 The stories themselves were designed as glimpses into the Halo universe , including information on the inner workings of the alien Covenant , as well as details regarding elements of the back @-@ story that were hitherto undisclosed . Jarrard explained that " The stories that happen off camera , the parallel events to the arcs that our fans know from the existing mediums , are the stories we really wanted to tell . " Jarrard further described this as an attempt to move away from the story of the Master Chief , the central character of the franchise , and focus instead on what they believed to be the core themes that lay behind the game universe , such as maintaining hope in the face of overwhelming odds and humanity 's struggle for survival ; themes that extended beyond " ... a genetically enhanced super soldier picking up two guns and kicking some alien butt . " The four stories that ended up in the final publication were " the most interesting to [ Bungie ] , and the writers of [ the novel ] " . Although Bungie created the story arcs present in the Halo Graphic Novel , the studio described the importance of providing a framework for each story that the various artists and writers could tell without jeopardizing their own voice . Artist Simon Bisley said that " the stress was to make the characters look very much as they do in the game . Beyond that point I was given free rein to interpret the script and the action " based on what was given to the artists and writers . 
