History of Long Drift

The Long Drift is the centuries-long period in which the Eliksni wandered space after fleeing Riis, following the Whirlwind, in pursuit of the Traveler.

Overview

Kells led their Houses' fleets in ships called Ketches, with Prime Servitors calculating routes and Pilot Servitors steering. Desperation bred reliance on machines, a rigid hierarchy ruled by Ether and starved Dregs, and Ketchkillers, pirates who boarded rival ships. The drift ended on reaching the Sol System and finding the Traveler protecting humanity.

Sources note

Destinypedia ties the Whirlwind to the Black Fleet; it dates the Long Drift from the fall of Riis to arrival in Sol.