I think I’ve championed the joy that is a Charles Payseur short story on this story-a-day journey twice times thus far, and talked about his stories a couple of times during my Sunday Shorts regular posts, and also during the holidays I’ve talked up his supremely enjoyable holiday super-villain stories. There’s a reason for that: he’s always got a unique angle and uses it to strike an emotional result. Sometimes that result is humour. This is the case in today’s little gem, which you can read (or listen to) over at Fireside Fiction.
It’s a flash piece, so I’m not going to discuss more than the barest idea of the set-up, but it’s one you’ll immediately know if you’ve ever watched any of the various TNG-era-or-later Star Trek shows (or that episode in Futurama, come to think of it): Oh Noes! A hologram has escaped, and it is trying to take over the ship! And this particular hologram is a Napoleon.
The solution to the dilemma of the holographic Napoleon who would be ruler of the galaxy via taking over a starship is just… I mean… air-kiss. And the cute little twist in the last few moments of the piece made me cackle out loud. I already knew I loved Payseur’s wit and humour, but “Foie Gras” is a perfect example of why.
'Nathan Burgoine 