Chapter 9

Chapter 9, "Once a Cheater", is the ninth chapter of Act 1 of Exit/Corners.

Synopsis
Ink decides to proceed through the Green Door; Liza briefly considers staying behind but is persuaded to move along with the others.

The study they enter doesn't appear to contain a puzzle at first and so they start searching inside for any clue on what to do next. Rae suggests lockpicking the door leading to the adjacent area but is warned by Sent that doing so constitutes cheating and there will be punishment for acting on it. He does it anyway and is readily castigated: Sent blows up one of the Semtex piles on one part of the building's foundation, reiterating that they'll do it again whenever any contestant attempts to "cheat" under his established guidelines.

The puzzle becomes available and is solved. Ink stays behind in the study to speak with a uncharacteristically gloomy Beth. She reveals to have broken her Gemini in the earthquake caused by the explosion, losing her sole mean of communication with Earl, her estranged son and contact. Ink then learns of an intriguing, if not unsettling fact about Earl and his relationship with his mother...

The complete transcript can be found here.

Puzzle
The solution for the puzzle can be found here.