Destiny 2 has been in rare form over the last year, with a slate of solid, seasonal content that led right into the excellent, new expansion, The Witch Queen. But The Witch Queen wasn’t the only new content Bungie brought to the game last month; in a franchise first, Season of the Risen, the latest seasonal storyline, launched alongside the expansion.
That storyline reached a major turning point this week with the culmination of a month-long mission that ended in a stunning murder and an even-more-stunning sacrifice from a well-loved character. Season of the Risen has been focusing on the wider ramifications of the Vanguard’s war with the titular Witch Queen, Savathun, and this week’s portion of the story brought players right to the heart of the conflict.
A tentative alliance with our erstwhile enemies, the Cabal, has given the Vanguard the resources to force their way into the minds of these Lucent Hive with the purpose of determining how they have access to the Light. But a Guardian known as Crow, formerly the Awoken prince known as Uldren Sov, has been grappling with the Vanguard’s inhumane treatment of the Light-bearing Hive in their custody, and this week he decided to do something about it.
Unfortunately, his clumsy attempt at mercy wound up killing the Cabal Psion tasked with using its telepathy to invade the minds of the captive Hive. The Cabal are not a people to take an affront like this lightly, and their Empress, Caiatl, demanded Crow’s life in exchange for the dead Psion. But someone else stepped in to take on that life debt instead.
Lord Saladin, the last remaining member of the Iron Lords, offered his life in exchange for Crow’s. Caiatl accepted his offer, and, in another twist, named him to her War Council as the newly dubbed Bracus Forge, much to Crow’s dismay. Zavala, the leader of the Vanguard, accepted the transaction, and Saladin left with his new Empress.
This is a massive shift for Destiny 2 that will undoubtedly have massive consequences down the line. Saladin has been a major presence in the game’s seasonal stories for the past year, but his new role means that he no longer has the freedom to join any mission he chooses. While Bungie found a clever loophole to keep him around as the host of Iron Banner, Saladin’s status as a character has shifted irrevocably after this week.
This could mean any number of things for Saladin moving forward, but I’m just hoping he gets a new suit of armor that’s more complementary to the Cabal’s design sense. His place within the Cabal Empire strengthens the alliance we have with them, so it’s very likely we’ll see more of Caiatl and her forces in forthcoming seasons.
Then there’s Crow and how he’ll handle this change coming about as a direct result of his headstrong actions. He’s been in a delicate mental state since the Season of the Lost when Savathun restored his lost memories of his life as Uldren, and an event like this would be enough to push anyone into a dangerous state of mind.
We’re in a new era of Destiny 2, one where Bungie isn’t afraid to include big narrative swings in their seasonal stories. We’ve gotten a taste of that with seasons like Arrivals and Lost, but these kinds of plot beats are on a whole other level. And this is only week four of Season of the Risen! While it definitely feels like we’ve reached a major turning point in the narrative, Bungie might still have a few surprises in store before the season ends in May.
