.jpg?q=50&fit=contain&w=1140&h=&dpr=1.5)
Destiny 2's Lightfall expansion is slated for a 2023 release, leaving room for rumors, speculation, and excitement about the story expansion and what it means for the Light and Darkness saga. With Bungie's release of The Witch Queen expansion in February 2022, the story of Destiny 2 took an even more compelling narrative turn through the dealings of Savathun and her ability to use the Light. Her defeat after the campaign shed light on vital factors for the future and the past as well.
Upon her destruction, Savathun revealed that the Witness - a seeming physical representation of the Darkness - manipulated her billions of years ago to deny her society the powers and benefits of the Traveler's Light. This new enemy, whose origins remain shrouded in mystery, is ready to save the residents of Sol in whatever form it seems fit, ensuring a catastrophic battle for the Guardians ahead. However, Destiny 2 and Lightfall have teased the importance of another enigmatic character: the Exo Stranger, whose knowledge and presence may stave off the impending doom.
Elisabeth Bray
Beyond Light revealed the identity of the Exo Stranger as Elisabeth Bray, a starship and weapons engineer during the Golden Age as humanity spread throughout the Sol System. Assisting her grandfather, Clovis Bray, in the Exo project - uploading human minds into an artificial body, Elisabeth escaped death from a genetic disease by successfully becoming one of the first Exos. However, knowledge of Clovis' work with the Darkness and its Stasis subclass caused Elisabeth to turn against her grandfather.
During the Collapse, when the Darkness attacked humanity and nearly wiped out the species, Elisabeth saw the corruption of her sister Ana to the Darkness, resulting in the entity's victory. The end of this period trapped Elisabeth in a time loop, reviving her every time she died during a celebration at the Last City. This situation also allows Elisabeth to phase in and out of time, which has caused her to become a mythological stranger to the Guardians who view these repeated timelines.
The Time Loop
At first despondent with this turn of events, Elisabeth decided to use the advantage of the time loop to try and thwart the dark future of the Darkness's victory. Her attempts became seemingly futile as she never managed to succeed in her quest, especially as her attempts to warn the people of the Last City branded her as an insane doomsayer. Elisabeth's problems were also compounded by disorientation at the beginning of each new loop, which wasted precious time. After several failed loops, Elisabeth discovered that using technology from Clovis and other small objects started grounded her.
It wasn't until the seventh loop that Elisabeth befriended Ikora Rey, who helped her realize she was learning more each time she looped. With this knowledge, Elisabeth formed a plan to prevent the Hive and Vex's Black Garden from corrupting the Guardians, denying the Darkness a primary source for its eventual win. Her observations of the Hive's presence on Luna and its importance as their Black Heart for invading the system resulted in Elisabeth aiding the player's resurrected Guardian this time.
After speaking with the Guardian, Elisabeth agreed with the idea to talk to the Awoken for assistance with finding the Black Garden, recalling conversations from her original timeline in which Elisabeth stressed the importance of picking sides, even if it's the wrong side. When the Guardian successfully destroys the Black Garden, altering the timeline Elisabeth had grown accustomed to, she meets with them at the Tower to remind them this was just one victory, and the Darkness was still coming.
Reuniting Sisters
Throughout the many time loops that Elisabeth endured, she had on several occasions considered killing her sister Ana she fell to the corruption of the Darkness, yet ultimately could never bring herself to do so. After the destruction of the Black Garden, Elisabeth reached out to her sister to explain all that had happened. While Ana was happy to find her sister alive, she couldn't handle the information she was given, and transmitted herself away out of reach - leaving Elisabeth uncertain of her success.
More info about the Darkness' Stasis power was locked away in the Exo head AI, so Elisabeth made plans to extract the information. Ana joined her sister in this mission, and the two discovered the information they needed despite Clovis' mind trying to stop them. With this timeline altered so much already, Elisabeth now was able to ensure that she could successfully guide Ana's use of Stasis without her sister being corrupted.
Exo Stranger in Lightfall
.jpg?q=50&fit=crop&w=1500&dpr=1.5)
Lightfall promises dark and foreboding struggles ahead for the Guardians, humanity, and the Sol System as the Witness makes its way to usher in the Darkness. With the Hive Gods Auryx and Savathun defeated or incapacitated, it also seems likely that the last Hive God, Xivu Arath, will contribute to the dark times ahead. With such grim tidings waiting in the wings and the possibility that the Light will fail or be subdued, Guardians will need all the help they can get.
The presence of the Exo Stranger may be able to help the Guardians repel or defeat the Darkness' forces. With so many events from the original and other failed timelines altered in the present due to Elisabeth's actions, there's no telling how the future will unfold for humanity and other species. Elisabeth's presence in this timeline has become one of the most critical factors, especially as her aid to the Guardians has already severed one linchpin the Darkness could have used to gain a foothold. If Elisabeth continues to aid Guardians in their endeavors where she failed before, there may be a chance for success.
Destiny 2 is available on PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.