Free Onio by Linell Jeppsen Page B

soul
song.
    Satisfied,
Hunter stood and said, “I agree with you, my son. The small one wants to go
with you.” Onio grinned but the big guard stared at her.
    “Can
you travel, girl?” he asked. “Onio told us you were ill.”
    Mel
gazed at the huge sasquatch with her mouth open in dismay. It was true that
although she knew she was on the mend physically, she was nowhere near a
hundred percent. Just flying to Onio’s side when she thought they were under
attack was enough to send her head spinning in dizzy circles. What if they
refused to let her go because she was too weak to travel on her own? Tears
filled her eyes, but she dashed them away in angry frustration.
    Wolf
watched the girl’s face, understanding that somehow, out of the many millions
of small humans Onio could have stumbled across, he had found one who truly
wanted to be a part of their tribe. He was many, many seasons older than Hunter
and Onio. He had been a guard to Bouldar when Bouldar was younger than Onio,
and had seen the kindness of some smalls as well as witnessing their cruelty.
His strong, cynical heart melted at the girl’s tears of fear.
    “Be
easy girl,” he mumbled. “I only ask so we know how to pack for the journey.”
With those words, he turned around and walked away.
    Hunter
looked at her and said, “If you need to take care of private business please be
brief. Onio and Wolf will be leaving shortly.” He paused and added, “It is good
to meet you, Melody Carver. I wish you well.”
    Hunter
and Onio walked away, while Mel scrambled to her feet and stepped behind a
large rock close to the water’s edge to relieve her bladder. Not knowing what
else to do, she used water to wash herself and stood up with a shiver. She felt
invigorated, thrilled, scared and gloriously happy. She stood back as Onio and
Hunter embraced one last time. Then, without further ado, Hunter walked away,
disappearing into the sheltering trees.
    “Are
you ready, Melody?” Onio asked. He had rolled the furs into a bundle and
carried it and the sack of vegetables over one shoulder in a sling. Wolf stood
some distance away. His eyes scanned the forest around them with unerring
accuracy. The seriousness in his face made Mel’s skin crawl.
    “I’m
ready, but Onio…call me Mel, all right? Everyone does,” she replied. The dog
went from one sasquatch to the other in a frenzy of excitement.
    “Come
then. Climb onto my back.” Onio said.
    Mel
shook her head. “No, I can walk.” She blushed at the thought of actually being
a physical burden…again.
    Wolf
glared. “Do as Onio asks, girl…we don’t walk at this time. We run. You could
not keep up with us, even if you were healthy. And in future do not argue with
us. Our lives depend on quick thinking and even quicker action!”
    Mel
shook with shame. “I’m sorry, Wolf. I won’t argue again, I promise,” she
stammered and walked over to where Onio knelt on the ground. She prepared to
jump up on his back but the sasquatch simply grabbed her up by her ankles.
Somehow, she found herself lifted high into the air as if she weighed no more
than a gnat. Then they were running.
    The
sasquatches flew over the wooded terrain as if it was a highway. For all Mel
knew maybe it was. She held her breath as, on more than one occasion, Onio
literally ran up the trunk of a tree to avoid an obstacle. Once, she almost
screamed when Wolf and Onio took a mighty leap and flew across a river that was
at least twenty feet across. They cleared the water by five feet.
    Mel
had no way of knowing how far they had run but she thought it was at least
fifty miles when Wolf came to a stop under a small copse of birch trees. The
trees branches were bare and rattled their limbs together like bony fingers.
Onio set her down near a boulder and she groaned at the stiffness in her
thighs.
    Onio
hardly seemed winded but he shook his arms as though his hands were cramping.
Mel realized that he had held her tightly the whole way to keep her