At a time when the veteran Destiny 2 players began to grumble over the lack of surprises and goals, Bungie surprised everyone by stealth dropping a new quest into the game. Unlike previous quests which have been devoured by the community in a matter of hours, the return to the corridors of time acted as a catalyst to bring all players together. After a series of days and a lot of effort, the puzzle was ultimately solved.
Debate over the exotic reward for this newly inventive quest will likely rage onward for some time, likely due to the fact that the Bastion fusion rifle was advertised on the seasonal calendar, unlike the quest it was attached to. However, the ultimate reward from this event may actually be the lore that players were able to experience upon completion.
Season of Dawn's major theme is about time and how Guardians interact with it. As The Cabal attempt to mess with time by rewriting history to ultimately win the Red War, players take part in Osiris' Sundial activity, and utilize time travel to ultimately save the legendary hero Saint-14.
Interestingly enough, these Saint-14 missions in Destiny 2 are a setup for the discovery made at the end of the Corridors of Time quest. Following a lengthy sprint through 30 paths using a very specific code sequence, players enter a mysterious room known as the Timelost Vault. In the very center is a tomb where the player can pay their respects. Shockingly, the tomb is the player's grave.
Bungie's surprising narrative twist is delivered through the previously rescued Saint-14 who delivers a unique eulogy for the player based on their previous exploits, bringing up events from the first game as well as major story points from Destiny 2. While the eulogy doesn't give any insight into how the player's character dies outside of falling trying to defend the Last City, though Saint's memorial also hints at a future that is bleak as toward the end mentioned that with the player gone, there's no one to save them now.
Is this a hint at the Vanguard's current situation or more of a general thought before another major event happens?
Where this story line goes from here is anyone's guess. It's possible that Bungie could craft a future season or expansion around this narrative, but killing the player's character off would be a tough thing to do, even if it was used as a lead in to Destiny 3. Bungie has always said the character is a representation of the player, so removing that link would be counter productive to the main idea of the series. Not only that, players likely wouldn't want to completely start over considering that players could carry over their characters from the first to second game.
It's also possible that this event takes place in one of the many timelines that players have been able to influence through the Sundial. There's a lot of mysteries inside of the Corridors of Time, many of which may be revealed down the road in a future season, game, or perhaps the upcoming event in February known as the Empyrean Foundation.
Destiny 2: Shadowkeep is available now for PC, PS4, Stadia, and Xbox One.