"It's an aptitude thing?"

"Kind of, yeah."

"If you give me a feel for what the necessary traits are I can probably make sure you mostly get people who'll be good at it."

"Sure. So, you have to walk a fine line between working with the artistic conventions and establishing new ones that work with that canon, but not accidentally trying to use them as straight-up symbols or words. And you have to be able to slip into the, uh, 'I destroy I destroy I destroy' mindset at will and not at random times - people contain blood, see -"

Nod. 

"And the painting is really annoying if you don't have steady hands and a decent sense of composition."

"That I expect Elves will possess in abundance. I'll send you some suitable people to vet."

"Weren't you going to pick humans on the principle that we die dead anyway?"

"For exceptionally risky stuff, yeah. Maybe ones who don't have very long. For more routine work it makes sense to just pick the most suitable candidates. Unless you think we should be doing something else, you're the expert."

"The risk is low with established spells but it's not like it's zero. Up to them if they want to volunteer, I suppose."

"What is the risk like?"

"I was quoted one percent 'if you don't do anything fancy' rates of 'doing something sufficiently stupid to die' when I started school. Rates are lower among fanciness-doers but that's because it's more heavily filtered for competence; people who just decide to do fanciness on their own are not overwhelmingly likely to live through that. And more than one percent lose toes. - When you hook into a disappearance point you usually make a point of expressly designating what you want to lose first and that is generally toes."

"I'll make sure everyone who might consider it is fully informed about the risks to their toes and their immortal souls."

"Oh, and Ranary says someone speculates that when the points are out of stuff to eat they might eat whoever's attached, so, if that turns out to be true they may have to keep finding new points forever."

"Once we destroy Angband there will be suicidal Elves. The wanting-to-stop-existing kind of suicidal, not the wanting-to-be-disembodied. I don't think they'll be of sound enough mind to be mages, though."

"...yeah, iffy. I guess they could just jump in a point."

"Tempted to make them wait a year but maybe that's cruel." He sighs. 

Nod.

"On a cheerfuller note I have a present for you!" He fishes it out; it's a little metal ring. "Grace and balance."

"...oooooh."

"In theory you can go flitting across treetops now but perhaps restrain yourself to ice skating and ballroom dancing, there still being worlds to save."

"I will be very restrained." He puts it on.

When he's sitting the effect isn't noticeable. "We could go out if you'd like to try it out."

He puts away the last bite of dinner. "Sure."

"Have you found your way around the gardens yet?"