This season, we discover that the giant worm-like creature in the methane sea of Titan — that left players scratching their heads for years — is Ahsa, the long girl in the soup. Ahsa is an ancient creature who telepathically communicates secrets to Sloane while battling Xivu Arath's influence, and explains the history of the Witness. Ending the seasonal questline, Ahsa advises the Guardian that Savathun must rise because she knows the path forward.
We asked about Destiny 2 Season of the Deep diving into Drifter’s backstory and Veil Containment lore during a group interview with Bungie’s narrative developers, but we were also curious about Ahsa and Savathun. The presence of Ahsa and Savathun on Titan during the Red War didn’t go unnoticed, and there might be some connection there. Also, besides hanging out on Saturn's moon, they both have a deep understanding of their common enemy, the Witness.
When asked how Ahsa knows so much about the Witness, Nikko Stevens, senior narrative designer for Destiny 2, said:
"One of the reasons that Ahsa knows so much about the Witness is because Ahsa is what we've been affectionately calling a ‘proto-worm’. If you're familiar with the Hive worms — much like the Hive used to be the Krill — the Hive worms used to be something else before they were offered the Darkness by the Witness, and the Sword Logic by the Witness."
This comment ties the Books of Sorrow lore from Destiny: The Taken King to Ahsa's story in the Season of the Deep Síocháin's Scuba Shell. Stevens added, “Ahsa is one of these proto-worms that kind of turned away from that offer. We've set up in some of the lore in the season that Ahsa was not the only proto-worm that did this, there were several of her species that kind of turned away.” Stevens explained that the proto-worm civil war killed the worms, leading Ahsa to flee Fundament. Interestingly, Fundament was where the Krill sought refuge, and Savathun fled to the Worm Gods with her siblings before the Traveler could reach her — eventually recognizing this betrayal of the Witness. Although the timeline isn't completely clear, Ahsa and Savathun escaped their similar, dire circumstances and came to on Titan.
"So [Ahsa] knows a lot about the Witness because she's directly connected to the Witness and the Witness’s promises that were made from the get-go.” Later adding, “Ahsa would have been one of the first creatures to encounter the Witness and their plans before everything really starts going.” While this solidifies what the lore says about Ahsa's past, it still doesn't explain how she knows so much about the pre-Witness civilization shown in the seasonal story cutscene.
Senior narrative designer Robert Brookes provided another perspective about the subtextual character motivations of the Witness “subjugating or destroying any Darkness utilizing species,” something we’ve seen in the Inspiral lore book. “Either they become part of its zealous crew and get a specific doctrine fed to them about who it is, where it came from, what it wants, or they're wiped out — like the Ecumene and some of the other lore-only Darkness using species,” Brookes explained.
“Ahsa is a survivor of a species that utilizes Darkness and has that insight because of both the connection to the Darkness and having been around billions of years ago. So, part of it is also the Witness trying to control its image and control what people know about it because knowledge is a lot of power,” he said. Relating to the Síocháin's Scuba Shell, Brookes noted, “Ahsa was in Sol when the Collapse happened, so she got to see the first shot that the Witness took at making all this go down. Not only does she have the information from dealing with the Witness beforehand, but she also got to see what the plan was in real-time before the Traveler kind of pushed everyone back."
The knowledge Ahsa holds may be a threat to the Witness, but it could mean that she has some information that lets her trust someone as deceptive as Savathun. After reading about this Witch Queen in the Books of Sorrow, players finally felt her mysterious presence on Titan in Destiny 2. The Titan missions hinted at ulterior motives like the crystal in the Siren Song Adventure, Void crystals formed with Light in the Savathun’s Song strike, and the giant Shrieker looking for something as Ahsa swims by the Arcology window.
With Ahsa nodding that Savathun will return, we wanted to know if players would learn what Savathun was after on Titan during the Red War.
Besides experimenting with the Light in the Titan strike under our Guardian's nose, Savathun may have cooked up other plans. “Ahsa understands that Savathun has to come back in order for us to get where we need to go,” Brookes said. Also, “Savathun was on Titan for a really long time. It's not explicitly stated, but they may have had an interaction. That's something that maybe 'keep watching' kind of a thing.” He explained that Ahsa’s character can’t communicate her thoughts in detail, which leaves her time on Titan — and possibly time spent with Savathun — up to interpretation. "But if you look back, there [are] a lot of breadcrumbs telling us what Savathun was looking for, and part of it might have also been a certain body," he said, likely hinting at the Ghosts of the Deep dungeon where players find the Lucent Hive trying to revive Oryx through a necromancer.
There may be more to uncover when Season of the Deep ends, and next season begins on August 22 at reset.
