Destiny 2 has woven a rich and intricate story with lore comprising billions of years in an ongoing conflict between the forces of Light and Darkness. With each tale expansion and accompanying Seasons and Raids, the story of the Darkness and its spread through galaxies to thwart the Traveler has continued to expand, with the Guardians in the Sol System being a force that can hopefully defeat the Darkness. Destiny 2 has utilized the Hive forces led by the Hive Gods: Oryx, Savathun, and Xivu Arath, as primary spreaders of the Darkness as they followed the Sword Logic to destroy countless civilizations.
2022's expansion The Witch Queen provides shocking revelations regarding the history of the Hive that fundamentally change the story for the future. Savathun, The Witch Queen, reveals that an entity known as the Witness manipulated Savathun billions of years before embracing the Worm Gods and thus the Darkness itself to deprive the Traveler of a race to enlighten. This figure, hinted at through earlier expansions such as Shadowkeep, finally reveals to the Guardians that it is neither friend nor enemy; instead, it's humanity's salvation, and it is coming.
The Witness's Mysterious Origins
The Witness is an incredibly ancient and powerful entity in the Destiny 2 universe; it may be responsible for all the actions of the Darkness throughout history which the Guardians have encountered. Pale, tall, and humanoid, the Witness hides many of its features through a metallic robe that ripples and shimmers as it moves. It conceals part of its face while the top of its head unleashes a white smoke containing dozens of humanoid faces dissipating as it moves. Its powers of Darkness are unfathomable, as it can shift multiple planets between realities.
While more information was released through The Witch Queen campaign, the origins of the Witness are shrouded in mystery, with even Savathun offering conflicting tales of its origins and role in the more significant plans of the Darkness. In some instances, she implies that the Witness belonged to a mortal race enslaved by the Darkness while simultaneously claiming the Witness birthed the Darkness. However, within Destiny 2 lore, the Darkness has expressed that it has existed for all eternity, negating Savathun's latter assessment. At other times she refers to the Witness as the child of the Darkness, which lines up more with its actions throughout history.
Whether the Witness is the child of the Darkness or some physical representation in the known universe, its purposes and actions have aligned as an emissary to further the spread of the Darkness. Billions of years in the past, the Witness visited the planet Lubrae where it corrupted a warrior, Rhulk, whose family and species had betrayed him. Convincing Rhulk to destroy his civilization, the Witness converted Rhulk to the Darkness aboard its Pyramid, claiming him as a Disciple. Afterward, the Witness sent Rhulk to corrupt the Worm Gods in service to the Darkness.
Manipulating the Krill
When the Witness learned that the Traveler planned to bless the Krill of the planet Fundament, it devised a way to manipulate the cunning Sathona of the Osmium Court. It claimed that a syzygy with the planets in her solar system would create a devastating tidal wave that would destroy Fundament. Through Sathona's Worm familiar, the Witness convinced Sathona and her sisters to search deep within Fundament's oceans for salvation. There, the sisters encountered the mythical Leviathan, a servant of the Traveler, who urged them to turn back, unable to help them with the destruction they believed was coming.
The sisters listened to the Worm familiar and dove deeper, discovering the Worm Gods. The latter offered the sisters immortality and escape from Fundament by taking the Worm larvae into themselves in a parasitic fashion. The sisters agreed, promising to stay true to their natures of strength, cunning, and understanding and eventually spread other larvae to the remaining Krill, transforming into the Hive species. Now changed and embracing the power of the Darkness, the Hive Gods set about subjugating and destroying other galactic civilizations.
The Witness and the Future
Arguably the most powerful being in the known universe, the Witness orchestrated the Collapse, which nearly destroyed the human race and ended humanity's Golden Age that the Traveler had bestowed. If the Witness is the Darkness in some physical form, it may be the antithesis of the Traveler, which seems to be the embodiment of the Light. However, events within Destiny 2 lore have indicated that there are things the Traveler doesn't know. In this sense, the concept that the Witness and Traveler are children of the Darkness and the Light might hold some truth.
With the defeat of Savathun in the conclusion of The Witch Queen campaign, the Witness finally reveals its form to the Guardians and declares to the Traveler that it has only brought death to those it enlightened. The Witness further stresses that the Traveler has no pieces left to play and that the time has come for the Witness to save the remnants of the Sol System. With this powerful ending, the Witness is most likely set to be a powerful player in the upcoming Lightfall expansion that may see the Traveler suffer devastating defeats to the powers of Darkness.
The Witness is shaping up to be one of the most dangerous and powerful entities in the Destiny 2 universe, finally stepping out of the shadows after the Witch Queen story ends. Being billions of years old, thwarting the Traveler and manipulating the creation of the Hive to further the Darkness's ambitions, the Witness has influenced untold events through the history of the galaxies in the universe. As the head of the Black Fleet and its revelation that it is finally done coordinating from the shadows, the Witness is ready to launch its attack against the Sol System and the Guardians that protect it in a future Destiny chapter. Lightfall will likely bring the Witness to the forefront as a force to be reckoned with.
Destiny 2 is available now PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
