This is something that multiple lore books in the game have been talking about over time, and it’s also something the returning Exo Stranger, Elsie Bray, warned the Guardians about in the Beyond Light expansion. Elsie Bray is from that timeline, and she tells tales of how Eris Morn was corrupted by the Darkness and became the Witch Queen herself, or how she had to kill her own sister, Ana, after she betrayed the Light and those who believed in it. Destiny 2’s The Witch Queen introduced a mission called Vox Obscura, which foretold the events leading to Lightfall and beyond, which will likely lead humanity to the Dark Future that Elsie wants to prevent.
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How Season of Plunder and Lightfall Hint at Destiny 2’s Dark Future
At the end of the Vox Obscura mission, which is about destroying a secret base that Calus built on Mars to make his Psions broadcast dark messages about joining The Witness’ cause, Caiatl has a vision that includes images of what could happen. In her vision, Caiatl sees the Leviathan’s return, the resurrection of Eramis, a city under siege, and the Traveler infected with the Darkness, all of which would fulfill more of the Dark Future or lead humanity straight into it.
With Destiny 2’s Season of the Haunted, the Leviathan already returned to the Solar System after Calus set himself on a mission to merge his consciousness with the lunar Pyramid ship, as The Witness ordered him to. This is just one of the conditions that Vox Obscura predicted, but both Season of Plunder and Lightfall fulfill two more predictions in the form of Eramis’ resurrection and a city besieged, respectively. In fact, Season of Plunder’s premise is that Eramis freed herself from the unbreakable chains of Stasis that she was put in at the end of Beyond Light.
As per the Lightfall trailer shared at the August showcase, the expansion will take place in the city of Neomuna, which is a secret stronghold of humanity where mankind prepared itself for a second Collapse. Neomuna is under siege on behalf of Calus and The Witness, who want to retrieve a powerful artifact for unknown purposes, but this suffices for the penultimate vision from Vox Obscura to come true. The events of Lightfall could end up with the Traveler being infected by the Darkness, thus setting the timeline to Destiny 2’s dreaded Dark Future.
If this is indeed the case, based on the lore surrounding the Dark Future as experienced by Elsie Bray, mankind will be corrupted by the Darkness up until one final showdown at the Scarlet Keep on the Moon. This is just speculation, but the fact that every vision from Vox Obscura is slowly coming true means that Bungie planned everything a long time ago, which the lore surrounding Neomuna shows. The Dark Future could be the epitome of the Light and Darkness saga, but it’s also possible that the story will diverge from it in the future, finally mending the timeline.
Destiny 2 is available for PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
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