Bene told Lukas it would take him about half a week to make it to Snakewell at a normal pace. So he had about a week's worth of supplies prepared. He was also given a compass and a map.
'Why did it have to be in this direction?'
Turns out, "Mystic Camp" is near Mystic Lake, which is near Shorstone. So in other words, Lukas had to go back to Shorstone...
Except, not exactly, it's only called Mystic Camp because the closest landmark is Mystic Lake. The camp itself is not even that close to Mystic Lake.
But in Lukas' mind, it might as well be in Shorstone. So he wasn't exactly thrilled to go there any more.
'Whatever, I'll just get there as soon as I can so I can stop thinking about it.'
When night came on that first day, it was still a little chilly. Lukas was sitting at a campfire and had prepared to sleep tucked inside the roots of a tree. He never really had the time to simply sit under the trees and look at the stars. It was truly worth admiring.
Lukas would've been content to simply view the stars all night. But not only was that a bad idea, but he was getting really tired and had trouble keeping his eyes open.
Soon he fell asleep after making sure his fire wouldn't burn the forest down around him.
When he awoke, the fire was gone. But when he got up and grabbed his stuff, he saw something above him. It was a person.
Lukas nearly stumbled over, but caught himself and covered his mouth to not make any noise.
Laying on a thick branch of the same tree Lukas slept under, was another person. They weren't awake yet, so Lukas studied them for a little bit, trying to discern whether he should trust them or not.
They appeared to be a little smaller than Lukas but still around the same age and had striking blond hair. They were also wearing...
'Wait... is that a gi?'
Sure enough, the stranger was wearing a Fortissimo gi. It wasn't the same as Lukas' or Bene's. It was a dark grey with streaks of black in the same places that Lukas' gi had white. He couldn't see the back of it, so he couldn't know what subdivision they were in, if any.
Then as he was about to move, the stranger woke up. They yawned, stretched, and opened their eyes. The stranger then looked over and saw Lukas.
"Oh hello, good morning."
Lukas stared into the stranger's brown eyes for a while, before hesitantly asking a question.
"Who are you?"
"Oh, I'm Oak."
"Your name is Oak?"
"Yup! What's yours?"
Lukas relaxed a little at the apparent friendliness of the person.
"Lukas, Lukas Tiro. Why are you here?"
"Well, I was wandering through the forest trying to find my way somewhere, and I saw a light. When I got to it, it was a dwindling fire and I looked to see who made it. I saw you, and that you were wearing a similar outfit to me so I decided to sleep near here."
"Right, and where are you trying to go?"
"Mystic Camp."
Lukas was shocked. But then he realised that there would be no reason for Oak to be here if they weren't going to Mystic Camp. He was going to say that he was going there as well or ask another question. But Oak beat him to it.
"Why is your outfit different?"
"Why is your outfit different?"
Oak's eyes dimmed in defeat and his face frowned.
"But I said it first... whatever... This is a Lower Rank gi, I've been assigned to Skyla's subdivision. But apparently, Vesa wanted something from me so I'm heading to Mystic Camp. At least that's what Skyla said, I don't know what Vesa wants. Could you answer my question? You've been asking a lot."
Lukas sighed and grabbed his things.
"We're both going to Mystic Camp, why don't we start heading there? We can ask questions on the way there."
Oak chuckled.
"Oh right, why didn't I think of that sooner? Also, you're going to Mystic Camp too?"
So they travelled together, with the day flying by as did their conversations. By noon, when the sun crested right above their heads, they returned to an earlier conversation. Lukas hadn't answered why his outfit was different. It may have been a small thing, but Oak was curious. So Lukas finally answered.
"I'm not sure why mine is different. I was told that I wasn't assigned to any subdivisions, but instead, I'm a special asset."
"Special asset? What does that mean?"
"I don't know. Bene said it meant that I would receive more unique assignments, and be treated similarly to a leader than someone like you. I'm not sure what he meant exactly, but I guess I'll find out when we get to Mystic Camp."
"Wait... Bene?"
"Yeah? What about him?"
"How did you meet him? Do you know him?"
Lukas didn't want to... dive into his memories too hard. So he simplified the truth a bit.
"Uh... he trained me for the last... year, year and a half? Either way, he trained me to join the Fortissimo."
"WAIT, YOU WERE TRAINED BY BENE FOR A YEAR AND A HALF!?"
"Yeah..? Why are you freaking out?"
"DO YOU- Wait... are you not aware who Bene is?"
"I mean, I trained with him for about a year. So I think I know him well enough. Is there something I don't know?"
"Do you know of his rank within the Fortissimo?"
"Not really? I know he leads his own subdivision, so he must be of a higher rank. But I don't know where he stands exactly."
Oak was dumbfounded and momentarily stepped back in shock and excitement.
"Bene's the highest ranking member! Below the master of the special division of course."