So far, we'd sent about five Transit Islands out to Sea, each possessing their own Auxiliary Islands each with various specific functions focused around the purposes of restocking on Food and Fuel Supply to allow Sailors to explore even deeper out to Sea.
"We've got to make slight alterations to our Building Materials if we intend to keep exploring Via Transit Islands" I said to Ciella.
"What do you mean?" she asked.
"I'm talking about the size of the islands and the nature of Building Materials. The Islands are so huge having a large number of them out on the Sea can disrupt Marine Ecosystems in harmful ways" I said seriously.
"Could you explain?" Ciella asked.
"The islands possess the capacity to eclipse Sunlight which is vital for the sustenance of Marine Plants and in turn Marine Animals. In that sense, they can affect the Marine Food Chain Adversely. To top it off, too many of them out on the Sea could also adversely affect the Sea's Oxygen Levels harming Marine Mammals. Five of them on the Sea won't cause much harm but we might need more of them to eventually reach a new Continent" I said.
"So what do you propose?" Ciella asked.
"The concept of the islands is not a bad idea in itself and the sizes of the islands are not the problem. We need to alter construction materials from Opaque to Transparent or at worst, Translucent materials. The Translucent materials must compose the greatest surface area of the islands and must be very durable. That way we can avoid disrupting Photosynthesis of Marine Plants as well as Marine Oxygen Production by these Plants. Then we won't have to worry about the number of Islands sent out to Sea disrupting Ocean Life. This is another kind of Bridge. The kind between Terrestrial and Marine Life where both minimize harm to one another" I explained.
"I see. A bridge of Ecosystems huh?" Ciella wondered.
"Exactly, this is the Scorpio Job System in effect" I said and activated the Ecological Trace Mode Functionality.
I scanned one of our current islands on which I stood and scanned the Sea. A notification popped up.
"Opaque Structures on the surface of Waterbodies can starve Marine Plants of Sunlight just like a perpetual eclipse could starve Terrestrial Plants of Sunlight. Both would ultimately result in Starvation and Suffocation since plants do not only produce Food but Oxygen as well. However, by replacing Opaque Building Materials with Transparent ones, Sunlight can still enter the Sea even if the Sea is covered by the Islands. It would be advisable to position the islands a wide distance from one another to avoid suffocating Marine Mammals. Ocean Plants on the other hand would still produce Oxygen for the Sustenance of most fish for as long as Sunlight reaches them" the notification read.
"As I thought, we should change the materials used for the Hull's design to a transparent but reinforced one. We can alter the flotation framework to the same material as well. That way we can minimize our capacity to disrupt Marine Ecosystems and trigger a Cataclysmic Chain Of Geological Events" I advised Ciella.
She could clearly see where I was coming from.
"Could the Islands have an effect on Sea Levels as well?" Ciella asked.
"That depends on how many we construct and send out to Sea. If we make enough to cause a rise in Sea Levels, we can balance that out by creating River Channels leading into the Mainland of the Continent to ease pressure on the Shorelines" I explained.
"I see, makes sense" Ciella realized.
Having discussed our next course of action, Ciella and I issued new directives to our people. The Smiths were to design reinforced Glass Panels that could withstand intense pressure and utilize that in the design of the Islands' Hulls. Some of these were to be turned into airtight pipes out of which a set of the pipes would be used to support flotation via chambers filled with Helium Gas and another set would be used to generate propulsion by pumping massive amounts of Water in the direction the Islands were intended to move in.
After a number of months, the upgraded version of the Islands were ready and sent out to Sea. They floated well thanks to Chambers Of Helium Gas that supported flotation. Living Quarters had retractable roofs made out of layers consisting of both Translucent and Transparent materials that could be controlled via Pulley Systems. The reinforced glass could also withstand massive pressure so we didn't have to worry very much about cracks and breaks in the fabric and measures were put in place for maintenance.
We realized something amazing once the Islands were sent out to Sea. The first was that the Islands didn't need to be Stationary. They could be moved by pumping Sea Water against the direction we intended to move in hence we had an infinite supply of fuel as long as they remained in the Ocean. The second was that, thanks to the few Opaque Structures that were used to cultivate Farms, we'd never have to run out of food and could explore almost endlessly till we discovered a new Continent. The third was that, the Plants cultivated on the Islands contributed to a Rain Cycle that would ensure that we didn't inadvertently exhaust the Ocean's Supply Of Water.