The long-awaited Season of the Worthy has arrived forDestiny 2, bringing with it a collection of new Rasputin-themed PvE content as well as the coveted return ofTrials of Osiristhis weekend. With one last feat from the Cabal threatening Earth, the Guardians and the Vanguard must ally with the fickle and rogue Warmind to stop the Almighty’s crash-course headed for The Last City. Should humanity prevail and destroy the Cabal’s suicidal flagship, it would be a definitive end to the season and a sign of peace with the Cabal threat finally neutralized.
But for fans who’ve been keeping up withDestiny 2’s updates and ViDocs, they all know Season of the Worthy will not end in peace for humanity. Bungie has been teasing a greater threat awaiting humanity for the next season as early as the release ofShadowkeep. Since Season of the Worthy has finally begun, this will be the second-to-last season until June 9, when the last season ofDestiny 2’s Year 3 begins. Assuming Bungie sticks to its word, fans should expect an impending and ultimate climax in Season 11.
Cabal’s Last Assault
In the past, the Cabal’sRed Legion have tried their darndest to conquer humanity inDestiny 2, but humanity and the Guardians have always prevailed in spite of overwhelming odds. Now in Season of the Worthy, the Red Legion are truly going all or nothing, via literally sending their gigantic Almighty warship hurtling towards Earth on a non-stop suicide run. All signs point to this being one final effort on the part of the Cabal to conquer humanity and The Traveler, or die trying.
It’s hard to imagine Season of the Worthy’s storydoesn’t symbolize the end of the Red Legion. If so, Season of the Worthy’s story should prove to be a fitting end for an enemy that was so incredibly strong at the beginning ofDestiny 2. The Cabal have been the only subsidiary of the Darkness that’s been able to truly defeat humanity since the Collapse. Over the course ofDestiny 2’s ever-expanding legend, The Cabal’s Red Legion has been reduced to what appears to be a suicidal final act of sending their Almighty towards Earth without caution.
It’s unlikely we’ll see the Red Legion again after this season. Until the next big expansionor a newDestinygame entirely, the Red Legion’s defeat should suppress the Cabal for a long time. Now that’s not to say it’ll be the end of the Cabal entirely, but their current strength has all been conquered by humanity. Unless some truly wild Sundial time-travel shenanigans occur and the Red Legion has some kind of insane contingency plan, while not impossible, it’s extremely unlikely we’ll see the Cabal again inDestiny 2’s near future.
Rasputin’s True Allegiance
That being said, another greater threat may have tainted the Warmind: Darkness. It’s what everybody supposedly heard at the end ofOsiris' encounter with Rasputin in the last teaser before Season 10. When confronted with the question of whose side it (he?) is on, Rasputin answered in its distorted voice at the end of the trailer, to which fans heard and interpreted as “darkness.” Obviously this is far from being confirmed, but fans can point back to clues fromDestiny 2: Warmindthat illustrate Rasputin may not adhere to its primary directive of protecting humanity.
Many have been wonderingwhat the ambiguous Rasputin has been up to sinceDestiny 2: Warmind. Known from the Collapse andDestiny: Rise of Iron, Rasputin made some very controversial choices in its attempt to protect humanity. Rasputin severely damaged the Traveler during the Collapse in attempt to keep the Darkness at bay. Since the Traveler was immobilized above Earth, it created Ghosts to aid humanity’s Guardians.
Later on inRise of Iron, Rasputin also murdered several ofthe Iron Lords (some of Earth’s first Guardians)to protect a nanotechnology called SIVA. SIVA’s protection was another of Rasputin’s tasks, which at the time directly conflicted with its primary directive of ensuring Humanity’s survival. Needless to say, trust in the Warmind had become tenuous after this, especially from Lord Saladin.
With humanity once again placing its trust in the Warmind for Season of the Worthy,it’s unclear what Rasputin’s intentions may truly be. In the past Rasputin has re-programmed its primary objectives to accomplish its goals, meaning it could still do so assuming it believes humanity truly cannot be saved. The Vanguard fears that, in the event that humanity’s survival hangs in the balance, Rasputin may reset and opt into aiding the Darkness should Rasputin’s own survival be threatened. Even if Rasputin is able to destroy the Almighty and save Earth from the gigantic ship’s impact, there’s an even greater threat coming to humanity to which Rasputin may ally with in dire straits.
The Darkness Looms
As we know from the Corridors of Time event from last season,the dark fate that’s in store for Guardians may not equate to a happy ending. That’s likely all thanks to the Darkness, the ambiguous and overarching adversaryDestinyhas been hinting at since the beginning. Until now players have only gotten bits and pieces of information about this mysterious enemy force on its way to eliminate humanity for good. While most other expansions have been expanding on the many facets ofDestiny’s lore, the Darkness has remained dormant for a long time.
With the introduction ofShadowkeep, it was revealed that the Darkness had been waiting and watching all along from the Moon. With Eris Morn investigating and discoveringthe mysterious return of the Pyramid Ship on the Moon, Eris discovered this was the source of the Darkness plaguing the solar system sinceDestiny. The finale ofShadowkeep’s story content hinted at the Darkness finally making its fated reveal inDestiny 2, taking on the form of the player’s doppelganger.
Players have been getting hints here and there sinceShadowkeepforeshadowing the Darkness coming for Earth once again. The next season will ramp up these efforts, or at most fully unveil the Darkness' return. Since Bungie has outlined its new content modelfor what to expect in 2020Destiny 2withShadowkeep, each “Year” ofDestiny 2is defined by one large-scale expansion followed by four subsequent seasons. Bungie initially outlined each season as a narrative buildup in an evolving world, and stated Season 11 is where “everything is going to come together, and you’re going to want to be there to see it happen.”
With the presence of the Darkness confirmed and teased throughout these past few seasons, Season 11 is likely going to be the culmination of all this teasing. Whetherthe Darkness is going to be a brand new threat or enemy race, or an amalgamation of all the enemies inDestinycoming together as one single army, the Darkness that caused the Collapse will return in Season 11. Hopefully the Corridors of Time made an incorrect prediction, but if so, Guardians may not survive the night in the next Season.
Destiny 2is out now for PC, PS4, Stadia and Xbox One.
