Book Trilogies End. But Sometimes the Author will Revisit it in a Short Story

Life, spelled out in a name, is the official - 'what happens after The Judas Syndrome Trilogy' has been told - story.

Spoiler Alert

It’s a difficult thing to leave a trilogy alone. Some readers want to be left to ponder the character’s prospects, while others want more! This is how I imagine Fan-Fiction took off. In this story Poeltl offer a brief yet surprising look into the events following Revelation; the third book in the wildly popular post-apocalyptic trilogy; The Judas Syndrome. 

This short story stars the only character to have endured all three books – at least in Poeltl's versions – and one of the strongest characters he's ever written. Left with a small band of survivors, Sara contemplates her past, while hoping to prevent a future which has taken her completely by surprise. 

Her son; dead and gone, and his father long dead, Sara contemplates her own mortality and what purpose she could serve in this aftermath. Upon pondering these hard questions, she is alerted that her son's friend and prodigy; Daniel, may be in trouble as he carries on Leif's teachings to the survivor's of Earl's vicious attack on their base. Homeless and hopeless, these newly displaced refugees could be capable of anything, including placing blame on her son and surviving disciples.

This short story and thirteen others unrelated to the trilogy can be found in the Waning Metaphorically anthology of short stories and flash fiction. 

Post-Apocalyptic stories far from done being told

Wow, with the epic fail 2012 brought us in an apocalyptic end you'd think the popular conscience would have thrown the idea out the window. But the opposite is proving true. With two more dystopian style book series being made into movies (trilogies no less) like  ‘Divergent‘ and ‘The Maze Runner’ (divergent trilogy isn't even complete) it is obvious that the audience is still very much alive and well despite their chosen genre (apocalyptic).
'This is the End' has also received some amazing reviews lately  - the comedy that spoofs the end of the world. And of course, The Hunger Games has just gotten started with book two coming out as a movie in the next few months.
Some directors are even writing their own books and optioning them as movies just to keep up on demand for more apocalyptic fare. An example of this would be Chris Weitz, director of New Moon in the Twilight series of movies.
It would be nice to see a series like The Judas Syndrome up on the big screen, often compared to The Road meets The Lord of the Flies. A trilogy with an underlying purpose which builds from book one (or film one) to reach its antithesis in movie number three.
The Judas Syndrome has been very well received by its audience and with a bit of marketing by one of the heavy weights in Hollywood and proper casting, there is no doubt it would become a sensation. A coming of age trilogy which spans two generations of survivors (not unlike the Star Wars saga) and encompassing things like reincarnation and the meaning of life using both spirituality and science to prove its theory of everything, along with humanities true purpose. Heavy? A little, but today's youth are becoming heavily invested in the power of self and should be drawn to the characters universal struggles, even in light of an apocalyptic end. Or is it just the beginning?

Michael Poeltl