"The Quest for Kalevala" is a 1999 Uncle Scroogecomic book story written and drawn by Don Rosa. The story was first published in the Danish Anders And & Co. #1999-48; the first American publication was in Uncle Scrooge #334, in October 2004. The Quest for Kalevala is based on the Finnishnational epicKalevala, assembled and partly written by Elias Lönnrot in the 19th century. Rosa's inspiration for the story was a Finnish children's book called Koirien Kalevala by the Finnish cartoonistMauri Kunnas, who was himself inspired by the original Kalevala. Part of the story takes place in Helsinki, Finland, depicted in an accurate, realistic way as the city looked in the 1950s, though some buildings pictured weren't built until the 1960s.
Plot
While going through his trunk full of old mementos and souvenirs, Scrooge discovers a page that he remembers having originally torn from one of Lönnrot's notebooks when they met in Scotland in the late 19th century. Huey, Dewey and Louie consult their Junior Woodchucks Guidebook and find out that the notes on the page are part of Lönnrot's notes for the Kalevala and reveal the location of the remains of the Sampo. Upon hearing of this mythical machine that can produce grain, salt, and most particularly, gold, out of thin air, Scrooge sets out to find it. The Ducks travel to Helsinki, where the director of the Finnish Literature Society explains Lönnrot's notes to them and explains the location marked in them. The Ducks travel to the island indicated in the notes, where they find Väinämöinen's legendary sword. Touching the sword awakens the spirit of Väinämöinen, which uses the body of whoever touched the sword as its locus of connection to the mortal world. He tells them what happened to the Sampo during the Kalevala times. Väinämöinen's magic brings Gyro Gearloose to the island, and imbued with Seppo Ilmarinen's spirit, Gyro reassembles the Sampo. However, the Sampo does not work because it is missing a part that was stolen by Louhi, now residing in the afterlife in Tuonela, the underworld. Scrooge and Donald go to Tuonela to retrieve the missing part. However, after they have left, Louhi becomes aware of the return of her ancient enemy and summons Magica De Spell to help her get the Sampo back. Sailing back to continental Finland, Väinämöinen and the Ducks are able to fix the Sampo and start producing gold from thin air. However, Magica De Spell and Louhi attack their ship. In the ensuing battle, Louhi manages to steal Väinämöinen's famous kantele, which holds such great power that she loses interest in the Sampo. As the start of her new reign, Louhi summons the sea monster Iku-Turso and orders it to wreak havoc on Helsinki. Donald goes after Iku-Turso to stop it, it and Louhi being confounded by the modern city. In the process, Donald gets the kantele back and is able to lure Iku-Turso back to the sea. With Louhi defeated and his kantele returned, Väinämöinen makes the ship levitate. The Ducks are thrown off the ship except Scrooge who clings to Sampo. Väinämöinen invites Scrooge to come to the lands of Kalevala with him as he sees a kindred spirit in Scrooge. Scrooge, however, can't bear to lose his family and friends, so he instead abandons the Sampo. Väinämöinen throws Scrooge off the ship and congratulates him on having made the right choice.
