Daylight teased through Eddy's eyes as dawn broke. The cruel sun bringing him back to reality and away from a dreamland where everything was alright.
Eddy rubbed his eyes and forced himself to his feet. His body mutinying against him resentfully at what he had put it through the night before as every muscle ached and throbbed, forcing Eddy into internal agony.
He had spend the night sleeping in the gutter, left like a dog. Once Mia's kidnappers had disappeared, he fell into unconsciousness. Without her he had no reason to go on.
As long as he was still breathing, he would keep her safe. They had taken her to punish him. He silently vowed to make them wish they'd killed him before looking around at the dawning cityscape, trying to figure out where he was.
A name echoed around in Eddy's head while he stood shedding the last of his sleepy self free. The only man that could help him settle the score with the ones that had taken Mia. Sebastian Hellstrom. He looked like a homeless man, reeking of failure. He didn't care that he was a failure in life, he had also failed to protect his daughter. Men who wouldn't be in her world if it wasn't for him.
Eddy shook his mind clear, shaking aside any looming doubts about his task. He needed to get home first. If he were to indeed take on powers beyond his conception, there would be things there he could use. Weapons.
He looked out upon the early morning streets, slowly filling with the bustle of modern society. The apartment building Eddy lived in was no more than a couple of blocks away, the first thing to come against the relentless tide of fate, which seemed intent on keeping him down.
Eddy began the walk toward his home. As he walked, his thoughts haunted him. Each step gave him another reason to hate himself. Ever since the day she was born, he had sworn to himself he would die to protect her. He even cut himself out of her life, knowing she would have been brought up better without him. While he could not change the past, the future could.
Taking on the Orchids alone and trying to get Mia back would be nothing more than a suicide mission. No one man could take on a gang like them, especially if they already had a reason to dislike you. Eddy solemnly gritted his teeth as the thoughts drifted around in his mind, nodding his head as he made a decision.
Hellstrom was the only man powerful enough to help him. The only one who wanted to take down the Orchids more than Eddy. Why Hellstrom would help him would be simple. In return, he would steal the drugs that Sebastian wanted from them. Eddy thought it a fair trade. It was also his only choice.
The walk to his apartment was a reflective one. He was far from a religious person but on more than one occasion during the walk, Eddy asked for strength to go on. Strength he really didn't have.
His approach to the apartment block was met by an exit, one of his neighbours children walking out of the door and holding it open for Eddy. The young boy stared open eyed at the sore state Eddy was in as Eddy blankly walked past, trapped too much in his own thoughts to so much as give recognition.
Eddy walked down the corridor, his weathered face disfigured and stern looking as he moved. His apartment was now three flights of stairs away, each step upward was more out of routine than desire. All Eddy's movements derived out of instinct, his body pushing forward automatically when inside he just wanted to crawl up and die.
As he completed the staircase Eric Wilson, the buildings super came into view coming toward him. “What the fuck happened to you?” came the blunt greeting. Eddy brushed his words aside, ignoring them and continuing toward his apartment.
“Have you been hyped up on drugs all night?” Eric wasted little time starting his next sentence, something Eddy knew he had been wanting to say for a long time. “Well this is the last time, you've had warnings about this...” Eric began as Eddy stood in front of his door, fiddling in his pocket for his key which Eddy then realized must have been discarded along with his jacket during the previous nights stint atop the roof of Jays car.
“Haven't got time for this” Eddy mumbled to himself, interrupting Eric's words, stealing the victory from them. Eddy then took a step back. “What the hell are you doing? get your drug infested carcass out of my building, before I call the cops”. Eddy stood motionless, moving his eyes to the right and looking menacingly at Eric before lunging at the door, kicking it clean off its hinges.
“What the ?!” exclaimed a dumbfounded Eric as Eddy walked into the room like nothing had ever. He had turned deep sadness into anger in a heartbeat, and he liked it.
“You're gonna pay for that Goddard, I'll make sure of that” shouted Eric from the open doorway as Eddy headed straight for his bedroom, opening the bottom draw of the dresser by his bed and pulling out a bible. He then opened the book to reveal a square cut into the pages and a small pistol concealed within.
Eddy took the gun and walked back to the doorway where Eric still stood and stared him down. “Going out are you?” He began “don't you even try and come back for your possessions, I'll be taking care of them”.
“There's a theory about anger management” Eddy replied, refusing to even accept him as a threat. “Count to ten and all anger will go away” he continued, clicking the back of the gun in full view of Eric's widening eyes. “You got ten seconds Eric” he then pressed the pistol against his own cheek and began to count.
He had barely gotten to three before Eric had disappeared from view, leaving a smiling Eddy behind. Eddy then went back into the apartment building and opened another draw, this one filled with bullets before he opened the empty chamber and loaded the gun before looking into a mirror and sadistically smiling . “Sebastian Hellstrom, it's time for your early morning wake up call”.

It was an hour later when he finally entered the Hell Tech building. Before leaving home he had decided a change of clothes would be best and in order to fit in he entered the building wearing his best suit and tie.
This decision was confirmed to Eddy as the correct one as he felt less people staring at him and more comfortable in his surroundings and he made his way inside the building, looking like he complete opposite of how he felt inside.
It looked a lot less menacing than the previous day Eddy thought as he strode into the elevator up toward the head office, his hand a firm grip on the gun he had taken from his apartment. He looked around, all he could see were lies. Every single employee a front for Sebastian's social, unlawful activities. He wondered if any of them knew. Or cared.
As the elevator rose high, Eddy could see through the glass windows and even further too the outside. The early morning sun had been hijacked by a drizzle and dark clouds. The view of the cityscape as Eddy continued to rise above it was enough to rival many famous landscapes. The elevator suddenly jumped to a stop, Eddy firmly arriving back in reality. A reality far from thoughts of gorgeous landmarks and sights. This was a harsher reality and one in which Eddy still had a job to do.
He approached the office where he had met with Sebastian the day previous, a male secretary now at home in the desk previously occupied by a woman. On any other day he wouldn't have thought it suspicious.
“May I help you?” said the man, the instant Eddy had gotten level with him.
“I'm here to see Mr. Hellstrom” Eddy replied, doing his best businessman impression.
“I'm afraid he's in a meeting at the moment” he then said, enough smarm to rub Eddy the wrong way.
“Could you just check the computer for me” said Eddy, keeping his cool.
“Very well” the secretary replied, after a sigh which made Eddy enjoy the next few moments.
Eddy moved closer to the desk as the secretary moved his chair close to the computer and pressed a few keys. The move was made with the suddenness of lightning, Eddy chopped his left hand into the back of the secretary's neck before slamming his head down onto the desk. He then spun round and drew his pistol, aiming it straight at the similar suited man behind him. It took Eddy a few more moments to see the other gun pointed at him.
“Impressive” came the word from Eddy's left which made him lose his concentration and drop the gun, standing in the doorway stood Sebastian Hellstrom. “I must apologize for my security” Hellstrom then began “I'm hardly the most popular man in the city” He continued, before motioning the guard away.
“Well, aren't you going to come in?” Hellstrom then said, in a tone Eddy chose to ignore. The two then made their way into the office. “May I offer you another drink?” Hellstrom began, the same divisional tactics as their previous meeting. Eddy simply shook his head.
“Today Hellstrom, I'm all about business” Eddy said flatly, placing the pistol down on Hellstrom's desk as a sign that he meant no harm. “I have a proposition for you”
“Go on” he replied, the business side of him oozing interest in Eddy's words now.
“I'll do the job for you. I'll recover your precious shipment” Eddy began.
“And in return?” Sebastian interrupted, pre-empting the request.
“The Orchids have kidnapped my daughter. Get her back and I'll do this one thing for you, then I'm done” Eddy had been bottling up those last few words inside him for a while now, he was almost surprised to hear them slip out when they did.
Sebastian lay back in his leather seat, pretending to ponder over Eddy's request. He then went to speak, this time it was Eddy's turn to pre-empt a thought. “No compromises, I'm not going to do it unless I know she's safe”.
Hellstrom sat across at Eddy and smiled, the kind of smile a lion gives to a disabled gazelle. “Very well” he began, leaving Eddy to mentally predict what inevitable stipulation would be tacked on. “You have two days until the deal goes down. Two days to find your daughter.” began Sebastian, beckoning someone to enter the room with the push of a button on his desk. “Until then, try not to die”.
“Exactly when does your help come into all this” Eddy replied cynically, he then heard the door behind them open. Through the door came a man. The same man who Eddy had pulled a gun on, who pulled a gun on him.
The man’s name was Chicago Tyler, the personification of slickness. His hair was a sleek shade of black, short and all in place.
There didn‘t look much too him when Eddy had first glanced at him, but that was all part of his allure. Eddy lowered his eyebrows as he examined the man now and confirmed, this was the type of man that could stop traffic. This was exactly the man he needed.
“This man will be helping us Tyler” Hellstrom began, Eddy making note of the fact that his tone was not condescending, a first for Hellstrom. “The recovery operation down by the steel mill. Until then you are to stay with him and make sure nothing happens to him” Hellstrom’s unusually calm voice almost sounded as if these instructions were optional. “Follow him around, wherever he wants to take you. Make sure he makes it alive”.
Sebastian turned to Eddy now. “This, Mr Goddard is Chicago Tyler. One of my finest. You have all the help from me you‘re going to receive” Hellstrom reached under his desk and threw a small yellow package at Eddy.
“Inside this package contains all the information you‘re going to need about the job, read it all carefully. Make no mistake, you will need all of it”.
Eddy leant forward and withdrew his gun from Hellstrom’s table as he stood up. “I shall bring your stuff to you in three days” said Eddy as he exited the door with Chicago following behind.
Sebastian then sat back in his leather chair, smiling and wondering whether Eddy would indeed deliver for him. Whether he would survive what he had in store for him. Or whether he would perish along with the few thousand innocent bystanders of the city he was about to bring to its knees.

The smell of bacon wafted almost teasingly inside Eddy’s nostrils, it had been since the moment they had entered the diner. Chicago, the oddly named man that Sebastian had put him with had entered the diner wanting nothing more than a cup of coffee. It was then that Eddy realized that he hadn’t eaten in almost a full day.
The diner itself was no more than a dump. Even Eddy with his paltry standards would normally think twice about stepping into a place like this, regardless of money. Dirt was all over the floors, the cleaning equipment which had been used only smeared it all around.
There was not a person in there and nor would there be, Eddy and Chicago being part of the clientele whom kept the place from closing, which was a tiny group of people at best.
Completely bereft of activity bar the sound of coffee being brewed up and the sole depressed waitress slumped on a chair beside the cash register who only moved when beckoned, even then it was lethargic. Eddy and Chicago had entered to talk in private but once Eddy’s nostrils were filled with the smell of food, albeit possibly poisonous food, he simply had to have some.
“Sure you don‘t mind lending me some money to help pay for all this?” Eddy asked upon working out that the meagre contents of his pocket would not cover the veritable banquet he had ordered.
“It‘s no skin off my nose, I‘d rather give you the money now than hearing you complain of hunger later” Chicago then paused and slowly lowered his dark shades looking Eddy square in his weary eyes.
“However I do expect it back, in one form or another” he said, a polite way of saying that Eddy owed him one. With that then in mind, Chicago took a sip of his black coffee.
Eddy looked at Chicago and sighed silently, even amid that dark exterior there was something about him that he thought he could trust. Eddy had too many enemies at the moment, he needed an ally.
“Chicago, that‘s a strange name isn‘t it?” he then said, extending the olive branch.
“I‘m a strange man” came the blunt reply. Silence then quickly settled in between the two men, it was then that Eddy first realized he was all alone in his quest and no-one would help him.
“Hell if a whole city can have the name, I don‘t see why I can‘t. And call me Tyler” he then said with a smile as he took off his shades, the atmosphere becoming more warm. “Get much stick for it as a kid?” Eddy was quick to pounce on the opportunity to turn small talk into a conversation.
“Who doesn‘t?” He took another quick sip of coffee before continuing “besides, I kinda like the fact that the only thing that id be teased on was my name. When you‘re the best at everything else, ya know?”
“Yeah” Eddy replied with a nod of understanding, when really he only understood from being the antithesis to Tyler‘s virtual perfection.
“Looks like you‘ve had a rough night” Tyler then said, referring to the scratches and numerous bruises all over Eddy’s face and hands.
“I had one of those nights that would give the devil himself nightmares” Eddy replied, leaving the rest up to his imagination.
“That sounds about right, considering they took your daughter” Tyler’s voice contained more compassion than the words alone.
“Have you ever had a moment in your life when adrenaline completely took over your body. Where you do things without its permission?”
“I‘m more of a tactician myself. I don‘t tend to rely on my physique to get the job done” he said, knowing he quite easily rely on it. Something Eddy too had already made a mental note of.
The waitress came back over then carry with her Eddy's breakfast and a mind full of gloom, cleverly matching up with her appearance. A misshapen, old and pale face with greying almost matted hair and virtually no eyebrows to speak of. She wore a drab uniform, with the insipid colour which had dulled along with her enthusiasm. She laid the plate full of food down in front of Eddy and walked off, dark cloud in toe.
“So, how old is she” Tyler then said, changing the flow of the conversation just after Eddy's huge breakfast had arrived. “If you don‘t mind my asking that is” he then politely added before taking another sip of his coffee.
“I thought Hell Tech employees had all their compassion removed as a requirement for the job” Eddy replied, cleverly avoiding the question before pouncing on the meal that had been presented in front of him.
“That‘s just Hellstrom‘s way. In this business you have to appear ruthless and untouchable, it’s just that he‘s very good at it”
“Must be one hell of an executive if he has people like you to pull a gun on someone at any given moment” Tyler flashed Eddy a smile as his sentence went on.
“I know what he’s into. Doesn‘t matter what kind of front he gives the cops, two weeks of working there and you can feel the dirtiness of it all yourself. By then you‘ve probably already unintentionally participated in some yourself. Anyway, you didn‘t answer my question” he went on while Eddy attempted to break the world record for clearing a breakfast plate, stopping as Tyler prompted him to answer his initial question.
“She‘s about two and a half years old” Eddy eventually said, taking his time in doing so. “Can you really help me?” he then said, looking Tyler square in the eyes.
“My job is to keep you breathing until you can deliver for us, the chances of us finding the right people and living to tell the tale are about are less than finding a grain of salt in the desert” came the blunt reply, he then stood up and fished out his wallet, looking for the right amount of money to cover the meal.
“Eat up, we‘re going now” he said before slapping down some money on the table.
“Where?” Eddy said after he compacted the remaining food into his mouth and had swallowed it.
“To see a man about a grain of salt”.