Daughter of No Worlds

Max teaches Tisaanah how to use Stratagrams, transporting symbols that are used for conjuring and teleportation. Initially, Tisaanah has trouble creating them because they depend on feeling rather than thinking. As she practices, Tisaanah shares stories about her past as an enslaved person. When she describes the beating as Esmaris reminding her of her place, Max praises her courage: “[Y]ou didn’t forget what you were. I think you remembered” (197).

With only eight weeks to go before her examination, Tisaanah and Max slip into a comfortable routine. Neither has considered what will happen to their relationship once training ends, though Tisaanah realizes that she will lose something when Max is no longer her mentor: “I had been so singularly focused on where I was going that I hadn’t stopped to think about what I would be leaving behind” (200). The day before the test, Max puts Tisaanah through a grueling series of drills and proclaims that she is more than ready. That evening, he gives her a butterfly necklace with three small Stratagrams: one for healing, one for building fires, and one that will lead Tisaanah back to the cottage. She is overwhelmed by the gift because she realizes that Max has just invited her to share his home.