### **Chapter 20: The Long Road to Mastery – Jordan's Ongoing Training**
The days at the Avengers Compound had become a blur of training sessions, long hours of meditation, and intense physical workouts. Jordan had pushed himself harder than ever before, driven by the desire to control the power that surged through him. The temptation to wield the power of the stones was always there, hovering just at the edge of his consciousness, but he was determined to master it before it controlled him.
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**Setting: Avengers Compound – Training Room**
Jordan stood in front of a massive training dummy. He'd been at it for hours, focusing on precision, control, and timing. It was a different kind of training than anything he'd ever experienced before—this wasn't about defeating an enemy or completing a mission. This was about learning to control the storm within him.
The dummy stood tall and menacing, but it was nothing compared to the force that Jordan now knew lay at his fingertips. Every time he used his powers, he could feel the weight of the responsibility that came with them. He couldn't afford to slip up. Not now. Not when Thanos was so close to obtaining all the stones.
Jordan flexed his fingers, focusing on the heat vision within him. The temperature in the room rose as the power built up, but he kept it contained. The challenge was always the same: to release enough energy to destroy the target without overdoing it, without losing control.
His eyes flared with heat vision, but this time, instead of a destructive burst, the beam focused into a thin, controlled line, just enough to singe the edges of the dummy's shoulder. A small victory, but a victory nonetheless. He could feel the power humming inside him, but it was no longer as overwhelming.
"Good," Natasha's voice came from behind him, her tone approving. "Your control is getting better, but don't get cocky. You still have a long way to go."
Jordan turned, wiping sweat from his brow. He didn't know whether to be proud or frustrated. He had done it, but it felt like the smallest of victories in a long battle.
"I'm still not sure I'm ready," Jordan admitted. "It's just... so much power. Every time I feel like I'm in control, something comes up, and I feel like I'm about to lose it all."
Natasha studied him, her arms crossed over her chest. "No one's ever fully ready, kid. The key is knowing that you're always going to be tested. The question is, can you handle it when the moment comes? The mission, Thanos... those things don't wait for you to be perfect. They wait for you to act."
Jordan took a deep breath. "I get it. But I don't want to act too fast. I don't want to mess up and hurt someone."
"You won't," Natasha reassured him, her voice softer now. "You've got something most people don't—discipline. Focus. You just have to trust yourself."
Jordan nodded, but his mind was still racing.
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**Setting: Doctor Strange's Sanctum – A New Lesson**
It wasn't long before Jordan found himself standing in the center of Doctor Strange's Sanctum Sanctorum, the mystical energies of the space swirling around him like a storm. Strange had invited him to the Sanctum for a more unique form of training, one that would push him to better understand his powers beyond physical control.
Doctor Strange stood nearby, his eyes calculating, his expression serious. "The power you've gained is not just physical, Jordan. You're tapping into something far older, far more complex. The stones, the abilities you possess... they are part of the fabric of reality itself. If you want to control them, you must understand them."
Jordan had been prepared for this, but even so, standing in the Sanctum, surrounded by the ancient symbols and relics, he felt the weight of the moment. He was about to dive deeper into the nature of the power he wielded.
"Your powers are linked to reality itself," Strange continued, "but they're not bound by the same rules that govern most people's lives. You've already discovered the surface—heat vision, strength, flight—but those abilities are just the beginning. You must learn to master your connection to the very fabric of existence."
Jordan was intrigued, but also wary. He wasn't sure he wanted to bend reality to his will. That's what Thanos did. It was the temptation that scared him.
"I don't want to become like him," Jordan said quietly, his voice tinged with uncertainty. "I don't want to reshape everything just because I can."
Strange regarded him thoughtfully, his gaze penetrating. "The greatest danger in wielding such power is not the power itself, but the temptation to use it to impose your will. Thanos sought to balance the universe by erasing half of all life. But his actions were born of a belief that he alone knew what was best. What you must understand, Jordan, is that reality is a delicate balance. The more you bend it, the more you risk breaking it."
Jordan nodded, the weight of Strange's words sinking in. He was being pushed to understand not just how to control his abilities, but how to respect them.
"Your task here," Strange continued, "is to learn how to sense the flow of reality, to understand how the fabric of space and time reacts to the power you wield."
With a wave of his hand, Strange conjured a floating orb of mystical energy. It pulsed with power, shifting in color and form, like a living thing. "This orb represents reality in its most basic form. Your challenge is to move it, to bend it, without breaking it. Do not destroy it. Do not change it fundamentally. Simply guide it."
Jordan took a deep breath and reached out. His hand hovered above the orb, feeling the power emanating from it. It was different from using his physical abilities. This felt like reaching into something unseen, something intangible. He focused, trying to push the orb with the same control he had learned in his training.
At first, the orb didn't move. Then, slowly, it began to shift, just a little. It was a subtle movement, but it was a start. Jordan focused harder, pushing his mental energy into the orb, trying to understand it, trying to guide it without shattering it.
The orb wobbled in the air before finally floating to the side, a perfect arc tracing its path. Jordan exhaled, a grin tugging at the corners of his lips. He had done it. He had bent reality—not by force, but by understanding it.
"Good," Strange said, his tone calm but approving. "You are learning, Jordan. But this is only the beginning. Your connection to the stone—and to reality itself—is stronger than you realize. The true test will be in the moments of crisis. Can you control the storm when everything around you is crumbling?"
Jordan didn't answer. He didn't need to. He knew that the real test would come when they faced Thanos, when everything was on the line.
But for now, he was learning. And that was enough.
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**Setting: The Avengers Compound – Training Room**
As the team prepped for their final confrontation with Thanos, Jordan found himself in the training room once again. But this time, he wasn't alone. Steve, Natasha, and the rest of the Avengers stood nearby, watching him as he prepared to face the ultimate test of his abilities.
"Are you ready?" Steve asked, his voice steady but filled with the weight of what was to come.
Jordan took a deep breath, his eyes narrowing with determination. He had trained for this moment, worked tirelessly to master his powers. But he knew that no amount of training could prepare him for what lay ahead.
"Let's do this," Jordan said, stepping forward with a newfound sense of control.
As the rest of the team geared up for battle, Jordan closed his eyes for a moment, focusing on the power that surged within him. He had learned to control it. To bend it, rather than let it bend him. But the true test was still to come.
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