Rosetta Dagotto and the Fight for the Underworld

Chapter Five: The Goddess of the Hunt

Chapter 5: The Goddess of the Hunt

She arrives at the airport with an hour to spare, which sets Rosetta on edge. From her first flight with her Mom, she learned that arriving on time was critical. The two had gotten stranded at an airport for 24 hours because they had missed their flight flying back from Orlando. They had spent the weekend at Universal Studios. It had been tons of fun up until that moment.

Fortunately, Rosetta gets through security without any hassle. She's relieved her bow and arrows don't set off any alarms. TSA may be good at finding knives and guns, but their scanners can't see anything regarding wooden shafts with stone arrowheads. She offers a quick prayer to her father for letting her get through. Her confidence bolsters. Her getting through so quickly indicates her quest is following the Fates' will.

Rosetta can't believe how much anxiety there is waiting for the half-hour to pass before she boards the plane. Maybe it's because she can't do anything but wait. Or perhaps it's because the TSA people keep shooting her odd looks. Either way, it makes Rosetta taps her foot with increasing frequency. But she has nothing to worry about. She boards without any issues, stares, and all.

And then she has to wait. Again. At least Rosetta takes solace in the fact that she has a window seat. It takes another twenty minutes before takeoff.

The entire six-hour flight is quite long. Rosetta has to constantly remind herself that it's technically a shorter time than it would have been if she had driven there. Her thoughts flew along the whole trip with what would happen when she arrived. Halfway to Alaska, she hears sounds and sees weather patterns that the other passengers can't see.

She figures it has something to do with her developing demigod abilities. She hasn't perfected those abilities yet, and Rosetta doesn't know which of her father's gifts these strange things would fall under.

In the end, Rosetta decides it doesn't matter. She's just glad she's developed her archery enough to be considered a prodigy with the bow.

When the plane finally lands in Anchorage, Alaska, Rosetta sighs in relief but itches to get up and move.

She purchases a heavy heated jacket, an Alaska beanie, and a pair of warm black gloves at the airport store—which she dryly notes must be triple what they are actually worth. A fact worsened further because she had ensured that the Anchorage airport had a store when she planned this trip. The less she had to take on the plane, the better.

It's mid-May in Alaska, and according to her weather app, it's thirty-eight degrees Fahrenheit. Cold for sure, but not as freezing as it could have been. And it's dark out.

Rosetta sighs, knowing she'll need to stay the night at a hotel until morning. At least she'll get a refreshing night's sleep before she begins her search.

She looks up to where the nearest hotel, which is 1.9 miles from the airport. She hails the Alaska Yellow Dispatch for a ride, and the driver shows up about ten minutes later.

"Where to, ma'am," The middle-aged man with salt and pepper hair asks her.

"The Hilton Anchorage hotel, please," Rosetta tells him. The drive to the hotel itself takes about fifteen minutes. When the taxi arrives at its destination, she hands the man a fifty-dollar bill and tells him to keep the change before hopping out. The cab leaves quickly.

It takes Rosetta about twenty minutes to rent a hotel room and get everything situated before she finally gets to walk through the doors of her room. The hotel room is simple, and it has a queen bed, a bathroom, a TV, a mini fridge, a desk, a chair, and a coffee maker.

At this point, Rosetta is exhausted. The flight was long, and she only wanted to collapse on the bed and sleep on the hotel bed. But before that, she decides to go to the hotel's rooftop to check out the scenery. This is her first time being in Alaska, after all.