Editing Hive

Following the Witness's arrival and the Guardians combatting [[Emperor Calus|Calus]] and his [[Shadow Legion]] forces on both Earth and Neptune, the Traveler would be claimed by the use of a paracasual entity called [[The Veil]] to create a gateway upon it. After months of fighting the Shadow Legion and failed attempts to follow the Witness, the Vanguard received a distress call from Titan from [[Sloane|Deputy Commander Sloane]], who had been missing since the moon's disappearance following the Pyramid's arrival. With haste, Zavala gathers Saint-14, Lord Saladin and the Guardian to head to Titan and bring Sloane home.

Arriving at Sloane's last known position at the New Pacific Arcology, the team finds the area eerily quiet but as the Guardian headed toward the Communications Array to pinpoint Sloane's location, they come under assault from the Taken and Hive. During this, The Drifter makes a surprise appearance after taking notice in Titan's return, also looking for Sloane's whereabouts. As they fight off their attackers, they hear the thundering voice of Xivu Arath herself, taunting them. As the Guardian attempts to silence the Hive War God's Battlesong, they encounter another Celebrant of Xivu Arath, [[Azshradat, Celebrant of Xivu Arath|Azshradat]], but it escapes, leaving the Guardian to finish their task in realigning the Communications Array. However, they discover that Sloane's location is pinpointed one kilometer down in the methane ocean, where the pressure would likely kill anyone. With Zavala's insistence, Drifter lends the Guardian some aquatic devices that will allow them to survive the pressure for a brief period. The devices worked as hope and find Sloane, though partially corrupted with Taken energies, along with a massive creature the Deputy Commander claimed is named [[Ahsa]] and who the distress signal was actually for. Sloane states that Ahsa saved her life when Titan was taken by the Witness, almost being possessed by Xivu Arath when her Taken affliction began, and claims she is an old enemy of the Witness. Further, her Taken affliction not only allows her to be "tuned into the enemy's radio" but also communicate with Ahsa, albeit very briefly, and Ahsa has some very important information to share with the Guardians.

With the Drifter's expertise, his use of Gambit Tech and of a underwater coral plant that bares the same physic properties as egregore, the Vanguard believes they can strengthen Sloane's connection to Ahsa for her to interpret her messages. Their first mission involved finding more of the coral plant within the Methane seas and locating a Fallen Servitor, [[J4W-S, Wrath-Hunter Servitor]], that Xivu Arath's Wrathborn had taken control over. Delving deep into the methane seas with a golden age version of the gear the Drifter gave them, the Guardians are able to locate the servitor, after using Sloane herself as bait, destroy it and gain the egregore coral they need, allowing Sloane to interpret Ahsa's first message. Said message involved "an oasis in the desert", of travelers and wanderers and the "first of those claimed by the Deep", the first "victims of the Witness".

In addition to helping Sloane, the Guardians conducted Salvage operations in the methane seas on both the Vanguard's and Drifter's behalf. During one such salvage operation, they encounter Azshradat once more. Despite Azshradat's power and the Hive supporting him, the Guardians slayed the latest of Xivu Arath's Celebrants. The Guardians would also face old foes that Xivu Arath had risen and made Taken, such as [[Val Ca'uor]] but were not enough to stop the Guardians' efforts.

After gathering more salvage for the Drifter to tune his Gambit device, Sloane directs the Guardians back into the depths to find more coral egregore with Saint-14 providing tactical. As the Guardians worked their way down, they were swarmed by Xivu Arath's Taken forces but despite their efforts, the Guardians preserved, Sloane resisting the War God's taunts and managed to reach the sea floor, where they confront [[Kudazad, Binder of Savathûn]], a former field leader of the Witch Queen, now twisted to serve Xivu Arath. Despite the Wizard's power the Guardians managed to slay Kudazad and gather the coral they need. Using it, Sloane is able to interpret Ahsa's the second part of her message, speaking about a "city of light" and a "Silent God withholding a deeper truth". However, the experience of the message takes a toll on the deputy commander, to the concern of both Zavala and Saint-14.

In time, the Vanguard had located a new area of Titan's depths that possessed untouched egregore coral but their movements were noticed by Xivu Arath's forces, leading them to move in and try to claim the coral themselves. Racing towards the depths, the Guardians encounter Taken under Xivu Arath and found they were corrupting the coral before the Guardians could reach them. However, using the Drifter's tech, the Guardians were able to purify the coral as they take out the Taken. During this, Sloane noticed she was being pursued by a Taken Knight which she briefly fought off before it disappeared. The Guardians themselves would confront this Taken Knight, revealed to be Kelgorath, who allowed himself to be Taken to continue his devoted service to the Hive God of War. Yet, despite Kelgorath's persistence and Taken powers, the Guardians prevailed, slaying Kelgorath and collecting the coral. With the coral, Sloane was able to better her connection with Ahsa, taking less of a toll on her, and interprets her next message. Said message spoke of "A promise of something more... Two halves of a whole... long divided."

Later on, The Drifter would inform the Guardian that he salvage they collected from Titan's depths have been put to good use but to complete it he needs a different piece of technology, Pyramid tech. He directs them to travel to Savathûn's Throne World and secure pieces of Pyramid tech that the Scorn have been acquiring from the Rhulk's [[Sunken Pyramid]]. With it, he can modify his extraction equipment to work in the deepest trenches of the [[Kraken Mare]]. Traveling to the Quagmire of the Witch Queen's realm, the Guardian succeeds in gathering [[Amorphous Alloy]]s from the Scorn. After another Deepdive Mission and gathering egregore coral, Sloane interprets the next part of Ahsa's message which spoke of "calamity" and "A wordless denial. A fleeing god. Betrayal… and escape. The pursuit… for the final shape.…".

The Drifter would continue to tune his machine to strengthen Sloane's connection to Ahsa. However, to make it work better, he asks the Guardians to gain more Pyramid Salvage but most importantly, he has the Guardians hunt for something of the Light, specifically components of a Hive Ghost. Traveling to the Witch Queen's Throne world once more, pillaging the Sunken Pyramid and hunting for a Hive Lightbearer, the Guardians return to the Drifter who uses the new components to his device to enhance Sloane's connection. This time, Sloane and Ahsa's minds become one, allowing Ahsa to speak with Sloane's voice for only a few moments to speak of the most important segment of her message: The Witness's origins. In the very distant past, the first victims of The Witness were as Ahsa described, a people not unlike humanity, struggling on a hostile world that would ultimately find the Traveler, giving it the name of "the Gardener", turning their world into a paradise and begin a golden age that would last eons. However, the Traveler never spoke to them or offer guidance as the people began to crave meaning in their lives, a purpose. In time, as they studied the Light, they encountered an entity that was connected to the Traveler, the Veil, and their study on it led them to commune with the Darkness, the power of thought and consciousness, for the first time, concluding that the Light was a force of chaos. However, they believed that by using the Veil and the Traveler together, they could bring order to the chaos, a "perfect" reality that they would call the Final Shape. The Traveler however, refused to let this happen and thus fled but the people remained determined to enact their goal. Using the power of the Darkness, the people merged their entire civilization's consciousness into a single unfathomable being, The Witness. Said being would embark on its crusade to find the Traveler and the Veil to fulfill its ambitions in enacting the Final Shape and after billions of years, it is now close to reaching its goal.

Sloane is left reeling at not just the strain of the message but at the knowledge of The Witness's origins, the desire for a purpose, to find meaning in a meaningless universe. Nonetheless, Ahsa's message gives the Guardians the knowledge on their foe few possess and hope that Ahsa may also have some intel on how to follow the Witness through the portal, thus resolving to continue the mission on Titan.

However, following a recent Dive, Saladin took immediate notice that as the Guardians did their salvage missions, Xivu Arath had struck, conducting a ritual against Ahsa, leading her to leave the safety of Kraken Mare to disrupt their ritual but ended up being captured. Gathering Zavala, Drifter, Sloane, Saint-14 and the Guardian, the group mount a rescue mission, Saladin manages to track Ahsa's location and organize the group to divert Xivu Arath's forces to create an opening for the Guardian to breach through and reach Ahsa. Gathering his Iron War Beasts as backup, Saladin launches the mission but as the Guardian delves deeper and closer to Ahsa's position, Sloane feels Ahsa's pain as a result of their link, discovering that ritual Xivu Arath is conducting is meant to Take Ahsa. Racing to the ritual site, the Guardian confronts the ritual's handlers, three wizards, each bearing the title [[Scream of Xivu Arath]], who were using corrupted egregore coral to the catalysts of their ritual. Despite the Hive and Taken's efforts, the Guardian slays the Screams and using Drifter's machine, purifies the coral, actually wounding Xivu Arath in the process. With the Iron War Beasts support, the Guardian managed to disrupt the ritual and save Ahsa from being Taken, leading the group to clear their zones before Drifter had Ahsa, Sloane, Zavala and the Guardian transmat back to base.

Back at the safety of the Arcologies and Xivu Arath's forces in full retreat, Sloane "finishes the mission" by interpreting the last part of Ahsa's message but is nearly possessed and Taken by Xivu Arath. Fortunately, Zavala is able to reach Sloane, getting the Deputy Commander to regain herself and interpret the message: the way to The Witness may be blocked but one may know of a way to reach it, "she who hides truth in deception", Savathûn, the Witch Queen, leaving the Guardian and Zavala shaken. The finished messaged straining her and wounded from the ritual attempt, leads Ahsa to enter hibernation. However, the knowledge that the only method for the Vanguard to follow the Witness through the portal is to rely on the Witch Queen, which means they have to allow her to be revived. This plan leaves both Saladin and Saint-14 incredulous, believing that bringing Savathûn back is a huge mistake. Zavala however, believes there is no other way and claims that Eris and Ikora have a method to ensure the Witch Queen will remain captive even when revived but this does little to ease his fellow Titans or even the Guardian, citing that Immaru will not be fooled into a trap. Zavala however, states that it won't be a trap but a bargain. He gets his Lightbearer back while they get the answers they need to enter the portal to follow the Witness. Still heavily wary, Saladin departs to inform Empress Caiatl of this development while Saint-14 promises that if the Witch Queen strays for even a moment, he will strike, something which Zavala understands and accepts.

As the Guardians combatted Xivu Arath's forces within the depths of Titan's oceans, they received word from Hawthorne that there has been a development on Titan; a Lucent Hive ship had delved deep into the waters beneath the New Pacific Arcology, though for what purpose remains a mystery. Gathering a team, the Guardians brave the depths to reach the sea floor and the Lucent Ship but lose contact with Sloane as it appeared a mass ritual was being conducted at the site, disrupting communications. As they delved deeper into the methane sea to reach the hive ship, the Guardians also collected calcified fragments that held the voice of Xivu Arath, who appeared to be journaling her tribulations since Oryx's death towards her conquest of Torabatl and even Savathûn's conversion to the Light.

After reaching the Lucent ship and locating the ritual's center point, the Guardians discovered the calcified remains of Oryx himself and the Lucent Hive were attempting a brute force approach to resurrecting him with the Light. The ritual was led by a former member of the Grasp of Nokris, [[Šimmumah ur-Nokru]], now a Lightbearer necromancer for the Lucent Brood, along with other former members of Oryx's court. Despite the Lucent Hive's efforts, the Guardians slay Šimmumah ur-Nokru and disrupted the ritual, preventing the attempted resurrection but the revelation of such an attempt worried Sloane. Taking this news to Ikora, the Warlock Vanguard agrees to set up patrols and fortifications to prevent such an attempt again but the situation rattled Ikora greatly. She took further measures by placing Oryx's corpse within a secured Vanguard vault, much like with the Witch Queen's remains.