The Witness

"I don't have time to explain why I don't have time to explain."
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The Witness
Biographical information
Other name(s):	The Entity The Voice in the Darkness
Eye color:	Black
Political and military information
Affiliation:	The Black Fleet

"We have seen enough. The children of Sol cry out for salvation. You promised them life, but deliver only death, as you have to so many before. Enough. Enough death. Enough life. You have no pieces left to place. The game is over. Do not be afraid. Your pale heart holds the key. This time... There is no escape."

— The Witness

The Witness, also known as The Entity, or The Voice in the Darkness, is an individual who appears to be the leader of the Black Fleet. It is described by Savathûn, the Witch Queen as a "child of the Darkness," and seems to act as its foremost representative in the physical universe.

Overview

The Witness is a tall, pale-skinned humanoid being. Most of its features are obscured by its metallic robe-like clothing, which constantly ripples and shifts seemingly of its own accord. Its long black cloak emanates the same resonance as other Darkness artifacts have done. Among its most notable features is a column of white “smoke” that continually issues from the top of its head, which forms a multitude of humanoid faces as it spreads and dissipates. Its true face is partially concealed, but it can be seen to have large, dark eyes and a rectangular pattern of gray lines on its brow and forehead.

At times the Witness leaves a series of “afterimages” of itself while in motion; for example, when moving its arms, multiple ghostly silhouettes of its arms will repeat the gesture after a delay. The significance of this is unknown but may be related to its apparent time and reality manipulation abilities.

Biography

The Ancient Past

"I stand before a being with a thousand names. It whispers one: The Witness. Remember it. Remember that name."

— Savathun

The history of the Witness is almost totally unknown. Contradictory statements from Savathun claim both that the Witness was a mortal creature whose race was empowered by the Darkness and that the Witness birthed the Darkness; the latter statement is almost certainly a falsehood, as Savathûn in other contexts has described the Witness as a "child of the Darkness, and the Darkness has stated itself to have existed for eternity. What is known is that it has existed in the universe for billions of years, during which time it has acted to further the aims of the Darkness, or at least its own interpretations of them.

The Recruitment of a Disciple

Billions of years ago, the Witness visited a dying world called Lubrae, which had degenerated into a military dictatorship after the Traveler had blessed and left their civilization. There, it encountered a warrior named Rhulk, who had entered into an existential crisis upon realizing his parents had betrayed his species' ideology. The Witness converted Rhulk to worship of the Darkness by showing how, from the perspective of the Darkness, Lubrae's history was insignificant and not worth comparing himself or his species to, causing Rhulk to swear himself to the Witness as one of its Disciples.

Subjugation of the Worms

The Witness later visited the solar system of Fundament along with Rhulk, tasking the latter with subjugating the Worms as slaves to further its goals.

The Birth of the Hive

The Witness played a key role in the ascension of the Hive on Fundament by telepathically communicating with the young Sathona via her Worm familiar, telling her that the Osmium Court was in imminent danger of destruction by a tidal wave generated by a syzygy. In reality, there was no such danger: the Witness merely wanted to claim the Krill as servants of the Darkness before the Traveler could arrive and uplift them along with the Ammonites.

The Collapse

The Witness had a direct role in the Collapse, alongside its Disciples and Savathûn, the Witch Queen. According to Savathûn's Worm, the Witness intended to destroy the Traveler during this event, but was somehow tricked by Savathûn into allowing the Traveler to survive. As a result of this deception, the Witness and its Black Fleet returned to intergalactic space, where they would remain for centuries before the Traveler made its continued existence known at the end of the Red War.

Return to Sol

The Awoken Queen Mara Sov encountered the Witness beyond the heliopause of the Sol system. There, it showed her a vision of the impending future upon its arrival, and subsequently offered the Awoken Queen the opportunity to become one of its Disciples. The Queen refused and fought the Witness and its armies throughout the ascendant plane before returning to the Dreaming City.

After Savathûn, the Witch Queen was reborn in the Light, only to have her plan to steal the Traveler thwarted by the Guardians, the Witness addressed the Traveler, declaring that it had "seen enough" and would take action to "save" the denizens of Sol.

Trivia

• The Witness seems to always refer to itself in the plural; Savathûn also makes reference to the Witness having "many selves". This suggests that the Witness may be a gestalt entity or "hive mind" of some kind.

List of appearances

• Destiny 2
  • Season of the Chosen (First mentioned)
  • Season of the Lost (Mentioned only)
  • The Witch Queen (First appearance) (First identified as The Witness)