While Mako was enjoying the brand-new skills and Fire ability he had just learned, the exact opposite was happening somewhere else in Emerald City.
****************
Inside what looked to be an abandoned factory, the sounds of beating and screaming could be heard loudly.
Multiple people were working while a guard behind them hit them with a whip that looked like it was entirely made of lightning every time the workers slowed down or took a break.
One of the workers there had short ginger hair and a buffer body compared to the other workers.
This was, of course, Bill Johnson; he was the one who had been declared the strongest kid in school, and now he had been turned into nothing more than a regular work slave.
This was one of the many warehouses under the biggest gang boss in Emerald City, only known by his code name, El Diablo.
*****************
Bill had encountered El Diablo for his thirst for power because Bill didn't actually get the Earth ability from his father as everyone had assumed up to this point. Rather, it was through him instead.
This was the memory that kept repeating in Bill's mind as he was once again electrocuted by the guards.
Bill's father deliberately withheld an ability book from him as punishment for an incident four years ago.
Coming from a powerful family, Bill had always been stronger than his peers. Even without an ability, he was already the strongest kid in middle school.
His natural talent, combined with the intense combat training that his father had drilled into him from an early age, made him nearly unbeatable. While other students struggled to land a proper punch, Bill dominated every sparring match with sheer strength.
It wasn't just that he was strong; he was ruthless. His raw talent had turned into arrogance, and he used his skills recklessly and without mercy. To most, he felt unstoppable, dominating every fight without even needing an ability, but in a world where power was everything, Bill knew that raw talent alone wouldn't be enough forever.
He needed more.
However, his father believed that Bill needed to learn discipline before receiving his first ability, and it wasn't long before the consequences of his unchecked aggression caught up with him.
One day, after yet another brutal fight, a distraught mother stormed into their home with tears streaming down her face as she demanded justice for her only son, who had been hospitalized after facing Bill. Without hesitation, she marched up to Bill's father and slapped him across the face in front of everyone.
"This is what you've raised? A monster who beats down others just because he can?" she cried, her voice filled with grief and fury.
The weight of her words hung in the air, but Bill's father didn't flinch. He merely looked at his son with cold, calculating eyes. That moment solidified his decision, as Bill would not receive an ability book until he proved he deserved one.
Bill's father punished him to teach him a lesson, but in Bill's mind, his father just didn't love him enough to give him an ability. So, Bill started searching for other ways to acquire an ability.
Bill had always been drawn to violence. He craved the rush of battle, the feeling of his fists slamming into someone else face, and the rush that came from seeing his opponent crumble beneath him.
Frustrated by his father, Bill started prowling the streets of Emerald City, looking for trouble in every dark alley and underground fight pit he could find. There would be no accountability for anything he did to a bunch of low-lives who came looking for a fight. He abandoned everything his father had tried to teach him about honor and discipline, throwing away the principles of control and restraint.
Instead, he embraced the raw brutality of combat, using the three basic fighting skills he had mastered to pummel anyone who dared to challenge him. It didn't take long before his reputation spread among the city's lowlifes.
{Three-Punch Combo}
{High Kick}
{Falcon Fist}
That was when he caught the attention of El Diablo.
One night, after absolutely demolishing a group of powerless street fighters in an underground ring, Bill was approached by a tall, sharply dressed man in an expensive-looking suit with a fedora on his head.
He didn't introduce himself, nor did he need to. Everyone in the vicinity quickly cleared to give him room out of pure fear and respect. The very air around him was suffocating, radiating a presence so powerful that Bill felt dizzy.
The man didn't speak right away. He only observed Bill's battered body from the fight up and down while flicking the ashes from his cigar and smirking.
"You've got quite the fire in you, kid," he finally said, his voice calm yet dangerously smooth. "No ability, yet you fight like you own the damn city."
Bill clenched his fists. "Who the hell are you?"
The man took a slow drag of his cigar, the embers glowing brightly. "They call me El Diablo."
Bill had heard the name before from whispers in the underground about a ruthless crime lord who controlled major parts of Emerald City. Some said he was just a myth, a boogeyman criminals used to scare each other into obedience. But here he was, standing right in front of him.
"I see potential in you," El Diablo continued. "But raw strength alone won't take you far. If you really want to dominate, you need more."
Bill's heart started to beat faster as he heard those words. He narrowed his eyes and tried to play it cool. "And what? You're offering to give me that?"
El Diablo exhaled a cloud of smoke, his smirk widening. "I am. A Level 3 Earth Ability, along with a few skill books to get you started." He paused, then leaned in slightly, his voice dropping to a near whisper. "In exchange, you belong to me."
Bill's heart pounded in his chest faster than ever. This was exactly what he had been searching for all these months. He had been scraping together every credit he could from his underground fights, slowly saving up to afford a decent ability, only to now have one handed to him on a silver platter; not just any ability, a powerful Level 3 Earth ability, and all it would cost was his loyalty.
But did he care? He had already burned bridges with his father. He had already strayed too far from the path of an honorable fighter. Strength was all that mattered to him, and if this deal would make him stronger, then so be it.
"I'm in," Bill said without hesitation.
El Diablo chuckled. "That's what I like to hear."
He snapped his fingers, and one of his henchmen stepped forward, handing Bill a worn-out book with a brown crystal embedded in the center of the cover.
The moment Bill crushed the crystal, a rush of energy coursed through his body, and in the next moment, he began exuding the aura of a level 3 ability user.
Bill clenched his fists, feeling the weight of his newfound strength while low-level, powerless streetfighters all cowered in fear. He grinned. This was just the beginning.
Bill carried out El Diablo's bidding without hesitation, proving his loyalty through countless brutal assignments. He played a key role in kidnappings, enforced the gang's rule, and even took pleasure in electrocuting workers who collapsed from exhaustion. The thrill of domination consumed him, feeding the sadistic nature that had begun manifesting in school as well, especially toward kids like Mako.
At home, Bill kept his double life a secret. He never revealed his aura, ensuring that his ability remained unnoticed. Using his newfound criminal connections, he supplied the school with fake contact information, ensuring no teacher's complaint would ever reach his father. This allowed him to act with complete impunity, growing bolder by the day.
Then came the day when Mako stood up to him.
The way Mako was able to talk back to him during their duel made Bill's blood boil. However, he saw this not only as an opportunity for revenge but for something even greater. If he could turn his fight with Mako into a spectacle, a live-streamed event where the people could witness his dominance, he could accomplish two things at once.
First, he would increase his own reputation by displaying his powers, with the bonus of being able to humiliate Mako publicly. Second, he would definitely impress El Diablo after making the gang a lot of money from underground bets.
Bill wasted no time setting things into motion. He threatened Mako into accepting the fight and had a backup fight planned with a rival gang member in case Mako was a no-show. He instructed his lackeys at school to record and stream the entire battle. The betting poll was posted on an exclusive underground website owned by El Diablo himself. The fight was no longer just personal; it was a business deal.
The first big surprise was Mako actually showing up for the fight. Bill was convinced that Mako would chicken out, leaving him to fight one of the rival gang members instead. But this? This was even better. Not only was the fight with the gang member still on, but now all the bets were locked in and didn't need to be refunded. Bill was about to make some serious cash and, at the same time, enjoy a good second fight. It was shaping up to be the perfect night.
However, the second big surprise came soon after the fight had begun as something unexpected happened. Mako didn't break like Bill expected him to. He dodged, countered, and even taunted Bill, making him look like a fool in front of thousands of viewers.
At that critical moment, Bill's confidence cracked as panic set in. If he lost, he would embarrass El Diablo in front of so many people, including the rival gangs who were watching.
Desperation took over his heart. Bill abandoned his arrogance and went for the kill, throwing everything he had at Mako. However, it was too late, as, by the time he got serious, Mako had exhausted him greatly so they could fight on equal terms.
Mako defeated him live in front of thousands of viewers and, worst of all, in front of El Diablo's enemies.
Later that evening, Bill found himself in the presence of El Diablo... and the rest was history.
"You no longer exist," El Diablo declared. "From this day forward, you are nobody."
Bill was taken to one of the gang's secret warehouses, a place where people were forced to work, never to be seen again. Stripped of his name, his status, and his freedom, he became just another faceless worker, condemned to slave away in the dark until the day he collapsed.
No one in the outside world would ever know what happened to Bill.
*****************
Hammering away at a piece of metal, Bill was now regretting his actions as, for the first time, he was given a taste of what it felt like to be tortured again and again.
It was far too late for him to correct his mistakes. Now, he was condemned to the warehouse, forced to work 16 to 18 hours a day, and survived on rations that barely provided enough to keep him going.
In Bill's mind, this was God's way of punishing him so that he could atone for his sins, and Bill had accepted that, but the treatment he was getting was on such extreme scales that he wished that he could just go to sleep and never wake up again.
After another long day of work, Bill was beyond exhausted, but he still somehow made his way back to the prisons. There were too many bunk beds to count, as this was where most of the workers slept.
Bill was about to go to bed when a certain head popped up from the lower bunk.
"Hey Billy, boy, are you good?" the person asked.
He was a middle-aged man in his forties with almost no facial hair, but he physically looked like he was around 60 to 70 years old.
"Yeah, I'm alright, Andy. I'm just tired, is all. Goodnight," Bill weakly shoved him off as he turned to his side in his bed.
Andy's head popped back up again from the other side.
"Hey, just a heads up," Andy whispered in a more serious tone. "A couple of guys were talking earlier about some kind of breakout. They're looking for strong ability users to join in. You might want to check it out."
Before Bill could respond, Andy flopped back onto his bed and was asleep in seconds.
"A breakout, huh?" Bill muttered, unimpressed. His eyes drifted toward a group of workers huddled around a single bed in the far east corner of the room.
There was no way of escaping the warehouse; many had tried and died, and none had exceeded.
Bill hadn't been in the warehouse for long, but the fear of disobeying the guards or, worse, the warden had already rooted itself deep inside him. The mere thought of getting caught sent a shiver down his spine. He had seen what happened to those who tried to step out of line, and he didn't want to find out firsthand.
Yet, as he lay on his thin, creaky bed, his eyes kept drifting to the group of prisoners huddled in the far east corner of the room. Their hushed voices and cautious glances made it clear they were serious about whatever they were planning.
For the first time in a long while, Bill let himself wonder... What would he do if he ever got the chance to be free again?
He had made so many mistakes and hurt so many people. There was no undoing any of it, but if he had one wish, just one thing he could do before it was too late…
He'd talk to his father. Just one last time.
"Worth a shot, I guess," Bill told himself as he finally steeled his resolve and got up from his bed to join the crowd of people.
**************************
Author's Note: Hey guys! Universal Power System is one of my favorite projects, and I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I have enjoyed writing it. This is my very first work, so expect some amateur writing and a few slips. However, I always try to learn and correct myself so I can create a more coherent narrative. I hope you guys enjoy it. Don't forget to check out my other works!
Come say hi to me on Discord: https://discord.gg/TvjkrdnbE2