Chapter Sixty-Two: Dragon Report

Howard and Bridget discuss the dragon species' migration to a new continent and its ecological implications. Bridget reveals details about the dragons' survival prospects and mentions her earlier confrontation with Alexander, where he made clear his lack of romantic interest in her.

Howard is working through emails in virt while Bridget organizes their findings into a report for the UFS Exobiology Society. Bridget suggests Howard hire an administrative assistant, but he deflects by offering to work in virtuality instead. She asks about the dragons' status, and Howard confirms she's monitoring them. Bridget explains that Alexander released all the floaters, which are spreading across the new continent and feeding on new lake fish. The survival outlook is positive for the dragons on the new continent, but dire for the old continent: without floaters being knocked from the air by the dragons, lake trout will be overfished and driven to extinction, leading to dragon starvation and total ecosystem collapse. Alexander's decision was correct but harsh. Bridget then recounts her confrontation with Alexander, where he laughed at her assertion about choosing her own mate. She explains that Alexander made it clear he had no romantic interest in her—his concern was only her usefulness. Howard jokingly says he'll kill Alexander for insulting his wife, but Bridget points out that being Alexander's chattel would have at least been a long life, which would have been better than being killed. They banter about Howard using his downtime for paperwork rather than leisure.