There are various possibilities about the themes of Season 17, and there were even two alleged leaks listing Destiny 2 names for the Season, but nothing official has surfaced so far. The main theories about Season 17 are that it will revolve around either the Cabal and the return of Calus or around Ana Bray and the “resurrection” of Rasputin, the Warmind. However, there might be hints in the current build of the game about what’s to come in the Seasons from 17 through 19, leading to the Lightfall expansion, and they are from the Vox Obscura Exotic mission.
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How Destiny 2’s Vox Obscura Might Link Year 5’s Seasons to Lightfall
Vox Obscura is the Exotic mission that players can complete to get the Dead Messenger grenade launcher as well as its catalyst, and it takes place in a Cabal base where Psions are broadcasting something to make their own people defect to Calus’ side and the Darkness. There are four possible “endings” to Vox Obscura, meaning that the mission has four different final broadcasts that alternate every week. While most of them talk about the Psions, Calus’ presumed return, and the Leviathan ship, the empress Caiatl sees something unsettling in the last broadcast.
This particular broadcast comprises a set of images from the so-called Dark Future, which is the timeline where humanity falls, major characters are either killed or become darker versions of themselves, and the Darkness wins. This possible future is one that the current Destiny 2 storyline sees characters actively trying to prevent, with a small degree of hope coming from various successful operations. The broadcast that Caiatl sees involves what she describes as a city under siege, the resurrection of Eramis, the Shipstealer, the return of the Leviathan, and the Traveler infected by Darkness.
The city under siege could either be referring to the Last City or the Dreaming City, but it is a vague hint that doesn’t necessarily pinpoint a specific event. The Shipstealer being revived is something that can quite possibly be happening this year, considering that Eramis has been rumored to come back for a long time and that Destiny 2’s Beyond Light DLC was released in November 2020. The return of Calus and the Leviathan is also something that’s been heavily hinted at over the course of the Seasons in Year 4 and now with The Witch Queen as well, and it could tie very well into the events of the Vow of the Disciple Raid.
Lastly, the Traveler being infected by the Darkness could be the perfect premise for the Lightfall expansion itself, seeing how it acts as the last big release before The Final Shape, which is going to be the culmination of the Light and Dark saga of Destiny 2. As such, it’s possible that Bungie hinted at what’s to come with every Season in Year 5 while also giving fans a glimpse of Lightfall way before its release, and everything was accessible via the Vox Obscura mission. It’s also possible that Season 17 will be about humanity not being able to prevent the Dark Future, thus validating these points as possible events leading to Lightfall and into Year 6.
Destiny 2 is available on PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
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