Bleed

Marie looked down over the wooden railing in disbelief at the two levels below her in the circular atrium, each ringed with the same golden-brown balustrade. The library sat at the bottom, a cozy cylinder of books beneath the column of space and the impossible crystal dome high above, the shimmering alchemical glow-orbs and faerie-fire crystals hovering in the air. Gwae's apartments always were disorienting, even though she had been in them often, most often the lower two floors. She had her own rooms in the the Ash and Hazel, a small suite on the 2nd floor, which, while comfortably large, at least seemed to fit within the building's confines. Gwae's door was at the top of a narrow staircase in the attic, where the roof reached its peak. The room beyond the door, by Marie's reckoning, could barely fit a bed based on its position in the building. And yet, her friends apartments somehow supported 2 large libraries, a full kitchen and dedicated dining room, and numerous other rooms, all spreading out from the three-storied atrium underneath the dome, the blue sky above filling the room with light, despite the overcast clouds that had been present when Marie entered the building mere minutes earlier.
She also didn't remember there being a third floor. Or how she had gotten there.
She turned and found the door, one of four, with the intricate floral patterns of a green man carved into the dark wood. The knob was warm to the touch and the heavy wood panel opened effortlessly. A corridor opened up before the bard, a delicate pattern of wooden tiles extending down the hallway, flanked by golden-wood columns decorated by carved vines. Another door stood at the far end. Marie began to walk. The carved vines seemed to twist and grow as she moved past them, an optical illusion as the columns seemed to spread upwards along the norman arches, the arches becoming more like a tunnel of old trees, branches intertwining above her. Light filtered down, diffused as if passing through leaves. Marie stopped and turned around. The hallway of gothic arches and wood stretched out behind her, much longer than she had assumed. The hallway beyond, continuing to stretch out to a door no closer than when she started, now seemed to resemble a hedgerow, complete with leaves and patches of dirt and grass among the tiled floor. Birds sang and Marie felt the warm wind blow across her face.
"I think ye took a wrong turn." A voice broke Marie out of her dreamlike trance. Gwae was next to her, sitting on a bench of white wood against the trellace of interwoven branches. "How... What is this place?" Marie, startled by the sudden appearance, looked around. "Dark Hedge road." Gwae responded with the nonchalance of describing a spare bedroom. "We should probably get back. Don't recall where this one ends up." "But... where are we?" "What de ye mean?" the silver-haired Tuatha tilted her head. "We're in the Ash and Hazel. See. Ash trees on the left, Hazel on the right." "Why is there a... dark hedge road... in your apartment?" "To get from here to there, I'd imagine." Gwae shrugged. "The tea is ready in the library. Probably better to take it there." Without any further comment, Gwae gestured to the door, now a mere few steps away and smiled. Marie stepped through the door, finding herself in the library at the bast of the atrium. She shook her head, decided it was best to not think about and followed her host.

Manifestation

Bleed is the term used to describe a magical phenomena that permeates Alvez as conflicting realities dramatically warp each other, transforming the affected area and its inhabitants with its presence. While typically used to describe the effect itself, the term is interchangeable as a descriptor of both regions under its effects and temporal periods in which the effect was more pronounced. In this last category, it is generally agreed that there have been between 4 and 5 "Bleeds" of global significance since the initial manifestation of this phenomena.
For much of remembered history, the earthly realm of Bedouar and the magical world of Faerie existed as independent, but often parallel, realities, separated by The Veil, a metaphysical barrier. While there is some folkloric speculation that the Veil could be seen through or even crossed at certain locations and times, this has not been confirmed by any reputable sources. The Veil's existence was both confirmed and in some ways rendered obsolete in 0 SI, following a cataclysmic disaster known as the Tear. A great calamity befell both realities as the Veil was ripped, the magic of Faerie spilling into Bedouar like floodwaters after a dam breech, warping the land and infusing it with incalculable amounts of magical energy, and fusing the two disparate worlds into one new reality, collectively known as Alvez. Following the tear, the Bleed ebbs and flows like a tide, influencing Bedouar with the pure chaotic energy of the Faewylde. While there have been major periods of Bleed, none have come close to matching the initial chaos of the Tear.
While overall the bleed grows and recedes, there exist regions where the effect has become permanent.
The reality warping nature of the Faewylde and the Bleed makes objective study difficult, but arkanists and scholars of both the Bediz and the Tuatha de Danaan have generally classified the most common instances of the effect in the following categories:

• Tomhaidhm, or "Lake-Burst" is one of the most dramatic and common classifications, occurring when a body of water, typically a lake, spring or river, suddenly manifests in Bedoaur. Typically, these pools remain magically active, focal points for regional leylines, magic flowing in and out of these reservoirs like veins to a heart. In most cases, these are typically small and remote, but in rare cases, they can be quite destructive. The most notable Tomhaidhm occurred in conjunction with a massive Wyldstorms that slammed into the Southern Ar Mor of the The Armorican Peninsula, specifically the Kingdom of Kernev n Peninsula](location:22e24407-3541-40ad-9a0c-bb71ae6635ff), where it destroyed the city of Ys-Beneath-the-Waves, submerging the city and a large amount of coastline beneath the Mor Bras (The Great Sea). This triggered a magically infused Tsunami that subsequently wreaked havoc on Lyonesse and the Ar Briwer. All three remain active Bleeds to this day, overflowing with magical energy. Popular speculation, albeit not conclusively proven, believes a similar event submerged a large area of land in what is now the Mor Marv.

• No less dramatic is the Hengoad, a similar occurrence, but with the sudden manifestation of water replaced by thick vegetation, typically a wooded forest. During a Hengoad, Vines, plants and old-growth trees will appear and quickly grow, overtaking the existing landscape at great speed, ranging from over the course of a few hours to several months. The Goat Broceliande and the Forest of the Erlking are both significant examples of this, with developed and barren regions overtaken by dense forests teeming with flora and fauna. While typically associated with wooded forests, other varieties have also been reported, including giant mushroom forests, grassy pastures and stranger things, like the precious metal forest beneath the waves of Lyonesse. This effect is seemingly unrelated to the underlying region, with the effect being observed in cities, fields and even sandy deserts, with a northern forest being found in the Shifting Sands.

• Krenadenn - A rare, but typically dramatic type of bleed, in which the warping creates a sudden pit, fissure or mountain, dramatically altering the landscape. The Shatterlands, the maze of twisting, water filled canyons to the South, and the Meneziou Are, a mountain range in the Ar Goat Breizh, are two significant examples of this. More commonly, the effects are more localized. A disruption of gravity is often described in these localized disruptions, with large chunks of rock or earth floating suspended in the Feth Fiada. Entire floating islands, such as Tír na nÓg and Hy-Brasil, exist deeper in Faerie-controlled lands, thought to be evidence of Krenadenn bleed.

• Gagneg - One of rarest, but most destructive Bleeds, the gagneg is a bleed of death and decay rather than creation, a circle of barren earth that drains the lifeforce of anything that enters. Nothing grows or thrives within these desolate places, save for the Fear Gorta, which is thought to have originated from such a place. Other Sluagh are drawn to these places as well. The Hall of Lost Footsteps, a well known-urban legend, is one of these, manifesting within dark castle hallways. It is not clear if this event draws from Faerie or somewhere else, leading some to argue they may be a form of Oristal, rather than their own classification.

• Diforjañ - This variation defies easy classification, instead referring to a general "warping" of time and space. Distorted perspectives, temporal experience and suspended physics are found in these, typically occurring in conjunction with a more dramatic Bleed. The Diforjañ effects are often in play in these other bleeds, and the term is only used when the effect stands alone.

• Oristal - Oristals are the least understood of the Bleeds, as they do not appear to draw from Faerie, but from somewhere else entirely. They are typically short-lived and unstable, occasionally leaving behind strange artifacts and individuals, but rarely making a lasting impact on the surroundings. Tales of strange places, machines and events not seen in Faerie or Bedouar accompany these occurrences, treated more as folklore or urban legend than fact. Relics from Oristals typically deteriorate quickly or gradually assume forms and functions more in keeping with the baseline realities of Alvez, while individuals appear in a bewildered, disoriented state, losing memories of the other side of these events.
  In rare cases, these can retain some permanence. The Lightning Trail, its bridgelike trestles appearing across Letha and Albia is the most well known example of this. Those brave enough to investigate report on a metal train rocketing through chaotic Faewylde, full of Envorad spectres and voices announcing non-existent places. Riding on the Trail is dangerous, but allows unparalleled speed of travel to those who survive. The Shifting Sands, a vast desert housing Iram of the Pillars is considered the largest and most stable Oristal, having brought the Djinn to Alvez.
  Artificiers are heavily involved in the investigation of these to revere engineer what they can before the objects are rendered worthless. The Brassgaurd and Windships are influenced by Oristal research.

Localization

Occurence
Bleed typically occurs in physical and conceptually "liminal spaces" between two aspects of being. Islands (between sea and land), mountains (between land and sky) and mounds (between the surface and a subterranean underworld) are the most common, but other variations exist. Even in urban and developed areas, these can still manifest, to a lesser extent, overtaking alleyways, unused hallways, underground sewers and even individual doorways.
Bleed often ebbs and flows, the effects more pronounced or restrained at different times, vanishing altogether or becoming permanent. A strong presence of leylines, arkane activity or Wyldstorms increases the likelihood of creation, presence and potency of the Bleed, which in turn often strengthens the power of these. Wyldstorms provide the most dramatic and likely creation of a bleed.
Feth Fiada is typically prevalent in Bleed, announcing its borders and filling the space itself to a lesser extent.
Effect of Living Entities
The effect on living creatures in a Bleed is considerably more varied. Some can move through Bleed regularly with no effect, while others may be gradually altered while under its influence. Mundane creatures within an area during the creation of a new bleed, an event typified by the release of massive amounts of chaotic magical energies, have an increased chance of becoming Milliget, Sluagh, Boermerzh, or changed in other dramatic ways. Ascended animals, having gained higher levels of intelligence and the powers of speech, are often found in Bleed. Fatalities are also common, leaving behind Envorad.
Non-magical bediz have difficulty navigating the often dream-like state of Bleed, often falling further into the Faewylde or into a state of madness. The flow of time, in particular, is a great danger to the unprepared, who may emerge from a short trip decades or centuries later, finding themselves in a new time or crumbling to dust upon returning.
Milliget and Boermerzh are more adept at this, and are able to navigate and exploit the event's nuanced eccentricities to greater effect, allowing them to avoid the more dramatic and often fatal missteps resulting in severe time dilation, instead taking advantage of the truncated distances and inconsistent space for faster travel or storage. The Korrigan and Tuatha are able to exist in the Bleed without any such issues, although those with Time Madness sometimes have more difficulty than their unaffected peers.
The Bleed in Faerie
It has been argued that while Faerie's physical effect on Bedouar constitutes bleed, scholars argue that Bleed is also present in Faerie, with the discrete existence of locations such as Tevenn Du and Kameled standing in opposition to the more nebulous Faewylde. Some have even argued that Time Madness is an effect of Bedouar's influence on the magical world.

Type

Metaphysical, Arcane