Middleton High was already struggling to maintain its "Normalcy" rating. With the addition of Jenny Wakeman—a six-foot-tall teenage robot who tried to "blend in" by wearing a oversized hoodie that didn't quite hide her internal jet-boosters—the "Low-Stakes" meter was vibrating like a tuning fork.
I was standing by the front doors, Pips snoozing in a specialized recharging pouch on my belt, when a familiar, high-pitched mechanical whine echoed from the parking lot.
"Sheila," I whispered, tapping the frame of my glasses. "Scan the perimeter. I'm detecting a localized high-IQ pocket and the smell of rocket fuel."
["Telemetry confirmed, Danny,"] Sheila replied. ["A small, silver rocket-ship shaped like a toaster has just performed an illegal vertical landing in the faculty parking lot. The pilot appears to be a ten-year-old with a hairstyle that defies the laws of aerodynamics."]
"Jimmy Neutron," I muttered. "The 'Campbell' in me loves the crossover. The 'Producer' in me is worried he's going to try to improve the school's plumbing and accidentally create a black hole."
I turned to see Jenny skating toward me, looking distressed. "Danny! I tried to do the 'Social Integration' thing in homeroom, but the teacher asked me to use a pencil, and my hand accidentally transformed into a laser-drill. Is that bad?"
"It's a learning curve, Jenny," I said, patting her metal shoulder. "But we have a bigger problem. We have a 'Boy Genius' in the parking lot who makes my 'Possible' brain look like a calculator with dead batteries."
At that moment, the front doors swung open. Jimmy Neutron walked in, looking around with a mix of scientific curiosity and profound condescension. He was followed by a robotic dog that was currently sniffing the floor tiles and chirping "Bark! Bark! Bark!" in a digitized monotone.
"Goddard, stay," Jimmy commanded, tapping a keypad on his wrist. "The readings were correct. This town is the epicenter of a multi-dimensional intersection. The molecular density of the cafeteria food alone suggests a spatial anomaly."
"Can I help you?" Kim asked, stepping into Jimmy's path with her arms crossed. She looked at the kid, then at the robotic dog, then at me. "Danny? Is this another 'Exchange Student'?"
"He's more of a... guest lecturer," I said, stepping forward. "Jimmy Neutron, I presume? I've been following your work on the 'Goddard' platform. Impressive stuff. Though your fusion-core is a bit noisy."
Jimmy stopped, his eyes widening behind his large forehead. "You recognize the Goddard-model? And you've identified the noise in the fusion-core? Most people just ask if he's a toy."
"I'm not most people," I said, extending a hand. "I'm Danny. And this is Jenny."
Jenny waved, her hand accidentally letting out a small puff of hydraulic steam. "Hi! I'm a Global Robotic Response Unit, but today I'm just a sophomore! Nice dog! Is he made of titanium-carbide?"
Jimmy's eyes practically sparkled. "He is! And you... you're a fully autonomous, emotionally-integrated gynoid? Incredible! The neural-mapping required for your personality-matrix must be astronomical!"
"Hey, Brain-Blast," Ben Tennyson said, leaning against a locker. "Keep it down. We're trying to keep the 'weird' stuff on the DL. Principal Barkin already has a hair-trigger about Level 4 secrets."
"The 'weird' stuff as you call it," Jimmy said, pulling out a device that looked like a high-tech bubble-wand, "is a series of hyper-evolving phenomena that I intend to categorize and stabilize. For instance, did you know that your locker, Ronald Stoppable, is currently emitting a 'Nacho-flavored' radiation pulse?"
"It's a feature, not a bug!" Ron yelled from down the hall.
"Anyway," Jimmy continued, turning back to me. "I'm looking for the 'Producer.' My sensors picked up an encrypted signal from this location that bypasses all known encryption methods. I've come to offer my services as a Lead Scientific Consultant."
I felt Kim's gaze on me—sharp and knowing. I gave her a subtle 'I'll handle this' look.
"The Producer is... busy," I said. "But the Possible Protocol is always looking for new talent. Especially talent that can build a 'Low-Stakes' containment field around the school before Barkin sees the rocket in his parking spot."
"A containment field? Child's play!" Jimmy said, his fingers flying over his wrist-com. "Goddard! Initiate 'Stealth-Bubble' Protocol! We'll have this entire school shielded from mundane observation in three point two minutes!"
"Wait!" Jenny shouted. "If you shield the school, the Wi-Fi will go down! I need that to download my 'Human Emotions' update!"
"I can bypass the Wi-Fi protocols using a localized neutrino-relay!" Jimmy countered.
"Wait, don't!" I yelled. "Neutrinos will trigger Pips!"
It was too late. Pips, sensing the neutrino-relay, phased out of my pouch and dove into Jimmy's 'Bubble-Wand.' The device began to glow a violent, neon-green. The 'Stealth-Bubble' didn't just hide the school—it turned the entire building into a giant, glowing disco-ball that could be seen from space.
"Oh, boy," Ben muttered, slamming his watch. "Here we go again."
"Jimmy Neutron!" Barkin's voice roared from the faculty lounge. "WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE NEON-GLOW IN MY PARKING LOT?"
I sighed, looking at my team. A ninja-girl, a ghost-boy, an alien-watch kid, a robot-teen, and now a boy-genius with a robot dog. The 'Low-Stakes' meter was officially broken.
"Welcome to the team, Jimmy," I said, grabbing my backpack. "Jenny, help him stabilize the bubble. Kim, distract Barkin. Ben, try not to break anything. I'm going to go see if I can convince Pips that he doesn't want to live in a bubble-wand."
["Danny,"] Sheila's voice rang in my ear. ["I've updated the roster. Jimmy Neutron: Role: Chief R&D and 'Accidental Chaos' Generator. And for the record? The disco-ball looks great on the satellite feed."]
"Low-stakes, Sheila. Low-stakes."