Penitent

Penitent
Overview
Other name(s):	Merciful Benefic
Type:	Government faction
Functions:	Eliminate suffering through the Final Shape (formerly) Destroy the Witness and prevent the Final Shape (currently)
Engagements:	Operation Ahamkara
Affiliation:	The Witness
Allied with:	Vanguard

The Penitent, also known as the Merciful and the Benefic, were a faction within the governing body of the Witness' Precursor species, known as the Consensus.

History

Ancient Past

They believed that the ultimate purpose of existence was to eliminate suffering and that anyone who did not act to do so was complicit in perpetuating it. By the time the Veil had been discovered and the Traveler had fled their species' homeworld, the Penitent had become the sole remaining faction in the Consensus, having destroyed the other two factions, the Nihilists and Solipsists. They would subsequently go on to use the Veil and its Darkness to bind the consciousnesses of their entire species together, merging themselves into the entity that would become known as the Witness. However, their minds would remain separate in the Witness' subconscious, with a significant portion growing disgusted with their actions and betrayal of their original ideals, becoming Dissenters.

Destroying the Witness

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"In Darkness, we saw ourselves, simultaneously victims and perpetrators, condemned to fade in Light, as all things do.
A Dissenter: And so, we reshaped ourselves to become this purpose the universe lacked.
We lost ourselves in it.
Destroy us."

— A Dissenter, asking the Guardian to destroy their statue and release them from the Witness.

List of appearances

• Entelechy (First mentioned)
• Destiny 2: The Final Shape (as Dissenters)