http://www.tor.com/stories/2013/07/the-plague"The Plague" by Ken Liu
Very short story, quick read and excellent.
Then here is a link to "the Sounds of Old Earth", by Mathew Kressel :
http://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/fiction/the-sounds-of-old-earth/ Bittersweet, a short story that does what a short story should, like the one above it--short, to the point, and yet somehow encompassing a whole world.
You can find some great links to free short stories, novellas etc. at :
http://www.freesfonline.de/