I gasped, sitting bolt upright on a filthy mattress that smelled faintly of despair and mothballs.
I was in a tiny, cramped apartment above what sounded like a sputtering auto repair shop. The air conditioning unit outside the window wheezed, failing miserably to counteract the oppressive LA heat.
My heart hammered—not from fear, but from exhilaration.
I looked down at myself. I was still wearing my boring khakis and button-up shirt, but the fabric was stained with oil now, and I felt physically stronger, lighter.
Then I saw it. The HUD.
In the upper-right corner of my vision, subtly transparent, glowed a familiar set of icons:
[ HEALTH: 100% | ARMOR: 0% ]
Below that, a small rectangular display showing my financial status:
[ $CASH: 10,000 ]
Underneath the cash, a basic minimap pinged silently, showing the immediate neighborhood—a grid of streets near what GPS would have identified as Echo Park.
The GTA System. It was real.
A wave of pure, concentrated energy rushed through me. I jumped off the bed, stumbling slightly on the concrete floor. The sheer volume of incoming sensory data—the street noise, the distinct smell of 91 octane, the throbbing bass from a customized lowrider passing beneath the window—was overwhelming.
I walked to the window, looking out over the grimy street. This wasn't the sanitized LA of movies; this was the real, greasy urban sprawl. Perfect.
I needed to test the Instant Mastery skill.
First, I needed a vehicle, not just as transport, but as a laboratory.
The GTA System, ever helpful, immediately tagged a small, unassuming garage three blocks away marked with a yellow beacon. [Mission: Acquire Vehicle and Establish Base of Operations.]
Using my cash, I located a busted-up garage selling salvaged vehicles. Inside, under a thick layer of dust, sat a third-generation Toyota Supra—a legendary 2JZ-GTE engine, but currently totaled, with the front end crumpled like aluminum foil. It was listed for $4,000, "as is."
The mechanic—a big, skeptical man named Chico—shook his head when I showed interest. "That? That's a paperweight, man. Engine's flooded, chassis is twisted. You'd need a miracle and twenty grand in parts just to make it idle."
"Four thousand is fine," I said, pulling out a crisp stack of bills. The GTA system counted them instantly: [-$4,000] "I'll take it. And I need access to your tools and a lift for a few hours."
Chico squinted, but money was money. He waved me toward the back bay.
This was the test. I had never held a wrench in my life. Accounting had been my highest mechanical skill.
I stepped up to the wrecked Supra, opened the hood, and stared into the messy chaos of the destroyed engine bay. The moment my hand grasped a torque wrench, the magic started.
It wasn't a sudden download of information; it was an instantaneous understanding. My muscles knew the exact force required. My mind mapped the fluid dynamics, the stress points of the chassis, the optimal air-fuel ratio. I didn't read a manual; I became the manual.
I pulled the damaged engine out and began stripping it down. The process that should have taken a specialist a week and specialized equipment took me three focused hours. I knew where the fractures in the block were, how to reinforce the warped frame using localized electrical arcs, and how to tune the 2JZ for maximum output before I even looked up the specs.
The process felt like remembering something rather than learning it.
As I worked, the System acknowledged the activity: [SKILL ACQUIRED: ADVANCED AUTOMOTIVE ENGINEERING - LEVEL 5 (MASTER)]
When I was finished, the Supra, painted a deep metallic charcoal grey and humming with a predatory 1,000 horsepower, sat gleaming under the weak shop lights. I pressed the start button. The engine roared, a magnificent, clean sound of raw power.
Chico stood frozen in the doorway, chewing on his cigar. He had been watching me, mesmerized, for the last hour.
"Who… who are you, man?" he whispered, blowing a cloud of smoke.
"Just a guy who hates a boring life," I replied, wiping the grease from my hands.
[GTA SYSTEM UPDATE: CAR - TOYOTA SUPRA MK IV (CUSTOM). MARKET VALUE: $85,000. INSURANCE ACQUIRED.]
I looked at the system cash: [$CASH: 6,000]. I needed to get that number up. Quickly.