Author's Note: Peace and greetings upon you, dear readers. You don't know me, but I know you: you are the fanfiction readers of the Code Geass fandom, and this story is the start of a new, inter-series venture. The Atlantean Saga was a concept that came to me a while ago. I won't reveal too much, but basically it involves those who exist outside of regular time and space interfering in the events of various universes (or copies they make of those universes, as the case is here). What other fandoms besides Code Geass will be involved? What is Atlantis's goal? You'll just have to read to find out.

This is a prologue. It's not quite as long as I had intended, but as Prologues go it ends in its natural conclusion. Now, coming up is my disclaimer, which may shed some more light on my concept.

Disclaimer: I do not own Code Geass, Bandai Entertainment and Sunrise do. Should they ask me to remove this story, I shall comply. I do not own any of the universes to whose events I may or may not make random references to throughout the course of this story. I do mostly own anything related to Atlantis, though obviously those are somewhat inspired by the actual legends of Atlantis, and also loosely inspired by the events of the DOMA/Waking the Dragons arc of Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters, which I do not own. The multiversal concept is loosely based off the Infinite Worlds GURPS setting. There may also be occasional references to the Niantic Project ARG/Ingress Android game, which, as you may know, was partially made as a viral campaign to advertise a reboot of a series of novels about Atlantis.

On with the show, then.

Prologue

Lelouch turned away from Euphemia. "You are... you are the worst opponent I have ever faced." He reached up to his head and took off his Zero mask. "You win."

"Huh?" asked his pink-haired, younger half-sister.

"I'll amend my plans to help out your Special Zone. But not as your subordinate, all right?"

"All right!" shouted Euphie enthusiastically. "Though you haven't got very much faith in me, have you?"

"Hmm?"

"Did you honestly believe that by simply threatening me I would shoot you?" Euphemia playfully asked her brother.

"Oh, no, you've got it all wrong. When I really want people to follow my orders, they will not resist me - whether it's to shoot me, to grant pardon to Suzaku, or any order at all."

"Oh, now you're being silly. Stop playing with me."

"I'm serious. For example, if told you to-" Lelouch had, in this time, turned around to face Euphie. "What the hell?"

Standing in front of him… was Clovis la Britannia, holding up a mirror to Lelouch, showing him his left eye… permanently engraved with the mark of Geass.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

- Several Weeks Earlier -

"So, you made a copy of that world, my lord?" asked the green-armored knight.

"Yes. Just a little experiment. I have no intention of altering the actual events of the prime, but I'm a bit bored, these days," came the nonchalant reply from the faded-cyan-haired baron.

The green knight leaned on the stone pillar behind him, looking up for a moment at the ceiling depicting various histories of that most ancient city. "And of course," he began, meeting the plum-colored gaze of his lord with his own brown eyes, "you're going to be doing this on your own, because God forbid you ever ask your knights for help."

The baron sat up straighter and smirked. "I'm hurt, my dear Timaeus. You act as if I have no use for you." He wagged his finger in a playful manner. "That could not be further from the truth. But it just so happens that I need you to hold down the city while I'm gone."

"Hold down what?!" asked Timaeus incredulously. "There's nobody here, Darian, you let all your citizens stay interspersed on their homeworlds!"

"Well, yes, but-" Darian attempted.

"Why can't you just make one of the others do it? You always make me hold this place down. Do you not think I'm good enou-" the slightly angered knight continued.

"ENOUGH!" shouted the lord of the city. "Timaeus, it's because I trust you the most. You're the only one I can trust for this."

There was silence for a full minute. Finally, the cowed knight ventured, "Truly, my lord?"

"Of course," Darian replied. "Critias is away on assignment; Hermocrates doesn't have as much of a head for politics and ruling as he thinks he does, and he's a bumbling fool besides, loyal as he may be; and Socrates… I fear he'll turn on the Citizen PA system and bore my entire population to death with his philosophical rambling. I like the man, really, but occasionally I think there's something wrong with him if he finds that stuff exciting." Timaeus snickered. "Not to mention what would happen if he were to turn on … the other PA."

Timaeus's eyes widened. "He'd destroy the entire multiverse in minutes!"

"Indeed. Now you understand my problems."

"Very well, my lord. I will hold down Atlantis while you are gone."

"Thank you," the immortal Baron of Atlantis said graciously.

"My lord," began the equally immortal knight, "what is Critias's assignment, anyway. Related to … this move at all?"

"Don't worry, my knight," Darian chided, "you'll find out. Though, if you must know, no, it's not related to this. It's related to another copy."

"Wait, what?" asked Timaeus, confused. "You made two copies?"

"Well, no. Not yet. Critias is experimenting with a different world. Then I'll…"

"...You're going to cross them over, aren't you?" Timaeus asked, almost in a whisper.

"Yes."

"Permission to speak freely, my lord?"

"Permission granted, my friend."

"I do believe you take pleasure from other people's torment, my lord."

"You may be right. But no need to concern yourself. That won't be for a while now." Darian Rogue, Baron of Atlantis, stood up from his throne and stretched. "For now, it's just one copy of one world. Oh, get off that pillar." The knight jumped as a swirling vortex, a portal, began forming behind him.

"I do hope you're not going because you want to help or anything, my lord. If you wanted to do that, you'd have just killed Eowyn."

"Heh," replied the Baron. "I'd never have done that. He was my friend."

"Would he have remained your friend if he had found out that Julius Caesar and Cladius were also your friends?"

"Hey, what he didn't know didn't hurt him. The Celtic High Kingdoms, the Kingdom of Britain… those actually stood for something. Not the Holy Britannian Empire, though. That's different."

"And I assume this isn't about C's World, either."

"That failed experiment? No, not really, though I don't intend to let Ragnarok be completed."

"It's probably not an excuse to see C.C. either."

"No, not at all. I find her enjoyable, but for whatever reason she hates me." Darian shrugged. "Don't know what I did."

"Your relationship with Joan of Arc miiiiiiight have had something to do with it," suggested Timaeus.

"Ahhhh," Darian began. He then proceeded to laugh merrily. "Ah, yes, that was fun stuff. I guess I forgot they had been bitter rivals."

"So," the knight continued. "You really are just… bored."

"Yes."

"Ladies and gentlemen of Atlantis, our Baron."

"Shut the hell up, Sir Knight."

After a few moments of silence, the pair break into laughter. When they finally manage to calm, Darian says one last thing.

"If you'll excuse me, I need to go deal with the soul of a certain about-to-die fruit."

Timaeus watched as his lord disappeared into the portal, hearing him mutter something about a man being so gay he was straight. The portal closed, and Timaeus smiled wanly. He walked backward and took his place upon his lord's throne, waiting.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

"I'm overjoyed, Lelouch!" exclaimed Clovis la Britannia, Third Prince of the Holy Britannian Empire and Viceroy of Area Eleven, although he was actually quite frightened. Just what had his little brother become? "They said you died when Japan was brought into the fold. What a blessing to have you back! We should depart for the homeland immediately!"

Lelouch vi Britannian, Eleventh Prince of the Holy Britannian Empire, formerly 17th in line to the throne, suddenly was angered. "So you can use me as a tool of diplomacy?" he asked incredulously. "It seems you've forgotten why we were used as tools in the first place." At the look of sudden understanding on Clovis's face, the 17-year old continued. "That's right. It was because my mother was killed. Mother held the title of knight of honor but was a commoner by birth. No doubt the other imperial consorts held her in contempt. Even though you made it look like the work of terrorists, I'm no fool. You people killed my mother!"

Clovis tried to back away, but realized he was sitting. "It wasn't me!" he shouted as if his life depended on it. "I swear to you it wasn't!"

"Then," Lelouch began, activating his geass, letting the sigil of the red crane appear in his left eye, "tell me everything you know. The truth cannot be hidden from me any longer. By whose hand was she slain?"

"My brother second prince Schneizel and second princess Cornelia, they can tell you," replied Clovis, his eyes ringed in red, now under the influence of Geass.

"They were at the heart of this?" asked Lelouch, only somewhat surprised. "That's all you know, isn't it." Lelouch released the hold of the geass.

"I swear," Clovis continued from his previous dialogue, "it wasn't me! I had nothing to do with it!"

"I believe you. However…" Lelouch raised his gun, aiming it at his older half-brother's head.

Clovis's eyes widened as he realized what was about to happen. "Please, you can't! We may have different mothers, but you and I are still blood!"

"You can't change the world without getting your hands dirty!" Lelouch exclaimed, slightly apologetically. He fired. But the bullet did not hit Clovis. Not yet.

And that's a rap. For now. Review if you want. I honestly don't even expect anyone to read this. I'm not sure when I'll have another chapter out, but it shouldn't be too long.