Confederation — Michael R. Hicks

In the second book of the In Her Name: Redemption trilogy, Reza Gard has been banished from the Kreelan Empire and is once again a stranger in a strange land as he returns to the human Confederation. Befriended by a marooned Confederation naval officer leading a desperate fight against the Kreelans on a distant colony world, she reunites Reza with Nicole Carré. With their help, he fulfills his childhood dream of becoming a Confederation Marine.

Reza will need all the help he can get, for dark forces are at work at the heart of the Confederation, and Reza becomes a pawn in a lethal power struggle that leads him back to the planet Erlang. There, a heartbreaking reunion awaits him, along with the discovery of an ages-old power that the Kreelan Empire will stop at nothing to control.

If you're new to the In Her Name series, here is the author's recommended reading order:

1. The Last War Trilogy

• First Contact
• Legend Of The Sword
• Dead Soul

2. The Redemption Trilogy

• Empire
• Confederation
• Final Battle

3. The First Empress Trilogy

• From Chaos Born
• Forged In Flame
• Mistress Of The Ages

Note that The Last War and Redemption have also been published as trilogy collections.