It was early in the 33rd Millenium when Rogue Trader Zehn Kahrton brought forth his proposition to the High Lords of Terra. It had been several decades since the Rogue had left Terra and in this time he had acquired many unfound treasures. He also returned with news so great it sent chills up the spines of the entire council. Even the Lord of the Inquisition, who usually seemed in a whole unimpressed, was rather happy with the knowledge that was laid out in front of him. Zehn spoke of a lost solar system that had once been colonized by humans not long before the Age of Strife. All human life had been lost but their readings had told of something great, really great. He spoke of how a landing team went to the surface of Tanis Prime to investigate the system's old center of activity. The Rogue then proceeded to produce the energy readings, and visual recordings taken from the squad leaders helmet. They showed an intact computer with remnants of STC technology this astounded the High Lords, and they pressed to learn more. Unfortunately, the landing crew's transmission ended with this, and then proceeded to be nothing more than static with a few muffled screams piercing the chaos.
The High Lords pressed on trying to get Zehn to reveal the location of this treasure, but knowing the loss of credit that would accompany revealing his secret, Zehn decided it was time to bargain. Knowing this find would not only bring fame, but also power and wealth unimaginable he proceeded to bargain with the High Council for the use of his skills. His resistance to conform to the rules of council did not sit well with the Lords, but when Zehn stated that his Navigator was prepared to terminate his life if his commanders was lost, the Lord's were then quick to listen. Zehn proceeded to lay out his long list of demands for the recovery of this lost technology, and finally before stating his last demand went into a long speech of the obvious dangers on Tanis Prime. After this drawn out and drastic bout was finished, he blurted out his final request, need for a full contingent of seven hundred marines. This was an outrage in the eye's of the council, never before had a Rogue made such a demand, and escaped with his life. The High Lords were not about to have a rebellion of any size on their hands after the shock of the Heresy, and as a result they went into a stirring debate that lasted for several months. This was finally resolved after the failed assassination of Zhen had snapped the Lords into the reality of their possible loss.
Once they had came to a decision they ordered the Rogue Trader to meet their demands, or suffer the loss of his life, and death of his fleet. The council agreed to meet all the requests he had made but with certain exceptions to the Imperial Doctrine. They went as follows: first the Rogue would no longer be a free roaming agent, he would be subject to the authority of the Lord Commander of the Chapter present, and would have to conform to any orders made upon him. Second the contingent would be no more than five hundred marines, and all would be responsible for responding to any Imperial threat. Third the Rogue would be required to use his Astropath to contact the Imperium with his status when ever possible. With these orders set Zehn was left with no option left other than except the offers the High Lords had lay in front of him. Once an agreement was made and the official pact signed, the High Lords went about finding the agent his Chapter. This then resulted in the announcement of the 3rd founding, of which the Rainbow Warriors were the first to be born.
Derived from left over stock of the White Scars Chapter, the Rainbow Warrior's gene seed numbers barely reached that of five hundred. However using this stock enabled the Chapter to be born an a reasonably short amount of time, and completely eliminated the need for gene seed testing. The hurried growth of the Chapter was a necessity, for the High Lords wished to lay their hands on the STC system as quickly as possible. This process was speed up even more by recruiting from several worlds all of which lay within a hundred light years of Earth. While the tech priests of Mars set about the task of producing all the necessary equipment, the remaining High Lords went about finding a suitable commander to lead the mission. Knowing their new Chapter was derived from White Scars material, this would be the first place the council would look. Tales quickly flooded the chambers on Terra of a mighty Captain who had led his marines in countless victories, against several foes. His tactical genius, and merciless attitude appealed to the council, and Captain Thane Dauose was given orders to report to Earth itself. Upon arrival he was treated like a king, and led to the chambers of the High Lords themselves. Never had he dreamed of having the honor that he did this day, and immediately Dauose fell upon one knee to ask the bidding of his high command. After seven days, and seven nights of intense briefings, and lectures the Captain left the chamber as the proud Commander of the Rainbow Warriors. To have been given this chance was a great honor for Thane, and before leaving Earth the marine vowed to withhold all Imperial policies, and to fight for the protection of mankind everywhere.
On the date of 0024534 M 33, the fleet of Zehn Kahrton set out to bring back the vital technology it had vowed to produce. Accompanied by the contingent of the newly born Chapter, the fleet was a force to be reckoned with. However, the Rainbow Warriors were still young and new to the ways of battle, so Commander Dauose took it upon himself to convert several levels of their newly acquired ship into a training area for his marines. They then proceeded to go about learning the many arts of warfare, while tucked snuggly within their ship. Years passed by and the Chapter had yet to see any combat, but the skills of Dauose's warriors never once ceased to amaze him.
Nearing their destination, the anticipation of Zehn grew more and more with each passing minute. With every second he could better feel the riches within his grasp, however this would all soon change. Within two thousand light years from their current destination, the Rogue Trader received the message he had been dreading the entire trip. A distress call had been pin pointed by his Astropath, who was in the process of determining the exact location at the time of Zehn's discovery. Jumping from his chair, the angry explorer rushed to his servants chambers in the hope of stopping her before she could transmit the call to the neighboring ships. Arriving to late, the Rogue knew that his dreams had since been crushed and turned quietly away to await the arrival of the Lord Commander. Within twenty four hours, Dauose had arrived to inform Zehn of their current change of plans. The Rogue could do little more than comply with the orders that Dauose lay in front of him, for he knew that to refuse would not only terminate his dreams but also his life.
Thirsting for battle, Commander Dauose ordered the fleet to change course in order to intercept the newly formed ork threat within the Jelling system. Days away from their arrival, the fleet readied itself for war, and the marines proceeded to their chapels in preparation for battle. Upon arrival the fleet found the system in ruins, two planets were all that lay between Kiltoof's force and victory. The arrival of Zehn's fleet was a surprise to the warboss, but with his eye's clouded by victory the ork leader failed to see the threat at hand. He did however realize his mistake as the reports of drop ships came in from numerous areas along his front.
Eager to prove themselves the young marines fought with the might of twice their number, and with the help of Zehn and his personal force, they quickly re-took two of the four planets held by Kiltoof and his troops. Like angry dogs finally released from their kennel, the marines tore through the orks with a ferocity far out matching by that of their foes. Rallied by this sudden change of events, the marines were quickly backed up by the planetary defense forces that remained on the newly liberated planets. The combined might of these three allies eventually drove the Ork force back to the last of their outposts. It was with this attack that their force was dealt it's most terrible blow.
Proud and eager to return to his mission, Zehn over looked the need for intelligence and proceeded to attack the ork head quarters with out first having a set plan. Infuriated Dauose and his marines were quick to follow, stopping they watched in horror as the majority of Zehn's force was cut down by fire from the encampment, and ambushes set up by Blood Axe Kommandos. All witnessed the sight of their second in command being cut down by the might of the warboss and his nobs.
The death of Zehn and his force dealt a mighty blow to the Rainbow Warriors, but after several weeks of lightning strikes and night raids, the Chapter finally weakened the enemy enough for a full scale assault to be possible. Led by Dauose himself, the battle that resulted was fierce and desperate, and many marines fell before the head of Kiltoof was raised above the outpost. With his force all but destroyed, and his mission deemed a failure, Dauose turned his head to the ground in dishonor for his purpose had been all but destroyed. Gathering all the gene stock possible, the remaining battle brothers then began the process of returning to Terra. Nervous, the Lord Commander lay up at night thinking of the speech he would soon be giving to the angered council.
The council itself however, had other plans. News of the victories at Jelling spread fast across the galaxy, and the High Lords were more than pleased with the performance of their new Chapter. They called for the Chapter to leave warp space immediately and report to the nearest Imperial planet. Here, they were met with cries and cheers of excitement as the new heroes were lead to Governors' office. It was in this office that Dauose was given a message praising the action of him and his men, also it spoke of the Chapter's need to report to the Riase system as soon as possible. Here they would be assigned their newest task which would remain unknown pending their arrival. Puzzled the Commander thanked the Governor and turned to lead his marines back to their ship, and latter on to their new destination. All he could muster up to think about was how the High Lords thought it possible for his small contingent of marines to be capable of responding to any threat.
The Raise system is located in the upper northern part of the galaxy, and is subject to what is known as an astral phenomenon. Basically it is on the edge of known space and is in a direct area were the galaxy itself ends. It along with three other solar systems forms into what is known as a galactic peninsula, this is in a sense much like a peninsula found on a planets surface. These occurrences are rare but consist of a group of stars surrounded on all but one side by dead space, making them impossible to reach from all but one direction. At the time of colonization, the threat of this occurrence was not yet known buy the Imperium, and this particular peninsula was subject to major colonization.
The Raise system itself is located at the very tip of this occurrence and is also responsible for the name of the peninsula itself. It contains a total of seven planets, three of which are major suppliers of Imperial goods. Along with Riase Prime, II, III, and IV, there is also the forge world of Kell, and the hive world Torniuose. Among these Riase Prime is the most primitive, but also the closest to the sun, and the last planet contained within the system. It was hear that the Rainbow Warriors were given a place to call their home, and to use as they saw fit.
Upon arrival Dauose and his remaining marines were greeted by a most unexpected sight, instead of several enemy ships orbiting the planet, their was a large Imperial fleet. The Rainbow Warriors, and remnants of Zehn's fleet entered orbit, immediately Commander Dauose and Zehn's navigator were told to appear on the Soul's Torment for a full report. Once there, the Commander was surprised to see a large group of Imperial officials, and several lords sat awaiting the arrival of the two men. Immediately the two were separated and what happened then to the navigator is all but unknown, however Dauose himself was greeted with much praise. The officials spoke of the honor he and his Chapter had earned themselves, and of how they were being granted an Imperial home world as a result of their doings. Before the Commander was given a chance to respond the council answered the question they knew he would ask. Along with this the tithes had been granted to form a defense, and during the finalization of the 3rd founding the High Lords had taken up the task of creating enough gene seeds to bring the Chapter up to the proper Codex numbers. 'One thousand marines', was all that could race the Commander's head, and before he knew it he was being briefed on his new home world, and the duties that would follow.
Riase Prime is a feral planet, practically untouched by any form of advanced human technology. It orbits the sun in approximately one half the time taken by Earth itself, and is also a subject to four seasons. Much of it's geologic make up resembles that of early Earth, however it does differ in the fact that there is only one main continent. This continent stretches out over one third of planet's mass, the other two thirds are made up of ocean, along with several small islands all of which remain uninhabited. The main continent itself however is covered in miles upon miles of rolling dessert plains. These plains stretch out across almost the entire continent, and are inhabited by several migrating species of animals. The foliage in this area clings closely to the ground which is a direct result of the high speed winds. However there is an area close to the center of the continent were the elevation begins to climb dramatically. Resulting in a deeply forested area of growth, along with several different series of granite mountain ranges. The area of dessert leading up to this forest however changes gradually to were it eventual ends up being a dense evergreen like forest.
With it's dessert's burning hot death upon it's inhabitants, and it's trees reaching hundreds of feet into the sky, the planet of Riase is force to be reckoned with. Along with the harsh environmental conditions such as fierce storms, harsh cold winters, and sever lack of rain for several months. The planet is also home to many forms of predators along with enormous land dwelling animals. As a result, the humans who have inhabited this planet have adopted a completely aggressive form of tribal life. Those in the desserts form nomadic culture, following the herds and using their resources as means of survival. While those of the forests build large organic cities within the barks of trees, and fight a constant battle against the planet itself, and it's other inhabitants. War among these tribes is all but common, and in fact it can be expected that at one time there can be up to ten tribal feuds going on. All male, and many female members of these societies are not only formidable hunters, but also skillful warriors. As a result the Rainbow Warriors have acquired a perfect culture able to withstand the tests necessary to become a Space Marine. Along with this they have proven themselves time and again to be fierce opponents in all forms of combat, and are subject to high aspects of brotherhood among their fellow warriors.
The Chapter Fortress is located atop the tallest of all mountains on the main continent, and is said to stretch several miles into the sky. The tribal people refer to it as: 'The mountain that shines in the night'. Along with this the Chapter has six defensive set ups in various place across the planet, and their space port is set up on third moon, 'The Eye of Jade'. This is the planet were Dauose and his force of marines began to carve their notch within the Imperium. With this also came the jurisdiction of the three neighboring solar systems, along with the Riase System itself. Defending these planet's along side their Imperial defense forces was a full time job, and it was said that the Chapter had yet to have it's full force present at any one time on Riase itself.
The threat of a galactic peninsula was about to show itself in all of it's might, and would end up in the withdrawal of several colonies along such fronts. On the date of 6783555 M36 a warp storm proceeded to block the entrance to the last three systems within the Riase peninsula, and resulted in the immediate seclusion of these systems for several thousands of years. Alone in space and with out the guiding light of the Emperor the planets began their most bitter fight for survival.
It seemed that with this storm came several new threats and problems for the Rainbow Warriors to deal with. First the Chapter found that an Eldar warp gate lead straight into the heart of the second solar system, which ended with several raids from Eldar pirates, and at one time the Saim Hann Craftworld as well. Over the years of their seclusion the Chapter had remained faithful to the words, and teachings of the Emperor, however many of their people had began to slowly loose this faith. Slowly, they ended up turning to the ways of Chaos, and as a result the most major tragic event in the history of the Chapter was about to take place. This would eventually result in a complete restructure of all the systems' governments.
Starting slowly the taint of Chaos had been all but unknown to the Chapter for several hundreds of years, but ended up spreading over almost the entire area under their control. It had managed to creep into the lifestyles of the Imperial Governments on different planets, and as a result left several thousands of the Imperial Guard to do Chaos' bidding. The rebellion then waited until the precise time to spring their attack, and it is known that they even managed to acquire the help of several Traitor Legends in their conquest. Very little is known of the wars that took place, or of how the Traitor Legends managed to avoid the warp storm. It is known however, that after several years the Rainbow Warriors managed to fight back the threat and eliminate all possibility of chaos contamination. The Chapter itself had once again been all but destroyed, and with it's lack of numbers came an eminent problem. Unknown to the rest of the Chapter however, the lost force on Garvan VI was about to reveal the solution.
Meanwhile the remaining members of the Chapter went about the task of rebuilding three entire solar systems from what was no better than watered down ashes. They proceeded to execute every member of the high council on all but three planets, and captured every guardsmen left alive after the war. Whether the individual remained untainted by Chaos or not was no matter, all that mattered was destroying the threat. Once the guard were rounded up, the Chapter then proceeded to give the entire force the Emperor's grace, and relocated them to a winter moon somewhere within the second system. They then decided it necessary to virus bomb the planet in order to eliminate any possibility of a rebirth of the rebellion. The Rainbow Warriors then began to slowly rebuild the governments on every effected world. This was a task in and of itself, and along with stemming the constant Eldar raids, the Chapter was on the verge of extinction.
Exhausted from the constant threat of invasion by Eldar, and lacking the numbers to control the population of the systems, the Rainbow Warriors had all but met defeat. Giving up hope they began to resort to traveling their jurisdiction in small packs, and this often time's resulted in the loss of several marines at once. However, they had been extremely effective in the area of relocating gene seed's, and had lost a very small number in the eye's of their circumstances. In fact the Chapters gene stock was only down to about 721 at the time when Wels Drath and his force decided to return home.
Upon his arrival Drath told of their story, of being ambushed be a band of cultists and of being outnumbered ten to one. Of being pushed deeper and deeper into the jungle itself and of how it was their ancient trapping skills that had gotten them out of being completely outnumbered. It was after this battle, when the Apothecary was collecting the seeds of the fallen that he noticed the eye's of an intruder. He spoke of how the intruder then proceeded an attempt at befriending the remaining force, and latter led them back to his lair. The intruder Drath spoke of was non other than one of the ancient Slann, the ancient one's responsible for engineering most of the life across the galaxy. This creature then took Apothecary Drath aside and began to teach him the ways of an ancient art. Taking the gene seed of a fallen marine he then began to show his student how to go about making another from the first. After years of study. the Slann stated that in return for this knowledge he would must be left in peace, and made Drath swear upon the Emperor that he would never reveal the location of the ancient one. After receiving this honor, the marine and his remaining brothers then began to conduct the necessary repairs to return to Riase.
Once there, Drath began to take the Chapters gene seeds and began the slow process of duplication. Through his experiments the apothecary gained much knowledge in the ways of the sacred gene seed, he learned that the material within this stock was not easily tampered with, and as a result the Chapter lost a small amount of their gene seeds. He did however find that it was possible for the gene seed of the Rainbow Warrior to be duplicated once from it's original. Any attempt to make a copy from a copy, or take enough material to make two copies resulted in the loss of the stock. These experiments often ended up leaving Thrall as nothing more than raving lunatics, who would latter have to be dealt with accordingly. Over the process of several hundreds of years, Drath was able to bring the Chapter number back up to strength, and then some. At the time of their peak, the Chapter numbered 1270 marines all of which were proven free from mutation, and resilient single minded warriors.
During the time of experimentation the Chaplains and Commander remained somewhat hesitant to go about with this drastic task. Some in fact believed it to be another Chaos plot, but all knew that it would be necessary for the survival their Chapter. They then decided to step up the amount of time spent in prayer and also the Chaplains spent several hours a day looking for any sign of heresy among their battle brothers. Once the Chapter was back up to the number, Drath was told to return to his normal duties and latter assumed the position as the Chief of the Apothecarian.
With this miracle, the Rainbow Warriors were now able to restore order and law to the planet's held under their watchful eye. This would take several years, but the Chapter eventually stabilized the governments of all three systems. In fact it is said the systems new governments worked far better than the ones present before the fall. Now each Imperial Governor would be subject to random inspections by the Rainbow Warriors Chaplains, and any sign of Heresy would result in the immediate execution of all officials, along with a complete reworking of the planet's ruling house. Also the Lord Commander decided that in the best interests of the Imperium, the Imperial Army would be completely dissolved to further limit the chances of future rebellions. This action not only destroyed the ability for cultist to acquire an army, but also limited the necessity for several economic factions within the systems. Allowing the newly formed governments of all the effected planets to concentrate their power on rebuilding the agricultural stability of their peoples. These actions also resulted in the Chapter relocating the majority of their weapons production to the newly abandoned forge world of Kell. All production of new equipment were then handed over to the Forge, however the Chapter was still responsible for the maintenance of all acquired equipment. This resulted in one of the largest relocation projects in the history of the Imperium, and after several years the Chapter began to profit severally from this decision.
There new authority made it necessary for the Chapter to be completely mobile, and the move to Kell was directly responsible for making this happen. Several of the senior Tech Marines relocated themselves to the planet and started a small version of the Cult of Mechanicus. During this was going on, the present Commander of the Rainbow Warriors began to establish his tactics for maintaining order within the systems. He did this buy adapting each of his Companies so that all were able to fight freely with out any need for back up, all were mobile and equipped with all the space craft necessary for this venture. The need for reinforcements would come only in the most dire of situations. The Companies then proceeded to patrol the peninsula, two to each system was the routine, and all forces were prepared to respond to all threats within the blink of an eye.
The Chapter remained in this state of seclusion well into the beginning of the 41st millenium. It was during this that the prayers of the Rainbow Warriors were about to be answered. For the time to for them to reunite with the Imperium was extremely close, and it would not be long before the rest of mankind would hear the tales of the lost Chapter and their brave antics.
On following date, 1096743 M41 reports from the navigator of an Imperial ship on call along the Galactic North began to filter in to the High Lords of Terra. It told of how the warp storms directly responsible for the seclusion of the Riase Peninsula had lately calmed to a point were warp travel would be dangerous, but possible. Expecting the absolute worse, the High Lords began to compose a crusade force to re-conquer the lost colonies. It had been several thousand of years since the Emperor's light had been shown on these planets, and the High Council didn't know what to expect. Requesting the use of both the Salamanders, and Fleshtearer Chapters of Space Marines, the exploration fleet was ready to embark on their new mission. The two Chapters began to move into the area of the first system along the secluded peninsula, they then proceeded to land on the forest world of Vineash. Quickly they were engaged by a small but ferocious force of space marines. Under the command of their new leader Dilliad, the warriors fought well and eventual began to push their attackers further back. It wasn't until Sergeant Thor of the Salamanders noticed the Imperial Eagle displayed on the armor of one of their enemies, that the battles slowed. The loyalist marines laid down their weapons and proceeded to offer out their hands to the newly united Chapter. With the cease fire came massive celebrations and the three Chapters feasted for weeks, the Rainbow Warriors proved to be good hosts, while all three Chapters warriors drank, ate, and challenged one another to friendly duels.
The Imperial forces were more than surprised at the fact that this Chapter alone had held of the forces of Chaos, along with several other threats. Also the working order of the all the planet's Government astonished them even more. The fleet brought several new factions of the Imperial Government to the Peninsula, first was the Inquisition who began a thorough examination of all the planetary leaders, along with every member of the Rainbow Warrior Chapter. Once every Inquisitorial report was finished, and all the factions of the lost government checked out, and proved free from heresy. The lost systems were officially reunited as members within the Imperium of Man. With this the Ministorum came and set up several chapels across the planets, and once again began the task of bringing the Emperors light to the people of the lost colonies. With all this the Rainbow Warriors openly requested to remain located on the planet of Riase Prime, for they were not about to let the home they had fought so proudly for slip from their grasp. However the Chapter, and the people of the Riase system remained confused on how the Imperium planned to keep the tragedy of seclusion from happening again. The answer to this question brought hope to the people of the peninsula, for after their seclusion the Imperium had since found the answer. It came in the form of an Imperial ship known as an L class station, who's crew composed of several members of the Astronomica, and whoever necessary for their survival. These ships were made with idea of creating beacons across dead space, for the soul purpose of Imperial Ships being able to safely cross these endless voids. This new ship class had made space travel to similar colonies successful several times before, and had proved itself time and time again.
The Rainbow Warriors themselves were accepted back onto the lists of Adeptas Astartes, and have since fought proudly among the Emperors Finest. They were given the jurisdiction of their past four solar systems as before, but along with this their high numbers had resulted in the assignment of four of their Companies on patrol along the Galactic North, and Eastern Fringe. They were also allowed to keep their forges on Kell, and were not subject to the normal down sizing a Chapter of their size would normally experience. In addition to this the Chapter was given the honor of 20 new suits of Terminator armor, all of which contained new and treasured Imperial technology. . Happy to accept their gifts and orders, the Chapter went on to prove themselves time and again in the eyes of the Imperium, and their fame and valor was told in legends across the Galaxy.
At the moment the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 6th, Companies are all on assignment in various places across the Galactic North. Both the 4th, and 6th remain on call and are presently in preparation to respond to a small threat along the Eastern Fringe. Both the 1st and 2nd are currently engaged in threats made by the combined might of the Traitor Word Bearer Chapter, and Black Legion. They have been allied with factions of the Imperial Guard, and along with this the might of the Raptor Chapter of Space Marines. The 3rd Company however is currently engaged in a petty feud among themselves, and the Space Wolves 4th Great Company. This is a direct result of the large ego's of both of the Chapters proud marines, and since this time both Chapters have vowed to fight the other on sight whenever possible. Also it is said that to this day all Rainbow Warriors hold a high dislike towards the members of the Imperial Guard, and have been known to question their tactics, and purpose whenever possible.
During the time of their seclusion the Chapter has deviated from the teachings of Codex in several small ways that are mainly described later within the organization. The following however are all personal liberties that the tribal background of the Chapter has since allowed. The use of kill markings on their weapons has been allowed among the warriors of the Chapter, with this they are also allowed to display the glyph of their native tribe in a single place upon their armor. Also several elder marines, and veterans will often display a style of hair not often seen among the Adeptas Astartes. Because of the honor involved among the people of Riase, Rainbow Warriors are allowed to grow their hair to extreme lengths, worn in various fashions. Also as part of their religious background, all Rainbow Warriors participate in the application of a several forms of war paint before battle. This has earned them somewhat of an infamous reputation among their fellow Chapters, and has further added to the myths that cloud their history.