Immaru

Immaru
Biographical information
Other name(s):	First Ghost Daddy Immaru
Homeworld:	Earth
Species:	Ghost
Gender:	Male
Eye color:	Green
Political and military information
Affiliation:	Savathûn Lucent Brood
Rank:	Head Tactician
Notable info:	Ghost of Savathûn, the Witch Queen

"All right, my little antisocial arthropods. This is First Ghost Immaru talking. Get your act together, Hive, while those Scorn regroup."

— Immaru in a broadcast to the Lucent Brood

Immaru is the Ghost of Savathûn, the Witch Queen, and the field commander of the Lucent Brood. He goes by the title of "First Ghost".

Biography

"He wasn't going by "Immaru" back when he was tormenting young Ghosts!"

— The Ghost

Immaru is among the oldest of the Ghosts, having often bullied his younger fellows according to the Ghost. When Savathûn had escaped her imprisonment by the Awoken Queen Mara Sov and died after the separation of her Worm, Immaru located her body on a precipice overlooking the Traveler and the Last City, scanned it and resurrected the Witch Queen as his chosen Lightbearer.

From then on, Immaru and Savathûn worked together rallying the Hive under the Witch Queen's banner and managing the growing number of Hive Lightbearers being risen by Ghosts flocking to her court now resplendent in Light. Once the Lucent Brood was established Immaru began serving as its field commander. Relaying orders through a patrol network in the Throne World, he led the Lucent Hive to defend the Witch Queen's domain from intrusions of Scorn and the Guardians.

From the palace, Immaru would watch Light spill from the Wellspring like water churning with the Darkness of the throne world, all while the Guardians below laid an assault against the Lucent Hive. While he calls the Human Lightbearers no better than Scorn, Savathûn tried putting her Ghost at ease and brought up that Humans attacking the unknown was in their nature; which is to control (or attack) just as Hive must test. Immaru would react angrily at the Guardians killing his fellow Hive-allied Ghosts and demands a Ghost-killing weapon from the Witch Queen as pushback against them. Savathûn would recall the Weapons of Sorrow that the Hive had previously found distasteful, to which she asks if he and his fellow Ghosts would see such tactics as an abomination. Immaru coldly answers her with "Not anymore".

Upon Savathûn's death at the hands of the Guardian, Immaru appears surveying the death of his Lightbearer while at gunpoint. Instead, the Ghost disappears upon a blinding flash of Light that the Traveler unleashes during its departure from the Throne World. Having retreated to an unknown location, Immaru continued to guide the Lucent Brood in securing the Throne World.

Reviving Savathûn

Shortly after the Skirmish of Titan, Ikora Rey and Eris Morn would reach out to Immara after learning from Ahsa that Savathûn knew the way to follow the Witness into the Pale Heart. Ikora and Eris would propose a bargain: they would allow Immaru to resurrect the Witch Queen in exchange for her giving them the information they desire. Immaru would agree to this arrangement, but with one condition: Savathûn anticipated that they would need her help and she may possess the answers they seek, but first, they must deal with her sister Xivu Arath. Desperate for the way to follow the Witness, Ikora and Eris agree to his terms. The First Ghost would later assist Eris Morn in creating the Acolyte's Staff to help the Guardian weave the Hive's spells.

When the Guardian is sent to uncover Savathûn's Spire, Immaru would assist them by serving as their guide. Shortly after their entrance into the throne world, the Guardian is numbered by forces of the Lucent Brood. When Ikora demanded that Immaru order them to step down, he stated that they were ordered to guard the spire and asserted that the Guardian could handle it. When the Guardian entered the Spire, a recording of Savathûn would reveal that only a Hive God of equal strength could defeat the God of War through right of the Sword Logic.

Understanding what must be done, Eris Morn began preparations to transform herself into a Hive God to challenge Xivu Arath. Ikora Rey would attempt to persuade Eris against this saying it was what Savathûn desired. Immaru would chuckle at this, remarking that his master had outmaneuvered the Vanguard once again. In response, the Guardian grabbed Immaru in a threatening grasp. Speaking with a frightened tone, he would remind the Young Wolf that they needed him, with Eris replying by ordering that he be silent as the Guardian released him. Shortly after this quarrel, the Guardian began the ritual, transforming Eris into the Hive God of Vengeance. To aid Eris in gaining enough tribute, Immaru gave her and the Guardian the location of Savathûn's oubliette known as the Altars of Summoning, where the Witch Queen stored prisoners for experiments.

When the Guardian finished attuning Light elements, Immaru showed the Guardian a recording of a conversation between Savathûn and Xivu Arath shortly after the death of Oryx, with the God of War believing seeing Eris as the heir to the Taken King. Later, he disobeyed his Lightbearers' orders by revealing to the Guardian that Savathûn told him to make the Vanguard think this plan was their idea He tells the Guardian to tithe to Eris Morn as much as she needs as it is all a part of Savathûn's plan.

However, a threat to their plan arose as Xivu Arath learned of Eris's accession and sent her forces to invade Savathûn's throne world and steal the tithes within for herself. To prevent the tithes from being claimed by the God of War, Immaru orders the Guardian to defeat her forces assaulting the oubliette. When the Guardian returns to the H.E.L.M. Immaru shows them a recording of when Xivu Arath sent her brood to exterminate the Ammonites and slay the Leviathan. He remarks that even with all the Ammonites had, they were still defeated by the War God.

Immaru would later speak with the Guardian before they would go to attune Light elements within the throne world, blaming them for previously stopping Savathûn's attempts to seal the Traveler within her throne world. Finally, he would tell them that the Traveler chose the Hive in an attempt to fix the mistake it made by choosing humanity. Immaru later expressed his belief that Xivu Arath would crush Eris like a bug, but he expressed that it would be fun to watch after playing a recording from Savathûn for their progression in empowering Eris. Later, when the Guardian infiltrates the Imbaru Engine, Immaru would order them to leave. However, both they and Eris refused as they would uncover the secrets within.

During a radio message with Ikora Rey, he accused her of being too trusting and spoke of his discomfort with the Guardians tithing so much power to Eris, reminding Ikora of Elsie Bray's warnings that Eris would become corrupted by power and become a tyrant who would rule over them all, including even Savathûn herself. Ikora would respond by saying that Eris may have been corrupted in Elsie's timeline, Guardians have wielded Light and Darkness safely for good. The First Ghost would remind her of the dangers of Hive magic and express his astonishment that they were allowing Eris Morn to wield this power with the belief that she would not fall victim to corruption, even with Elsie's warnings. Nonetheless, Ikora would retain faith in Eris.

Eventually, Immaru decided to sneak out of Tower and explore the Last City, taking off his Hive shell and wearing a Shaded Shell from an office junk drawer. After some time exploring the city, he decides to watch a Crucible match taking place. When Shaxx emerged to receive his fan's well-wishes, Immaru would approach him and express his love for what Shaxx was doing, telling him that he had friends that would be into his "kill-or-be-killed vibe." When he continued to talk about how his "friends" believe that only the strong should survive and that death is necessary, Shaxx would correct him by affirming that the Crucible was just more than senseless violence, but also uniting everyone in the city including the Ghost's. After finishing his conversation with the Titan, Immaru could finally understand what the Witch Queen saw in Humans.

Believing that Eris did not possess the strength to defeat Xivu Arath, he told the Guardian that he would flee if things got worse and that Savathûn could stay dead, as it doesn't make a difference to him. When Eris Morn arrived at the Altars of Summoning for the final tithe, Immaru would tell her that if she activated the oubliette Xivu's forces this place would meet the same fate as Torabatl. Eris Morn would retaliate by declaring that he would suffer the consequences of Savathûn's apostasy. Upon learning of the Leviathan Eater's arrival, he attempted to flee, but Eris forced him to stay, declaring he would witness their triumph or die like one of them. After the Guardian defeats the Leviathan-Eater, Ikora would transport Savathûn's body to the Altar. Immaru remarked that this went against their bargain and that Xivu Arath was still a threat. However, Immaru complied and resurrected Savathûn upon Eris telling him this was his only chance. Shortly after Savathûn was resurrected, Eris would kill the Witch Queen, gaining all of her power and becoming the most powerful Hive to ever live. Instead of challenging Xivu Arath, Eris used her power to banish the God of War from her throne world.

With Xivu Arath finally dealt with, Immaru resurrected Savathûn once again. As a peace offering, Savathûn offered Immaru to the Vanguard, much to the First Ghost's surprise. Regardless, Immaru complied and was taken into the custody of the Vanguard.

In Custody

Now within the custody of the Vanguard, Immaru would be kept under close supervision. However, he would continue to command the Lucent Brood in the throne world on Savathûn's orders. Eventually, he received a message from the Drifter, who told him that he had heard about his dissatisfaction with being in the Last City's custody and remarked that he sounded resentful to the Witch Queen due to being used as her leverage. Immaru would assert that he had kept the Lucent Brood in check during her death. When Drifter asked if he felt disrespected, Immaru replied that he followed his orders and made sure Eris kept her end of the bargain. Retaining faith in his master, Immaru told the Drifter that Savathûn has a plan and he will make sure it is followed through. Immaru would then speak of how Guardians pranced around with their Ghosts and Drifter responded that he might introduce him to his Ghost one day.

During the Festival of the Lost, Immaru would be contained within a room by Eris and guarded by a Hidden agent due to sneaking around the Tower's restricted areas. Upon spotting a Frame entering the room, he would briefly scan it before realizing it was nothing of major importance. Feeling disappointed, Immaru would begin to rant about how Savathûn left him in the Vanguard's custody and still expected information. To escape his imprisonment, Immaru would hack into the Frame's system and order it to bring him a kit bag. When the Frame returns with the kit bag, Immaru takes off his standard shell and prepares to escape. Escaping his imprisonment and adorning a Constricting Shell, Immaru would eventually arrive at the Courtyard, watching Guardians from above as they mediated among candy. After briefly arguing with a fellow Ghost, Immaru would then be greeted by Glint. When Glint recognizes his voice, Immaru tells him he just wants to enjoy the festival. Fynch then tells Immaru about him and Eido's study of the Headless Ones, peaking the First Ghost's interest.

Shortly after Glint left, Immaru would continue his studies of the Guardians. However, he would run into Colonel, causing him to retaliate by slamming into the chicken. This would only make Colonel draw her attention to Immaru, snapping onto his shell. Fortunately Immaru would be saved by Archie, causing the Guardians to forget about the candy and pay attention to him. Recognizing that the mechanical dog could be a useful ally, Immaru approaches Archie asking him for assistance in taking control of the candy supply. When Archie growls in return, Immaru lies to Archie that he is only doing it to keep the Guardians safe. He takes advantage of Archie's love for Ana by reminding him he would do anything to keep her safe. Archie then barks back in agreement, solidifying their partnership.

However, although they were successful in stealing candy, they lacked a place to store it, causing Immaru to seek out more partners. They would gain a new ally in the Spider, promising him sixty percent in exchange for his storage. However even with Spider's aid their candy operation was still making little profit, causing Spider to threaten his cut. Due to this reason, Immaru decides to make his own Headless One to retrieve the candy they need. After a brief visit with Drifter's Ghost, Immaru successfully creates his own Headless One, releasing it onto the city to retrieve the candy. However, his plan would be foiled by Eido, Glint, and his former partner Archie as they would destroy the Headless One. Laughing at the destruction he had caused, Immaru flies away as he wishes them a Happy Festival of the Lost.

Personality and traits

"We lived with 'em. Saved 'em. Now they're ripping through us! Damn ungrateful, if you ask me…"

— Immaru's bitter words about Guardians

Unlike his elegant and calculating Lightbearer, Immaru is very blunt in his delivery and often sprinkles his broadcasts on the Lucent Brood comms with creative insults. Based on his dialogue, he is very unpleasant, often having a smug tone in his voice, and Ghost contemptuously refers to him as a bully. He doesn't appear to have any remorse for turning against humanity and the Last City by siding with the Witch Queen nor does he care about Hive Lightbearers killing Guardians. He resents humanity for conducting what he sees as an unprovoked assault on the Throne World and striking against Ghosts, so much as to suggest using the Hive's Light-smothering weaponry as a payback. Savathûn calls him loyal, a trait he goes on to prove by assuming the leadership of the Lucent Brood upon her death, all the while hiding from the Vanguard forces. His tactical prowess shows in the way he often uses the Hive's enemies to play into his own plans, setting the invading armies against each other or making Guardians run errands for him on patrol.

Even when forced to work alongside the Vanguard in combating the Witness and Xivu Arath, Immaru remains smug and sarcastically condescending, outright mocking the Guardians efforts. He is even arrogant enough to be unwilling to acknowledge the Young Wolf's victory over his Lightbearer, calling it "lucky". His insults and smug nature were enough to for the Young Wolf to nearly kill him out of sheer annoyance, reminding the Hive Ghost not to push his luck. Even Ikora and Eris find his commentary aggravating, often threatening him with imprisonment or reminding him of what the Guardian will do to him should he overstep himself. Yet despite the threats, Immaru can't help but feel amusement that the Guardian can't kill him since he is "too important" for their common goal. His taunts would become more cruel, insensitive and spiteful, outright mocking the death of Eris Morn's Ghost, Brya, which was more than enough to infuriate Eris. Immaru would even taunt the Guardians on what he perceives as humanity's end, wondering what "epithet" they would want on their tombstones, likely wanting to get a rise out of the Guardians but most of all, Immaru disdainfully considers the Traveler's decision to raise the Guardian to be its "mistake".

A part of the reason why Immaru joined the Hive wholeheartedly is that he admits he never felt that he fit in with humanity or even with the other Ghosts yet after raising Savathûn, he stated that everything "fell into place", as if he was meant to be with the Hive. Its unknown if Immaru is a believer in the Hive's Sword Logic as the Hive themselves but he interprets its as simply "survival of the fittest" and has stated he prefers the Hive's interpretations of the Final Shape than the Witness's, where "it's the winner, the one who's so smart or strong that they beat everybody else". He stated that the Witness's Final Shape is "flat" or "static", a "forced ending" or "winning a game by turning it off", which actually unnerved him.

Despite leading the Lucent Hive in Savathûn's stead and doing his part in the plan against Xivu Arath, Immaru admits to Eris and the Guardian that he possess little actual loyalty towards his Lightbearer, saying that, for all he cares, the Witch Queen can stay dead. Eris believes that since his Lightbearer is dead, Immaru has come to enjoy being the de facto leader of the Lucent Hive, not wanting to relinquish that authority. Immaru himself states that its mainly out of self-preservation as since he bears little faith in their plan to defeat Xivu Arath, once things take a turn for the worst, he'll abandon them all, regardless of what Savathûn wants. This would actually return to bite him as not only did the Guardian and Eris find a way to make the latter strong enough to surpass and weaken Xivu Arath, defying Immaru's doubts and expectations, but after resurrecting Savathûn, the Hive God of Lies decided to leave Immaru in the Vanguard's custody as part of a "peace-offering", much to his protests.

Trivia

• Immaru is a Sumerian word for "light".
• Immaru began going by his current name after joining the Hive. As such, it is unknown what his original name was.

List of appearances

• Destiny 2: The Witch Queen (First appearance)
  • Season of the Deep (Mentioned only)
  • Season of the Witch
  • The Final Shape (Mentioned only)
  • Episode: Echoes (Mentioned only)
• Breakdown (Mentioned only)