~Author's note~ I don't own any of the twilight characters, Aikiterina is of my own work and imagination. Please leave good reviews for these last chapters are the build up to the finale of this story. Thank you.

Chapter 49

Caius stepped of the plane with the entire Volturi guard following closely from behind. To the humans, it would look like a normal family gathering of relatives and such visiting in Greece. But to the vampire coven, it meant life and death was in fate's hands as they headed out toward the visitor's terminal where the Mother Priestess awaited them.

"This place has changed a lot since the last decade we were here, brothers." Aro commented casually looking about him. Sculpida rolled her eyes up at the heavens at her husband's comment.

"Of course time changes, Aro. You just have to move with it or else nothing moves forward." She said cryptically. Caius growled something under this own breath.

"Will you guys just pick up the pace? I wish to get to the temple as soon as the sun sets." He said irritably. It had been weeks since he was able lay eyes on his children and future queen. Just knowing that they would be waiting for him at the hidden temple was enough to make him restless in itself. If it wasn't for the fact that Theo was there with him, he wasn't quite sure how he would be able to handle the current situation without blowing his cool.

"If I only just was able to do something about all of this shit in the first place." Caius grumbled.

"Welcome to Greece, My lords."

Everyone jumped in surprise and came face to face with Nadia and two of her special bodyguards. All three were dressed in jeans and casual tank tops to match the current hot weather outside. Nadia smiled politely and beckend with her hand to follow them out of the airport.

"How was your trip overall coming in from Italy?" She asked as they went through the crowded airport. "I hope that everything went smoothly for you?" She added.

Marcus coughed loudly. "Well, everything except that Caius kept driving us up the wall about wanting to get here faster."
He said with a straight face. Caius shot his brother a dirty glare but didn't say anything to counter his remark.

"I was merely talking about the time." He gritted. "How is the children and their mother?" He asked out loud.

Nadia didn't turn her head around when she replied simply. "Rina isn't' with us at the current moment."

Caius stopped dead in his tracks. "What the fuck do you mean she's not with you at the moment?" He said sharply. Theo reached a hand out over his shoulder to hold him from grabbing the mother priestess as her own bodyguards tensed at his threatening low growl. Aro gave his younger brother a warning look. "Caius, this isn't the place, nor the time for your being impolite with our hostess." He said while pushing him to continue walking down a main corridor that lead out to the nearby parking garage.

"I want an answer right now, Nadia. Where is she?" Caius yelled once they were out of the eyes of the humans. Nadia motioned for her bodyguards to relax as she faced his hard crimson eyes with her blue ones, looking straight into them.

"Roman and his sister are safe within my walls of protection. Aikiteirna is training with a very, very old friend of yours that you have seem to have forgotten since you last met." Walking over to a single line of black SUV cars, she motioned gracefully towards the.

"All yours until your visit is finished." Looking at Aro and his brothers, "You may ride in my personal car so that I may be able to fully explain myself of what has happened since Aikiterina left with me suddenly." Caius wanted to throttle her as he fought to not lose his already rapidly fading patience with this woman.

As if sensing his thoughts, she turned towards him with a stone face. "If you do anything stupid while you are within my domain, I have full authority and power to punish you for your actions, Cauis. No man, beast, vampire, sorcery,etc, are protected within their powers while within my walls. You may have an army of vampires with inhuman abilities, but I have a power that would destroy all you in a snap of my finger."

Caius kept his peace and allow his brothers to herd him, not so nicely, into the backseats of her parked SUV Bentley, while everyone else got ready to go in the other cars. "I'm sorry for my harsh words." He apologized with a low growl. "Surely you understand that a father and mate gets rather upset and worried when separated from his family for too long."

The Mother Priestess nodded her head in acknowledgment. "Apology accepted."

Caius remained quiet for a while as he gazed out at the tinted windows with a slight frown touching his immortal face. Ever since the events leading up to what was going on to his coven with Aikiteirna coming back into his life, everything he had believed in for well over three thousand years, had all changed with her.

His belief that all should be treated with equal respect, yet being able to have that sense of fear within them. She changed that by telling him that others could respect him and his older brothers better if they didn't have to act above them. Life should still be precious to them even though they were not human anymore.

What is life to you, Caius?

Caius kept his face completely cool as he felt the delicate intrusion of Nadia's mind settle into his own like a soft butterfly landing on a twig. She wasn't demanding, nor forceful this time. More like just wanting to better understand his own view point for herself.

Its morel like trying to move forward with it and stay within its natural boundaries without being changed with it. My whole life, both human and immortal, hasn't been an easy one. I've always had to fight for whats rightfully mine and put up a non-caring front in order to keep control over others. Why should I have to go through the same pain that I went through before in my previous life?

She was silent for a moment before speaking up again gently. Perhaps the Gods had your life planned out already and it was just waiting for the right time for it to go forward. We don't have control over what they write in stone, but perhaps we do have the ultimatum power to change it by making that "Good Or Bad" choice.

Take Atheodora for example, a woman who was once human and serving the goddess as a virgin high priestess, only to have her young human life be cut off by the very ones who sought to rule her kind. Then you came into her life somehow and gave her another chance to life again. You showed her the kindness was possible and love could be the only thing that could help heal the scar hidden deep within her. Did she ever be disloyal to you or become jealous of the past she had seen with her ability? No, she did not. It was because she wants you to be happy as a individual. Not someone your not, Caius.

"Caius, are you alright?" Marcus asked, waving a finger in front of his brother's face. "You've been very quiet since we got into the car. What the matter?" He said with concern. Caius lightly smirked. You could always count on Marcus being the more concern brother of the three when it came down to it.

"I'm fine,Marcus. Just worried about Rina and the kids, is all." He replied mildly. Aro cast a look toward Theo's way but didn't say anything to his brother's remark.

Nadia smiled slightly as the stone walls of her guarded sanctuary came into view a few minutes later. The sun was high still in the late afternoon giving the white stones as soft glow as they neared the main gate. Nadia instructed her bodyguard to park in the rear entrance to prevent any possible normal mortal of seeing the vampiers unusual "glow" from afar.

Nadia unbuckled her seat belt and opened the door, smiling widely as Felix and Demetri appeared out of nowhere. They bowed respectfully to their masters.

"Glad to you two are doing rather well now without me." Caius said with his usual glare. Felix coughed loudly, a very nervous habit he had been having since Rina left them.

"Well, Master Caius, its been rather boring without you bossing us around a lot." He said with a huge smile. Demetri nodded hastily to affirming his best friend's words.

"Sure is, Master. Boring and being bossed around by a bunch of noisy women while taking care of the twins." He added.

Aro grabbed his bags in the back trunk and turned his sharp gaze onto the bodyguards. "Speaking of 'twins'," He said, nodding toward Nadia. "Where is Jane and Alec? They seem to be missing from here and its not too often that we don't see them afar from these too."

If looks could kill right now, Felix was valiantly wishing his master had not even asked them that question. Demetri began biting his bottom lip nervously when he caught Caius starting to openly wear his death expression in his crimson eyes.

"Well? are you two not going to say anything?" Marcus demanded sharply, causing the two to jump at the unusual sharpness of his voice.

"Er,..er," Felix looked helplessly toward Demteri for help. The Italian vampire could only shake his auburn head while shrugging his shoulders in silent reply. "Jane has gone looking for her brother in the ancient forest of Athens." He finally said quietly.

Everyone stared at him in shock. "WHAT?"

Felix flinched at Aro's low hiss of disapproval. "I'm sorry, really I am. We didn't know about it until this morning."

"Well, he should be sorry for allowing my brother to leave on his own or else I would be more then willing to kill him right this very second."