Flow also doesn't seem to depend on using Aethercite to anchor yourself - which is a huge part of the risk. No anchor means you have a strong chance to lose your way. Which is exactly what happened to Y'shtola. Now, the question is, what happened to her passenger...

On the topic of dragons and paying them Aethercite gil, gil in this game really does seem to be kind of a universal force, rather than a form of currency, doesn't it? EVERYONE uses it, from friendly beastmen to milennia-old dragons to freshly-reactivated Allagan constructs. Even beyond teleportation costs, engaging in quests with these varied entities usually has gil rewards, and sometimes (as with challenge logs) gil seems to come from no source at all!

I think gil isn't something that's minted, so much as it's tapped into...