The Object
an excerpt

The biology team, the general science team and some of the military team where the first through the airlock. Dr Croft wasn't going to the surface with us, for some reason.
We where all dressed in white padded coats called cool suites. woven in to the insulation of the suites where cooling lines attached to small backpack. This gave us 3 to 4 hours of cooling, I wondered how bad it could be with out cooling 32 degrees c didn't sound so bad.
The alien lift was nearing the top of the airlock/lift shaft and as it did the roof cracked open along gentle curving lines. The aliens technology was all about rounded lines it seemed. I'd seen no long straight lines or hard, sharp edges anywhere in the airlock complex so far.
I'd overheard one of the few techies, they we very excited about this alien tech which apparently was way ahead of ours.
The dull greenish light of the interior shone through the rapidly opening roof above us. Then the heat hit. I now knew what 32 degrees c and 75 percent humidity felt like. And the smell, no one had warned us about that. This wasn't the rich lively smell I was used to in Earth forests. This was a dead, dank rotting smell. It smelt like the waste dump on on really hot day.
The smell, heat and humidity all hit together, the effect was almost overwhelming. I gasped and for a few moments struggled for breath.
"Thats okay people, this all normal". It was one the military men, he was a huge bear of a man with a face that looked like it had seen a lot of the rough side of life. "Just relax and don't fight it. Your body still knows how to breathe it just takes a while to remember that" His voice was strangely at odds with his fearsome appearance, deep, but quiet and somehow comforting.
But his calming words where lost on Xanthia Bulmer, one of our team. She was was clearly panicking and was starting to hyperventilate.
All of the men in the party started to move to her, she was that sort of lady, very beautiful, very fragile looking, but the huge military man got there first. "You okay miss?" He asked. She didn't answer she just continued gasping for air. She started to sway.
"Okay there I've got you". She fainted. Calmly and with on sign of panic, the huge man took a the oxygen mask we all had in the suits and put it over her mouth.
He looked up at us. "She'll be okay, some times happens. nothing to worry about".
Alex Room another one of the our team was worried. He and Xanthia where some times an item. "Look if this has happened before why weren't we told. Dammit. This is dangerous. Why weren't well told about this".
"Calm down, sir. You weren't told, because then you might be panicking before you got to the surface and would just make things worse. It's not life threatening if your healthy which you are unless you wouldn't have got this far".
The lift stopped. We had all been focused on Xanthia and didn't we had reached the surface.
Suddenly Xanthia wasn't the center of attention any more, the fantastic landscape around us was. I was nothing like I could have imagined.
The light which seemed to be coming from every where was diffuse and greenish. To the left and right of us the landscape seemed to climb away, as if on a steep hill, very quickly. It then faded in to the greenish mist, but you could still see it as arched above your head to meet the landscape rising up from the other side. Beyond the clearing in which the lift stood there was nothing but green. The edge of the circular clearing was a seemingly impenetrable wall of green. Beyond this wall there was a see of green, interrupted only by to odd spike of some huge tree or fern reaching hundreds of meters from the forest canopy. In the distance we could see unmistakable bright shimmer of light on water. A huge lake in the distance, at what looked like an impossible angle on the slope of the landscape.
For a few seconds all we could do was stand and stair, the landscape looked totally impossible, but I knew there was nothing here that a knowledge of science couldn't explain. But at that moment I could have explained anything. It was so totally...alien and wonderful to me.
The others around me must have been thinking similar thoughts, but slowly other thoughts must have been rolling through their stunned minds.
Micheal O'Donnell, the last member of my team, looked up at the landscape as it rose towards the 'sky'. As his head tracked upwards he suddenly stooped as if ducking from something falling towards him.
"What..." I started to ask.
"Thats okay sir, that some times happens two". The big military man said. He was helping Xanthia up now. "There you go miss, you should be okay now, just keep that mask on for a bit". She stood up shakily.
"You okay Micheal, I asked". He looked very uncomfortable, slightly stooped with his head looking down at the ground. "Er no, I..."
The big military man came over. "Feeling a little agoraphobic? Well don't worry the sky isn't going to fall in on you. You can get indoors if you want. And don't worry this place, the lake and central ridge are the only places you can see the sky here. Most of the time it will just be leaves and branches above you".
The man looked up at where the sky would be. Micheal flinched again and seemed to hunch down more. "Err. Thanks, I'll get undercover then". He turned away and pretty much ran to the temporary human camp which had been built next to the domed alien building which held the lift. "Careful with the running, don't forget the lower gravity". The man called after Micheal.
I looked up where the sky should have been. I was an odd feeling, not seeing it there, and yes it was slightly discomforting.
"So this is the object". I said to one on in particular. "Yep, the object" The military man said. "Still haven't got a name for it".
"Well, I'm Nathan Golub" I offered the big man my hand. "Hi, I'm John-Micheal Keeys and I'm your military leaesion. You can call me Keeys, every one does". He shook my hand in his huge paw of a hand.
"Military leasion, why do we need the military here at all". Alex asked sharply. I knew he'd been thrown by this place, we all had, but now he was looking for a fight, that was his way. I just hoped he didn't get one with Keeys, he looked a like man that was good not to have as a enemy. "We have only explored I tiny section around the camp here, we have no idea what sort animals there are out there. Some might find us to be tasty snacks, so we are hear for your protection sir". Keeys offered Alex his hand. Alex shook it with out much enthusiasm. "Why not arm us?" He asked.
"Have you ever fired a gun at a live target which is trying to kill you?" Alex shook his head. I was sure none of us had even fired a gun before. "Then you would be more dangerous to your self and your colleges than any predator here".
We all stood in an uncomfortable silence for a few moments. Xanthia was by Alex and holding him.
"Well, if you'd like to make it inside Dr Hunt, the expedition leader wants to brief you".