Huey wasn't kidding: the translating of the runes was a long process. It was certainly the longest thing Scrooge had ever done: those dark, cold nights in the Klondike were nothing compared to this. The constant back and forth between the walls and Huey's Junior Woodchuck Guidebook felt like an endless merry-go-round, one that led to aching feet and a sore back. While the tycoon was not afraid of laborious tasks, this was one he could have gone without.
Scrooge decided to take a quick break. Leaning on his cane, he watched as his family went around the chamber. This adventure had started out normally enough: Launchpad crashed the Sunchaser (or was it Cloudslayer? The jury was still out on that one) and almost caused Della to have a fit, the family found the temple and proceeded to explore it, triggered the traps, and found themselves trying to solve a puzzle to get to the treasure. It was a run-of-the-mill outing for the Duck family. Had they faced death before? Yes, but not like this: there was always a quick way out, always a sure way to defeat the danger without anyone getting hurt. But now…
Scrooge's eyes fell on Louie and his heart hurt. The magnate acted brave but, in reality, he was terrified. He couldn't bear the thought of losing a member of his family, especially one of the children. On top of that, the child in danger was Louie. The magnate felt closer to the green triplet than the rest of the children: he loved them all, of course, but Scrooge could see himself in Louie. Maybe not where the laziness or the get-rich-quick schemes were concerned, but the boy was sharp, resourceful, and driven. If he applied those traits more often, he would achieve greatness in everything he did – perhaps even surpass his old uncle one day. There was also a greediness that was not unlike Scrooge's and that was what tripped Louie up in each of his endeavours, something the old duck could relate to. And no matter how many times the magnate counselled his great-nephew about that said greediness Louie would go back to his ways, just like how Scrooge used to do when he was younger. Despite the agony the youngest triplet was capable of putting him through, Scrooge had a fondness for the boy that he could not shake. If they could not save Louie in time, the magnate would never be able to forgive himself for putting his family in this situation.
With a groan, he strengthened himself up and went back to work. He was trying to make out a faded rune when there was a loud quacking sound that was followed by a thud. Scrooge sighed heavily before turning around, hands on his hips and foot tapping as his eyes fell on the heap that was Della and Donald. The children paused in their endeavours to look at their fallen comrades.
"All right, whose fault is this?" Scrooge asked impatiently.
His niece and nephew pointed towards each other.
"His!" Della exclaimed.
"Hers!" Donald yelled simultaneously.
Their uncle ran a hand over his face. Why couldn't those two work together without causing a calamity for once?
"Honestly, you two can't be trusted to collaborate on a jigsaw puzzle," Scrooge told them. "Let me guess: Donald was holding Della up and got his fingers caught in her mechanical foot?"
There was a snicker that came from the children. Scrooge glowered at them and they fell silent.
"That pretty much sums it up," Della said, glaring at her brother. "I told him to keep his fingers on the flat part but he moved them to the joint! I had to reposition myself and his fingers got pinched."
"And I told you that I didn't have a good grip on there!" Donald snapped as he massaged his sore digits.
"I was almost done with that portion of the runes! If you had just held on for another two seconds –"
"ENOUGH!" Scrooge yelled, slamming his cane to the ground. They all stared at him with wide eyes. "This is no time for arguing! We have a child's life at stake here and we cannot afford to get sidetracked. I can't believe I'm saying this, but you can learn a thing or two about teamwork from Dewey and Webby."
"Teamwork makes the dream work!" Dewey and Webby chorused, giving each other a high-five.
The magnate pointed at them with his cane. "See? Now get back to work!"
"Yes, Uncle Scrooge…" the twins said in unison, glancing at each other.
Heaving another sigh, Scrooge turned back to the rune he had been examining before the ruckus began. Something green came into his peripheral vision and he turned, his eyes falling on Louie.
"How are you doing, lad?" Scrooge asked, his annoyance at Donald and Della instantly melting away.
"Okay, I guess…" Louie said, shrugging as he stuffed his hands in the pocket of his sweater. It was obvious to the magnate that the boy was trying his best to appear nonchalant.
Scrooge got down on one knee and placed a gentle hand on his grandnephew's shoulder. "It's perfectly fine to be scared, Louie," he said. "Anyone would be if they were in your shoes."
"I'm not –" Louie began, but one look from his great-uncle caused him to falter. He glanced down and, after a beat, said, "All right, fine. I'm terrified. I don't want to die, Uncle Scrooge. Especially not before I got to enjoy my inheritance."
"You won't be getting your hands on that for a long while," Scrooge told him sternly. He then softened. "You're not going to die, my boy. The people who built this temple may have been smart but they weren't smart enough to defeat us. We'll find that antidote and cure you, I promise."
"But what if we don't? That's still a very real possibility."
"Don't think like that. How many adventures have you been on with me?"
Louie raised an eyebrow. "Relevance?" he asked.
"Just answer the question," Scrooge replied as he got back onto his feet.
"I don't know… Hundreds? Thousands? Do you really expect us to keep track?"
"And how many of those adventures resulted in failure?"
There was a pause. The magnate could see the comprehension dawning in his youngest grandnephew. "Only one…" the boy said quietly.
"There you have it. I'm Scrooge McDuck: when I set my sight on something, I get it. And right now, my sight is on the antidote that will cure you. Nobody is going to die while they're in my care, that's a guarantee."
A wave of emotion seemed to overcome Louie. His beak quivered and he threw his arms around his great-uncle's waist. The gesture came on so fast that it caught Scrooge by surprise, but he composed himself and returned the embrace, giving Louie a gentle squeeze.
"Thanks, Uncle Scrooge," Louie whispered, his face buried in the magnate's chest.
A small smile made its way onto Scrooge's face. It was soon replace by a frown, however, when he felt an inordinate amount of heat radiating from Louie. The magnate carefully pushed his grandnephew at arm's length to examine him. He was shocked to see that there was a sheen of sweat on Louie's brow along with a flush that coloured his cheeks. Alarmed, Scrooge felt his grandnephew forehead.
"You're burning up!" Scrooge exclaimed. He turned to the rest of the team. "Everybody, listen up! Louie's got a fever, which means the first symptom has settled in. We've got to pick up the pace!"
Donald and Della looked stricken by the news while Huey, Dewey, and Webby jumped into action. The twins joined in seconds later, this time Donald climbing onto his sister's shoulders in order to continue the translation of the upper runes. Louie began to make his way back to his siblings but Scrooge grabbed his arm.
"Maybe you should sit this one out," the magnate advised. "Save your strength."
"My life is at stake, Uncle Scrooge," Louie replied. "All hands on deck."
There was a determination in the green triplet's eyes that caused his great-uncle to let him go. Scrooge watched him cross the chamber, more worried than ever. He hadn't expected the first symptom to make its appearance so soon – maybe that poison moved faster than the Junior Woodchuck Guidebook claimed. Praying that it was not the case, Scrooge went back to work, trying to push all distressing thoughts to the back of his mind. He had to focus and the last thing he needed was to be distracted by his own fears. Unfortunately, that was much easier said than done.