The Darkness[1] is the powerful,[2] ancient enemy of the Traveler,[1] tracking it through the cosmos.[3] Centuries ago, it swept through the Solar System, devastating human civilization in an event called the Collapse. Only due to the Traveler's intervention did humanity survive.[1]
Seven centuries later,[4] the Darkness was set to return.[5] The Fallen, Vex, Hive, and Cabal are linked to this force.[6]