Summary: It's been a year since the end of the war between Covenant and Humans. The flood have dissapeared and the Elites are free to travel back home. But relations between Humans and Elites are kept open by the Arbiter though prejudice on both sides are high. Elites think the humans are travelling too far into their territory for new worlds, humans want nothing to do with the monstrous aliens. But when a human ship and Elite ship dissapear in the same location the two species are forced to team up to discover the mystery of the planet the two ships had been orbiting. What new enemy has arrived? Who is the mysterious Kassie? And are the Flood really gone?

Read to find out.

Author's Note: This is based off of Halo. Simply based. No AU or following the plotline of the games point for point. That's too boring. Plus, though I have read four of the five Halo books and played all three games, I am bound to get something wrong. So, to cover my arse, I'm telling you this is based off of Halo. This is probably going to end up having a fantasy edge to it because I'm not really a SciFi writer. And some major Halo details may be changed on a whim. Deal with it. If you want a fanatical Haloverse detailed fanfic go somewhere else.

Disclaimer: I do not own Halo or the Covenant or the listed characters that show up right off the back. Nor do I possibly own the Arbiter though that would be kind of cool since he is my favorite character. However the mysterious diembodied voices, the commander, Private Bradwr, and the other nameless privates do belong to me. So does the title and plot.

Destruction of Balance

Spartan-117: MIA

AI Construct Cortana: MIA

Sergeant Major Avery J. Johnson: KIA

Commander Miranda Keyes: KIA

Prophet of Truth: KIA

343 Guilty Sparks: KIA

The Gravemind: MIA

"A steep price…"

"Yes. But the war is only just beginning…"

Prologue: The Missing

"Commander… I'm picking up a distress beacon."

The private stared at the screen wide eyed before reaching up with shaking fingers to take off his head set. He swung his seat around the stare at the broad shouldered man that had paused behind the private's terminal.

"Sir, this beacon is a year old! There is no way anybody could have survived out here this long," said the private, feeling like a yammering idiot. He cleared his throat. "Besides, Commander, humans haven't even come out this far before now."

The commander clutched his hands behind his back, his brow furrowed and sloping over his eyes more than usual. After a minute he turned away from the private and walked back over to his own seat.

"Can anybody prove or disprove what Private Bradwr just told us?" asked the commander, turning his attention to everybody on the bridge.

"I'm… I'm reading a human life sign, sir," said one woman. "On the planet where the beacon is originating from."

"Impossible…" muttered Bradwr, rubbing a hand against his forehead. All he wanted to do was to go home. But for his mother's sake he went on stupid little missions like these, did some readings, and then turned back around to Earth to pay her bills. Right about now he sort of wished that the crabby old lady would just die already. Or that she had been killed by the Covenant back when the war was going on. That would have made his life so much more easy.

"Elite ship pulling out of slip space, Commander," announced another man. "They want to know why we stopped."

"Put them through," sighed the commander, leaning back in his seat.

The man turned back to his terminal hitting a few key buttons. Just as he was turning back around something rocked the ship and red lights blinked and flashed at several different terminals.

"What hit us?" cried the commander, jumping to his feet, face starting to go red. Before he could say another word the ship was hit again and the commander was thrown up into the air, landing heavily on his neck. Bradwr cringed, looking away while clutching at his terminal.

I don't want to die; I don't want to die… he thought desperately, squeezing his eyes shut.

"The engines were knocked out!" somebody cried.

"Can anybody tell what's hitting us?" somebody else said, trying to keep some calm.

"Something is shooting, obviously," said a dry voice.

"The Covenant?"

"We've been peaceful with the Elites for a year now!"

"Maybe we found something they don't want us to find."

"Maybe!" shouted Bradwr, spinning back around. "We should try and get out of here!"

Everyone turned and stared at him for a moment. It seemed so stupid that after only just a year everybody had forgotten what it was like to be at war. Something was shooting. You either shot back or got the fuck away. Not stand around and act stupid. Like these morons were.

"We can't," said a quiet voice. "Our engines are out… Better start launching lifeboats. This baby's going to crash."

A woman sighed, slowly and carefully getting to her feet. "Is there anyway to safely crash the ship?"

"I don't know if anybody would survive, ma'am…"

"Fine," said the woman, her face stony grey and grim. "Start abandoning the ship. Somebody set up our own distress beacon. Grab as many supplies as you can on your way out. Who knows how long we'll be out here…"

Bradwr groaned, turning back to his terminal and setting up the distress beacon and sending out the orders, not trusting any of the others to do so. When everything was set he unstrapped himself from his seat, banging his head against the wall.

He did not sign up for this.