The Story of Destiny Part 5 – The Taken War

And the story continues! Here’s part five of our retrospective of the Destiny story so far, as we cover The Taken War and the fall of Oryx.

The coming of the Taken King

When the Guardians slew the God-Knight Crota with his own sword in his Ascendant Realm, the Hope-Eater’s last act was to send a message across the stars to the true God-King of the Hive, Oryx. Hearing the death-scream of his favoured son, Oryx began amassing his army for an assault on Earth as he burned with a need to enact a bloody vengeance on the Guardians responsible for murdering his heir.

Aware of the threat of Oryx, Eris Morne made her way to the Reef and alerted Queen Mara Sov of the imminent threat. Arriving a year later near Saturn, Oryx’s fleet met stiff resistance from the Awoken armada. Outnumbered and outgunned by Oryx’s capital flagship the Dreadnaught, Mara Sov unleashed Harbinger energy weapons that tore through the lesser Hive fleet ships.

This victory was short-lived however, as Oryx decided to give the Awoken a taste of his Oversoul, a weapon so fearsome that it annihilated the entire Awoken fleet with a single blast. Oryx’s army may have stopped on the border of the inner solar system, but a high price was paid as Mara Sov was presumed dead and Petra Venj took over as Queen Regent of the Awoken.

Assault on Phobos

His ships in need of repairs, Oryx began building his army with an assault on Phobos and the Skyburner Cabal regiment stationed there. Utterly unprepared for the Taken forces, the Cabal suffered heavy losses and were forced to evacuate Phobos. Most of their troops dead, the Skyburners turned to unconventional battle tactics on the orders of their emperor and crashed their remaining flagship into the hull of the Dreadnaught so that a foothold could be established.

Meanwhile, Oryx extended his reach throughout the solar system, sending armies of Taken Vex, Fallen, Cabal and Hive towards the Last City. On Mars, the Dust Giants, Blind Legion and Sand Eaters suffered further heavy casualties while more of their troops were taken by the ontological paracausal power of Oryx.

While the Cabal fought a losing battle against the Hive and the Taken, they did manage to send out a distress call. A call that was received by their emperor, who readies the full might of the Cabal armada for a war that will soon engulf our solar system…

The Guardians fight back

Engaging the Taken throughout the solar system, the Guardians eventually managed to board the Dreadnaught. Thanks to Cayde’s stash and Eris Morne’s ship, a beachhead was established and the Guardians pushed through the Dreadnaught until they eventually encountered Oryx himself. Fighting tooth and nail, Oryx’s phsyical form was narrowley defeated in a massive battle that raged throughout the flagship.

Oryx was far from finished however, as he merely retreated to his Ascendant Realm and challenged the Guardians to meet him and his Sword Logic there for a final confrontation. Across the solar system, shads of Oryx’s intent still gave life to his Taken troops. The time for the Taken King to fall once and for all, was at hand.

King’s Fall

With insight gained from the spirit of Toland the Shattered, the Guardians eliminated the remainders of Oryx’s court – The Warpriest, Golgoroth, and Oryx’s daughters Ir Anûk and Ir Halak. Weakened without his source of tributes to nourish him and the worm inside, Oryx’s soul finally fell before a combined effort of six Guardians when they encountered him in his Throne World, his corpse left to float among the stars and Saturn.

The Taken King had finally fallen and the Hive were dealt a blow that they may never recover fully from ever again.

The battle for the Osmium Throne

With Oryx dead, a power vacuum among the Hive was formed. Sensing the danger of allowing a new Taken King to emerge, the Vanguard sanctioned new strikes. Hive Knight Alak-Hul the Darkblade was slain within the Sunless Cell that Oryx had imprisoned him within, while Malok the Pride of Oryx was also swiftly dealt with before he could become a danger as he met his end in the Hellmouth on the Moon.

Despite a lingering Taken presence on Mars, Venus and Earth, the day was saved once again. Meanwhile the Fallen House of Devils discovered something new in the cosmodrome, an ancient threat of Ironsbane that was responsible for a great calamity many years ago…

Missed the first parts of our retrospective? We’ve got you covered.

The story of Destiny Part 1 – The light in the darkness
The story of Destiny Part 2 – War never changes
The story of Destiny Part 3 – Rise of the Guardians
The Story of Destiny Part 4 – The New Guardian Age

Last Updated: September 20, 2016