once and for all."