Tony floated in the center of the Infinity Chamber with his arms spread slightly to his sides.
His body glowed faintly with quantum energy that pulsed in steady rhythm like a heartbeat.
The light was soft but clearly visible in the dim space around him. It flickered occasionally as his cells adjusted to their new nature.
The chamber itself was massive. Walls made of reinforced Starktonium alloy stretched in all directions.
Holographic projectors lined the ceiling. Energy conduits ran along the floor in precise patterns.
Everything here was designed for one purpose: training.
He had twenty-five days in here to master his abilities. Outside in the real world, only twelve hours would pass due to the time dilation effect.
The Infinity Chamber existed in a pocket quantum dimension where time moved fifty times faster than normal.
Originally it had been a hundred but the issues with his third evolution messed things up as he disappeared.
But still...
A fifty times difference.
This gave him the advantage he desperately needed right now.
Tony took a slow breath and focused his mind.
"M.A.R.V.E.L., start simulation protocol seven," he said clearly.
[Initiating combat scenario. Threat level: Omega.] The AI's voice echoed through the chamber with perfect clarity.
The space in front of Tony began to shimmer. Holographic enemies materialized one by one.
First came the Celestial constructs with glowing armor that looked ancient and powerful. Then energy beings appeared that shifted constantly between solid form and pure light.
Finally reality warpers took shape that bent the space around them just by existing. All of them moved toward Tony with clear hostile intent.
Tony didn't hesitate. He attacked immediately.
He pulled his right arm back and threw a punch at the first target. His fist shot forward with speed.
But it went straight through the hologram without making any contact at all.
The power output was far too low.
The Celestial construct didn't even register damage. It continued advancing as if nothing had happened.
'Damn it.' Tony pulled his hand back quickly.
He set his stance again and tried once more with significantly more force behind the strike. This time when his fist connected the punch actually landed.
But the shockwave that followed was massive and uncontrolled. It destroyed half the simulation chamber in an instant.
Metal walls buckled inward with loud groaning sounds. Holographic projection systems flickered and went offline. Sparks flew from damaged circuits.
'Too much. Control. I need control.'
M.A.R.V.E.L. quickly reset the chamber. The damaged sections repaired themselves using advanced nanotechnology.
Within seconds everything was back to normal.
Tony stood still and breathed slowly. He needed to find the middle ground between too little power and too much.
Hours passed slowly in the chamber. Then those hours became days. Tony practiced without stopping except for brief rest periods to let his body recover.
He was learning his new body from scratch. Understanding what Homo Supreme abilities actually meant in practical terms rather than just theory.
The fundamental problem was inconsistency. Sometimes his strength was at normal human level and he could barely dent reinforced steel even when trying hard.
Other times he could level entire buildings with a single thought without even touching them.
The difference between these extremes came down to his mental state and emotional control.
These were factors that even M.A.R.V.E.L.'s advanced AI systems couldn't fully predict or measure accurately.
Tony ran test after test. He punched targets at different power levels. He lifted weights of varying mass.
He practiced energy projection through his hands. Each exercise taught him something new about his transformed physiology.
But slowly and steadily, Tony improved with each passing day.
By day five, he understood the basic principles of his power fluctuations.
By day ten, he could consciously adjust his output up or down.
By day fifteen, he could regulate his power output within a twenty percent margin of his intended target.
It was close but still not good enough for actual combat situations.
By day twenty, he got it down to just ten percent variation from his goal. Much better and more usable.
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