The remnants of the four tons of processed titanium lay scattered—dull, grey, inert blocks of metal. Leo simply stretched out his hand, and the metallic debris instantly obeyed the subconscious shift in his Metal Control. All the scrap material collected itself, flying quickly and silently to a designated corner where it neatly stacked itself into a shimmering, geometric monument to his bottomless appetite.
He walked to the massive window, soaking in the view of the rising sun and the boundless blue ocean. The sheer scope of the natural world always managed to ground him, making his internal struggles feel a little less claustrophobic.
Leo jumped a few times, testing the lightness in his frame. He confirmed the obvious: he hadn't lost an ounce; in fact, the needle on the non-functional electronic scale would likely be heavier. The completion of the Copper Skin and the partial progression of Steel Bars had fundamentally re-engineered his mass. Every fiber felt dense, almost liquid metal under the skin.
He proceeded directly to Tony's specialized training area. He found Tony, predictably, sitting on a high-tech machine, meticulously exercising his leg muscles while simultaneously reviewing lines of code on a floating holographic display. Tony was in his element: multitasking, flexing, and creating.
Excited by the unexpected boost to his stats, Leo stepped onto the recessed test track. He wasn't satisfied with the starting line; he took a couple of meters back, determined to absolutely shatter his previous record.
He settled his stance, his feet firmly planting themselves on the ground—the natural activation of his Immovable Golden Body passive skill. He exerted maximum force. The muscles in his legs—now crisscrossed with faint golden veins—bulged instantly, the tissue tight and rigid. The veins pulsed like bundles of tough steel bars twisted together, his muscles knotted and coiled for the explosive launch.
He darted out, not like a boy, but like a coiled spring released in the shape of a miniature predator. He rushed across the twenty-meter finish line in a blink. The sheer acceleration was breathtaking, pushing his small lungs to their limit.
But the real, mind-bending test came after the finish. Faced with the powerful, forward-rushing inertia that should have sent him sliding halfway across the gym floor, Leo had a sudden, sharp mental command: Stop.
His entire body, which had been accelerating violently at nearly twenty meters per second, suddenly decelerated to a dead stop within a mere two meters. There was no stumble, no skid, no muscle strain—just instant stillness.
From high-speed movement to instantaneous stillness, the fundamental laws of physics—specifically, Newton's first law, the law of inertia—no longer seemed to bind Leo's body. '
The Immovable Golden Body passive, designed to prevent external forces from moving him, was now, through some strange internal logic, applying the same principle to internal forces, neutralizing his own momentum. It was total self-sovereignty over his own mass.
Tony, who had paused his leg presses mid-rep to watch, didn't seem overtly surprised, only mildly astonished at the sheer neatness of the stop.
"Leo, your movement efficiency is significantly better than a few days ago," Tony observed, wiping sweat from his brow. "That sudden stop? Pure physics defiance. You just brought 18 points of Strength to a dead halt in six feet. Did you deliberately manipulate a localized gravity field, or has your internal kinetic stabilizer finally kicked in?"
"It's not gravity manipulation, Mr. Stark. It's just a feeling," Leo explained, looking at his hands. The internal golden light radiated a magical, yet profoundly physical, power that made him feel impossibly lighter, yet stronger. "A sense of relief, a complete lack of resistance to the change in my own state. Inertia just… doesn't apply when I tell it not to. I can't explain the mechanism."
Tony just shrugged, returning to his reps. He wouldn't be surprised if Leo suddenly started teleporting; this level of oddity was now just baseline for the kid. "Well, the machine logged the data. Let's confirm the output. I think this time, the results will be less disappointing than your previous speed runs." Tony walked toward the studio with a glint of excitement, eager to quantify the anomaly.
Leo glanced at the illuminated test instrument screen: '19.1 meters per second.' A massive jump from his last recorded 16.3. The passive skill, initially just defensive, had unlocked the ultimate control aspect of his physical movement.
At noon, they prepped for today's major engineering validation: the second high-thrust flight attempt.
The first proper test had ended in slapstick comedy: Tony had lost his balance instantly and crashed. Luckily, Leo was there to subconsciously catch the plummeting metal using his Metal Control, helping Tony land safely—but it had severely wounded Tony's ego.
"Leo, no subtle intervention this time! Keep your golden hands to yourself!" Tony insisted, already donning the full flight harness. This gear included the prototype hand-mounted stabilizers and the bare, high-thrust jet thrusters on his feet, all exposed without the sleek aesthetic shell of the armor. "I will fall once, maybe twice, but I absolutely refuse to believe I can't master the controls by myself. I need the raw data on my own ability to compensate."
They walked to the large, black, reinforced experimental mat in the center of the subterranean studio.
Tony stretched his body dramatically, adjusting his center of gravity. He looked at the camera module positioned on a nearby robotic arm and took a deep, theatrical breath.
"Jarvis, log this," Tony announced with a dramatic flair. "Day nine of full optimization. Test thirty-two. Configuration 2.0 stabilized. We initiate slow-mode ascent protocols. Let's try to keep the collateral damage below a five-figure sum this time."
"Affirmative, sir. Maintaining all systems on standby for immediate shutdown," Jarvis's calm, almost weary voice replied.
"As usual, we start with 1% axial load support force and 10% vertical thrust," Tony dictated.
"Okay, initiating countdown. Three, two, one!"
The moment Tony finished speaking, the thrusters on his hands and feet fired simultaneously. His feet, accompanied by blinding white-blue flames, easily countered his weight. The thrust instantly pushed Tony upward, stabilizing him forty centimeters above the ground.
With his arms outstretched, the small, controlled flames emanating from his palms provided essential counter-thrust, allowing him to better coordinate his body's balance.
He floated steadily above the experimental mat, executing a slight lateral displacement with minute shifts in his posture and thrust vectors. He remained perfectly suspended, a monument to human ingenuity and raw power.
Five seconds later, after Tony had accustomed himself to the feeling of weightlessness and thrust management, he commanded the shutdown. He dropped safely onto the mat without falling over.
Tony let out a nervous, exhilarated laugh, ripping his helmet off. "See that? Flawless! That's progress, people! We are moving forward at the speed of awesome."
"Let's try it again. This time, adjust the initial thrust to 2.5% and the stabilizer output to 50%," he barked, shoving the helmet back on. He needed more power to truly gauge the control.
"Three, two, one! Max thrust!"
The new strategy was based on his earlier falls: use the hands to stabilize the launch and maintain core balance, then apply the major vertical force through the feet.
This time, the jet flare was far stronger than before, launching Tony over 1.2 meters high. He was airborne, stable, and... panicking.
Since it was his first time attempting this intensity, his movements became exaggerated. The powerful thrust from his feet coupled with a slight, accidental, overzealous push from his hand stabilizers propelled Tony rapidly to the side.
He flew across the studio floor like an oversized, metal-plated pinball, his screams muffled only slightly by the helmet.
In less than two seconds, he was rocketing toward a corner, dangerously close to his collection of priceless luxury cars.
"I absolutely did not calculate for this level of initial vectoring precision!" Even in his terror, Tony couldn't help but marvel at his own surprising power output.
Tony, notoriously bad at fine-tuning his directional control, frantically fiddled with the handheld stabilizers. This only resulted in him overcorrecting, sending him careening over the hood of a cherry-red classic Ferrari, just inches from the windshield.
Intense, focused flames erupted from beneath his feet as he tried to vector upward to avoid scraping the car, scorching a long, ugly black streak right across the polished metal roof. The thermal exhaust left a trail of blackened ruin over the next three expensive sports cars lined up neatly against the wall.
"No! Jarvis, redirect! You're burning the interior! Don't burn the leather! Please don't scratch the paint!" Tony screamed, his voice strained with genuine alarm—not for his safety, but for the upholstery.
"My blueprints! The desk! Watch out for the new laser!" The blast wave generated by his frantic thrust maneuvers blew a massive pile of critical paper blueprints for the next phase of the Mark II right off his workbench, scattering them like confetti across the room.
He pushed his hands forward with a sudden, powerful burst, finally controlling his momentum to fly backward. Tony was a mix of sheer excitement and nervous relief; he had successfully flown, albeit recklessly and destructively, for the first time. The fear was gone, replaced by a deep, addictive buzz.
Leo watched Tony floating in the air, grinning widely at the spectacle. "Keep pushing it, Mr. Stark! You've absolutely nailed the sustained lift! Forget the cars, that was incredible!"
For the next several minutes, Tony Stark flew through the cavernous studio, now completely disregarding the structural integrity of his surroundings or the fate of his luxury possessions. His sole focus was on maintaining his flight vector and achieving stable movement. He executed loops, dives, and sharp turns.
As the seconds ticked by, Tony became increasingly familiar with the counter-intuitive feeling of thrust-based flight. The initial terror completely dissipated, replaced by the rush of pure, unadulterated, intoxicating adrenaline. His adventurous, engineer's spirit took over.
"Ex-cellent, Jarvis! This is flawless execution! We have stabilized flight! I am a bird! I am a plane! I am… awesome!" Tony yelled, waving his hands in the air, executing perfect, controlled turns and stopping on a dime in mid-air.
Finally, he controlled himself to return above the experimental mat. He brought his feet together, placed his hands on his hips to achieve a stable equilibrium, and gracefully circled in the air once before smoothly cutting the power. He dropped gently onto the mat.
Leo stood up in shock and awe, witnessing the very first conscious, controlled, and stable flight of the device that would one day define the Iron Man legacy.
Tony stood on the experimental mat, his face flushed, but his eyes gleaming with a manic excitement. "Great! I can fly now! The core concept is validated! Bring on the heavy lifting!"
Having survived the chaos and validated the flight concept—the most crucial aspect of the Mark II's mission—Tony was ready for the final assembly.
Leo, equally excited by the transition, walked directly to the mechanical control panel, eager to witness the final transformation.
Six specialized, multi-jointed robotic arms extended silently from the ceiling recesses. Under Jarvis's precise direction, they began equipping Tony with the components of the full Mark II armor that had been manufactured over the past week.
The Mark II, entirely constructed from a sleek, high-grade, dull silver alloy, was assembled in under three minutes. It was completely weaponless, built only for the purpose of validating flight envelope and maneuverability, just as Tony had intended.
Leo walked over, staring blankly at the finished Mark II. He couldn't help but reach out his small hand to touch the armor's cool, polished outer shell. The suit towered over him, silent and imposing.
The metal used was a high-quality, dense steel alloy, designed for extreme durability and resistance to deformation. But it had one significant drawback: it was incredibly heavy. Without Jarvis's constant, active assistance compensating for the mass, Tony wouldn't even be able to stand up in the several hundred-pound suit, let alone walk or fly.
The Mark II was the first suit to have a fully integrated operating system. Jarvis's core function was to provide real-time target scanning, global positioning, and critical user vital signs data, effectively making the suit an extension of Tony's own nervous system.
Tony, already sealed inside the helmet, spoke clearly, his voice slightly filtered and amplified. "Jarvis, are we locked and loaded, or is this still a glorified filing cabinet?"
"At your service, sir. All core systems are nominal, and I detect a 100% chance of extreme confidence," Jarvis's voice replied, perfectly calm.
"Activate the internal helmet display and run Level 3 diagnostics. Load all environmental data and topographical conditions of the house and surrounding area into the HUD. I want to see everything," Tony commanded.
"Affirmative, sir. Initiating full environmental scan and data compilation. Mapping the studio in a three-dimensional wireframe overlay for initial testing."
Tony moved his helmet, scanning the cluttered studio. The data was processed and instantly added to the suit's spatial database, turning the room into a digital blueprint inside his helmet.
A few seconds later, Tony asked, "Okay, is the database updated? Everything ready for the first walking sequence?"
"Upload complete, sir. All joint actuators are fully charged. Power conduits are green and ready for movement. The only red flag is the lingering scent of burnt leather from Test 32."
"Can we begin the virtual walking program now, Jarvis?" Tony asked with a slight smile visible even through the visor. This wasn't about flying; it was about ensuring the mechanical joints could compensate for the massive weight in a fluid, human-like manner.
"Loading your unique walking habits, stride length, and dynamic stability parameters. Determining virtual environment overlay for optimal practice."
"Inspect and confirm control over the outer casing," Tony instructed.
"Yes, sir. Initiating joint articulation test: Phase Alpha."
Leo watched, mesmerized, as the various articulation points of the armor came alive. Starting from the lower legs, up through the powerful knee and thigh linkages, the back, and the spinal support, then the arms and shoulder linkages.
A faint blue operational light flashed inside the armor as the joint integrity was checked. The suit was now a fully functional, self-supporting exoskeleton. Leo felt an electric thrill as he watched the true Iron Man legacy come to life.