#spiritual death

[horriblewithwords]

My time has come & gone.

[mybeautifulchristianjourney]

Be Careful!

8 Keep your mind clear, and be alert. Your opponent the devil is prowling around like a roaring lion as he looks for someone to devour. 9 Be firm in the faith and resist him, knowing that other believers throughout the world are going through the same kind of suffering. — 1 Peter 5:8-9 | God's Word Translation (GWT) The Holy Bible, God’s Word® Translation Copyright 1995 by God’s Word to the Nations. All rights reserved. Cross References: Job 1:7; Proverbs 28:15; Matthew 24:42; Mark 4:15; Acts 14:22; Colossians 2:5; Hebrews 12:8; James 4:7

[stackofsnakes]

There seems to be something of a spiritual death that occurs at around the mid twenties. Just a spark that goes missing from a person when they... settle. Sometimes it happens before a person finishes their education, be it uni or an apprenticeship, sometimes it lasts a couple years into work life, some lose it before adulthood, a few fortunate ones seem to hold onto it indefinetely.

It hasn't gotten me yet, although it certainly is my time, but i see it in some of my friends. Things that used to excite them seem to have less and less of an effect and there seems to be something of a damper put on their disposition.

I wonder why that happens. If anybody has a theory, i'd be open to listen.

[nerdygaymormon]

[tabernacleheart]

They are said to be dead to sin, who do not live under the power and dominion of it; who mortify sin, and suffer it (so far as they can) to have no life or power in it. Fall into it they may, but live and lie in it they cannot. It is not falling into the water that drowns a man, but it is his lying in it; so it is not falling into sin that damns a man, but it is his living in it.

Matthew Poole; Commentary on Romans 6:2

[promiseiwillwrite]

Broken

I struggled to stand. I knew I was covered with leaves and decay. How long Had I been lying there? And something was digging into my back and side. Deep. I knew I needed a healer. I breathed. I moved the day into night. I felt it's cold. I saw the stars. I stepped forward and the appendage that held me impaled pulled sickeningly. I stumbled. It was wrong. I breathed again and I saw a road. But not any road. A road in the UK, where the trees make a tunnel, and I moved towards it. I felt the mist thinking, and I felt as though I was pulling a thing behind me that was hundreds of pounds. I reached back. It was firm, and white, but like flesh. I wanted to make it let go of me. To stop feeding on me I thought of acid, but then I called the Ink Cap. I called the blackening disintegration into dripping black liquid. It let go.

A shaft of sun came through the oaks. And a man with a deer headdress came and walked with me. I knew him. I thanked him. And he said, "come, child, it is time to die." I said "yeah. Okay." He took me just a little way down the road to a Well.

He stopped beside me, looking at my back. Where the Thing had been embedded in my body were huge blackened holes, necrotic, and irrecoverable. "Your spiritual body is damaged. It is why you are not healing on your own. You have to gain a new one."

I sat with his assistance on the edge of the well. "I have to go down there, don't I? Will it be cold?"

"No."

"Thank you for coming for me. I knew you would."

"I would have come for you a full year ago if you weren't so stubborn."

I had at least the grace to cry a little in response. I am dumb like this a lot. Needing help but not asking for it until it is too late.

Guilt is a trash human experience. I do not recommend.

"It will take months. At least two. I will see you on the other side."

He didn't really have to push me. He let go, and I kind of just rolled limply off the edge. The fall was farther than I expected and hitting the water was a shock when it came.

The water wasn't cold. But it dragged me down all the same. Long reaching hands of weed and bone. The water and the dead that it holds pulled me down into the murky dark. I didn't try to hold my breath or fight.

But I felt trapped constrained by the remnants of my dying body.

The skeletal hands clawed at me. I clawed at me, pulling the rotting flesh away from my ribs and forearms and face.

I thought briefly of the far shore. I didn't know where to go, or how to get there.

But the water did. If there is any place in the British Isles that is a physical gateway to the underworld, it is the Bolton Strid.

The water took me. It began to rush, and down, down, into the crushing dark, bashing me against every rockface. Ripping limb and bone.

I grab my skull, digging my fingers into my own eye sockets from either side, and tear my own skull in half.

So it begins.

So it ends.

[quasaur]

Asleep...or DEAD?

Available now on Calvin's Journal!

https://www.clmjournal.com/post/asleep-or-dead

[biblebloodhound]

Accountability Is Real, and It Matters (Ezekiel 14:12-23)

No person, group, institution, or nation can act unjustly forever.

The word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, if a country sins against me by being unfaithful and I stretch out my hand against it to cut off its food supply and send famine upon it and kill its people and their animals, even if these three men—Noah, Daniel and Job—were in it, they could save only themselves by their righteousness, declares the Sovereign Lord. “Or if I send wild beasts through…

[tom4jc]

Habakkuk 1:12 You Will Not Die

Are you not from everlasting, O Lord my God, my Holy One? We shall not die. O Lord, You have appointed them for judgement; O Rock, You have marked them for correction. Habakkuk 1:12 Going through difficult times is very hard for most people. It can sometimes appear as though one is going to die and not survive the difficulty. The troubles can overwhelm a person to the point of death. This can…

[baniigattsuu]

𝓲'𝓿𝓮 𝓻𝓮𝓬𝓮𝓷𝓽𝓵𝔂 𝓶𝓮𝓽 𝔀𝓲𝓽𝓱 𝓪𝓷 𝓪𝓯𝓯𝓪𝓲𝓻. 𝓲 𝓱𝓪𝓿𝓮 𝓻𝓮𝓪𝓼𝓸𝓷 𝓽𝓸 𝓼𝓾𝓼𝓹𝓮𝓬𝓽 𝓽𝓱𝓪𝓽 𝓲'𝓶 𝓮𝔁𝓹𝓮𝓻𝓲𝓮𝓷𝓬𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓶𝔂 𝓼𝓹𝓲𝓻𝓲𝓽𝓾𝓪𝓵 𝓭𝓮𝓪𝓽𝓱. 𝓲'𝓿𝓮 𝓫𝓮𝓮𝓷 𝓼𝓮𝓮𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓼𝓲𝓰𝓷𝓼 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓼𝔂𝓶𝓹𝓽𝓸𝓶𝓼. 𝓘 𝓯𝓮𝓮𝓵 𝓵𝓲𝓴𝓮 𝓲𝓽 𝓬𝓸𝓾𝓵𝓭 𝓶𝓪𝓲𝓷𝓵𝔂 𝓬𝓸𝓷𝓽𝓻𝓲𝓫𝓾𝓽𝓮 𝓽𝓸 𝓼𝓸𝓶𝓮 𝓹𝓮𝓻𝓼𝓸𝓷𝓪𝓵 𝓲𝓼𝓼𝓾𝓮𝓼 𝓽𝓱𝓪𝓽 𝓱𝓪𝓿𝓮 𝓫𝓮𝓮𝓷 𝓬𝓪𝓾𝓼𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓶𝓮 𝓽𝓸 𝓯𝓮𝓮𝓵 𝓼𝓸 𝓮𝓶𝓹𝓽𝔂, 𝓵𝓲𝓴𝓮 𝓶𝔂 𝓫𝓻𝓪𝓲𝓷 𝓲𝓼 𝓸𝓷 𝓵𝓸𝔀 𝓹𝓸𝔀𝓮𝓻 𝓶𝓸𝓭𝓮, 𝓸𝓻 𝓽𝓮𝓶𝓹𝓸𝓻𝓪𝓻𝓲𝓵𝔂 𝓼𝓱𝓾𝓽𝓽𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓭𝓸𝔀𝓷. 𝓕𝓸𝓻 𝓪𝓷𝔂𝓸𝓷𝓮 𝓮𝓵𝓼𝓮 𝔀𝓱𝓸'𝓼 𝓹𝓮𝓻𝓬𝓮𝓲𝓿𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓼 𝓼𝓽𝓪𝓰𝓮 𝓪𝓼𝔀𝓮𝓵𝓵, 𝓳𝓾𝓼𝓽 𝓴𝓷𝓸𝔀, 𝓽𝓱𝓪𝓽 𝓲𝓽'𝓼 𝓪𝓫𝓼𝓸𝓵𝓾𝓽𝓮𝓵𝔂 𝓸𝓴𝓪𝔂 𝓽𝓸 𝓯𝓮𝓮𝓵 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝔀𝓪𝔂 𝔂𝓸𝓾 𝓭𝓸. 𝓦𝓮'𝓻𝓮 𝓪𝓵𝓵 𝓱𝓾𝓶𝓪𝓷𝓼, 𝓯𝓮𝓮𝓵𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓮𝓶𝓸𝓽𝓲𝓸𝓷𝓼. 𝓐𝓷𝓭 𝓯𝓮𝓮𝓵𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓷𝓰𝓼 𝓲𝓼 𝔀𝓱𝓪𝓽 𝓶𝓪𝓴𝓮𝓼 𝓾𝓼 𝓱𝓾𝓶𝓪𝓷. 𝓨𝓸𝓾𝓻 𝓼𝓹𝓲𝓻𝓲𝓽𝓾𝓪𝓵 𝓭𝓮𝓪𝓽𝓱 𝓲𝓼 𝓸𝓷𝓵𝔂 𝓪 𝓼𝓲𝓷𝓰𝓾𝓵𝓪𝓻 𝓬𝓱𝓪𝓹𝓽𝓮𝓻 𝓲𝓷 𝔂𝓸𝓾𝓻 𝓳𝓸𝓾𝓻𝓷𝓮𝔂. 𝓐 𝓹𝓮𝓻𝓲𝓸𝓭 𝓲𝓷 𝔂𝓸𝓾𝓻 𝓼𝓹𝓲𝓻𝓲𝓽𝓾𝓪𝓵 𝓳𝓸𝓾𝓻𝓷𝓮𝔂. 𝓘𝓽'𝓼 𝓪 𝓶𝓮𝓷𝓽𝓪𝓵𝓵𝔂 𝓬𝓱𝓪𝓵𝓵𝓮𝓷𝓰𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓹𝓪𝓻𝓽 𝓸𝓯 𝓰𝓻𝓸𝔀𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓾𝓹, 𝓽𝓱𝓪𝓽 𝓲𝓼 𝓬𝓸𝓶𝓹𝓵𝓮𝓽𝓮𝓵𝔂 𝓷𝓸𝓻𝓶𝓪𝓵 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓷𝓪𝓽𝓾𝓻𝓪𝓵. 𝓘𝓽'𝓼 𝓭𝓾𝓻𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓼 𝓽𝓲𝓶𝓮, 𝓽𝓱𝓪𝓽 𝔀𝓮 𝓼𝓱𝓸𝓾𝓵𝓭 𝓼𝓮𝓮𝓴 𝓮𝓷𝓵𝓲𝓰𝓱𝓽𝓶𝓮𝓷𝓽. 𝓢𝓲𝓽 𝓭𝓸𝔀𝓷 𝔀𝓲𝓽𝓱 𝓸𝓾𝓻𝓼𝓮𝓵𝓿𝓮𝓼. 𝓣𝓪𝓴𝓮 𝓪 𝓫𝓻𝓮𝓪𝓴 𝓯𝓻𝓸𝓶 𝓲𝓽 𝓪𝓵𝓵. 𝓑𝓻𝓮𝓪𝓽𝓱𝓮. 𝓜𝓮𝓭𝓲𝓽𝓪𝓽𝓮. 𝓡𝓮𝓼𝓽. 𝓣𝓱𝓲𝓷𝓴. 𝓟𝓻𝓪𝓬𝓽𝓲𝓬𝓮 𝓼𝓮𝓵𝓯 𝓬𝓪𝓻𝓮. 𝓣𝓻𝔂 𝓽𝓸 𝓯𝓲𝓷𝓭 𝓪 𝓭𝓮𝓮𝓹𝓮𝓻 𝓾𝓷𝓭𝓮𝓻𝓼𝓽𝓪𝓷𝓭𝓲𝓷𝓰. 𝔀𝓱𝓮𝓽𝓱𝓮𝓻 𝓽𝓱𝓪𝓽 𝓫𝓮 𝓪 𝓭𝓮𝓮𝓹𝓮𝓻 𝓾𝓷𝓭𝓮𝓻𝓼𝓽𝓪𝓷𝓭𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓸𝓯 𝓸𝓾𝓻𝓼𝓮𝓵𝓿𝓮𝓼, 𝓸𝓻 𝓹𝓮𝓻𝓱𝓪𝓹𝓼 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝔀𝓸𝓻𝓵𝓭 𝓪𝓻𝓸𝓾𝓷𝓭 𝓾𝓼. 𝓐𝓷𝔂𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓽𝓱𝓪𝓽 𝓶𝓪𝓴𝓮𝓼 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓼𝓹𝓲𝓻𝓲𝓽 𝓲𝓷 𝔂𝓸𝓾 𝓯𝓮𝓮𝓵 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓶𝓸𝓼𝓽 𝓬𝓸𝓶𝓯𝔂. 𝓣𝓱𝓮𝓼𝓮 𝓬𝓸𝓶𝓹𝓵𝓲𝓬𝓪𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓯𝓮𝓮𝓵𝓲𝓷𝓰𝓼 𝔀𝓸𝓷'𝓽 𝓵𝓪𝓼𝓽 𝓯𝓸𝓻𝓮𝓿𝓮𝓻, 𝓼𝓸 𝓳𝓾𝓼𝓽 𝓱𝓸𝓵𝓭 𝓸𝓷 𝓪 𝓵𝓲𝓽𝓽𝓵𝓮 𝓵𝓸𝓷𝓰𝓮𝓻. 𝓨𝓸𝓾'𝓻𝓮 𝓰𝓻𝓸𝔀𝓲𝓷𝓰, 𝓫𝓮 𝓹𝓪𝓽𝓲𝓮𝓷𝓽 𝔀𝓲𝓽𝓱 𝔂𝓸𝓾𝓻𝓼𝓮𝓵𝓯. 𝓢𝓮𝓵𝓯 𝓬𝓪𝓻𝓮 𝓵𝓸𝓸𝓴𝓼 𝓭𝓲𝓯𝓯𝓮𝓻𝓮𝓷𝓽 𝓯𝓸𝓻 𝓮𝓿𝓮𝓻𝔂𝓸𝓷𝓮. 𝓢𝓸 𝓾𝓷𝓽𝓲𝓵 𝔂𝓸𝓾 𝓪𝓻𝓮 𝓯𝓲𝓷𝓪𝓵𝓵𝔂 𝓼𝓹𝓲𝓻𝓲𝓽𝓾𝓪𝓵𝓵𝔂 𝓻𝓮𝓫𝓸𝓻𝓷 𝓲𝓷 𝔂𝓸𝓾𝓻 𝓷𝓮𝔁𝓽 𝓵𝓲𝓯𝓮𝓽𝓲𝓶𝓮, 𝓼𝓽𝓪𝔂 𝓼𝓪𝓯𝓮 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓽𝓪𝓴𝓮 𝓬𝓪𝓻𝓮 ❤️‍🩹✨

Ꮢ.Ɨ.Ꭾ. 𝙸𝙽 𝙻𝙾𝚅𝙸𝙽𝙶 𝙼𝙴𝙼𝙾𝚁𝚈 𝙾𝙵: ᵐʸ ᵒˡᵈ ˢᵉˡᶠ 😔🪦🥀

ɧυցʂ คŋძ Ն૦۷૯,

- 𝒮𝔞𝔱𝔰𝔲𝓀𝔞 💭💝

[granonine]

Look and Live!

Psalm 56:13. “For Thou hast delivered my soul from death: wilt not Thou deliver my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light of the living?” What an appropriate verse for this first Bible study post since March 4! Not that I was anywhere near death, but I really was quite ill. Still not 100%, but I can feel the bronchitis releasing its grip a little bit each day. David may have…

[mybeautifulchristianjourney]

Beware of the Enemy

8 Be ye sober, and wake ye, for your adversary, the devil, as a roaring lion goeth about, seeking whom he shall devour.

9 Whom against stand ye, strong in the faith, witting that the same passion is made to that brotherhood of you, that is in the world [witting the same passion to be done to that your brotherhood, that is in the world]. — 1 Peter 5:8-9 | Wycliffe Bible (WYC) The Wycliffe Bible is in the public domain. Cross References: Job 1:7; Proverbs 28:15; Matthew 24:42; Mark 4:15; Acts 14:22; Colossians 2:5; Hebrews 12:8; James 4:7

[flwrkid14]

Eternal Bonds: Tim and Danny’s Infinite Realms Marriage

In the Infinite Realms, marriage is an unparalleled commitment. Unlike the mortal world, where love can be fleeting and easily undone, marriage in the Realms is something far more sacred. It’s not just about vows or ceremonies—it’s about merging souls, creating a bond that not even the vast stretches of time can sever. The very idea of marriage in the Realms is rare, almost mythical, because it requires two beings to love each other so profoundly that they’re willing to bind their very existence to one another.

For the ghosts and entities that reside in this realm, eternity isn’t just a poetic idea—it’s a reality. Time is meaningless when you’re no longer alive, when your very essence is bound to the afterlife. And because of this, relationships are viewed through a different lens. There’s no such thing as divorce, no “time apart.” Once a couple is bound, their souls are intertwined forever. To dedicate your entire being—past, present, and future—to another means accepting that their joys, sorrows, triumphs, and failures will be yours too. It’s a partnership where breaking the bond is simply impossible.

It’s why marriage is such a rare occurrence in the Realms. The ghosts, who have already lived one life and often seen the frailty of mortal promises, don’t enter into this kind of bond lightly. It’s only for the strongest of loves, for the most steadfast of commitments. Because once you marry in the Infinite Realms, that bond holds through eternity itself.

And yet, despite the gravity of it all, Tim and Danny find themselves willing to make that very commitment. Tim, a mortal tied to a world where things end, where nothing lasts forever, steps into the unknown. His love for Danny is so deep, so unshakable, that he agrees to a traditional Infinite Realms marriage. He knows full well the weight of it—he’s not just vowing to love Danny in this life, but in every life after. In swearing to this bond, Tim is offering his entire being to Danny, for now and all of eternity.

For Danny, this choice means even more. As a halfa, he exists between two worlds, knowing both the mortality of the living and the permanence of the ghostly afterlife. His love for Tim is powerful enough that he’s willing to make this eternal commitment, knowing that there’s no one else in any world—mortal, ghostly, or beyond—he would rather be tied to. For Danny, the bond is as natural as breathing. It’s a connection that deepens their relationship in a way that transcends the limitations of their two worlds.

Their marriage isn’t just a declaration of love—it’s a merging of souls, a binding that makes them two parts of the same whole. It overwhelms them with the sense of safety and belonging that they’ve both craved in their lives. In each other, they find the kind of love that doesn’t just endure life’s difficulties but thrives beyond them. Their bond ties them together forever in a way that no one else could understand, but to Tim and Danny, it’s everything.

They are each other’s home. And in the Infinite Realms, there is no greater honor, no stronger connection, than to be bound by love for all of eternity.

[askfordoodles]

Emmrich finally elaborates on the no-meat diet thing

[saltpepperbeard]

I'll take care of you, take care of you. That's true.

[vacz]

I present to you my idea of a alternative bad ending for Wirt...

THE HUNTER

Instead of Beast!Wirt is Woodsman!wirt

After accepting the deal with the Beast, Wirt became the new lantern barer in hopes to keep Greg alive. He took the job to cut down the ellewoods and make them oil to feed the lantern so Greg's soul would never turn off, exactly what the woodsman used to do with his daughter. But as different from the woodsman, Wirt does know where the ellewoods truly came from, so the Beast has decided to take advantage of it and included him a little bit more into his chase for new victims. Now having Wirt helping the Beast to guide lost souls to the wrong path, it has become so much easier for the Beast to trap new souls

Wirt's role was this for a time: Becoming the new woodsman and finding lost kids to give them wrong directions or ideas. Despise how much he refused in the beginning, soon the Beast made him understand that this was the price for his mistakes, unless he wanted to Greg pay the price instead...

Until one night, Wirt had to confront a travel soul. A boy like him, wanting to save his little brother from the cruel breaches of the tree growing on his helpless body, and finally leave the woods with him, like Wirt himself once did. However, the Beast pressured and demanded him to take action himself, but unlike the old woodsman, Wirt did cut the boy down.

And since that incident, Wirt now has a new task to commit every time a new soul enters into the unknown.

He could barely sleep at night before, now he can't sleep at all. Wirt has stopped taking care of himself, at least he washes his hair and clothes once in a time but time itself seems so uselessly long for him until the point that things don't seem to matter anymore, nothing matters for Wirt, not even himself and his feelings... except keeping the lantern lit

The Beast knows better than anyone that Wirt's mind has become so weak until the point that he can't even survive by himself. He had succeeded in destroying this boy whole identity, only leaving a white paper to work on, so now he tries mold Wirt according his own twisted needs. Ironically, thanks to the Beast's influence, Wirt remembers the reason why he has to keep going with this but also he slowly starts to see people in a similar way that the beast's twisted perception does; trees to feed the lantern, not ready to burn yet but they must be prepared.

It's not surprising how much he has given up to the Beast. But unlike him, Wirt doesn't like to "play" or manipulate their victims, because he doesn't want to know them at all. Wirt already knows how these people will end, and he doesn't want to feel worse than he feels now, so he mostly tries to make his interactions shorter or cut them down directly, the quicker the easier it is for him to adopt this 'human dissociation' mentally

Of course, when he chooses violence, people tend to run rather than do what he plead, so he has to chase after them. Running after someone is exhausting for Wirt because he isn't that athletic in that aspect, and it's frustrating when he can't reach them. There are times when they manage to escape and some others that they don't

Wirt hates running after them, because it makes the situation more torturous and he gets exhausted. But if they don't start running, he is the one who tells them to do so. He doesn't understand very well why he does this but he likes to think that is a way to give them a chance to escape so he doesn't have to be the one to end with them, after all Wirt wants to believe that he is not evil

And yet, at the same time Wirt finds some kind of satisfaction on it... He is scared of what he is becoming.

Of course, he has this little duality inside his brain. The Beast has done a good job to keep Wirt in his role but still that doesn't make Wirt's guilt disappear at all

At least, his guilt has been manifested into a voice, represented by the rock fact. Even if the rock fact was meant for Greg to make silly but un-true facts, Wirt's interpretation of his own rock facts are the cruelest truths he refuses to believe. The rock fact represents that honest and logical part of him that is still there, under the tone of the self hate Wirt has grown on himself.

Of course, when he is around people for a longer period than he feels he should, Wirt stops trying to act normal and let himself to act a little... dramatic, in hopes to scare them or "prepare" himself mentally to go and chase them down with the axe

For this, he likes to use the rock fact. He always keeps it in his hair and uses it to try to re-create a rock fact like the ones Greg used to make, but instead of charming or adorable he looks insane, and he already knows that. Of course, he tries to re-create them seriously when he is alone but still fails miserably

Wirt does this in a poor intent to feel in touch with Greg, even tho they usually talk a lot with each other

Jason Funderberker has been gone for a long time by now, so the Beast is the only company Wirt has left, but most of the time he is alone.

He doesn't devout that his brother is there anymore, after all, Now Wirt can hear Greg's voice coming out of the lantern so what would be a better proof than that?. Greg is the only person left who seems to not hate him or is scared of him, the little ray of sunshine in his poor cruel life. If you tell him otherwise, Wirt won't want to believe you, even if deep down somehow, someway no matter how delusional he may be... He knows is true

Of course, I wouldn't recommend saying this because after having a nervous breakdown he will absolutely go after you with all pure rage.

Now here are some questions and its explanations:

Where does this idea come from?

Where does the name "The Hunter' come from?

What's Wirt and The Beast's relationship?

Wirt, The Woodsman, The Hunter and The Beast

Where does this idea come from?

It's no surprise that it comes from the idea of a bad ending for Wirt, one that is more fitting with the logic of the series. Because let's be real;

If he accepted the deal he wouldn't turn into the new beast because The Beast's motivation was to survive, he doesn't seem to want a replacement or transpass the role to anyone. In that case he would have already done it with The Woodsman.

The unknown was completely fine with the Beast gone so is not that he is THAT important for the forest to need a replacement.

Also, remember this little scene? it's from chapter 1: The Old Grist Mill. When Wirt and Greg just entered the unknown and suddenly heard the Woodsman cutting wood, before talking to him, Wirt said:

"Do you think it's some kind of deranged lunatic with an axe waiting out there in the darkness for innocent victims?"

So I thought; What if in the bad ending... He became that deranged lunatic?

Where does the name "The Hunter" come from"?

In the concept:

Since there are times when Wirt's victims escape, those who survived spread the word of a maniac who is wandering around the woods, looking for new victims, and once he finds them he will chase them until he can cut them down to the bone with his axe

They named him "The Hunter"

Wirt knows about his new reputation, since the travelers call him that once he reveals his real intentions, but he isn't really aware of all the rumors and stories people of the unknown had made about him, he knows that he will not like them but at the same time he is very curious about it. Some of them are true and others are just exaggerating. But at this point, Wirt Hunter had accepted that now he is one of the particular characters of the unknown.

In technical explanation:

In Over The Garden Wall we saw that most of the characters are named by "the what" for example: The Beast and The woodsman, they had no name by their own outside of their archetype. So I thought that in Wirt's case he would have a name like that, losing his own as a representation of how he has lost his own original identity. Wirt is no longer "the worthy one" anymore because he is more lost than the woodsman ever was, and there is no chance to bring him back, so he became "The Hunter" for the unique faction that makes himself distinguish from The Woodsman: The killing

The woodsman is just a man who lives in the woods and cuts trees, it just happens that the Beast used one to keep the lantern on. However.... The Hunter is someone that hunts, the whole point of a hunter is that he chases living beings and strap them, mostly for need. That is something The Beast himself does in his own way, which makes Wirt and The Beast more similar and unionite than the previous dynamic with The Woodsman, or even I dare say they are just alike; The Creature and The Man who hunts for surviving

Also, more into Bad End Friend's territory; Every evil alternate version has their own unique name, for example the icon trio, Bipper and Ice Finn (Also officially named "The Snowman") but then we have just "Beast Wirt" and until now NOBODY has come up with an actual name that fits him. I remember that someone already suggested the name "The Hunter" for Beast Wirt but it didn't make much sense (At least to me). However, in a woodsman context I think it could work better.

What's Wirt and Beast's relationship?

In Wirt's perspective

Basically a case of Stockholm Syndrome: At first he felt more like a prisoner, The Beast was a figure who he should follow if he wants to keep Greg alive, he is more than Wirt and his power overcomes his young self. However as the time passed, Wirt realized that the Beast can also be very merciful and at the same time rightfully ruthless as his monstrous nature allows him, as he has 'shown' him acts of trust. For Wirt, The Beast is a dark but fair being, not as evil as everyone told. The Beast acts similarly like a father would do towards Wirt, but without that human openly caring love. He is strict and cold, but is for Wirt and Greg's own good

In Beast's perspective:

Wirt is nothing but an interesting experiment. The Beast has been manipulating every little detail of Wirt's surroundings, so he decides to obey him by own choice, which worked out way better than expected. He has seen Wirt changing to fit into his needs, becoming more useful and useful than last time. Anytime the Beast has thought he reached the limit, Wirt proves him wrong and finds a way to pass it and go on anyway. His determination is so fascinating to the Beast that he continues to see how far he could go

Their dynamic:

Naive teen being manipulated by his father figure to be useful for his plans or desires (but even more mess up)

Examples of this kind of dynamic are Rapunzel and Mother Gothel from Tangled (2010) or Hunter and Belos from The Owl House (2020)

Wirt has been alone for so long to the point that he holds tightly to anything that could give him a minimum sign of love, and The Beast knows that more than anyone

He has taken advantage of this, so by convincing Wirt to isolate himself and showing barely love, Hunter would listen and obey him without any doubt. It doesn't matter if The Beast is the main responsible for his situation, things have been twisted so much to that point that Wirt fully believes that this is all his fault. He must do the right thing at any cost, after all, he would do anything for the ones he loves right Gregory?

Wirt, The Woodsman, The Hunter and The Beast

These are the four identities Wirt adopts in the time on the unknown, like states of his sanity slowly decaying

Wirt

The anxious teen we all know and love, the guy he has been during his journey until the point where he faced the Beast face to face

The Woodsman

Wirt post-deal

At first:

He doubts that Greg may be in the lantern, and now he regrets his decision. However he doesn't know what to do now because the guilt for Greg will not leave him in peace, and so Wirt feels like he doesn't deserve to go home, he can't go back, no without Greg. So he still lives in the forest, feeding the lantern and hearing the Beast's words, however The Beast insists that Greg is indeed in the lantern, but Wirt isn't sure whether to believe him or not

Even if Wirt knows he needs the ellewood, like the woodsman, he tries to help and warns about the Beast to those who came into the unknown

The Beast warned him about helping people, but he didn't listen to him until one night. There was an incident where he almost lost Greg's light forever for the lack of ellewood. Since then, Wirt finally cooperates with the Beast

At last:

Wirt knows what he must do. He misguides those who pass through the way in forms to get enough ellewood for Greg, always making sure to keep himself distance and not get too close with them. However there are times where he can't NOT sympathize with the travelers and so he offers his genuine help

The Beast wasn't comfortable knowing that Wirt still kept helping people.

The Hunter

Wirt post-murder

At first:

After his first kill, Wirt felt so guilty that he stopped taking care of his health (He stopped eating, bathing, and stuff) and encaged himself inside the house with all the bottles of oil, fearing that he would hurt someone again

At this time Wirt started to hear the voices of Greg, the rock and the crying of the lost souls, and talk to them until he ran out of oil

When he finally went outside, his body was too weak to even walk and he fell on the grass unconsciously. At that moment the Beast thought Wirt died and so he was about to take off the lantern, but the boy's hands wouldn't stop grabbing it with all the fury. The Beast kept trying until suddenly Wirt woke up and said to him that as long as his brother needs him he would be still here. For his stupid unbreakable determination, the beast didn't see any other option but to take care of the kid

As he recovered, The Beast started to convince him of the idea of taking people as nothing but ellewoods he needs. Wirt didn't like it at first, but the Beast's kind act and the poor health state he put himself into finally made him accept the new task.

At last (actual state):

Most of the time he is alone, searching around the forest for more ellewood to feed Greg with, day and night. He doesn't fully sleep, he takes naps in the afternoon so he can be wake up all night as he wants. To eat he hunts animals, fish, rabbits and some other birds or frogs, whatever living being he finds. To entertain himself he recites poetry and sings songs that the Beast has taught him, all loud like someone would listen to him. At home he writes his poems and composes his own music, mostly for clarinet.

At times the voices are louder and other times they are quiet. If it's Greg then it would be a nice time, if it's the rock fact it's a guarantee he would be at least pissed off, and if it is the distant crying of the lost souls then paranoid it is.

When someone crosses his way, it depends on how things are going to see how things will end. When he just indicates the direction you'll better leave as soon as you can, because the longer you stay and talk to him Wirt will act weirder in hopes for you to leave him alone, otherwise, if you cross the line with your words, he probably will run out of patience and starts to prepare the axe

But it also depends on how likeable he finds you. He could not care and warned you before he attacks you as usual, he could hate you so much to the point that he attacks you with no warning, he could like you and give you five seconds of advantage, and if he likes you a little bit more he would become obsessed with you and will maintain you inside his house so the Beast will not know about your existence as long you don't go outside

The Beast

The Beast (According to the Woodsman's words) is the death of all hope. How low would you have to go so you lost your whole humanity to become the living embodiment of one of the darkness concepts in human kind?

If Wirt ever became the Beast, he should have been falling in grace until the lowest point a person could go. So in my idea of The Hunter, I like to imagine that the differences between The Beast and Wirt would slowly fade away until they are one in the same

Inside The Hunter, Wirt has not only become lost in life but he has also lost his identity, his spirit, his desires and his home. The one thing left to lose is his humanity... His soul

The only thing that separates him from The Beast, is him holding on to the last piece of humanity he has left; Greg

Day after day his sanity is drifting away, but it's because of Greg's existence that he is connected with his humanity, because his actions are meant for Greg's surviving, not his

If Wirt descends to absolute madness and forgets completely about Greg but also openly enjoys his cruelest actions, to the Unknown's eyes, he would no longer be worthy of humanity, and as a punishment he would be cursed to be the successor of the Beast

And becoming worse.

Like I have been having this idea in my mind for a while now and I wanted to share it. I hope you liked my idea and the drawings I made because it really took me a lot of time trying to finish this post because you know... Christmas and happy new year (ah yes, what a happy post to show in these lovely times, yeah!)

SO WHAT YOU THINK?