Jimmy Neutron led his team through the basement's grimy corridors towards Ms. Peck's classroom. He plucked a hair from his head, slid it into a tiny port atop the bioscanner near the door, and then placed his thumb on the machine.

"Welcome home, James Neutron," Vox's voice purred as the door clicked open.

Jimmy smiled and said, "Come on, guys," while leading Cindy, Butch, Bennett, and Yen into the Neutronauts' lab. The western end was filled with work tables sporting rocket ship blueprints, a rodent-sized version of a stasis chamber, and a cage filled with two anxious guinea pigs. The eastern side had a row of workstations where most of the Neutronauts fervently clacked on keyboards. The middle of the room boasted a conference table with a lone laptop. Two Neutronauts flanked their leader as they all peered at the screen.

Charles White looked up and spotted Jimmy. "A moment, please," he told his colleagues. Two Neutronauts walked towards the workstations while Charles greeted Jimmy. "Welcome back," the eighth-grader said while smoothing the creases from his cerulean cardigan and cream khakis. He offered Cindy a nod and added, "All of you."

Jimmy and his team took positions around the table while the genius asked, "What have you found?"

Charles spun the laptop towards them. "A fair bit. I can say with certainty that no external firewalls were breached within a week of the Grade Snatcher's announcement."

Yen asked, "Does that mean the attack came from inside R.M.S.?"

"Precisely," Charles agreed.

Butch groaned. "There are millions of computers in this school. How do we figure out which one the hacker used?"

Charles narrowed his eyes. "By letting me finish." He clicked a button on his laptop and the screen split into quadrants, each showing a blueprint of one of R.M.S.'s floors. He pointed at the the bottom right corner. "We've isolated the attack from this room on the third floor."

Cindy peered closer. "That's the new computer lab that replaced the one the R.M.S. Report took over."

Jimmy asked, "You're certain it was from that room?"

Charles answered, "We can't narrow it down to a specific computer, but yes. The attack came from there."

Bennett managed a cautious half-smile. "Then the Grade Snatcher is nearly caught. There's a security camera here," he pointed just outside the computer lab. "We can review the footage and see everyone who went in and out."

"Unfortunately, you can't," Charles rebutted. "The hacker uploaded a virus which did four things: seize control of the news's broadcast, stole all the teacher's grades, deleted all stored security camera footage, and finally erased all traces of the virus's existence."

Cindy didn't waver. "We knew this wasn't going to be easy. But now we know where to start our investigation. We'll go to the computer lab and see what we can find. But we need to know one more thing." She gulped and asked, "Were the grades stolen? Or deleted?"

Charles offered a slim grin. "Stolen."

Cindy exhaled in relief. "You're sure?"

Charles admitted, "Confident. Towards the end of the Grade Snatcher's video there was a large transmission of data away from our network. The file size approximates the school's academic records."

Jimmy immediately asked, "Could you trace it?"

"No," Charles answered. "There was no hint of a receiving IP address or location of the destination." His face fell while explaining, "We'll keep trying to get more information for you all, but I doubt we'll be successful. Whoever is behind this attack is phenomenal computer programmer."

"If anyone can untangle this mess it's the Neutronauts," Jimmy assured him. "Keep working and let us know if you uncover anything else."

Cindy spun around and motioned for the others to follow her. "There's no time to waste. Let's get upstairs."

Cindy and her team studied the handmade wooden sign hanging from the computer lab's door. Two lines of text sat above and below a stick figure throwing a Molotov cocktail.

GONE RIOTING!

BACK IN AN HOUR

Bennett said, "We won't be able to ask Mr. Turner if he saw anything."

Yen suggested, "You and I could try to find him."

Cindy shook her head as Jimmy failed to twist the locked doorknob. She said, "Forget it. This hacker is too smart to have uploaded the virus when anyone was around."

Butch gently shoved Jimmy aside and kicked the door open. The group piled inside while Butch flicked on the lights. They revealed a teacher's desk to the right. Atop it was a powerless computer and beside the furniture stood a large trash can. Dead ahead of the kids were five rows of workstations. Each row housed five monitors displaying swirling screensavers.

Yen quickly counted. "Okay, twenty-six computers. How do we figure out which one the hacker used?"

Jimmy said, "We'll split up and each take a row. Go computer by computer to see if any have suspicious files inside."

"Got it," Butch said while grabbing the nearest monitor and slamming it to the floor. The device exploded into a shower of glass, plastic, and sparks.

"That's not what I meant!" Jimmy shouted.

"Wait!" Yen pointed at a piece of parchment lying amidst the shrapnel. "There's actually something there."

Bennett knelt down and scooped up the crinkled paper. Everyone crowded around as he read the words aloud. "Congratulations, but there are still three more clues to find if you wish to unearth the Secret Squirrel's treasure." Bennett groaned and tossed the note into the nearby trash can. "This is just random R.M.S. crap."

"Well hang on," Yen protested while heading over to the waste bin. "You can't just throw away buried treasure."

While Jimmy showed Butch how to review a computer's recently utilized files, Cindy said, "Bennett's right. We don't have time for this."

Yen bent over the top of the trash can and awkwardly dangled her torso inside. Her voice echoed, "I'll look for it after school!"

Bennett said, "Yen, stop acting like a raccoon."

Yen froze as she asked, "Jimmy, could the virus have been uploaded through a flash drive?"

Jimmy and Butch joined the others around the trash can while Yen stood back up. "That's possible," Jimmy said. "Why?"

Yen opened her hand to reveal a fistful of ground plastic. Amidst the obliterated casing were larger shards of the metal USB connector.

Cindy asked, "Was that on top of the trash?"

Yen laid the debris on the teacher's table. "Yeah. It must be from this morning."

Bennett rubbed his chin. "This could be unrelated. Maybe someone dropped this and another kid accidentally stepped on it."

Butch shook his head. "No way was this accidental. You see how tiny these shards are?" He pointed at the bits of plastic which were little more than grains of sand. "They were ground to pieces."

Bennett considered this. "But why would the Grade Snatcher leave evidence like this behind?"

Yen offered, "They must have figured there's no way we could pull any useful information from it."

Jimmy shook his head. "But we already did. If this is from the Grade Snatcher, which seems likely, then it confirms they were here in this room. Such a sophisticated villain should realize how dangerous the slightest clue can be."

Everyone pondered this until Cindy asked, "What if the person who uploaded the virus isn't the one who made it? And they didn't realize how serious what they were doing was, so they didn't hide it very well?"

"Or they're just stupid," Butch offered.

"Hmm," Jimmy closed his eyes in thought. "That would explain the odd behavior."

Butch groaned. "So now we have to find two criminals?"

Cindy assured him, "Yeah, but if we're looking for a dimwit stooge involved in destroying the school, then I know just where to start."

"Now y'all give each other some room and pay attention," eleven year-old Tom Sawyer happily instructed the raucous crowd around his store. He eagerly rubbed his hands together while standing just in front of the door. While his customers settled down, Tom smiled across the table to his left. Brittany Tenelli grinned back and eagerly grabbed the red sheet shrouding the stand's display.

Tom told the crowd, "I'm guessing that everyone here has been quivering in fear since the Grade Snatcher's announcement. Luckily for you, we've got everything you need to survive this hellish apocalypse."

Brittany took her cue and whipped the sheet off of the table. The crowd ooohed and aaahed while Tom started going through each item.

"When the cafeteria runs dry and the vending machines are razed, you need not go hungry. Thanks to the overly trusting Ms. Singh, we've collected a bevy of weapons to hunt for food." Brittany mystically waved her arms in front of a wooden longsword and crossbow.

"And don't you worry about getting parasite-riddled. Just pick up a Zippo and get to cooking." Brittany picked up a silver lighter, sparked it to life, and dropped her jaw in awe.

Tom stepped towards the last item on the table. Brittany leapt atop the stand and eagerly pointed at the plastic cage at her feet. Tom motioned at the terrified gray Peruvian Satin guinea pig inside. "And if you've got coin to spare, you can skip the hunting and fry up this li'l critter."

Eeeekk, the rodent nervously squeaked.

"Brittany, tell 'em how criminally low these prices are!" Tom happily shouted. After the girl had leapt off the table and stood in front of him, Tom leaned towards the cavy. "Don't worry," he whispered. "Once they hand over the cash we'll swap you with these." He knelt down, lifted a linoleum tile off of the floor just inside his store, and revealed a horde of plush guinea pigs.

The animal cocked its head and wheeked.

Tom motioned at red juice seeping from the stuffed animals. "I've crammed these stuffies to the brim with ground beef. Those fools will never know the difference."

The rodent whistled with pride.

"Uh, Tom," Brittany warned.

Tom got up to find that the crowd had parted. In its wake stood a scowling Cindy Vortex. "Hello, Tom. Long time no see."

"Well if if ain't my old frenemy," Tom smiled. He began to warm up with a side lunge and said, "I'd love to talk, but-"

"I have four people guarding every nearby exit," Cindy warned.

Tom hung his head mid-stretch. "What do ya want?"

"To talk. Over there," she pointed towards a bend in the corridor where Bennett was glaring at the boy. "Right now."

"Fine," Tom sighed. "Brittany, manage the store."

Jimmy moved away from the cafeteria entrance and joined Cindy. She moved ahead of Tom and Jimmy watched his back while they approached Bennett. As they drew closer, Butch and Yen emerged from the other fork in the corridor.

Cindy's crew formed a ring around Tod as he backed against a bank of lockers. "Why are y'all the ones throwing a hissy fit? You upended my sale."

Cindy growled, "And you know about the Grade Snatcher."

Tom cocked his head and then rolled his eyes. "This is so typical. After every lickety split thing we've been through, you have the gall to assume that I would destroy the school I've come to love. How could you…"

Cindy held up an evidence bag filled with the ruined memory stick.

"Oh my goodness you found the flash drive. I can explain."

Jimmy ordered, "Then tell us everything."

Tom protested, "Fine, but I honestly didn't do anything wrong this time."

The other kids offered skeptical stares.

"I'm telling the truth! Look, last Friday I decided to make my biweekly…err…deposit at Snake Eyes."

Yen turned to Jimmy and asked, "That's your school's casino, right?"

Jimmy shook his head in disapproval. "Yeah, the math club started it a month ago. They really give statistics a bad name."

Butch shook his head in disgust. "If you want to take kids' money, have some honor and steal it. Don't hide behind games."

Bennett kept his eyes drilled on Tom's and ordered, "Keep talking."

Tom continued, "I took my usual spot as first baseman at the blackjack table. I doubled down on a pair of fives, then the dealer slid me the prettiest sight I'd ever seen - an ace of spades. But the spade in one corner was covered with a sticker." Bennett leaned towards Bennet and whispered, "It was a skewered rabbit."

Bennett narrowed his eyes. "Rabbit Hunt."

Cindy asked, "What are you talking about?"

Bennett explained, "We've heard rumors of an illicit back room at Snake Eyes. Apparently the school's most powerful kids conduct their…business…there."

Tom continued regaling his tale. "I headed inside and got shown to a booth in the back. I'd barely popped a squat when a waitress came and said she had my order. I told her I hadn't even looked at the drink menu yet, but she just handed me a package and left."

Cindy asked, "And it had the flash drive?"

Tom nodded. "Along with a letter saying that I could have five hundred buckaroos deposited in my store's account. All I had to do was plug that thing into any computer in the school and run the file inside."

Jimmy asked, "And then?"

Tom flashed his palms in acquiescence. "I left. I keep trying to tell y'all that I am a reformed villain."

Cindy flatly said, "I don't believe you."

Tom clutched his heart. "I have to admit, that does sting. Didn't I save you from his army?" he asked while pointing at Jimmy. "And help catch your masked wedgier? Not to mention stopping the Hungbringer."

Cindy shouted, "You gave them a Hypno-beam!"

"Allegedly, allegedly," Tom hastily added before admitting, "but true." He shrugged and said, "But I really didn't use the flash drive."

Butch asked, "Then what did you do with it?"

Tom swiped his hands across each other a few times. "I washed my hands of that mess and walked out."

The five kids studied his calm expression. He simply added, "It's the truth."

Cindy turned to Bennet, who shrugged. She then faced Jimmy, who nodded.

Cindy sighed and asked Tom, "So what? You just left the zip drive and letter on the table?"

"Like I said, I wanted no part of it."

Bennett growled, "You should have brought it to the hall monitors."

Tom protested, "Hey, cracking cases is supposed to be your job. How come I have to help solve every crime here?"

Cindy shouted, "Because you're constantly part of them!"

Bennett asked, "Is there anything else you can tell us?"

Tom thought for a moment. "It was the second VIP booth from the left, the one with a picture of an owl above it. And the waitress was about your age. Little taller than you," he pointed at Cindy. "And way taller than you," he motioned at Jimmy.

Jimmy narrowed his eyes while Bennett managed a fleeting grin. "Hair and eye color?"

Tom offered, "Long dark brown hair. Don't know about the eyes. That's all I've got."

"Fine," Cindy warned. "But if we find out that you're lying about this, then your store is finally through."

"Well then it's good that I'm telling the truth."

"One more thing," Yen said while pointing at a long piece of rope hanging from a hook in his store. "How much for that butt posse?"

Bennett furrowed his brow. "Yen-"

"It's Armageddon, Bennett. We need rope!"

Tom flashed a smile and said, "For you, the low price of 9.99. Plus I'll throw in a free can of dehydrated water."

"Sold!" Yen beamed. "Can you deliver it?"

"For fifty cents I can," Tom assured her.

Bennett shook his head while money changed hands and Tom went to get her purchase. Once he was gone, Cindy said, "Looks like Snake Eyes is our next stop."

Bennett suggested, "That package had to get delivered to the casino somehow. Maybe the waitress brought it in, but it could have been handled by the Retroville Middle School Post Office Live Action Role Players."

Yen said, "I have a feeling it was delivered through them."

Bennett faced his partner. "Really?" When Yen nodded, he told Cindy, "We should split up. You three handle the casino. Yen and I will check out the post office."

Jimmy asked, "You two can handle that?"

Bennett simply glared at Jimmy until the boy had to look away.

Yen said, "We'll be fine. We've worked with their Postal Police Officers before."

Tom returned and gave Yen her rope and empty can. While she tucked them both into a pouch on her kit belt, Tom stood anxiously waiting. Yen elbowed Bennett, who begrudgingly offered the boy a quarter as a tip.

Jimmy said, "Okay, everyone. Let's go radio silent and meet at H.A.L.L.P.A.S.S. headquarters when done."

Yen nodded before she and Bennett headed towards the post office. Butch asked Jimmy and Cindy, "Should we head to the casino?"

"Not yet," Cindy said. "The president and H.A.L.L.P.A.S.S. can't just show up and start asking questions. We'll need some disguises first."