Skirmish of Titan

"...three words, nine word bursts over and over..."This article is based on canon information, but the article title is conjectural, as there is currently no official name for the subject. See the talk page for more information.

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Previous:	Invasion of Neptune Invasion of Earth
Skirmish of Titan
Fronts:	Titan
Outcome:	Titan returns to the Sol System Sloane rescued albeit infused with Taken energy Ahsa discovered and rescued Psychic connection between Sloane and Ahsa strengthened thanks to Egregore and technology salvaged from the New Pacific Arcology Ahsa is able to provide vital information about The Witness's origins and the Final Shape to The Coalition Ahsa reveals the next step that will allow the Guardians to follow the Witness inside the portal: resurrect Savathûn, the Witch Queen Xivu Arath's forces repelled from Titan Xivu Arath's ritual to Take Ahsa thwarted Xivu Arath's challenge accepted and her offering recovered from her temple The Witness commands Xivu Arath to prevent the Guardians from allowing the resurrection of Savathûn Lucent Brood's attempt at reviving Oryx, the Taken King as a Lightbearer thwarted Oryx corpse secured by the Hidden Calcified fragments and important intel about Xivu Arath, God of War recovered
Belligerents Vanguard Ahsa Imperial Cabal Iron War Beasts Xivu Arath's Horde Wrathborn Fallen Taken Lucent Brood Commanders Zavala Lord Saladin Saint-14 Drifter Sloane Ahsa Tuk'rin, Iron War Boss Xivu Arath, God of War Azshradat, Celebrant of Xivu Arath J4W-S, Wrath-Hunter Servitor Uorgotha, Scourge of the Deep Kudazad, Bound to Xivu Arath Kelgorath, Taken from Bones Khull, Executioner Knight Omen, Blade of the Black Terrace Šimmumah ur-Nokru, Lucent Necromancer Ecthar, the Shield of Savathûn Strength Thousands of Guardians Ahsa Countless Hive Hundreds of Wrathborn Thousands of Fallen Thousands of Taken 1 Tormentor Dozens of Hive Lightbearers Thousands of Hive Casualties Dozens of Guardians Thousands of Hive Hundreds of Wrathborn Thousands of Fallen Thousands of Taken Dozens of Hive Lightbearers Thousands of Hive

"Before you can confront the Witness, you must understand it. The Witness's first victims were once like you. Struggling for survival. Bolstered by hope... Until their hopes became reality. They called it "the Gardener," their deity of life. It ushered them into a golden age. For eons, they prospered. But their newfound god never spoke to them. It lavished them with gifts, but not with guidance. And though they lived in paradise, they came to crave a greater purpose. They desired meaning. Structure. A "Winnower"... to shape the garden. Their scholars discovered that the Gardener shared a connection with another entity among the stars. They called it "the Veil." And when they found it, they arrived to claim it. They already knew much about the Light. How it could bend the laws of the universe and create life. But they came to realize that it could bring ruin... just as easily. The cosmic events it set in motion could wipe out entire civilizations in a heartbeat... without reason. And so they saw the Light not as a source of prosperity... but of unfettered chaos. By studying the Veil, they came to know the Darkness. A power that was shaped by thought and consciousness. And in the Darkness, they found the means to carve away the chaos of existence. To calcify it into a final shape. Eternal... and perfected. They brought the Veil back to the Gardener in an attempt to strengthen their connection. There, they could reshape itself. The Gardener would not allow it. And so, it fled their world. But they would not be deterred. Having witnessed the truth in the Darkness, they used its binding to merge themselves... into the salvation they craved. Thus began the Witness's pursuit... its campaign to impose meaning on a meaningless unjverse. One that is nearly at its end."

— Ahsa

The Skirmish of Titan is an ongoing conflict between the Vanguard, assisted by Deputy Commander Sloane and a Leviathan-like creature on Titan named Ahsa, Xivu Arath's Hive and Taken forces, and a small detachment of Lucent Hive forces encounter deep within and below the New Pacific Arcology.

History

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Before Titan's return, the Vanguard attempted to follow the Witness using the portal it carved on the Traveler. Joxer volunteered, though the attempt was met with failure as Joxer and his Ghost were partially liquified within their ship after it was ejected.

A distress call from Sloane on Titan would reach the Vanguard, requesting assistance. Guardians alongside Zavala, Saint-14, and Saladin Forge came into Titan for a rescue operation. The Drifter also volunteered, much to Saladin and Saint's chagrin. They would clash with Xivu Arath's forces and the Hive God of War revealing herself through her voice.

With Drifter's help, the Guardian and Zavala made contact with Sloane below the methane oceans where they find out that Sloane is alive, albeit partially taken. And that the distress call was meant for Ahsa, a proto-worm whom Sloane bonded with. Ahsa had valuable intel related to the Witness. However, Sloane needed the egregore coral found beneath Titan's methane oceans to strengthen her connection with Ahsa so the worm could share the information.

Wasting no time, Guardians would embark on salvage operations on Titan, salvaging much-needed supplies while dealing with Xivu Arath's forces. They went into deep dives to harvest the egregore coral needed for Sloane and Ahsa while also dealing with dangerous foes sent by the Hive's God of War including J4WS-Wrathborn Servitor, Kudazad, Bound to Xivu Arath, and Kelgorath, Taken from Bones.

Additionally, a fireteam was sent to the depths beneath the Arcology to deal with a mass ritual conducted by the Lucent Brood. The ritual would happen to be the brood's attempt to resurrect Oryx, the Taken King, whose corpse nestled beneath Titan's oceans. The ritual was stopped and Oryx's corpse was recovered by Ikora's Hidden agents.

After a few weeks of diving expeditions, the Guardians ventured to Savathun's Throne World to kill one of the Hive Ghosts and use its fragments to further strengthen Sloane's connection to Ahsa. The plan worked and Ahsa reveals that the Witness is a gestalt of consciousness from the first civilization that was uplifted by the Traveler. While they were blessed with a Golden Age for eons, they became obsessed to find meaning and purpose in the universe which led them to find the Veil. They hoped to commune the Veil with the Traveler to rewrite reality in their own desires. The Traveler escaped before they could accomplish their goal. But even that didn't deter them, so they conducted a mass ritual that killed the entire species and combined their consciousness into the being that became The Witness. And thus, it began its genocidal crusade.

Later on, Ahsa was kidnapped by Xivu Arath's brood and they conducted a ritual to try to make her into one of the Taken. Thanks to the efforts of the Vanguard, Saladin's Iron War Beasts, and the Guardians, they rescued Ahsa and stopped the ritual. After the rescue, Sloane was nearly possessed by Xivu Arath and taunted her, though she regained control thanks to Zavala's encouragement. With one final communion, Ahsa reveals while the path is obscured, there's one individual who knows the way to follow the Witness, Savathun herself. And if the Vanguard wishes to follow it and put a stop to its plans, they have no choice but to allow her to be revived.

Aftermath

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While the Coalition emerged victorious in this skirmish, the revelation that Savathun is necessary for the fight against the Witness makes things complicated for the Vanguard. Despite protests from Saint-14 and Saladin Forge, the Vanguard are making plans to make contact with Immaru, Savathun's ghost, in hopes to resurrect her as well as Ikora and Eris keeping a watchful eye on the Witch Queen.

Meanwhile, Xivu Arath communed with the Witness aboard the Dreadnaught after her failure. It expressed doubts about Xivu's abilities but nonetheless commanded her to prepare herself to fight Savathun in the event the Vanguard resurrects her. Later on, she allowed an audience with the Guardians in her temple beneath Kraken Mare after offering three broken blades they recovered to three statues scattered across the depths. Inside her temple, Xivu issued a challenge to them by having them defeat both Khull, Executioner Knight (A Taken Knight), and a Tormentor in her service: Omen, Blade of the Black Terrace. After the Tormentor was defeated, the Hive God deemed them worthy and awarded them Wicked Implement so they could tithe to her.

List of appearances

• Destiny 2
  • Season of the Deep (First appearance)