After months of adventures, including dealing with a money shark, sky pirates, luck vampires, and Greek gods, among other things, Scrooge said they would be going on their most dangerous adventure yet. One heading to Scrooge's own home of Scotland. Specifically, to the misty Dismal Downs.
"Remember kids. No sudden movements, no eye contact, and if yer cornered, the heartless heathens will give yew no quarter." Scrooge informs the kids as they drive through the Scottish countryside.
"This does not sound like a fun trip." Louie says, nervous.
"Misty moors, vague warnings, sneaking out behind Uncle Donald's back. Can you please just tell us where we're going?" Huey asks.
"The less yew know, the better." Scrooge says as Huey and Louie share a look before slumping back in their seats.
The entire drive from the airport to the destination, Rebecca has been sitting with Dewey and Webby, the former looking at the Sphere of Selene at memories of Della, unbeknownst to Huey and Louie across from them.
"Ha, that's a good one." Webby says as she watches a memory as well.
"Aha!" Dewey cries out as he nearly drops the Sphere. "How long have you been there watching me?"
"25, 30 minutes. You still haven't told your brothers what we found out about your mom?"
"Tell them what exactly? She took the Spear of Selene? We have no idea what that means. We don't even know what it looks like. Why get them in a panic when this could all be a dead end?" Dewey asks.
"Because... honesty?"
"Mmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm hmm." Dewey suddenly seems to zone put.
"Why do you always do that?"
"Do what?"
"Whenever you want to ignore something, you stare into the distance and pretend you're thinking."
"I'm trying to protect my brothers from finding out something that could upset them."
"And keeping an earth-shattering secret from them that could destroy your brotherhood wouldn't upset them?"
"Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm." Dewey zones out again.
"And, big sis's desire to tell them to avoid such familial destruction isn't important, why?" Rebecca cuts in.
"Because, uh..." Dewey realizes he's been caught, when suddenly, the jeep lurches to a stop.
"Found it." Launchpad says as he has crashed the jeep into a statue of a duck in armor.
"Launchpad, hide the jeep in the moors." Scrooge orders as everyone gets out. "Every five years, the mists of Dismal Downs part enough to reveal the home of the lost treasure of the Knights Templar. Brace yerselves, kids. Primordial menace lurks here, the most treacherous terror ae've ever faced."
"Oi! Jettison that jalopy from my driveway this instant, yew deadbeat!" An old male Scottish voice orders.
Scrooge sighs. "Daddy. Mummy."
Webby and the boys are shocked, as Rebecca puts it together.
"Oh, not a fan of meeting his own parents. Gotcha." Rebecca says.
"Scroogie!" Downy says as she runs up to Scrooge and lifts him up in a crushing hug, kissing him.
"Son." Fergus says, unimpressed.
Downy then releases Scrooge, who falls to the ground. "Ooh! Look at yer wee bairns, finally get ta meet ye'!" She says as she tries to hug the boys, who dodge and evade.
"Nope, I'm fine. Thank you, though." Louie says as he evades.
Eventually, Rebecca receives a big hug from Downy. "Hey grandma Downy."
Downy puts Rebecca down and turns to everyone. "Welcome, all of ye, ta Castle McDuck!" She says as Huey and Rebecca help Scrooge up.
"Your parents are alive?!" Huey exclaims in surprise.
"I can't believe you're still alive." Louie says, walking over to Scrooge, Huey, and Rebecca.
"He put a curse
"That is nae fair! I very kindly rebuilt our ancestral castle for them, and ae may have used some discount mystical druid stones that accidentally granted them immortality. Ae didnae know it would buy me as eternity's worth of criticism." Scrooge argues.
"So, he admits he wants to be rid of us." Fergus returns.
"Gah! Would yew rather I'd let yew pass or made yew immortal?"
"Neither is satisfactory. A thoughtful son would know that." Fergus says, to which Scrooge growls.
Rebecca leans over to her brothers. "In my eleven years with uncle Scrooge this has never come up. We need to know what the deal is." She whispers.
"Right." Huey and Louie nod.
"So this is the actual home of Clan McDuck?" Dewey asks.
"Indeed, child. Within these walls lies the secrets, and mystery of all yer ancestors." Downy explains
"Webby, there's gotta be something about my mom in here." Dewey whispers to Webby.
"Everything McDuck, mysteries, secrets untold. Oooh weee!" Webby says in awe, broken.
Dewey pokes Webby, as she laughs. "Uh oh, she's having a joy overload!"
Scrooge and Fergus then have a stare down, which transitions to the castle dining room, where the stare down continues.
"Oh, we didn't know what to send your birthday gifts these years with you, gallivanting about." Downy says as she give Scrooge a stack of checks for 0.05 £ each.
"Yeah, thanks Mummy. But I'm not just traveling, I'm a seasoned adventurer, seeking fortune and-" Scrooge says, before he is interrupted by Louie who pops up from behind Scrooge's chair.
"Sorry. Hi. Louie Duck, future owner of this castle. This Templar treasure, like can I have it now, or do I have to wait to inherit or-?" He asks, leaving Scrooge smiling weakly, and Rebecca facepalming as the entire situation of the Templar treasure and Simon McDuck is explained, before they eventually move on to a hall of portraits, Webby still in overload.
"So, uhh, this place has info on ALL of our relatives?" Dewey asks.
"Oh, aye. There is Fergus' father 'Dirty' Dingus McDuck." Downy says, stopping in front of a portrait of Dingus with a pickaxe in a mine.
Huey and Louie giggle at the name, as Rebecca is intrigued.
"So that is where you middle name comes from. It isn't a direct reference to your intelligence." Rebecca says to Dewey.
"I guess-hey!" Dewey remarks as they follow Downy further down the hall.
"The ghosts of Clan McDuck loom large here." Downy explains as they stop at a bow. "This belonged to Murdock McDuck, first to patent the longbow. Murdock made a fortune selling his bows to the English army. Of course, he charged extra for the arrows." She says as Dewey messes with the arrow bag.
"Heh, Ian would LOVE to hear that." Rebecca grins as they move to the next portrait.
"Sir Swamphole McDuck was obsessed with hoarding treasure."
"Sound familiar?" Fergus snides to Scrooge.
"So he built a mysterious series of tunnels under the castle to keep the family fortune. Some say he summoned a demon dog to stalk the catacombs." Downy says, as Webby squeals in excitement and Rebecca gasps in glee, which Downy mistakes for fear. "Oh, they're just stories... Maybe... Probably." She looks around and crosses the hallway, as the others follow. "Oh and look here, little Scroogey and Whiskers!" At this, Scrooge facepalms.
"Whiskers?" Huey asks incredulously.
"Little Scroogie always want a dog but we were too poor. So we all pitched in to buy a clump of hair from the local barber." She explains as she points out the various pictures of Scrooge and his 'pet'. "Ock, how Scroogie loved his Whiskers!"
"Aye, but who ended up having to walk him and feed him?" Fergus remarks.
"It was a ball of hair!" Scrooge defends and reminds.
"How dare yew talk about Whiskers like that?! He was family!" Fergus says angrily.
"Curse me kilts!"
"Don't yew curse in front of yer mother!"
"I'm not a child anymore!"
"Then stop acting like one!" Fergus says as Scrooge challenges him to an arm wrestling match...
...
A short while later, they head into a bedroom, Scrooge's coat pulled over his head as Webby and Rebecca follow.
"Fergus didn't mean anything by that headlock, Scroogie, you know family means everything to him." Downy says as she puts some blankets on the bed.
"Sure doesn't seem like it." Rebecca grumbles grouchily and quietly as Webby fans over the pictures of Scrooge.
"See you at dinner!" Downy says as she walks out.
"Hmm... If it's family Daddy wants, then it's family he'll get. That'll prove ae'm worthy. Steel yerselves, girls! We are gonna have a pleasant family dinner." Scrooge says as Rebecca sighs.
"Geez, where are the guys when you need them?" She asks herself.
Later, at dinner, where only Scrooge, Rebecca, Downy, and Fergus are present...
"This is great, Mummy. Family sitting, sharing a hot kidney pie. Uh, these are the kind of values ae try to instill in my own family. Warm memories, togetherness..." Scrooge says
"And where are the boys?"
"Oh, probably off being supportive of each other
"Well, Webby, here, is one of the most articulate young lassies, and she's not here..." Scrooge realizes. "Er, well, Rebecca, who ae've raised like me own daughter, is here at least." Scrooge says proudly,
"Uh..." Rebecca feels embarrassed being put on the spot, shrinking down into her chair.
"Aye, yer a real family man, aren't yew?" Fergus asks sarcastically.
"Ae will have you know... Ring ring!" Scrooge pretends his phone is ringing. "Ooh! Hey, hello! What? Yer here? At Dismal Downs? Huh! What a surprise! Of course! Ae'll be right out." Scrooge rushes out of the room and out of the castle to get... someone, leaving Rebecca alone with her great grandparents.
"So? Scrooge is yer 'father'?" Fergus asks.
"Uh, pretty much? He did raise me my entire life, at his manor, with little contact with the outside world..." Rebecca says, trying to make small talk as eyes are on her.
"Fergus don't stare at the poor girl, yer scaring her!" Downy chides her husband.
Scrooge then returns, feet muddy, with Launchpad disguised as Donald. "Mummy, Daddy, say hello to your great nephew and my beloved ward: Donald!"
"Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy! Quack!" Launchpad says as Scrooge facepalms.
At seeing Launchpad 'disguised' as Donald, Rebecca groans and hides her face. It was so embarrassing. If she only knew what was about to happen, she'd have wished she'd gone with her brothers and left Scrooge to his fate.
...
As the whole debacle of Launchpad nearly blowing his cover, Fergus criticizing Scrooge, and the ensuing fight occurs, Rebecca texts her brothers, begging them to hurry back and 'save' her from this awkward family dinner that is metaphorically killing her. Unfortunately, it seems the castle has poor reception, as she can't send the message. This was going to be a LONG family dinner.
After everything, what with Scrooge and Fergus partially fixing their relationship, Rebecca is socially exhausted, glaring at her brothers who ABANDONED her, expecting results as everyone packs the jeep to leave.
"So? Get anything?" Rebecca asks as they head to the jeep.
Huey shows the pencil rubbing. "THIS is the Spear of Selene. It also gives us a date. April 15, 2006."
"Wait, that's our birthday." Rebecca says, relieved to have some info.
"We know. Meaning whatever the Spear of Selene is, it has some sort of link to our birth." Huey says.
"So, we have some dates, and know what the Spear looks like. So, now we just gotta finish the puzzle. Why did mom take the Spear and vanish before we were born? What was the Spear of Selene? And why is Uncle Scrooge so intent on hiding this info?" Rebecca inquires quietly.
"No idea..." Huey whispers.
"But we are gonna find out." Dewey says, determined as the four fist-bump as Webby snaps out of her trance just as the castle goes out of sight, crying out in anguish.