Ate Returns Home

[This story includes bodily functions as well as significant discipline. If any of this offends you, please read no further. This chapter will make more sense if you read the previous chapters first but you don't have to in order to enjoy it. All characters are well over 18. My thanks to Leslie Jones for encouraging me to use her Women's Republic characters.]

COL Rachel and SFC Denise arrived at Hergolia Camp ready to start their review. CPT Nicole and 1LT Cynthia knew that this would be important in shaping their future in the Women's Republic Corrections Service so they gathered all the officers and cadre to let them know what was happening.

1SG Louise brought MSG Penny and several other senior sergeants into the Commandant's large, well-outfitted office.

"First Sergeant, I know you've been through these reviews before," Nicole began, "so I'm depending on you to brief the cadre as a whole. I know our reviewers--they are COL Rachel and SFC Denise. Both have served in the Disciplinary and Retraining Unit where 1LT Cynthia and I were in the cadre with Denise. Rachel had been the Commandant of that unit. Respond to their questions as best you can but please, tell them the truth even if it seems embarrassing. It's much more important that you tell the truth because if they find it you're not, and they will, we will all be in trouble."

"They are going to inspect a lot of places, including your private quarters in the barracks or the noncom quarters," she continued. "Make sure your areas are clean and tidy. Have the men in the barracks clean every place in them. Everything needs to be as good as it can be made."

"Any questions?" she added.

1LT Jones raised her hand and Nicole recognized her.

"Commandant, they may well ask me about the impact, emotional and psychological, of discipline here on the men experiencing it," she said. "Do you expect me and others to give details of disciplining and our judgments on its effectiveness?"

"Yes, I want you to respond to whatever they ask you," Nicole replied. "You can give your judgments on effectiveness based on their subsequent behavior but don't be afraid to say that often you don't see men sent to you again after you have met with them so you can't render a complete account."

There being no further questions, she told the officers they could leave, and asked 1SG Louise to dismiss the cadre. Louise duly released the noncoms.

COL Rachel and SFC Denise soon arrived. They were outgoing and were happy to take seats in Nicole's office, where Cynthia and Louise were present.

Rachel thanked them for their welcome and said they would try to speak with all the officers and most noncoms. They wanted to know how all operations had been proceeding, if there were any problems that needed to be addressed, and anything else that those being interviewed wished them to know.

Nicole responded that she had directed all officers and cadre to be totally responsive and that if the reviewers ran into any issues that needed to be resolved, she hoped they would bring them to her. She added that SFC Denise was welcome to take these concerning noncoms to 1SG Louise but it was up to Denise to decide who should be approached.

Rachel then suggested that she begin with meeting with Nicole, so Cynthia, Louise, and Denise absented themselves. Denise asked Louise if this was a good time to meet with her and Louise answered that that was fine.

When it was just Rachel and Nicole in the room, Rachel asked Nicole how she was finding her new assignment and had she experienced any resistance. Nicole answered that she felt there were two special factors at work here: first, she had been here before as a barracks sergeant, so she was a known quantity and had got on with just about everyone; and second, she was in charge after receiving a direct commission so she had expected that some would be skeptical of her competence.

Rachel asked then if she had observed any outright resentment.

Nicole said she hadn't but she knew there was some from what she heard from those officers and mainly cadre with whom she had been close. She knew she had a reputation for being quick to act and for breaking the rules, so while she believed in taking direct action, she was being more cautious in changing things too quickly and depended on 1LT Cynthia and 1SG Louise to give her useful counsel.

"I know from the records, Commandant," Rachel said, "that you've had your ups and downs in the Service. You were busted twice but recovered your grade each time. I did speak to people in the Disciplinary Unit, who all had good things to say about you, even though they knew of the incidents that got you into trouble."

"I don't deny that I had my difficulties," Nicole responded. "But I took what was coming to me and I feel I've learned a lot. I did have a reputation here as the toughest barracks sergeant at the toughest camp in the Republic. That's helped me. And I won't deny that two trips to the toilet box--on the inside--instilled some humility and made me realize where I'd gone wrong.

"I don't see myself as arrogant," she went on. "When we had a recent incident of a large inmate taking advantage of a slighter sergeant who was new to the Service and this camp, I called an assembly to let everyone know that what he did wouldn't be tolerated and then I depended on very capable noncoms to carry out the punishment."

"What was the outcome?" Rachel followed up.

"He was caned and subjected to toilet discipline by the sergeants in the barracks," Nicole stated, "and he's not been any problem since then. He also was told that his next discipline would be in the toilet box."

They spoke some more and finally, Nicole summed up with a mention of her hopes that she could succeed in generating better results in terms of the future behavior of the men sent to the camp.

"Your previous experience at the Disciplinary unit was with women, and you got into trouble with a man sent here," Rachel observed. "Do you feel you have the skills you need to fulfill your goals here?"

"I do," Nicole replied. "That trouble here was something I learned from. I let my feelings control my actions, and that hasn't happened since. I'm also proud that I now have what I hope is an excellent working relationship with LTC Kate at my previous unit. That was not foreordained based on our previous encounters and yes, my poor behavior."

Rachel smiled. "I'm very pleased to hear that. I feel that I trained LTC Kate for her present duties and I feel she is one of our most promising leaders. I like what I'm hearing here and that you are too skilled to try to misrepresent anything important. I'll enjoy speaking with your officers and I'd like to see 1LT Cynthia now. Thanks for your cooperation, Commandant."

She stood, and Nicole rose and saluted her. Then Nicole ushered Rachel to Cynthia's office next door.

Cynthia had not met COL Rachel before, and the two women sized each other up just as they sat down and began their colloquy. Rachel decided to be direct.

"1LT," she began, "I know you have previously been a colleague and a close friend of the Commandant. I'd like to know whether you feel she has overcome some of her previous behavior and will perform well here."

"I've known Nicole for some time, Colonel," Cynthia said, "and I know part of the reason I was selected to be here was to keep an eye on her and have me here to restrain her impulses if necessary. I can tell you that I think she has risen to the challenge. She did bring new ideas to your old unit, Colonel, and not everyone liked that. Her problems, however, she brought on herself by giving in to impulses and acting without considering impacts. Since we've been here, I think she has gone far to assure cadre, for example, that she has their backs, and shown senior officers here that she understands the challenges they face and can give them what they need."

"Also," Cynthia continued, "her experience with LTC Kate is, I think, a credit to Nicole. They began on awfully bad terms. You know what happened here between Kate's husband and Nicole. Nicole realized she had to go and make a total apology to Kate and accept any discipline Kate would impose. Nicole had already been severely disciplined so this was totally voluntary.

"From then on, they had an excellent working relationship and Kate recognized Nicole's skills and her willingness to improve her conduct," Cynthia said. "Otherwise, I don't expect that Kate would have deigned to secure a direct commission for Nicole to become Commandant here: what a tribute that is."

"Nicole also drew on very experienced cadre here to be the First Sergeant and the Field First," Cynthia added. "They have performed superbly and there have been no matters here that necessitated any involvement by headquarters other than your review, which I assume is standard or reasonable when there's new leadership at the camp."

Rachel thanked Cynthia and said she was impressed by her responses. Again, she was saluted and Cynthia took her to 1LT Jones's office. 1LT Jones was a behavioral officer and trained in psychology. Rachel introduced herself and described her mission. Then she asked 1LT Jones about Nicole's past behavior at Hergolia as a barracks sergeant and how she felt about her now.

"The Commandant is a highly motivated, you might say ambitious, person," 1LT Jones responded. "She was good at her job in the barracks and acquired a deserved reputation for both toughness and sagacity. That's why she was selected for special assignments. She became a known quantity. She had problems at the Disciplinary unit, probably because she was impatient to see her new ideas implemented.

"Unfortunately, she misbehaved on more than one occasion and it concerned sex with men both times," 1LT Jones noted. "I think she got over that, and her getting a direct commission attests to the respect she acquired, even from people who had been very skeptical of her because she seemed to screw up."

"Could that happen again?" Rachel asked.

"I don't think it will," 1LT Jones answered. "She appears to have matured through overcoming the obstacles she created for herself. She has a very stable deputy, 1LT Cynthia, too, and that is a good match. I'll also add that I regard her as quite stable, and I was impressed by seeing her speak to the entire camp staff. She really has a certain sense of occasion and I admire that."

While Rachel was speaking with the officers, SFC Denise talked to 1SG Louise and MSG Penny.

"You two were fellow barracks sergeants with the Commandant," Denise began. "Do you think she has risen to the challenges she now faces?"

"Nicole was young to be a barracks sergeant," Louise answered. "Penny and I have been around here a long time. We hit it off with her immediately and knew she was going places. She managed to manage tough customers in her barracks, without having to seek help or deal with any major outbursts ever. We loved having her as a colleague and I'm thrilled she has ascended to her present position here."

"I agree with Louise," MSG Penny chimed in. "It was unfortunate that when Nicole went off, she did it with LTC Kate's husband. I honestly don't think she knew that at the time, by the way. But she made amends, was duly disciplined herself--both of them, she and he, were put in the box by our then Commandant."

"That was my present deputy, CPT Helene," Rachel observed.

"She thought Nicole was a superb correctional officer," Penny added, "and I doubt she wanted to send her to the box, but it was a major case of misbehavior and she had to impose appropriate sanctions. Nicole was a trooper and never tried to get out of that. She just did what she knew she had to do, and she's benefited from her

recognition of what was needed."

"She told us to take care of that inmate who assaulted SGT Geraldine," Louise now said. "We came down on him and I think the others saw what would happen if they tried to pull something like that. That was how Nicole managed her barracks. One man might challenge her, usually ineptly and she usually let him down gracefully. If he didn't get the point, that was why she had her cane and whip on her belt."

Denise thanked them profusely and went on to spend time with the other cadre. Later that day, she and Rachel returned to the guest quarters they had been assigned. They poured themselves some drinks and sat down to distill their findings.

After they went over their findings, Denise observed to COL Rachel, "You know that I served in your old unit with Nicole. She was key in managing that whole business when LTC Kate and she were doing the Goose Cookers ads which ended up being surprisingly beneficial for the Service, or so it seems. She was the one who made it work."

"How so?" Rachel asked.

"LTC Kate was nervous about it," Denise replied. "Here were two incredibly able, ambitious women. Nicole had gotten back to being a Sgt. First Class, but still had a mixed rep because of her screw-ups, but in general, she was well-regarded by her peers. I don't need to describe Kate and her standing to you. She's terrific. Kate was wary of being in an ad for panties, period panties, no less. She didn't much like the idea of showing her panties, which of course was what the whole ad was about.

"Nicole got her to relax and try to enjoy the whole experience of being with the media people. It loosened her up and the whole shebang was a roaring triumph for them and the Service," Denise suggested. "Oh, and Goose Cookers sold a lot of panties," she added.

Rachel thought to herself about Denise's view of Kate, who really was Rachel's protégé. Not only that, but Rachel and Kate had often been intimate. This was facilitated by their both residing in the Bachelor Officers' Quarters at headquarters.

Indeed, Rachel, who saw herself as a very professional officer, was feeling her own panties getting wet when Denise talked about how Nicole had helped Kate get past her worrying about showing her panties.

Each of them then sat down at her laptop and began to write up their interview notes and then draft their report sections. They were at it for some time and Rachel called down to ask for some dinner to be sent up. Cynthia had arranged for the kitchen to whip up a very inspired dinner for them, and it put them both in a pleasant mood, not feeling overstuffed.

Denise gave her draft to Rachel, who incorporated it in the full draft report. She then grinned and as they finished off their meal, she told Denise, "I wasn't sure what this visit would show me, but I don't think these people would go out of their way to praise their Commandant if they didn't feel she knew what she was doing. I think she does, too, and I even think although she will take direct action, she'll think a little first, or at least consult with 1LT Cynthia."

The next day, they spoke to more officers and noncoms, met together again, to make additions and revisions to their draft, and then had an exit meeting with Nicole and Cynthia.

"I don't want to give you a big head, Commandant," COL Rachel said, "but you should know that you have the respect of your staff. Some know you well, others not so much, but they all feel you have their backs. Probably because of your remote location, they have real esprit de corps, and you seem to have made that work well for them and for you two, the leaders."

"You'll get our full report, after it goes through the hierarchy," Rachel said, "but we both thought you should know that. By the way," she added, "congratulations!"

Nicole thanked them both and said that she was proud that her leadership seemed to be showing good results as well as morale. She said they should contact either of them if they needed any more data or just answers to questions. They stood, and Nicole and Rachel saluted Rachel, and then the two reviewers were escorted to their transport.

* * * *

For their part, Nicole and Cynthia also enjoyed a quiet dinner together after the reviewers' departure. They retired to their suite, and said good night to the noncoms serving on their security detail.

"I think we did it," Nicole grinned. "Unless she was playing a major scam on us, we're likely to come out of this looking good. The people at headquarters who were skeptical of you and me becoming in charge here will be baffled."

"I was more worried about Denise," Cynthia replied. "You and I were her colleagues and she was senior, and sometimes acted like the First Sergeant, if you get my drift. But I think she didn't want to come down on us because it would make the cadre at the unit look bad, and because she knows Rachel is close to Kate, who got us here."

"Sort of amazing, isn't it, Cyn?" Nicole speculated. "Almost made the torture I endured after fucking Kate's husband worth it, because it gave me the chance to make up with her. I actually like her a lot. I hope I never see him again."

"Haven't had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Kate," Cynthia giggled. "I won't ask you for the down and dirty, but what did you think of him?"

"Oh, you do want to hear the down and dirty, I know you do," Nicole laughed. "He's a genuinely nice guy who found himself in a place he never expected to be, and I think he was sent here because he pissed Kate off royally, and she doesn't take that from anyone, which he hadn't realized. You know that she also has a wife who lives with him in the second city house she has?"

"No, I didn't," Cynthia said. "Nikki, you seem to know everything about everybody."

"I have to," Nicole confided, "because you know how bad a girl I can be."

"Kate came down on him because he was having it off with her wife when Kate was back at the unit," Nicole said. "I understand they worked it all out later, after he came back. You know, or I guess you may not know, that Kate married them both at the same time and quite soon after she met them. It sounds like an amazing situation."

"I'm going to be a bad girl myself," Cynthia grinned at her boss and friend. "Was he good? You know what I mean."

Nicole actually blushed. She really didn't mind Cynthia asking her about this, because she did think that her fucking Kate's husband was an incredibly ballsy, if somewhat stupid, thing to have done.

"Yes," she said softly, "he was good in bed. And I hope I don't have to convince you that I am." She put on a shit-eating grin at that."

"Thanks," Cynthia responded. "I realize that was prying but I appreciate your confidence in me. It will always stay with me. I do like our being here, running our own show, and not having all the big shots back at headquarters on our asses all the time," Cynthia commented. "I did like the people in our unit, oh with an exception here and there. Jennifer is hung up on the rule book; she really gave that poor guy we had an incredibly tough time. I was pleased when Kate threw him out, sort of like tossing him into the briar patch, to use a simile that is definitely non-kosher these days."

"Yes, and I heard that Linda got suspended because of him," Nicole gleamed. "You know, it was because she fucked him. See, Cyn, I wasn't the only one!"

"It was all Jennifer's fault," Cynthia replied. "Real uptight little bitch."

"I'd like to see her take it up the ass," Nicole cracked. "She's one for whom it would do a lot of good."

"Yeah," Cynthia couldn't resist adding, "her shit doesn't stink."

"Nickie, I want to rip all your clothes off," Cynthia announced. She got up and Nicole stood to let her start unbuttoning her uniform jacket and blouse, followed by unzipping her skirt. Nicole then removed all of them, plus her hose and shoes.

Cynthia undressed herself in the same way, getting her uniform undone and off.

They moved into the bedroom and got under the covers of the massive bed. Then Cynthia carefully unhooked Nicole's bra and slipped her silky undies down and off. Nicole responded by removing Cynthia's panties and undid her bra. They were now together in the altogether.