Dead Man's Planet

"Dead Man's Planet" by R. R. Winterbotham is a science fiction story that sends two astronauts to a seemingly desolate asteroid, where they encounter a lone man named Ghor amid strange, resilient plant life; as the astronauts, Mick Conner and Alf Rankin, repair their ship, they learn not only that Ghor was raised on this bizarre space rock, but of his father's dangerous experiments to manipulate alien species, resulting in the astronauts battling aggressive flora and Ghor ultimately sacrificing himself -- revealing his hybrid nature as part human, part plant -- to save them, highlighting themes of isolation, identity, and the perilous implications of unchecked scientific ambition.