No one is sure just when former Iron Hands Captain, Galen Diettinger, first thought
of leaving the womb of the Empire of Man. Just as mysterious were his motivations, previous to his desertion, Captain Diettinger had a flawless record comanding the Iron Hands fifth company. In fact, his entire service record, from initiation as a brother marine, to his assumption of command of the fifth after its former captain was slain by sniper fire in the Regulas IV campain are completely spotless. What is known about the situation of his, and his companies', disapearance raise only more questions.
In M40, during the great Second Expansion, it was common practice for High Lords to appoint the now forbidden office of Rogue Trader. For those readers lacking in knowledge of the 40th millenium, the title and office of Rogue Trader conveyed a variety of privleges and rights, such as; raising personal troops, apropiating materiel, enforcing Imperial law, and forcing asistance from planetary governors amongst others. The tile's power was limited however because the Rogue Trader spent most of his time outside the Empire; scouting, exploring, collecting intelligence, making first contact, and bringing worlds into the Empire.
Captain Diettinger, like many others, was able to take advantage of his status (such corrupt, treasonous behavior is the reason the High Lords limited the office in M41) granted to him as official recognition of the previously private Crusade he was leading for the Iron Hands in the Segmentum Tempestus (officially in retrebution against the Kroot warlord code-named "Hannibal"). The crusade was to last 40 years, but Diettinger was able to use the wealth gained from conquests to engage in polotical machinations that extended the official dration another 100 years. During this time Diettinger not only siphoned off the cream of the loot for himself, hiding millions of credits worth of taxes from the Adeptus Revenualis, but he began building a private empire of his own. It is now known that hefound a path through the great lateral storm of Orion, which he presumed (correctly for now) would shield his secret domain from Imperial eyes or hands.
However, all traitors eventually fall under the eye of the Holy Inquisition, and
when they do, they surely fall. Fall he did; although he and his misguided followers
attmepted to fight the Inquisition's Holy justice, his holdings within the Empire proper
were quickly regained by the Adeptus Astartes chapters who responded to the Inquisatorial request for forces (Iron Hands, Howling Griffons, and Crimson Fists). The final blow was reserved for the Iron Hands, who were filled with shame and rage that one of their own should betray the Emperor. Diettinger was known to be organising the defense from his personal fortress-villa on the third moon of Rigel; a planet whose system was almost entirely within the great lateral storm, just barely reachable by only the most advanced space craft.
The battle was long and hard for the Iron Hands; who were faced with seven rings of in depth defenses, begining with a thousand kilometer ring of mines around the moon. However, when the assault groups of the Iron Hands broke though the final wall of bunkers and into the villa itself, they discovered why the defenses were either automated or maned only by Diettenger's worthless conscripts. For they were greated not by Diettinger's last stand, but an empty, abondoned, cavernous space, filled only with treasures and equipment too heavy to be moved on such short notice. The only remnant of the apostate was a gigantic battle spirit machine, powered by the disembodied brains of those who had oposed his rule, which had directed the last ditch defenses to by time in which Diettinger and his followers could escape holy retribution.
