The Surface

"There are some things we were not meant to know, they say. But you wouldn't be down here if you took that seriously." Beyond this point lie spoilers for Fallen London, Sunless Sea, Sunless Skies, or Mask of the Rose. This may include midgame or minor Fate-locked content. Proceed with caution. You can find out more about our spoiler policy here.

"The Sun is dangerous to Neath-dwellers like your crew, but the Surface has its temptations."

The Surface is the blanket term for the lands above the Neath, bathed in the life-giving and life-taking light of the Sun.

Nostalgic

"The trees are the dusty green of old jade: the hills, tawny as a lion. You are pale as milk, all of you. The crew splash in the canal, whenever they can, to cool themselves after the heat of the sun. "It's not right up here," your bo'sun confides. "I keep thinking I'm going to fall off up, like. But it calms the heart to look at, don't it?""

A Sunlight-Filled Mirrorcatch Box.

The two primary connections between the Surface and the Neath are the Travertine Spiral and the Cumaean Canal. Traveling to the Surface can be profitable, but it is also extremely dangerous, as exposure to sunlight can be a death sentence for denizens of the Neath.

Zailors who travel to the Surface often engage in the highly illegal sunlight trade, where they fill mysterious Mirrorcatch Boxes with captured sunlight, and sell them to those who can afford such a luxury. Quite a few citizens of the Neath miss sunlight, even if they won't openly admit it, and peddlers of sunlight can turn in huge profits, but they also have a bad habit of succumbing to their own product. 

Neathy folk struck by nostalgia for the Surface may also indulge in Surface-inspired dinners, or may import food from the Surface for an extremely high price. They may also import Surface-grown flowers, but these wither quickly, unless they're properly embalmed beforehand.