Ellis Scalorr crouched behind a stack of cargo crates, watching his target slip through another portal. The shimmering gateway closed before Ellis could follow. He clenched his clawed fist. One day, he'd master portal tech better than any bounty hunter in Nereidum. Then no criminal could ever escape him again. Ellis stood and dusted off his vest. He needed to learn more about portals. The old library structure made of red stone held records of Nereidum's past. Maybe someone had tried portal tech before and failed. Their mistakes could teach him what worked and what didn't. He checked his belt and headed toward the ancient building. The red stone walls rose high above the street. Inside, data crystals lined the shelves. Ellis pulled one down and activated it. Holographic images flickered to life, showing failed portal experiments from decades ago. He smiled. This was exactly what he needed. Hours passed as Ellis studied the crystal records. Scientists had tried unstable power cores. Their portals collapsed or sent subjects to random locations. Some never opened at all. Ellis's tail twitched with excitement. He understood what went wrong now. The hologram showed one final image—a laboratory built for portal research. The facility had been abandoned after the experiments failed. Ellis memorized the coordinates. That lab would have equipment he could use. He could test his own ideas there, learn from the old mistakes, and build something better. Ellis deactivated the crystal and placed it back on the shelf. He walked outside into the dim light. The laboratory waited for him somewhere on this planet. There, he would perfect his portal technology. No target would escape him again. He adjusted his vest and started walking. His dream was close now. He could feel it. The barren landscape stretched before him as Ellis approached the abandoned facility. Metal surfaces gleamed under Nereidum's pale sky. Inside, portal machinery sat dormant but intact. Ellis ran his clawed hand over a control panel. Dust scattered across the sleek surface. The equipment still had power. He could work here. A small repair droid rolled out from behind a generator. Its retro design looked clumsy but functional. Ellis picked it up and examined its circuits. Perfect. He could practice his capture techniques on this droid before chasing real criminals. The little machine would help him test portal coordinates and timing. Ellis set the droid down and powered up the main console. The laboratory hummed to life around him. This was his workspace now. This was where he would become the best portal-tech bounty hunter in the system.

Ellis powered up the control panel and watched the portal machinery flicker. The old equipment hummed but wouldn't stabilize. He adjusted three different settings, but the portal gateway sputtered and died each time. His tail lashed in frustration. He needed to start smaller, learn the basics first. The repair droid beeped and rolled closer. Ellis studied its simple circuits and had an idea. If he could track this droid through short jumps, he'd understand portal coordinates better. He recalibrated the console for a test run. The gateway shimmered open just wide enough for the droid to pass through. Ellis grinned as the little machine rolled into the portal and appeared across the room exactly where he'd calculated. One successful test meant he was on the right path. But lab practice wasn't enough. He needed real skills from people who tracked actual targets. Ellis shut down the console and grabbed his gear. Somewhere on Nereidum, professionals taught advanced tracking methods. He had to find them. The rock pillar looked like any other formation on this dusty planet. Ellis circled it twice before spotting the entrance hidden in a crack between two stones. He squeezed through the gap and found stairs leading down. At the bottom, a door opened into a large underground chamber. Mercenaries sat at tables cleaning weapons and reviewing mission data. This was the place. Ellis approached a scarred veteran who looked up from a holographic map. The veteran studied Ellis for a moment, then nodded toward an empty seat. For the next three hours, Ellis learned how professionals tracked targets who used fake identities, hidden routes, and escape vehicles. When the session ended, Ellis climbed back up the stairs. He had the knowledge now. Portal technology plus tracking skills would make him unstoppable. Back at the laboratory, Ellis stared at the console readings. The portal tests drained too much power too fast. He walked outside and spotted a solar panel array stretched across the facility's roof. The panels caught the light and fed energy directly into the building's grid. Ellis climbed up and checked the connections. Half the panels sat offline. He rewired three damaged sections and watched the power levels climb. The array could supply enough energy for dozens of portal jumps now. Ellis climbed back down and returned to the control panel. The tracking methods from the underground guild, combined with stable portal jumps, would let him catch anyone. He activated the console and opened a gateway across the room. It held steady this time, bright and stable. Ellis stepped through and felt the shift in space around him. He appeared on the other side without error. His dream was becoming real. But stable portals weren't enough if targets jumped to other dimensions. Ellis needed a way to follow them anywhere. He went back outside and assembled a device from spare parts near the solar panels. The tracker featured copper coils wrapped around a double terminated quartz crystal. Ellis calibrated it to detect dimensional rifts and energy signatures. He activated the device and watched readings appear on its small screen. It picked up his own portal's energy trail from minutes ago. Ellis tested it three more times, opening gateways in different locations. The tracker found each one. Now he could follow targets even when they tried to hide between dimensions. Ellis carried the device inside and set it on the workbench. He had everything he needed now—tracking skills, power supply, stable portals, and dimensional detection. His first real hunt could begin soon.