The mission came too early for anyone who was still adjusting to the new training rhythm.
When the notice arrived, it was still morning. A human scout and two elves were waiting outside the shelter. Their expressions were not urgent, but they were not calm either.
"It's an escort," the human said. "Short. But joint."
Liriel sighed. "So it begins."
The elven guild master appeared shortly after. "No heroics," he said. "Observe, cooperate, and return."
"So it's a test," Vespera commented.
"All encounters are," he replied.
We set out with a small mixed group. Three humans from the local guild, two experienced elves, and the four of us. The tension was visible from the start. No one spoke much. Each side walked in silence, attentive to their own steps.
"Their silence is irritating," Liriel murmured to me.
"And ours probably isn't any better," I replied.
The cargo was simple. Supplies and sealed information. Nothing eye-catching. The path led through an area of low forest, terrain favorable for small ambushes.
"Formation?" one of the elves asked.
"Pair in front, pair in back," I replied. "Alternating humans and elves."
He hesitated for a second, then nodded.
Vespera stayed in front with me. Elara and an elf remained in the center. Liriel closed the formation with the other two humans.
The attack came too quickly for anyone expecting something big.
Smaller, corrupted creatures emerged from between the trees. They were not direct troops of the General, but they were aligned. A reaction test.
"Contact," I said.
"Do not advance," the elf ordered.
"They already did," Vespera replied, moving.
The fight was short, but confusing. Humans reacted more directly. Elves were almost too precise. In the middle of it, adjustments had to be made in real time.
"Elara, hold the flank," I said.
"Understood."
Liriel restrained her power as trained. It left her visibly irritated, but it worked. Vespera kept the rhythm, without improvising too much. For the first time, she seemed comfortable following a pattern.
One of the humans mistimed a move and almost fell. An elf pulled him back without saying a word.
"Thanks," the human said afterward, a bit embarrassed.
"Keep moving," was the reply.
When the last enemy fell, the silence returned.
"It worked," Elara said, breathing deeply.
"It worked because no one tried to be better than the others," one of the elves commented.
We continued to the delivery point without further attacks. The atmosphere improved slightly. Small comments appeared. Comparisons of methods. No friendship, but less friction.
On the way back, one of the elves approached me.
"You adjust quickly," he said. "You don't impose. You observe."
"Imposing fails in mixed groups," I replied.
He nodded.
When we returned, the report was delivered without ceremony. No celebration. Just confirmation.
"You cooperated," the master said. "That is rarer than victory."
Liriel crossed her arms. "It wasn't pleasant."
"It didn't need to be," he replied.
That night, as we ate in silence, I realized something simple.
We hadn't won anything important.
But we had proven that it was possible to fight together.
And that, against a General, would change everything.