The son of Axan, war-chief of the Broken Mesa Clan on Baal Secundus, Rafen had ventured to the Blood Angel's place of trials at Angel's Fall alongside his younger brother Arkio. Considered a firebrand amongst the tribe, it was suggested that many of the elders allowed him to make this journey not in the hopes that he would prove worthy of becoming a Space Marine, but so that the tribe might be spared his reckless nature. Before the two had left their father's side, Axan made Rafen promise that he would always look out for his younger brother, a vow he held to even decades later. Bold and outspoken, Rafen was physically adept and completed the challenges assigned to him by the recruiting officer, Brother-Sergeant Koris of the 5th Company, though his arrogant belief that he could face all tr