Beneath the Umdlebe Tree; or, A Vegetable Love Story
ShortStory 1,517 words Recommended by 3 award/anthology sources
"I heard you’re returning to our world again. What do you want here exactly, Orhija? The Earth is dying slowly. It’s losing its sheen and glow. The blackness of the soil that you used to say was as beautiful as mine has changed since you left. It’s redder than black. The air is tense and heavy with smoke."
Quasar links out; the story lives on Lightspeed, where the author gets the click.