Darkness

*"Ah, Oryx, how do we explain it to them? [...] [I]f life is to live, if anything is to survive through the end of all things, it will live not by the smile but by the sword [...] existence, at any cost. Strip away the lies and truces and delaying tactics they call ‘civilization’ and this is what remains, this beautiful shape. [...] It is the only thing that can be true in and of itself. And it is what I am."*-The Darkness to Oryx, the Taken King

"**The Darkness**", also known as the Winnower or the Deep, is a powerful, paracausal force inimical to the Light.

## Overview

Like the Traveler, the Darkness is a cosmic paracausal force that has existed since before the beginning of time. In our universe, it has been shown to enact its will indirectly through numerous proxies and servants, with some of the most powerful being worshiped as deities unto themselves. The Vex, Hive, Taken and Scorn are all linked to this force.

The Darkness is fundamentally driven to reduce complexity and diversity within the universe, and to eliminate any entity which cannot survive in the face of adversity; its philosophy is tied to that of the Sword Logic, though not necessarily identical to it. The Darkness once ruled the universe, and the Hive believe that the Light must be consumed for the Darkness to reclaim its domination. Its ultimate goal is to bring about an end-state of the universe in which the only entities that exist are those that have overcome all possible obstacles to their survival, and which have the strength to continue existing forever. It refers to this goal as the "final shape" of the universe.

The Awoken are said to carry Darkness within themselves as well as Light, a product of the circumstances of their creation. During his possession by the Taken Ahamkara known as Riven, Uldren Sov emitted streams of Darkness from his eyes to activate the gate of the Dreaming City. The existence of Motes of Dark further indicates that the Darkness is a universal force in a similar sense as the Light.

The Darkness seemingly also has the ability to 'infect' individuals. Though it is unknown if Uldren's infection was caused by fallout from the Dreadnaught weapon or Riven's influence, he began to display symptoms on Mars (in his unique case, irritation of the eyes), and gradually descended into mood swings, bouts of lethargy, extreme sensitivity to Ahamkara influence, bloodthirsty tendencies, and almost completely forgetting, and turning against those he once considered close friends (Jolyon and Petra, respectively). In a similar case, Dredgen Yor fell due to being heavily seduced by the Darkness.

Based upon matching descriptions from Emperor Calus, the Hive, Cayde-6, and Awoken records, the Darkness and certain Darkness-related entities seem to have the ability to project some sort of field that gives the impression of complete darkness surrounding an individual. Calus wrote that upon encountering the Darkness, it appeared as a complete void to him, while the Awoken reported being surrounded by a force that "made the stars go out." Cayde-6 similarly described being enveloped by a smothering, paralyzing black cloud during the Collapse; however, in this case, it left his senses intact so that he could witness the destruction of his surroundings. The Drifter also encountered mysterious entities on an unknown, distant ice world that were trapped in alien monoliths. These beings had a disturbing ability to kill Ghosts from just being near them, and to nullify Light itself. The beings were everywhere on the world, and were described as having a "Darkness field."

In addition to being a fundamental paracausal force, The Darkness is intelligent and capable of communicating with sentient beings; in the Books of Sorrow, Oryx is described as directly communing with the Deep, and the deposed Cabal Emperor Calus is recorded as doing so as well. In Shadowkeep, the Darkness communicates with The Guardian through their possessed Ghost, describing the Light as a source of weakness, failure, and death for all those it touches.

### Pyramids

   By Destiny 2, many depictions and allusions to the Darkness now represent it as an armada known as the Black Fleet located in the depths of intergalactic space. These pyramidal entities were first seen in the vision that the Traveler sent to the the Guardian, and also in the cutscene that showed the Traveler being attacked on Io. The Dreams of Alpha Lupi describe the Darkness as a "knife [with] a million blades," perhaps alluding to this fleet of pyramidal entities. During the Collapse, the human colonists who would become the Awoken detected that they were being followed by a "phantom ship" that exposed them to gravitational waves and emitted sterile neutrinos, axions, and phaetons. During his encounter with the Darkness, Calus also reported the "nothingness" around him parting to reveal a fleet of ships, although his statements do not describe the vessels in detail.

Alternatively, the Pyramids may be entities analogous to the Traveler, which is an embodiment of the Light but not the source of Light itself. Motes of Dark similarly appear as black tetrahedrons, further suggesting a relationship between the Darkness and the titular Pyramids.

A single Pyramid resembling those that attacked the Sol System during the Collapse was discovered beneath the surface of the Moon in the years following the Red War. Even in its seemingly derelict state, this vessel exhibited profound Darkness-related abilities, such as the power to manifest phantasmal essence in the shape of Nightmares.

### Veiled Figures

Recent investigations of the pyramid located on the Moon, as well as a newly-discovered region of the Black Garden and later the Pyramid on Europa, have revealed another motif that appears to be representative of, or at least associated with, the Darkness: statues of humanoid, veiled figures. Both statues thus far encountered are identical with seemingly feminine features, and are posed with faces turned upward and arms slightly outspread. The significance of these statues is currently unknown. Clovis Bray I had access to one of these statues in the Golden Age, which he named Clarity Control, and used in the production of Exos.