Reactive adaptation

**Earth-10005, 1983**

**Peter's room, Xavier's school**

Peter woke up the next morning feeling unusually peaceful. For the first time since arriving in the Marvel universe, the constant tension in his shoulders had eased.

The nagging voice in his head that constantly whispered about vulnerabilities and weaknesses had quieted, thanks to his midnight acquisition.

With Darwin's power of Reactive Adaptation, he had significantly increased his chances of survival.

Lying on his bed, Peter recalled the description of the skill that Great Sage had provided:

> Reactive Adaptation: The ability to adapt when faced with something your body can't handle, allowing you to survive.

'It's not quite on the level of Mahoraga's adaptive powers from Jujutsu Kaisen, but it's more than enough for now,' Peter thought with satisfaction.

His mind turned to the remaining challenges – His greatest vulnerabilities—fire and sound—still needed to be addressed.

The memory of his last encounter with sonic attacks made him wince. The pain had been excruciating, leaving a psychological scar almost as deep as the physical one. 'But if I want true immunity, I'll need to face them again.'

Without immunity to these elements, his survival was still at risk. While the thought of experiencing the pain of sound attacks again made him shudder, he knew he had no choice but to expose himself to those conditions to trigger his adaptation.

But that could wait. Today, he had other priorities.

Peter then used his mental connection with Jean to gently nudge her awake. "Morning, sleepyhead," he said teasingly.

"Five more minutes," came her drowsy response.

"Nope, get ready now. I'm hungry and breakfast awaits, I want to eat with you."

Jean groaned, still half-asleep. "Why are you so cheerful this early?"

"Because I've got big plans today," he replied while laughing. "Now, go freshen up."

Soon Jean got up and brushed her teeth in the bathroom but a warning filtered through their link as Jean headed to shower. 'No peeking, Mr.Parker.'

Peter chuckled to himself. 'I'm a gentleman,' he responded, though he couldn't help but note the irony.

What both Gwen and Jean seemed to forget was that, his connection to both Jean and Gwen meant he could sense their bodies at a cellular level, He could sense everything—inside and out and already knew everything about their bodies more than them.

But they didn't want him to see them showing, he didn't get that. But still he respected their privacy and never intruded on such moments with Gwen and will do the same with Jean and his future hosts.

Once Jean was ready, Peter appeared in her room as the gentleman and even helped her pick out an outfit.

After that he went outside for her to get dressed.

Jean smiled at his gesture, feeling a warmth she hadn't experienced in years.

A green sweater that brought out her eyes and comfortable blue jeans.

After dressing up she called him inside telepathically, "You have good taste," Jean said while examining herself in the mirror.

"I know what suits you," Peter replied with a smile as he entered the room.

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.

.

The two of them headed to the mini-cafeteria inside the mansion for breakfast. As they walked through the halls, Peter marveled at how expansive and well-equipped the school was.

The school's cafeteria was already bustling when they arrived.

As they got their food, 'This place really has everything,' he mused internally, 'Charles must be loaded. Makes me wonder—what exactly did his parents do? They never really mention it in the movies.'

At breakfast, Peter noticed that most of the students avoided sitting near Jean. Many whispered to each other while stealing glances at her, but what caught Peter's attention was furtive glances at Jean and others looking at him with what seemed like pity.

A quick scan of their surface thoughts told him everything.

'Poor new guy, doesn't know what he's getting into.'

'She'll be in his head too, just wait.'

'At least someone's talking to her...'

The students feared Jean. Her inability to fully control her telepathy made them uncomfortable—being around her felt like having their innermost secrets constantly exposed. It had isolated her for years, leaving her lonely and misunderstood.

Peter frowned at the realization. "That's going to change," he thought. "If they won't give her the friendship she deserves, I will."

Jean, noticing his silence, tilted her head. "What's wrong?"

Peter smiled, pushing his thoughts aside. "Nothing. Just thinking how lucky I am to have breakfast with the prettiest girl in the school."

Jean's cheeks flushed. "Stop it," she muttered, but the smile on her face betrayed her embarrassment.

After breakfast, Jean headed off to her room to get some books before going to class, with Peter following her.

He watched her gathering the books using telekinesis once she's inside her room.

When it was time for her to head to class, Peter made a decision. His immunity training could wait. Jean had spent years in this school feeling isolated, watching from the sidelines as others formed friendships and connections while keeping their distance from her. He felt her loneliness and the feeling of wanting to have a friend.

"Mind if I tag along?" he asked aloud. "I'd love to see what a mutant physics class looks like."

Jean's surprised smile was all the answer he needed. The immunity training could wait. Right now, being here – being her friend – that was more important.

He also made a silent promise to himself: Jean won't feel lonely ever again. As long as I'm here, she'll always have someone by her side.

Now his thoughts weren't focused on power acquisition or survival. Instead, he found himself genuinely looking forward to simply spending time with someone who knows what it was like to be different, to be feared for being too powerful.

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.

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The day passed smoothly as Peter spent it attending Jean's classes. His presence beside her eased the tension she usually felt, and for the first time in years, Jean found herself genuinely enjoying the experience.

Hank and Charles both noticed the way Peter interacted with Jean, the way he interacted with her, and how her usual unease seemed to fade in his presence. Each, in their respective classrooms, couldn't help but smile at the sight.

That night, after dinner, Peter waited until the mansion was quiet. Under the cover of darkness, he activated his camouflage and slipped out of the building from the windows of his room and flew into the night sky.

"Technology here is so outdated," Peter muttered, thinking of the primitive state of computers and the lack of reliable networks in this era. "But abandoned buildings should be easy enough to find."

After flying for some time, he spotted a factory in the distance, its decrepit structure surrounded by overgrown weeds and rusted fences. The factory had clearly been out of use for years, making it the perfect location for his experiment.

Peter entered cautiously, scanning the area to ensure no one was around. Once satisfied it was empty, he retrieved a can of gasoline he had acquired earlier that day. The memory of how he'd obtained it brought a smirk to his face—being a telepath had its perks, and convincing the shop owner to let him take the gasoline without payment had been child's play.

'This is the quickest way to gain immunity,' Peter thought, steeling himself for what was to come.

He poured the gasoline in a wide circle on the factory floor. With a flick of his fingers, he generated a small spark of electricity, igniting the gasoline and creating an intense blaze that quickly engulfed the area.

Peter hesitated for a moment as the flames roared around him. Then, taking a deep breath, he stepped into the center of the fire.

The pain was immediate and excruciating. His skin screamed in protest as the flames licked at him, but before he could even stumble back, the familiar voice of Great Sage rang in his mind:

> Reactive adaptation Activated…

New Skill Acquired: Complete Heat Resistance

As the pain faded instantly, Peter's lips curled into a triumphant smile.

Standing amidst the flames, he laughed—a deep, satisfied laugh that echoed through the empty factory. The fire danced around him, but he no longer felt its heat. His body had adapted, rendering him immune to the destructive force that had once been one of his greatest weaknesses.

"This… this is incredible," Peter said, his voice filled with awe.

The flames illuminated his figure, casting long, eerie shadows on the factory walls. His laughter subsided, replaced by a determined expression. "Fire? Check. Now, for sound…"

With a wave of his hand, Peter's hand transformed into a big clothe and soon he put the fire out.

The factory returned to silence, the only evidence of the blaze being the scorched floor beneath his feet.

His victory over fire had been exhilarating, but he knew his work wasn't done. Fire was only one half of the problem—his vulnerability to sound was still a glaring weakness.

Reaching into the dimension of predator, he pulled out the hand gloves of Shocker, the villain he had absorbed during his time in the Spider Society.

These gloves were infamous for their devastating shockwaves using vibro-shock units, capable of reducing walls to rubble and incapacitating foes.

He then modified the device a little bit to produce sonic waves. It took sometime but he can manage that since he had several tools from the villians he ate.

Once done, Peter placed the gloves carefully in the hole he made in a solid wall, ensuring the trajectory of the blast would hit him directly. He stepped back, steadying himself and took a deep breath.

"This is going to hurt," he muttered while flexing his fingers nervously.

Extending a tentacle from his hand, he activated the glove's sonic emitter. A deafening roar erupted as the device unleashed a concentrated blast of sound, aimed directly at him.

The wave hit Peter like a freight train, slamming into his body with unimaginable force. His vision blurred as a sharp, piercing pain shot through his head, rattling his very core. He stumbled, clutching his head as the sound seemed to tear through his symbiotic form, threatening to unravel him entirely.

The pain was unbearable, far worse than the fire. His knees buckled, and for a moment, he thought he might actually succumb to the onslaught.

Then, amidst the chaos, Great Sage spoke:

> Skill: Reactive adaptation Activated…

> New Skill Acquired: Complete Sonic Resistance

The pain began to fade, replaced by a strange sense of calm. Peter's body adjusted, his symbiote and DNA restructuring themselves to counter the sonic waves.

After that He slowly stood up and his breathing began to steady, and stared at the gloves and turned them off using his tentacle form the hand.

"That... was awful," he said with slightly shaking voice, But a smile soon crept across his face. "But it's done. No more weakness to sound."

He picked up the gloves, studying it for a moment before putting it back into the other side of the wall since the previous impact made some cracks in the wall.

He doubted with another blast, the wall will collapse.

Turning toward the wall, Peter decided to test his newfound resistance.

"One more blast," he said as the tentacle form his hand emerged, activating the gloves again.

Another wave of sonic energy erupted, but this time, Peter barely flinched. His body absorbed the vibrations effortlessly, the sound no longer a threat but merely an irritant.

He chuckled, a triumphant glint in his eyes. "Perfect. Fire and sound. I'm no longer vulnerable."

Satisfied with his progress, Peter activated his camouflage, slipped out of the factory, and took to the skies. As he flew back toward Xavier's mansion, he couldn't help but feel a new level of confidence.

As Peter soared through the night sky, enjoying the cool breeze against his symbiote-enhanced form, the familiar voice of Great Sage suddenly resonated in his mind.

> "Generating a trigger for the skill Reactive Adaptation..."

>"Successful.... Some skills can be combined..."

Peter raised an eyebrow, puzzled. Combined? he thought, but before he could question further, the voice continued:

> "Combining skills... Electricity Manipulation and Electricity Generation..."

>"Combination successful. New skill acquired: Electrokinesis – Ability to generate and manipulate electricity."

Peter's eyes widened slightly. But the voice didn't stop there.

> "Combining skills... Superhuman Strength, Superhuman Agility, Superhuman Reflexes and Superhuman Durability..."

> "Combination successful. New skill acquired: Peak Superhuman Physique – A body with superhuman strength, agility, reflexes, and durability at their maximum potential."

> "Combining skills... Complete heat resistance and cold resistance...

>Combination Successful. New skill acquired: complete temparature resistance.

Peter froze mid-air, hovering as if gravity had lost its hold on him. His eyes widened further as the realization sank in.

"What the..." he muttered under his breath.

"Great sage, how did the skills combined."

>I activated the skill Reactive adaptation which required a trigger, I generated a trigger and used that skill as a medium to combine the skills with similarities.

"You can do that? Damn, This... this is awesome," he whispered with a grin.

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A/N: How is the chapter, comment your thoughts.

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