Editing War against the Witness

|result='''1st Phase'''

*Savathûn's defeat at the hands of the Guardian begins the war against the Witness

**Rhulk is slain inside the Sunken Pyramid before he could seal the Light from the throne world with the Upended

*Yirix's propaganda operation is halted and Psionic revelations about the future of Sol are uncovered

*The Sol Divisive recreated the Black Heart with guidance from the Witness, which threatens to undermine the Veil's connection to the Traveler, as its final attempt to keep the Vanguard out of the Pale Heart.

**The Guardian destroys the Black Heart yet again, which allows Crow to fully cross into the Pale Heart, and meets Cayde-6 on the other side

*Operation Ahamkara is initiated as Zavala, Ikora, and the Guardian venture towards the Pale Heart while the Traveler resists the Witness’s attempts to calcify the universe.

**The Guardian is separated from Zavala and Ikora.

*The Guardian wounds the Witness by unmaking its dissenters from within the Darkness, before retreating after their Ghost was damaged upon casting them out.

**Retreating to the monolith, the Witness roots itself into the Traveler and begins enacting the Final Shape.

*The Ghost briefly sacrifices himself channeling the Traveler's Light into its body to destroy the Witness, however he is brought back by Cayde-6 who uses his Light to resurrect him.

**Cayde dies his final death, returning to the Light of the Traveler.

**Multiple Echoes depart out of the Traveler as a result of the memories from the Witness.

|side1='''[[The Coalition]]'''

==Prelude==

===Birth of the Witness===

It would trick the Krill into accepting the Darkness once it saw the Traveler's intention to uplift them, so it used the Worm familiar to drift into the Osmium Court and warn the [[Osmium King]] of an incoming syzygy on the planet. The King then warned his daughter [[Oryx, the Taken King|Aurash]] of the event. Aurash fled with her sisters [[Savathûn, the Witch Queen|Sathona]] and [[Xivu Arath, God of War|Xi Ro]] as the Osmium Court is overthrown by [[Taox]], the neighboring Helium Court and its residents, the [[Helium Drinkers]]. Sathona recovered the same worm familiar that warned the Osmium King and now her of the God-Wave forming as a result of the syzygy, but it also told her salvation lies within the depths of Fundament's oceans. The sisters would discover the Needle upon landing at Kaharn Atoll and commandeer the vessel after making the necessary repairs to navigate Fundament's depths. The sisters encounter a creature called [[Leviathan (Fundament)|The Leviathan]], who was injured as a result of Rhulk's subjugation of the Worm God [[Xita, the Nurturing Worm|Xita]] and warns them to turn way, lest they get lost in the Deep. The sisters ignore the Leviathan's warning and discover their salvation in the Worm Gods [[Akka, the Worm of Secrets|Akka]], [[Yul, the Honest Worm|Yul]], [[Xol, Will of the Thousands|Xol]], [[Eir, the Keeper of Order|Eir]], and [[Ur, the Ever-Hunger|Ur]]. The sisters accept the bargain with the Worm Gods and transform the Krill into the [[Hive]]. Aurash took on the King morph and transformed into Auryx, who would become Oryx after discovering the secrets of Taking; Sathona took on the Mother morph and transformed into Savathûn; and finally, Xi Ro took on the [[Knight]] morph and transformed into Xivu Arath. The Worm Gods would provide the technology needed to escape Fundament and the Hive's crusades begin after defeating the [[Ammonite]]s and causing the Traveler to flee from Fundament's orbit.

Before the Traveler's arrival in the Sol System, it would uplift more civilizations to use its Light. They would range from the [[Harmony]] living on the [[Gift Mast]] to the [[Eliksni]] native to planet [[Riis]], but each time it would flee and the forces of the Witness and the Hive would arrive soon after. The Eliksni survived their cataclysmic event known to them as the [[Whirlwind]] but would degrade into vicious pirates and raiders as they searched the galaxy for the Traveler in a desperate attempt to regain their former glory. After it fled from Riis, the Traveler would uplift [[Human]]ity in the Sol System. The Traveler's arrival in the Sol System began the [[Golden Age]], caused human lifespan to expand threefold, and enabled the humans to colonize other planets in the Sol System. However, like those the Traveler uplifted before, the Golden Age would not last long.

At the final moments of the Collapse, Savathûn would betray the Witness by killing Nezarec and hide the Veil on Neptune, and then the Traveler would sacrifice itself to create the [[Ghost]]s and push back the Black Fleet, temporarily stopping the Witness from enacting the Final Shape. Humanity would soon enter the [[Dark Age]] with the arrival of the [[Cabal]], the Eliksni who are now known to the humans as the Fallen, and the existence of tyrannical [[Lightbearer]]s called [[Warlord]]s in the Sol System.

After destroying the Black Heart, the Guardian continues their mission to push back the minions of the Darkness. They infiltrate the [[Vault of Glass (location)|Vault of Glass]] to prevent the Vex from using time-altering powers to destroy them, then assist [[Eris Morn]] with delaying the return of an [[Ascendant Hive]] warrior named [[Crota, Son of Oryx|Crota]], who had his brood build the Hellmouth close to Nezarec's dormant Pyramid and slayed thousands of Guardians during their attempt to reclaim the Moon, then work alongside [[Mara Sov]] and [[Petra Venj]] to stop the [[House of Wolves]] led by [[Skolas, Kell of Kells|Skolas]] from uniting other Fallen houses. Finally, they would participate in the [[Taken War]] by infiltrating the [[Dreadnaught]] and stopping the [[Skyburners]] invading it and Oryx, the father of Crota, who has the ability to create armies of [[Taken]] and arrived in the Sol System to seek vengeance for the death of his son. The Guardian would challenge and defeat Oryx in the [[Ascendant Realm|Ascendant Plane]], slaying the God-King of the Hive. They then had to return to the Cosmodrome to stop the [[SIVA Crisis|spread]] of [[SIVA]], nanotechnology produced by [[Clovis Bray (corporation)|Clovis Bray]], and the House of Devil [[Splicer]]s who worship it with assistance from [[Shiro-4]] and [[Lord Saladin]], the last surviving [[Iron Lord]]s along with [[Lady Efrideet]]. They confront the Devil Splicers within the [[Plaguelands]] and defeat [[Aksis, Archon Prime]]. With Aksis's defeat, the Last City begins to celebrate the [[Age of Triumph]]. However, the Age of Triumph did not last, for it was the calm before the storm and the storm would become the [[Red War]].

===The Black Fleet's Return===

The Hive would reemerge, this time under the Daughters of Crota: [[Hashladûn, Daughter of Crota|Hashladun]], [[Besurith, Daughter of Crota|Besurith]], [[Kinox]], and [[Voshyr]]. They would build the [[Scarlet Keep]] above the Lunar Pyramid uncovered by Eris Morn. After it is uncovered, the Nightmares are unleashed all across the Lunar surface, leading the Vanguard to push back the Hive resurgence and discover the existence the Lunar Pyramid. Eris Morn tasks the Guardian with collecting enough Nightmare Essence to craft the Dreambane Armor and bypass the Lunar Pyramid's warding. While exploring the derelict Pyramid, a Voice in the Darkness contacts the Guardian through their Ghost and inform them of the Light's failures. Undeterred, the Guardian recovers an [[Unknown Artifact]] and receives a vision in the Black Garden. At the same time, the Sol Divisive begins their invasion on the Moon led by [[The Undying Mind|the Undying Mind]], whose purpose is to keep the Black Garden locked out of space and time and also to recreate the Black Heart. Ikora Rey and the Guardian worked together to lure out the Undying Mind across different timeline and slay it. With the final copy of the Undying Mind dead, Osiris discovers a future where the Black Fleet hovers over the skies of the Last City and makes his way back to Mercury's surface, but he learns that the [[Psion Flayer]]s have found the Sundial and they plan to use it to undo the Vanguard's victory in the Red War, so he tasks the Guardian with stopping the Psion Flayers' plot and rescuing a legendary Titan named [[Saint-14]]. They accomplish both objectives by defeating [[Inotam, Oblivion's Triune]] and changing Saint-14's fate. They would open the [[Trials of Osiris]] for the first time since the Red War through the billions of Fractalline donated to them as part of the Empyrean Foundation along with [[The Lantern of Osiris|the Lantern of Osiris]]. However, the Psions have one last plan: they would cause the Almighty to move in the direction of the Last City, so Zavala and Ana Bray would convince Rasputin to arm the [[Warsat]]s on the Almighty before it could reach the Last City.

Following the High Celebrant's death at the hands of the Guardian, [[Empress Caiatl]] arrives in the Sol System after the [[Fall of Torobatl|fall]] of the Cabal home planet [[Torobatl]] occurred. She seeks an alliance with the Vanguard on the condition that they bend the knee to her, but the Vanguard refuses and goes to war with the [[Imperial Cabal]]. The Guardian engages in the [[Rite of Proving]] to stop Caiatl from filling a seat on her [[War Council]]. The various contenders included [[Commander Dracus]], [[Basilius the Golem]], [[Val Ma'rag]], and [[Ixel, the Far-Reaching]]. As the Guardian continues engaging in the Rites of Proving, they would also uncover the [[Psion Conclave]]'s plot to assassinate Zavala. After the failed attempt to assassinate him, Zavala proposes the final Rite of Proving. He anoints the Guardian as his champion as Empress Caiatl anoints [[Ignovun, Chosen of Caiatl|Ignovun]] as her champion. The champions meet inside the [[Halphas Electus]] and duel, with the Guardian emerging victorious. The Vanguard and the Cabal Empire led by Empress Caiatl would sign an armistice despite the Psion Conclave's attempt to sabotage it.

===Operation Elbrus===

{{Quote|Invincibility lies in the defense; the possibility of victory in the attack.|Empress Caiatl quoting Sun Tzu.}}

The Guardian receives the Synaptic Spear from Ikora Rey after learning more information about the Lucent Hive. Caiatl then briefs them of a plan to extract the different Lucent Hive lieutenants and bring them to the Psisorium in the [[H.E.L.M.]] to discover intel on the Lucent Hive's plans. She explains that in order to extract the Lucent Hive lieutenant, the Guardian would use her [[Psion]]s to enter the [[Mindscape]] to connect the Guardian's Light to the Lucent Hive lieutenant's Light, and then use the Synaptic Spear to sever the latter's connection through the phantasms of Savathûn. The Psions would then lock down the lieutenant for extraction. With the plan now set in motion and the coalition between her Cabal and the Vanguard forged, the Guardian would track down the first Lucent Hive lieutenant in the EDZ: a [[Lightbearer Acolyte]] named [[Mor'ak, Lightstealer]], who is responsible for stealing the Light from missing Guardians patrolling there. Determining that more intel is needed, the Guardian would locate the second Lucent Hive lieutenant within the Cosmodrome: a Lightbearer Knight named [[Uul'nath, Lightcleanser]], who would repurpose the stolen Light for a purification ritual and distribute [[Lucent Beacon]]s throughout the battlegrounds that spawn [[Lighthoarder]]s. When enough intel is gathered from both of them, Caiatl begins deploying her forces to the Scarlet Keep on Luna, with the Guardian following soon after. They discover an invasion force led by the third and final Lucent Hive lieutenant: a Lightbearer Wizard named [[Korosek, Thronebringer]]. The Guardian puts an end to the invasion force.

After finishing the operations across Earth and Luna, the Guardian return to Savathûn's throne world to work alongside the Hidden and Fynch. He points them to the first object of interest: Sagira's Ghost shell, located inside the [[Temple of the Wrathful]], a temple dedicated to Xivu Arath. Fynch explains the Scorn are sent in by a powerful wielder of Darkness as counter to Savathûn's Light. They recover Sagira's shell and it plays a memory of Savathûn revealing the identity of the Voice in the Darkness, which is now known as the Witness, but they are unable to decipher the memory further, so Eris and Ikora asks them to return to the Europan Pyramid to enhance their Deepsight abilities. They deal with the Cabal forces invading the Pyramid and commune with the statue. They then return to the throne world to find the [[Altar of Reflection]], a location of overwhelming psychic energy. They take Sagira's shell there and it replays the memory they heard earlier, but also plays the memory of Savathûn planning to use Osiris's body to learn the secrets of the Light. They return to Fynch, who points them to the next object of interest: the Tablets of Ruin, located in the [[Temple of the Navigator]], a temple dedicated to Oryx. They recover and then take it to the Altar of Reflection, where it plays the memory of Savathûn's plans to conduct a ritual to place the Traveler into her throne world using the powers she borrowed from the Witness.

==History==

===The Hunt for Riven's Clutch===

With Xivu Arath out of the battle thanks to Eris Morn, the Vanguard begins its efforts to bypass the portal inside the Traveler without suffering the same fate as Joxer. The Witness would send in the Sol Divisive to invade the Dreaming City while it continue its plans to enact the Final Shape since the Scorn and Taken forces have become leaderless within the Dreaming City. The Guardian pushes back the Sol Divisive and assists the Techeuns in conjuring Riven's spirit. Riven refuses to reveal the 15th wish until the Guardian recovers more of her eggs from her lair. Osiris reveals that the [[Ahamkara]] are the only solution since it's impossible to replicate the Witness's link to the Veil through the Guardian's Ghost. He reinforces this statement when he is unable to replicate how the Witness used the Guardian's Ghost to link the Traveler to the Veil and decides that Riven is the only solution as the Guardian uses the last remaining [[Harbinger (Reef superweapon)|Harbinger]] to locate more of Riven's clutch after attuning it to the [[Starlight Lodestone]]. As they recover more of Riven's clutch, she reveals more about her species along with her interactions with the Sov siblings.  

===Defense of the Last City===

The Witness responds to Crow and Osiris's attempts to forge the bridge necessary to pass through the portal to the Pale Heart by sending in both forces of the [[House of Salvation]] and [[Xivu Arath's Horde]] to attack the Last City and other Coalition areas of interest. To combat the coming threat of the Final Shape as the Witness perceives it, the Vanguard gives Lord Shaxx permission to create weapons once deemed heretical to wield: the [[BRAVE Arsenal]]. He also opens up his personal Hall of Champions as a base of operations to coordinate the Last City's defenses against the forces of the Witness.

Before Crow can enter the Pale Heart, Osiris uncovers a plot by the Sol Divisive to replace the Veil with the recreated Black Heart, and instructs the Guardian to return to the Black Garden. They enter it using the passageway provided by Riven and learn the Witness has instructed the Sol Divisive to recreate the Black Heart as its final attempt to keep them out of the Pale Heart. After destroying the [[Withdrawn Mind]] along with the [[Transfer Gate]]s throughout the Black Garden, they returned to the site where they found the Black Heart and destroy it again by defeating the [[Established Mind]], [[Synchronal Mind]], and [[Inevitable Mind]]. Destroying the Black Heart allows Crow to enter the Pale Heart safely. He spots the Witness's monolith in the horizon, then meets Cayde-6. Although they meet in a duel, it ends when Glint reveals himself to Cayde. He helps Crow up and they both see the Light pulsing from the monolith. Osiris reveals that Crow has made it through safely, and the Vanguard plans to accompany the Guardian once he is able to replicate the Witness’s link to the Veil.

The Witness begins to enact the Final Shape, but the Traveler resists the Witness's efforts. The Vanguard launches [[Operation Ahamkara]] and travels through the portal with the Guardian in tow. They crash-land in the threshold between the outside world and the Pale Heart and discovers the existence of the [[The Dread|Dread]], a new faction of Darkness creatures which are made up of various creatures that have had their DNA warped by the Witness. They eventually pushes their way out of the Threshold, with Mara Sov's connection severed by the Witness. Within the Pale Heart, they discover a place that is made up of the amalgamation of memories of those within it but slightly changed into new and unfamiliar ways. They discover the "Lost City," a place built from the memory of the Tower prior to its destruction in the Red War and the Last City. They eventually discover [[Prismatic]], a fusion of Light and Darkness energies. They find a Vanguard signal and are ambushed by the Taken and Dread forces including a [[Subjugator]], but they were able to fight it off and reunite with Cayde-6. Cayde reveals that when Guardians and Ghosts die their final deaths, they return to the Traveler as beings of pure light and are integrated within it. He also reveals that Crow has gone missing doing patrols around the area and sends the Guardian to help find him. They discover [[Glint]] just outside the Lost City and discover that Crow had been called into a mysterious cave full of Darkness before being trapped inside. The Guardian helps punch a way through the cave entrance as Cayde orders Glint to stay outside. Within the cave, the Witness begins to speak to the Guardian, temporarily incapacitating them before Ghost shuts it out. The Witness then attempts to explain what is has offered to Crow, but he has rejected it all for what the Witness says is "suffering." The Guardian then finds Crow standing in front of a statue, listening to its whispers. Glint suddenly appears and convinces Crow to never leave without him ever again. Crow agrees and leaves the cave. The three of them then regroup to discuss what to do next. They decide to look for Ikora as her crashed ship can be seen in the distance. A radio message also comes through from Mara though it is heavily scrambled. The three embark to seek out Ikora and discover her crashed ship. Within it, Ikora says that she will be at the replica of the Tree of Silver Wings to meditate and hopefully commune with The Traveler. The Guardian finds Ikora but has to defend her as she's meditating from hordes of Dread. Once the coast is clear, Ikora comes out of meditation and meets back at camp where she finds Cayde. The two have a fight before reconciling together.

During the preparations of this assault, Mara Sov recruits [[Micah-10]] of the [[Six Coyotes]] to oversee a solution to heal the Traveler from the Witness's influence, along with Empress Caiatl and Mithrax. After arriving in the Pale Heart, the Coalition sets up a base of operations within the Lost City and assists the Guardian in preparing for the assault on the Witness's monolith. They first fight off a Lucent Brood attack on the Lost City which turned out to be a trick by Savathûn to test their strength. The Guardian then takes up arms against the killer of Mithrax's [[Inaaks|mother]], an Eliksni Captain named [[Korha, the Hollow]] by tracking him down to Europa. Mithrax demands Korha duel him but Korha's consciousness has been completely lost to the Darkness and is instead crushed to death by a House of Light Brig. The Guardian then turns to the Shadow Legion, who are planning to harvest Light from the Pale Heart. Caiatl assists the Guardian with this endeavor and the Light-harvesting machines were sabotaged. Zavala and Caiatl bond over their shared loss of home and Caiatl reinvigorates Zavala's confidence to lead. After this, Savathûn reappears and baits the Guardian and Mara in to "stop" her plans. During this, Mara learns how to find fissures of Light within with the realm of the Taken which can be used to help heal the Traveler. Savathûn laughs at another plan well executed and Ghost manages to use this knowledge to create a Dyadic Prism, something that merges both Light and Darkness. The Guardian takes this prism to the place where they confronted the Witness and claims a sword made of Light, the [[Ergo Sum]], a gift from the Traveler. Soon after this, Crow, Cayde, and The Guardian take a trip to investigate a Dark Ether theft around the Pale Heart. During which, the pair bond and Crow fulfills his wish by apologizing to Cayde. Cayde urges him that it is all okay and not to worry about it anymore. They track down the Dark Ether theft to a Scorn-infested cave and encounter an Abomination which has become engorged with Ether. The trio corner the beast into a cave where they subsequently crush it with a cave in. After the mission is done, Cayde hands the cloak of the Hunter Vanguard over to Crow and says that he doesn't intend to return to the Tower and take up command again. Crow is initially hesitant but Cayde urges him to think on it, even daring him to.

===The War Ends===

The Guardian recruits a fireteam and begins their assault on the Witness's monolith, fighting off the Sol Divisive, Taken, Shadow Legion, Scorn, and Dread forces along the way. They assault the monolith to prevent the Witness from acquiring Traveler's Light and finishing its vision of the Final Shape. As they ascend towards the monolith's summit, the Witness taunts the fireteam and explains that it is not the Winnower but merely a champion of it and that the Final Shape is a way for the Winnower to end its game with the Gardener. The Guardians press on and ascend all the way to the summit of the monolith where a gargantuan Witness stares down at them, preparing for the Final Shape. The Guardians manage to use the Light to gravely injure the Witness once again which forces it to halt the Final Shape and retreat onto the surface of the Pale Heart. With the threat of the Final Shape over, the Coalition rallies its forces to finish the fight. A massive Coalition fleet arrives to the Pale Heart and drop in hundreds of Guardians, House of Light Eliksni, Imperial Cabal, and various forces of humanity like Eris Morn, Drifter, Nimbus, Osiris, and Elise Bray. Savathûn makes an appearance as well, leading the Lucent Brood in a temporary alliance with the Coalition. Zavala gives a speech before the army before leading the charge against hordes of the Witness's remaining Guardian. The battle is fierce but the Coalition forces eventually punch through the Witness's last line of defense with the Guardian leading the charge. They eventually find the Witness and Saint-14 places his Ward of Dawn in the center of the arena to give the Guardians cover as Valus Forge, Mithrax, Nimbus, and Savathûn drop in weaponry for aid against the remaining forces of the Witness. Fissures of Light begin to pool on the surface of the arena as its forces are beaten back and once enough Light is collected, another portal to the realm of Darkness is created. More swords of Light are manifested within the realm and the Guardians use them to kill the remaining Dissenters. This further exposes the Witness to attacks and the Guardians damage it even further but when it is about to die, it shields itself. Ghost calls for his Guardian to channel the Traveler’s Light through him and together, the pair blast the Witness with a beam of pure Light which finally kills it. As it falls, it remarks that it doesn't understand.  

==Aftermath==

==Forces of the Conflict==

**''[[Season of the Witch]]''

**''[[Season of the Wish]]''

**''[[The Final Shape]]''

**''[[Episode: Echoes]]'' {{Mo}}