The United Federation Marine Corps' Lysander Twins

Noah Lysander, son of the former Marine Commandant and Chairman of the Federation, followed his twin sister in enlisting as a Marine. While Esther excelled, getting commissioned as an officer, Noah is not so driven, and when he proposes to Miriam, he makes a pledge to be a better husband and future father than his own father had been. Reenlisting for armor, Noah becomes a crewman on an M1 Davis, the most powerful tank ever developed. He quickly finds out that despite nominal peace within the Federation, the deployment demands placed on his platoon are heavy.

Captain Esther Lysander, UFMC, is a combat Marine. Her new orders, however, are APOC, or “At the Pleasure of the Chairman”, and while she knows this type of assignment could be career-threatening, she feels duty-bound to accept them. There is no SOP for being APOC, except that it isn't combat as usual. Part spy, part soldier, part political window dressing, Esther has to adapt to everything from clandestine meetings with rebel forces, hostage rescues, and off-the-record sniper missions to being a courier between the chairman and other heads of state.