Back in April, an alleged leak for Destiny 2 came out detailing an expansion called "Collapse," centered on the arrival of the Darkness. Within that leak had several specific details about the Darkness and what would supposedly be the main villain: The Winnower. There wasn't much credence placed in this leak, as it was never properly sourced, but it did directly reference existing Destiny lore in many of its supposed details. In fact, much of the lore expressed in the Winnower's myth explores themes of a higher power, much higher than Darkness vs Light.

"Winnower" was first mentioned in a Destiny 2 lorebook included in the Shadowkeep expansion, detailing the existence of two complementary entities that worked in tandem during the creation of the universe. Details are very vague, but they do illustrate their metaphysical and godlike position in the Destiny universe. Thus it stands to reason they're likely not related to that Collapse leak from last month, but their story is an interesting one.

RELATED: Destiny 2 Shadowkeep’s Twist Ending Sets the Stage for the Future

The Unveiling

destiny 2 garden of salvation waterfall

Shadowkeep introduced a number of different improvements gameplay-wise and narratively that helped reinvigorate Destiny 2. But among players rejoicing around a newly improved Destiny experience, there were hints of a grander meta-narrative beyond the battle between Darkness and Light. Eris Morn gifted players with the beginning of a new lorebook in Shadowkeep entitled "Unveiling," which introduced the Gardener and the Winnower. These two beings are not introduced as physical organisms, but are "principles of ontological dynamics that emerged from mathematical structures, as bodiless and inevitable as the primes." Paracausal is a term Destiny lore likes to throw around a lot, and it couldn't be more appropriate than in this lore entry.

Neither of these entities are inherently classified as a hero/villain, but instead represent something of a yin-yang relationship higher than the existence of organisms or planets. The Gardener's role seems to be the arbiter of creation, whereas the Winnower exists to mitigate the endless flourishing of constant creation. In a more down to Earth sense, it basically means the Gardener can create life while the Winnower influences who survives. The lore is incredibly meta and refers to a version of creation myth relatively unique to Destiny.

The Garden's Purpose

destiny 2 golden age collapse art

Determining the purpose of these entities in the overarching story of Destiny thus far becomes very challenging. It's not as easy as stating the Winnower is the next "enemy" in Destiny 2's future, because these entities' existences are depicted as something far more important than a Darkness vs. Light conflict. At the same time, there is some counter-evidence to that in the form of a Grimoire card from the first Destiny game. The Rasputin Warmind, an enigmatic AI part of Destiny's history, had written a manuscript that was stored on a Dead Ghost players could find in Old Russia. In said manuscript is a description from the AI regarding the events of the Collapse, where Rasputin is presumably referencing the Darkness.

Entitled "Mysteries," Rasputin illustrates the events of the Collapse and how the AI shaped its machine learning and evolved from the cataclysm. Though most of the entry refers to the Darkness beating humanity and the Warmind's creations, it does reference the Gardener towards the end of the manuscript. Describing the battle that ensued against humanity, Rasputin states that the Darkness won "even over the gardener and she held power beyond me but the gardener did not shrug and make herself alone. IT [the Darkness] always wins."

Now, the Gardener mentioned here could simply be a reference to the Traveler, who was the sole defender of humanity during the first Collapse. Other accounts seem to conclude that Rasputin, who was initially designed by humanity to protect Earth and Earth's colonies, instead reversed its objective to survival. Fans point to this being the reason why the Traveler protected Earth and now remains above the Last City, wounded from the Darkness' attack. But, if Rasputin understands far beyond the existence of the Traveler and the Darkness, then it's possible the garden and these two god-like entities may have quarreled at some point as a meta-physical representation of Darkness vs. Light.

RELATED: Destiny 2 Glitch Reveals Changes Coming to Game at Season End

The Final Shape

destiny 2 invitation of the nine quest change

There's further evidence of this argument in the subsequent entries in the Unveiling lorebook. These entries are written in allegory, meaning they don't physically represent an actual conversation between these two entities, but it does provide understandable insight to their argument. At one point, as the Gardener and Winnower were toiling away in the Garden, the Gardener stood up and realized that each time their garden bloomed from the soil, it looked the same. The Gardener argues that there's no complexity or uniqueness stemming from a garden that comes out the same every time. The Winnower argues that peace is only achieved through cohesiveness, and that adding uneven complexity compromises harmony.

This quarrel eventually ties into the real world theory of "The Cambrian Explosion," where complex organisms were birthed and lived for the first time. It seems this event serves as the main catalyst of the conflict between the Gardener and the Winnower. Whereas the Gardener believed endless complexity would aid in the prosperity of life, the Winnower believed unification would lead to the life prospering. Part of this is why it can't be explicitly stated that the Winnower will be a bad guy in Destiny 2, or even related to the Darkness at all. These concepts aren't diametrically opposed like darkness and light, even though the themes of their argument permeate throughout humanity's conflict with forces of the Darkness.

How these two entities factor into the entirety of Destiny's upcoming story remains to be seen. The Gardener and Winnower entities will likely be referenced in the upcoming conflict against the Darkness, but in subtle ways. The themes presented in the Unveiling lorebook are very meta, meaning they won't be prominently featured throughout the Destiny 2's story. But it is something to keep in mind for future lore, and could help to contextualize the Traveler vs. Darkness conflict.

Destiny 2 is available now on PC, PS4, Stadia and Xbox One.

MORE: Destiny 2 Will Look to the Past to Fix its Future