- last post: 01.01.0001 12:00 AM PDT
I'm not sure if anyone said this, but here goes.
Perhaps the structure opens up a Slipspace rupture that sucks in the earth when the Halos fire. If there was a crystal like the one from Reach it would cause an expanded Slipspace bubble, such as the one Acendant Justice/Gettysburg was in. According to that, the battle that took place there took a while, maybe an hour or two, but they came out in the Eridanus System, a trip which should have taken weeks. All this comes down to the theory that the Earth goes into a Slipspace bubble for several seconds/minutes. Those seconds or minutes would turn into years in normal space, time enough for the Flood to starve enough to become dormant. This theory might be upset by the destruction of Installation 04 by the Master Chief. Since 04 won't detonate a portion of the Galaxy could remain untouched by the devastation, therefore the Flood may still have some food and remain active.