"Never fear, Smith is here!" the doctor declared as he exited the ship and approached his young friend. He bent down to pick up his spear from where he'd left it the night before, intending to use the blunt end as a walking stick on their adventure. "Lead the way, lad."
Will grinned, "Just like old times, Doctor Smith!" He marched forward and the doctor followed, off on another adventure.
Before they'd gone too far, Deimos came sprinting out of the ship. Wait for me!
Smith stopped and turned. "Hold on, Will. We have another member joining our party."
The little cat caught up in no time, slowing to a trot as the two humans resumed their hike.
"You must know this area very well by now, Doctor Smith," Will said. "Where do you think we should look first?"
Normally, Smith would guide the boy based on the best spots for him to take naps, but having so recently reunited, he genuinely wanted to spend time with him. The doctor wasn't an expert in geology, but he knew a few basics and, of course, had learned a few things out of necessity in the years he'd spent with the Robinsons.
"Down by the river would be an excellent place to explore," Smith suggested as he took the lead. "There is a spot I know where a smaller creek feeds into it. I believe that creek is fed by the hot springs in my cave."
As the boy kept pace with the doctor, Deimos, with his boundless cub energy, lost patience with the slow humans and ran on ahead. They soon lost sight of him, but Smith knew precisely where he was and what he was up to, due to their bond.
"Deimos!" Will shouted, concerned for the little cat. He was about to run after him when Smith placed a hand on his shoulder.
"He's fine," Smith reassured.
The look on the doctor's face was so confident that Will trusted all was indeed well. Smith pointed off to the right as he made a course correction. "This way."
Bertram is here! Deimos alerted Smith.
After running into the juvenile elephantine creature so many times, the doctor had decided the creature needed a name. The cubs, who loved playing with Bertram, started using the name immediately. In fact, any time they saw herds of the creatures, they called them "Bertrams". Elephantines that were not the Bertram were "Bertramkin". Smith was fascinated at how the cats picked up his language and modified it to their own understanding.
An idea formed in Smith's mind, a wicked idea. Smith grinned as he let Deimos know what he was going to do.
The doctor led Will along the riverbed, glancing occasionally over to where Bertram and Deimos were standing in the distance.
"I'm sure I saw some limestone around this area," he said as he gestured vaguely near the riverbed. "I wouldn't be surprised if you found some geodes here."
Will was distracted as he searched and didn't hear Bertram and Deimos approach.
When Bertram trumpeted his arrival, Will spun in surprise and nearly tumbled into the water behind him. Smith grabbed the boy's shirt and pulled him back, then spun him around again so they faced the same direction. As he'd done many times before, with a quick gesture Smith indicated to Bertram that he and his friend would like a ride. Bertram, grabbed the two with his trunks, eliciting a yelp from Will, and gently lifted them, depositing them with great care onto his back.
"Doctor Smith?!" Will panicked. "What do we do?"
"Relax," Smith stated. "I do believe our transportation has arrived."
"Our what?" Will asked.
"This is Bertram," Smith patted the young elephantine creature's side. "I was kind enough to feed him when he was just a juvenile and rummaging through my camp for a morsel of food. He returned to my camp the night Kai attacked me and his arrival was fortuitous. I was about to be ripped to shreds when Bertram lifted Kai off me and flung him so far, that scoundrel did not dare to return."
"Alright, Doctor Doolittle. What have you done with Doctor Smith?" Will quipped.
Smith laughed. "I know it's hard to believe, William. I have had very few close relationships with animals before, but this can be a harsh land if you don't have a friend for succor and to share the vicissitudes of life. The simple truth is, without these animals assisting me, I would not have survived. I owe them my life."
Will smiled and looked back at the doctor over his shoulder. "Well, it seems to me they were just returning the favor, Doctor Smith."
The doctor thought a moment and then nodded. "You may be right." Smith applied a small amount of pressure in Bertram's side with his heels and pointed forward. "Let's go, Bertram. Adventure awaits!"
"Wait til I tell Penny I took a ride on an alien elephant!" Will exclaimed.
While Will had grown older, Smith observed he hadn't lost his child-like enthusiasm. He enjoyed seeing the boy wonder at the amazing sights that had become commonplace to him. It was like seeing them again for the first time.
A flock of the iridescent pheasant-like birds lit on a nearby tree as Will marveled at their brilliant color and lively songs. "Beautiful, aren't they, Doctor Smith?"
"Yes... and delicious," he added.
Will turned to look at the doctor in shock.
Smith's eyebrows raised and he shrugged. "One does what one must to survive."
Will nodded and turned back around. Ahead of them, Deimos was playing in the tall grass, flushing out grass pigs and other odd looking herbivores.
"There sure is a lot of wildlife on this planet," Will marveled. "We didn't see all these animals when we were here before."
"You and the others didn't stray very far from camp," Smith explained. "I, by virtue of my banishment, was thrust into this environment with no preparation or knowledge of what I was in for. I had to become acquainted with it quickly."
"I'm sorry, Doctor Smith," Will apologized as his shoulders slumped. "That should never have happened."
A few awkward moments passed before Smith replied, "It's alright. What's done is done. We've been reunited and that's the important thing. Let's not ruin our adventure by dwelling on the past."
"Alright, on one condition," Will requested.
"And what is that?" Smith inquired.
"That you will tell us soon what happened to you here while we were gone," Will insisted. "Agreed?"
Smith nodded. "Agreed." He had already promised Artemis he would do so and he had never broken a promise to her.
The doctor urged Bertram onward and they soon arrived at the location Smith had described. Bertram kneeled and assisted the two humans down with his trunks, since it was a good fifteen feet to the ground from where they sat.
Will turned and patted the animal's side. "Thank you for the ride!" Bertram turned his head ran a trunk over Will's hair, as if petting him.
Smith stood in front of the behemoth, facing him with his arms wide. He sighed, "Alright, let's get this over with," as if it was a ritual between the two that he didn't exactly care for, but tolerated.
Bertram wrapped his trunks around the doctor in a tight hug and lifted him skyward, tilting his head up as he did so. Deimos jumped and ran around the beast, laughing at the sight, as he always did. Smith gently and carefully scratched the top of Bertram's head with his spear, while Bertram guided him to which areas needed the most attention. In a few minutes, he set the doctor down gently.
"Payment for services rendered," Smith explained. "He won't leave me alone after a ride until we do that. It's become tradition. Took me the longest time to figure out what he wanted."
While Smith tried to pass it off as something he merely tolerated, Will observed the doctor stroking one of Bertram's trunks as it laid over his shoulder and knew the doctor harbored some affection for the creature.
"Time to begin our search," Smith announced, as the two headed toward the stream that fed into the river.
Will pointed off into the distance. "Is that your cave, Doctor Smith?"
"Yes," he confirmed.
Smit peoples visit our home! Deimos exclaimed, as he placed his paws on Smith's leg..
"I was getting to that, Deimos," Smith replied as he bent down to pet the cub's head.
"What?" Will asked.
"Deimos suggested I invite the lot of you over to the cave for the evening," Smith answered.
Will's eyes lit up. "I'm sure everybody would like to see it! In fact, why don't we go now?"
Smith shook his head. "That's not why we came out here. Besides, I want you all to get a look at it at the same time. Wouldn't be fair if you got a sneak preview," he grinned.
Will frowned, but shrugged it off as he began to search the creek.
Deimos romped around the area, chasing small critters and occasionally splashing in the creek. Bertram stayed nearby, feeding off the vegetation and drinking from the river.
Several minutes later, Will exclaimed "Found one!" as he held up a lumpy rock.
Smith, after a cursory examination, agreed, "Indeed. Go ahead and crack it open."
Will placed it atop a nearby rock with a reasonably flat surface and tapped at it with his rock pick. In a few moments, it split, and Will opened it to reveal a beautiful blue crystalline interior. "Must be some titanium around here," the boy concluded.
Smith wandered along the stream toward the river bank, pushing small rocks in the water with the butt of his spear as he looked for something else that might interest his young friend.
Suddenly, Deimos came sprinting back towards them. Cat! Big cat! he warned.
Smith spun around, spear at the ready, as he scanned the area quickly and spotted the animal in the brush near Will. Calmly, he informed the boy. "Will, I want you to stand up slowly and walk backwards toward me."
"What is it, Doctor Smith?" Will asked, nervous, but doing as he'd been told.
Deimos came alongside Will and flanked him protectively as the boy walked backwards. Smith slowly advanced, keeping a keen eye on the cat's body language. When he was close enough, Smith grabbed Will and pulled him behind him. He whistled shrilly in the hopes that Bertram was still nearby. Deimos stood next to Smith, teeth bared, a tiny growl of warning rumbling in his chest.
Knowing its cover was blown, but needing to satiate the hunger gnawing at its belly, the cat sprang from the brush and charged the trio. It stopped short as Smith thrust the spear at it, attempting to ward it off. Will took cover behind a tree and wished he'd brought a laser pistol or a radio as he looked on helplessly at the standoff.
Smith managed to wound the animal, but that didn't seem to dissuade it. It kept coming, trying to find a way past the spear. It took a swipe at the weapon and, in one powerful stroke, it flew out of the doctor's hands.
Instead of fear, the doctor suddenly felt only anger. After spending all this time, struggling to survive, he was not going to let things end here. Not for him, not for his cub, not for his dear friend. In unison, as if they were of one mind, Smith and Deimos both unleashed full throated roars, as deep and as intimidating as they could produce.
Their adversary, confused, took a step back. It was that momentary confusion that bought them enough time for the cavalry to arrive. Bertram crashed through the brush where he'd been feeding and trumpeted his arrival. With the cat distracted, Smith dove for his spear and rolled out of Bertram's path. With one mighty swipe of his massive multi-trunked head, Bertram heaved the alien feline through the air and into the river. The cat sputtered and flailed for a few seconds before it finally swam off to the opposite bank and slunk away.
Smith stood and calmly inspected the damage to his spear, running his fingers over the claw marks along the shaft. Will came out from behind the tree and looked at the doctor, seeing him in a new light.
"Doctor Smith, why didn't you just run?" Will asked.
"Because, Will, I know these animals. This is not the first time I've been attacked. If we had run, we'd both be dead. The only way to survive an encounter like that is to convince them you're not worth the fight or meet them with overwhelming force," he explained.
"One does what one must to survive," Will repeated.
"Yes," Smith agreed, "even if it scares the shit out of you, excuse my French. Because it's better than the alternative."
Will laughed at the doctor's uncharacteristic expletive, though he certainly could understand where it came from. Suddenly, the full impact of what Smith had gone through hit him as hard as Bertram had hit that hungry cat. The danger they had just been in was something the man had to deal with on a daily basis for the entire time they'd been gone. It wasn't an occasional danger. He had no safe ship, no impenetrable forcefield, and no laser pistol to protect him. He had only his wits and what allies he'd befriended for defense and support.
Smith hadn't been prepared for the sudden bear hug Will surrounded him with and it nearly knocked the wind out of him. Chalking it up to an emotional response from the danger they'd just been in, Smith returned the embrace and attempted to calm the boy. "It's ok. We're safe now," he assured.
Will released the hug and looked up at the doctor. "You had to live with this constant fear and danger all the time we were gone," he said, his voice trembling. "And we caused that."
"No," Smith corrected, "Kai caused that. He used you. He played us against each other." As the doctor explained the situation to the boy, he realized Artemis was right. If they were ever to repair the rift Kai had caused, he needed to talk to the Robinsons about it the way he and Will were now. They needed to know what he'd gone through, just like Will had experienced first hand.
"Don't you dare feel guilty about it. Kai is the guilty one." Smith felt the anger he'd been harboring under the surface leave him as he suddenly realized it was misplaced. The Robinsons were just as much victims of Kai as he was.
"We could have decided not to listen to him," Will countered.
"And with a herd of elephantine creatures headed straight towards the ship, you would have ignored him? He forced you into a decision you didn't want to make. You didn't want to leave me here alone, did you?" Smith asked.
"No! No. Even though dad and Don banished you, we wanted to work things out. Dad even took the washing machine and a few other things out of the ship to make sure the ship could handle your added weight when we took you with us," Will explained.
Smith had seen the discarded appliances at the abandoned camp site and suddenly realized the full truth. Despite Kai's lies and manipulation, they wanted him back in their midst. They had thought it through and, perhaps, trusted him enough to want to hear his side of things. Until that abysmal alien had forced them to leave.
The doctor heaved a heavy sigh. "Hindsight is twenty twenty, my boy. Looking back, it's easier to see what happened than when you're in the middle of the tumult."
"You said it," Will agreed.
"Well," Smith began as he surveyed the area, "do you want to continue our rock hunt or shall we do something else?"
"To be honest, I don't feel as safe anymore, but... I don't really want to go back to the ship just yet," Will confessed.
Bertram ride! Bertram ride! Deimos suggested as he stood and placed his paws against one of the behemoth's gigantic legs.
Deimos squealed in delight as Bertram lifted him onto his back. The cub ran back and forth atop the giant, delighting in the unique viewpoint he got to experience up there.
"Well, shall we continue our safari then?" Smith suggested, arms held wide.
Bertram took that as his cue and lifted the doctor up onto his back.
Will smiled and turned, emulating Doctor Smith's pose. In no time, he was atop the beast with the other two and headed off on another adventure, this time safe from the dangers on the ground.