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LOCATION: MARIINSKYI PALACE
CITY: KYIV, UKRAINE
DATE: OCTOBER 12, 2026 | TIME: 9:00 AM
Once Anatoly Brezhnev's insidious plot to topple the fragile global peace was exposed and stopped, it was time to turn to concrete actions to build a new reality that drove humanity toward peace, not war.
Toward prosperity, rather than scarcity.
When the war in Ukraine officially ended, money began pouring in from all over the world to assist with feeding displaced people, reuniting families, and perhaps just as importantly, rebuilding.
After ending the war, global sanctions on Russia had been lifted under one condition: that Russia commit to helping with the rebuilding effort in Ukraine.
It was a condition that, to the surprise of many, was suggested by none other than the new President Nikolai Baranov himself.
It didn't take a lot of work to convince the oligarchs who controlled much of the manufacturing might of Russia to direct their business to support the reconstruction effort.
Real money would be paid for those contracts, and the influx of currency bolstered the economy and created thousands of jobs. All welcome in Russia after the dark period they had endured for so long.
On October 12th, Russian President Baranov met with the Ukrainian President at the Mariinskyi Palace in Kyiv.
They discussed opening diplomatic channels again, but most of their meeting focused on reconstruction.
Baranov had pulled Russian troops out of Ukraine days after he issued a ceasefire back in May. But there were still Russian government officials in annexed cities in the Donbas and Crimea who were prepared to leave their posts as soon as Ukrainian replacements were appointed.
The tone of the meeting was not only cordial, but almost nostalgic, harkening back to a time when Russia and Ukraine were not just allies, but more like family.
Across the country, land was being tilled and crops replanted. Steel mills and other engines of the manufacturing might of Ukraine were back at full operating capacity. And nuclear power plants were going through meticulous repairs under the watchful eye of international agencies trained for such delicate efforts.
United States President Michael Trent had offered to attend the meeting as a mediating force, but he was waved off by both heads of state, insisting they could handle it themselves now.
Back in Washington, Trent watched the televised exchange with interest, and he was glad to see that, at least in public, the two men seemed relaxed. Almost friendly, even.
To think that the strike on the USS Ford back in April was the instigating event leading to the peace that the world was now enjoying…
Trent leaned back in his chair, staring out the window. Would the families of the 5,000 sailors and airmen lost feel the price was worth it?
"Not that they were given the choice," he muttered as he turned off the broadcast from Kyiv.
"Jonathan," the President said, "get me the latest on the Korean reunification."
"Yes, sir," the President's Chief of Staff said. He made a few calls, requesting more detail on that section of the President's Daily Briefing.
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LOCATION: THE DEMILITARIZED ZONE
AREA: THE KOREAN PENINSULA
DATE: OCTOBER 12, 2026 | TIME: 1:00 PM
One of the first initiatives North and South Korea began working on after the North Korean Transition Council (NKTC) was formed, was making the Demilitarized Zone safe for civilians to cross.
The North toppled their watchtowers first, and once the South saw them doing so, they began to believe.
When the North began the long and meticulous work of removing land mines from their side of the line, the South believed it more.
That was when the South Korean leadership began reciprocating the efforts from the North, first removing guard towers, and then land mines, barbed wire fences, and other obstacles designed to keep people apart.
By mid-August, with the debris cleared and the entire DMZ declared free of land mines, the North and South began paving a brand new five-lane highway between the two countries.
By October, General Cho Joon had led the NKTC for six months, and on October 1st, North Korea held its first elections in years.
Cho Joon was elected for a two-year term as Transition President, and his mandate was to oversee the reunification of the Korean people, while ensuring that the North Koreans were not treated, literally, as second-class citizens.
On October 12th, General Cho and the South Korean President met at the DMZ for a ceremonial function no one had even dared imagine just six months earlier.
The NKTC and South Korean government had been in talks for months about when to reopen the DMZ.
July 27th was the first date suggested by both sides. It was that date in 1953 that the armistice was signed, pausing the Korean War indefinitely.
But now that the DMZ had been made safe, the Korean people were anxious to get reunification efforts started as soon as possible.
Therefore, they chose October 12th. As far as significant dates, it was nothing more than a random Monday. But both sides knew that commemorating dates from a war seventy years in the past was nothing compared to commemorating dates on the path to peace and reunification.
So, October 12th it was.
Both presidents met in the center. Trees had been planted in neat, diagonal rows throughout the four kilometer wide space that had been impassible for decades.
Playgrounds for children were being considered along with plans for a commemorative park. Proposals for a full-size amusement park were also on the table.
The freshly paved five-lane concrete highway felt surreal as the two men stood at the demarcation line. Their entourages and press corps stood several feet away, but the silence was almost eerie.
Still, when the South Korean President saw the smile on General Cho's face, he couldn't help but answer in kind.
"I never thought I would live to see the day…" the President said.
Transition President Cho's smile widened further as he reached for his counterpart's hand.
Cameras captured the handshake, and it was lauded as the "handshake heard around the world."
They spoke for several minutes about all the plans and initiatives, and promised to begin meeting biweekly as things developed.
One last handshake, and both men turned to leave. The drive along the wide open highway may have felt lonely, but General Cho couldn't help but imagine that these lanes would be packed with cars.
"How long will it take?" he muttered, watching row after row of saplings. He imagined children growing older as these freshly planted saplings grew into full-sized trees.
What will the Peninsula look like then?
Thanks to Rejuvenex, Cho would likely live to see it all with his own eyes. What an incredible change in circumstances.