Set some 542 years in the future, the Halo Universe has humankind colonizing the stars only to stumble upon a hostile alliance of aliens called the Covenant, who, motivated by the power of the Prophets and the promises of paradise-after-death, are bent on humanity's destruction. It is this universe where the Halo video game series: Halo: Combat Evolved, Halo 2, Halo 3 and the future game Halo Wars take place. In addition to the games a number of Halo books have been released.