Commanding Officer x Soldier [Closed to guyloveshotstories]

[AlwaysFaithful]

Katherine Doylesat in the helio, she was 5'6" an petite but highly athletic 120 pounds, dressed in her desert camo, gear at her feet, and snugged between her knees, facing her was her canine partner Jasper. The dog wasn't happy, being crammed onto the helio with a bunch of other soldiers, but he kept his eyes on his handler and kept his grumbling to a minimum. The chopper touched down and the pilot shouted "Dog Handler! You're out!" Kat stood and murmured to her dog, bringing the massive 90 pound animal with her as she grabbed their gear and got out. After the chopper took off, they stood there, waiting to be retrieved. Kat's orders had told her to wait at the launch pad. With luck, she prayed the rest of their gear had arrived from their last post. It held most of her k9's equipment, aside from the necessities that she had transported with her.

Standing quietly she looked down at the dog who sat beside her. He was her best friend and constant companion. Kat had been the only one able to get near the nearly psychotic dog back at the training base, now she was his permanent handler and she was still the only one who could safely handle the dog. They waited patiently, her pale grey eyes holding his amber ones. "Here we go again, Pal." she murmured, her voice a unique mix, a western drawl and a whisper of Irish, speaking to a interesting upbringing, to create such a unique but pleasant sound. She knew this post would be just a difficult as the last. She was rarely accepted into the units she was assigned to. Most disliked the idea of a woman on their team, but add a dog who would snarl just for looking in his direction? Most disliked that even more. But that didn't matter to Kat, she was here to keep this unit alive, her K9 was highly trained in finding explosives and if they ran into the enemy, her dog could and would apprehend them. Jasper's nose was invaluable, even if most soldiers wouldn't want to admit it.

 

[guyloveshotstories]

After a few minutes of waiting, a small bus bounced its way down to the helipad. Screeching to the stop in front of Doyle, the door swung open and the driver, a Specialist, shouted, "Get in!" The Specialist had his kevlar and body armor on, making sitting uncomfortable, and his rifle beside him. This was Iraq. Attacks could happen at any time, at any place.

She was the only one in the bus as he followed a dirt road away from the helipad towards a series of conex trailers and squat buildings that served as head quarters for the MP Battalion. Their mission was to guard prisoners and patrol the perimeter of their base on the outskirts of Baghdad. Occasionally they would leave the base to patrol the area to 'win hearts and minds' of the people, but that wasn't always working considering the scale of insurgent attacks were on the rise.

The commander of the battalion, Lt. Colonel Allen Rose, was a man called 'Hard Ass' behind his back. He was a veteran of nearly twenty years of service, deployed to over 20 countries and enough awards and decorations to cover the wall. He wasn't married, nor did he have kids. He wanted to keep his life dedicated to the service and currently he had been in country for nearly 9 months and he was going through his papers, new prisoners, transferring old ones, intel bulletins and disiciplining the troops. Most of the people in the unit were male, only a handful were women and they were not to be desired by the hungry men of the unit.

 

[AlwaysFaithful]

The bus rolled up and Kat climbed aboard when ordered to. he slid her gear under the seat, sat down and once again snugged her dog between her knees, though they were alone on the bus, it was habit as a way to keep her canine out of the way of other soldiers. She kept quiet as they drove towards the buildings that would be her home for the next 11 months, or possibly longer, Kat had no family, little friends, she often didn't mind when her tour od duty was extended. Once they'd arrived she grabbed her gear, "Thanks for the ride." She said as she stepped off the bus. Eyes scanned the desert landscape as she observed the trailers, wondering what the odds were that she'd end up having to share with a male comrade, probably pretty good, seeing as space was limited and rarely was there another female soldier to room with.

She cued her dog in Czech and together they walked, intending to find the CO and inform him of their arrival. Though her dog was leashed, it was clearly unnecessary as the dog had a flawless heel at her left side.

 

[guyloveshotstories]

The buses' arrival announced to the others that there was a new arrival on base and there were some that came out to see what fresh meat came in. A dog, a big one, and he was leashed to a woman! That got their attention. Women were hard to come by, and many of the Military Police had been in country for so long that they were willing to screw anything that had two legs and vagina, but they didn't come flocking to ask for her to give in. They kept their distance, namely because of the beast she was with.

The stone structure's roof was bristling with antennas for the many radios all jammed inside. The colonel's officer was down a long, narrow, corridor towards the back next to the radio room. His door was open, a small fan sitting on the floor next to this desk blowing on high to keep the place cool as there was no AC in any of the buildings, it was all fans. He didn't hear the bus coming in, but new that there was someone coming in ahead of a couple of other replacements, but he wasn't all too concerned about it. He was bitter for the three casualties that came before from an IED near an Iraqi Army check point. He was growing to detest anything Iraqi because of their precised treachery.

 

[AlwaysFaithful]

As ordered by her last CO she approached the door of her new CO, knocking briskly and waiting for permission to enter. She set her gear down outside the door, not needing to bring it in. She lowered her hand to rub her K9's head as they waited, despite all the difficulties of this career, she wouldn't trade it for the world. Kat had been a foster kid, growing up bouncing foster homes until she hit eighteen, then Kat had promptly fled the state of Montana and joined the military. Finally she'd found her place, Kat excelled at most things asked if her. When she started volunteering at the dog kennel on base it was mostly just to be around the dogs, not having the intention of becoming a dog handler, until a massive, aggressive dog in a kennel alone in a room decided she would be his handler. Upon seeing that, the Kennel master had started training Kat and finally paired her with Jasper. Together these two had deployed three times together to war zones in hopes of protecting the lives of soldiers, to bring more people home to their families. In Kat's mind, Jasper was her only family, so if anyone didn't go home, she felt it was better it was her and her K9 as opposed to a soldier with a family.

Shaking out of those thoughts, Kat wondered if maybe the CO was out and not in his office. But that just meant they'd be standing here when he returned.

 

[guyloveshotstories]

"Enter" I said looking down at my papers. There was never enough time to go through everything, there was always someone at the door-someone looking for a handout, direction, or with more paperwork. Over half of my deployment to this God forsaken country has been writing my name to the bottom of papers and it all started to flow together into one big mess with no meaning.

There was something strange in the air, I could smell it. That was the smell of an animal. The only animals we get are captured insurgents or dogs, the former despised and feared the K-9s, they were another weapon in our arsenal. Great for detecting explosives, keeping people in line, and chasing down runaways.

I was expecting replacements, didn't know which ones yet, didn't have time to read it all. What I wanted most was a break, but when I allowed the person to enter, my gaze lifted up to see a woman approach with a large dog at her side. "Yes?" I asked.

 

[AlwaysFaithful]

Hearing Permission to enter, Katherine stepped in, dog at heel. "Corporal Katherine Doyle and MWD Jasper, reporting for duty, Sir." She offered a salute, standing straight at attention. Her dog was perfectly at heel, sitting, calm and seeming indifferent of the situation he was in. She prayed that her former CO had actually called ahead, letting him know that he now had a dog handler on his team. She couldn't count the number of times she'd arrived only to discover that her new CO had no clue that she was coming, let alone that she'd be here for the next 6-12 months. But even so she was excited to be here, to be put to use, and she hoped this CO would actually use her and her dog. she'd had one CO who refused to believe she could be of use, she'd spent four months basically sitting on her ass until her transfer was approved and she was moved to another base and actually able to do what her and Jasper were trained to do, save lives.

Her pale eyes watched her new CO, not saying anything, there wasn't anything to say until he processed what she'd said and replied.

 

[guyloveshotstories]

Quickly returning the salute I dropped the papers onto the desk and leaned back in my simple, old metal chair with a sigh. Now I remembered, she was one of the replacements-a woman. Great. Another one. Looking at her and then at her dog, I was more impressed with the dog than her at first glance. "Yes," I said lowly, "Welcome aboard" with a deadpan tone. "You'll with with Lt. Love's platoon. Get your kit squared away at their barracks. Just head out the front door, turn right, and you'll be right there."

Lt Love was 2nd platoon commander and the only female officer in the battalion. She was competent, sure, but she and the other women were becoming more of sexual targets than anything else out there.

"Where do you come from, corporal?" I asked. Her information was buried somewhere in the stack. Though I had problems with replacements and women, I knew that I had to care for my soldiers to ensure that they returned home.

 

[AlwaysFaithful]

She nods, "Yes, Sir," She said, and prepared to leave when he asked where she was from. "Originally sir? Montana. More recently, Lackland Air Force Base," No matter what branch of the military, most MWD handlers trained at Lackland. She was surprised by the question, but answered nonetheless. At least he didn't seem surprised by her arrival. SHe'd heard of Lt. Love and from what she'd heard, she was a good Lt. and it would be a pleasure serving under her. She knew it would be difficult working around men, most of which would be overly fixated on women. But in her experience, Jasper was a wonderful deterrent from men who would otherwise try to take advantage of her. Though in her own opinion, even without the dog, she could keep most men at bay. To compensate for her rather tiny frame, she had taken extensive martial arts training and was highly proficient in most firearms.

 

[guyloveshotstories]

Dropping the pen in my left hand to the table then slowly interlocking the fingers of both hands together in front of to correct my posture and was able to look her over better. She was lean, trim, and her dog continued to stare at me, mouth open and tongue hanging out panting. He was big, bigger than the German Shepards we had.

"You joined us at a good time, corporal. We're going to have a small operation on the nearby town in a couple of days. That will give you enough time to get oriented and familiar with the people here. The K-9s are going to be key to sniffing our IEDs and weapons caches."

Giving the dog another look before flicking my eyes up at the corporal, she was trying hard to remain rigid, proud, confident. I could see it in her face. She was trying to be a soldier, but I could see through that veil she was putting up.

I continued, "I expect the best out of you, corporal. I don't change the standards for anyone, neither gender nor rank, nor species. If you need help, ask for it. Don't try to think that you don't need help. Dismissed."

 

[AlwaysFaithful]

Kat listened to him, nodding, "We look forward to being of use Sir." She said, "My K9 can find Bombs, weapons, Drugs, and people." She said, confident that her K9 could find anything necessary. "I don't expect standards to be changed. I would be disappointed if they were." She saluted again once dismissed and left the room. Grabbing her gear she followed directions to Lt. Love's area. She stepped into the barracks belonging to her new unit. She saw a few other soldiers, got some looks "I'm looking for Lt. Love." She spoke to the nearest soldier, not seeing any women in the room that would be Lt. Love. She would need to speak with the Lt. to know where to put her gear and to see if the rest of her K9's gear had arrived on base or not.

 

[guyloveshotstories]

With Doyle dismissed I could get back to work with my papers, but after seeing her my mind just wasn't set to signing away my name. Instead I stood up, stretched my arms above the head and felt the muscles tighten then came the pop. Damn. I'm feeling old, older than I should. Biting my lower lip my gaze fell upon a small map of the town, the one we were going into in a few days. Normally it was a quiet one, but there were reports of Taliban activity there, gangs doing intimidation, demanding money, and hiding weapons caches. We had to go in there and clean them out. Three of my soldiers were in a hospital in Germany because of them.

The soldiers directed her to a room in the back with "2nd LT J. Love" on a piece of duct tape placed over the face of the door, but the door was open and just before the corporal could knock to ask, there appeared a face at the door, "Oh! You must be Corporal Doyle" flashing a smile, "We've been expecting you." She kind, petite, with long crimson red hair in a tight bun behind her head and green eyes, in many ways she looked like a teenager dressed as a soldier. Looking down at Jasper her smile continued to stay glued to her face. The lieutenant liked dogs, but knew not to reach out and pet a trained one immediately. Instead, she held out the back of her hand to Jasper to sniff.

 

[AlwaysFaithful]

Katherine thanked the soldier and made her way to the door. Lifting her hand to lift, she instinctively stepped back when the door opened. "Yes Ma'am." She said when the Lt spoke. At the offered hand, the K9 bared his teeth, a low rumble. "Hold." She hissed at her k9. "Sorry Ma'am. He's not a fan of people." She said, she was use to having to explain her dog's grumpy behavior. "But in a couple of weeks, he'll probably let you pet him." She said, smiling slightly, the dog was getting better and normally after getting to know people, he tolerated touching, as long as Katherine was right there, supervising him. Quite honestly she felt her dog was just a little mentally unstable, but he was one hell of a working dog, and that made up for his personality quirks. "I was wondering where to put my gear? Also if my K9's gear had arrived? Should be mostly food, a steel crate, a few other things." She asked curiously, watching her Lt, happy that at least someone seemed pleased about her arrival.

 

[guyloveshotstories]

"We have a room for you," Love replied. "You're going to bunk with Sgt. Gonzalez in the only space we have available to you. She's nice and gone most of the time, plus there's a wood wall set up going through half the room to give you privacy. As for your gear, it hasn't arrived, yet. We're expecting a Blackhawk later this afternoon with the mail. Your gear should be on it. In the meantime, get yourself settled. There's a cot and a desk set up in your new room and the latrines and shower are outside, take a right and go straight ahead. The women and men shower separately, just so you know" giving her a little wink, "But if I were you," taking a step closer and her voice drops into a whisper, "I would advise having a battle-buddy system set up, but seeing your dog here, I wouldn't worry about you, but the men here, well, as you would expect any men. they're quite horny. So, just so you know."

With that introduction out of the way, Love guided Doyle to her room. It was only a few doors down from her room and the door had "Sgt. J. Gonzalez" written on duct tape. A knock on the door and getting no answer, Love opened it to show the sergeant's side of the room, it was neat and orderly. "Here's your room" Love smiled.

 

[AlwaysFaithful]

Kat nodded and smiled, "I get to bunk with a woman? That's a change." She chuckled, "Thank you," she said as she picked up her gear to follow the Lt. "Oh yeah, I'm use to the men, most keep their distance after the first time my dog snaps." She said, her tone filled with amusement. "i'll warn you now though. If another soldier does keep up harassing me, and my dog feels I'm in danger, he will bite. He doesn't know we're all on the same team. To him, it's me and him against the world." She explained, she always explained this now, after her first deployment with Jasper, when a fellow soldier got too handsy, Jasper bit him and her CO got pissed. Now she just put the warning out there. Once at her room, she thanked the Lt once again, carrying her gear in to get settled in. She hoped the rest of her gear would arrive today but it was notorious for being late, so she always packed enough on her, to be prepared for delays. She carried two weeks worth of dog food, all her K9's immediate gear needs as well as her own. She unrolled the foam mat that served at Jasper's bed, she pushed pins into the wall to neatly hang all her dog gear, then unpacked the rest of her stuff. Dog bowls in the corner, some pictures hung on the wall next to her cot. Then she sat down, blowing out a breath. "Home sweet Home, Jazz." The dog was like a different animal when it was just him and Kat, he rubbed up against her, tail wagging as her hands stroked him from ears to hips and back again, they were best friends, comrades and she swore they could read each other's minds. She met the dog's gaze and murmured, "You know the rules. No one dies. Everyone makes it home. Us included." She murmured, rubbing his ears as they sat together for a while before standing and walking back to the common room. She had the leash looped around her waist, unhooked from the dog. it was unnecessary, the dog would remain at heel until told otherwise, and it gave them just a bit more freedom and feeling of relaxation when the leash was off.

 

[guyloveshotstories]

The Blackhawk arrived a couple of hours later delivering the mail as well as Doyle's gear. It was taken to her room and dropped off at the door with a knock, but there was no mail for her yet. That would take a few more days because it was still being held at her garrison in the states.

When the bird took off it took our outgoing mail with it. I was still in my office when the mail clerk deposited my mail, both personal and military onto my desk, but I haven't started opening any when there was a knock on the door. It was Lieutenant Love asking to speak with me. When she entered and closed the door behind, she asked to sit expressing a lot of personal thoughts.

"How do you like our new handler?" I asked her.

"I just met her, and she has a large dog. I think she'll do well," Love said slowly, "But, honestly, sir, I have misgivings over our next operation. Every time we try something, the insurgents seem to know. There's moles in the Afghan Army telling them our plans. Having another dog handler isn't going to change that if they know where we're going."

"I understand where you're coming from, lieutenant" I said while leaning back in my chair and feeling the metal give a little under my weight. "I know there's a lot of traitors in their ranks, but we can't change such a large plan at the spur of the moment. We need to stay coordinated with the other units. If we change our plan and move away from where we're suppose to be, then that will leave the others vulnerable."

"I know that, sir" Love replied, "But, can we try something to either expose the moles?"

"We're going to try something" I said, "But what it is, I can't say. Trust me, lieutenant, we'll find out who's feeding them information."

 

[AlwaysFaithful]

When the rest of her gear arrived, Katherine set about organzing her room and getting everything situated, the whole time, Jasper kept her company, watching his handler as she set up his crate and stacked bags of dog food under her bed. She put his comfy dog bed in the crate, set a water bowl up in the corner. She neatly put away her own clothing, and set her laptop and other items on the desk. Unlike many other soldiers, Kat had no pictures of her family, she had a few of her and Jasper, and a few of her and a previous unit whom so far was her favorite team. But no pictures of any family.

Once all her gear was put away she returned to the common area to watch a football game. So far none of her new team had said a word to her, though they'd thrown looks her way, or leery looks at the dog who walked stiffly past people and now was tucked between Kat's legs and the chair she was sitting in. But Kat didn't mind the aloofness the team was showing, it was expected and she hoped with time, once she'd proven that her and Jazz were useful to this team, that they would open up and be more friendly towards her.

 

[guyloveshotstories]

With the game on more and more people were coming to the TV room to see. It was Seahawks vs Redskins, many were not fans of either team, but desperately wanted something to watch-something to give them energy during the dull hours of off duty. They could see Doyle up close, but no one wanted to get close enough on account of Jasper.

Alcohol was forbidden on base, but that only meant that some of us had to be cleaver in order to get it in. In this case a Specialist came with two large plastic containers of blue mouth wash, opened one and took a big gulp and began handing it around. It was colored Vodka.

Several of the boys were looking at Doyle from afar. New meat always attracted the most attention and they were trying to size her up. "What do you think?" asked Sgt. Hunter to Corporal Davis.

"I'd give her a seven" Davis whispered trying to look at her chest more than her face.

"I'd give her an eight" Hunter responded.

"An eight? Don't fool yourself" Davis jested.

 

[AlwaysFaithful]

Katherine really wasn't a fan of football, but like many other people it gave her something to watch. She leaned back in the chair, relaxing as she watched the game, smirking to herself as she heard the guys talking. It didn't surprise her, it barely offended her. She'd chosen to make her life in a man's world, doing a man's job. She had to expect the comments and the looks. She stood up, giving the hand signal for her dog to stay as she walked to the fridge, as she passed Davis and Hunter she said, "I'm so much better than a seven or an eight." She then continued on grabbing a bottle of water and a box of Cheezits before returning to her chair, curling up on the chair to continue watching the game as she munched on the crackers, watching the game without much interest in the outcome.

 

[guyloveshotstories]

Davis and Hunter looked at each other and chuckled. A girl with some spunk. Finally the two of them decided to be proper and go forward and introduce themselves, going over to her chair they smiled and offered their hands, "I'm Sergeant Hunter and this is Corporal Davis, we're with Charlie Company Second Platoon" then looked down at Jasper and there was a tense look of apprehension on Davis's face. He hated dogs, something stemming back from his childhood of being chased by them. Since that time he's always been afraid of big dogs. "We heard that you're with Love's Platoon, yes?" There was something that they weren't telling her. As veterans of the unit for a couple of years, and having been in country for several months-they knew the unit inside and out and knew that many of the women were loose and some of them were complete sluts and their lips peeled back in a mysterious smirk.

Around them people were chanting as the Seahawks got the ball, during a handoff the runner pierced the lines and was running full tilt towards the touchdown. When he broke the plain of the touchdown the room erupted into cheers then someone threw chips at the TV screen.

 

[AlwaysFaithful]

As they approached she murmured to Jasper, the dog remained in a down, behind her legs, his head on his paws, but his amber eyes watched the men. She listened to them introduce themselves and she shook their hands, "Corporal Katherine Doyle and MWD Jasper." It was habit to introduce her dog as well as herself. She noticed Davis's wariness of the dog and said, "Don't worry. He won't move unless I tell him to, or you assault me." Many times soldiers were concerned or frightened of her K9 when they first joined the unit, she expected it and didn't even mind it. The dog served as a good buffer, keeping some of the more rough men away from her. "Yeah, I am, just arrived today." Her head tilted, pale eyes watching as she noted the smirks. She kept her eyes on the two men in front of her even as the rest of the room was cheering and whooping at the TV. She picked up her water, tipping it back and getting a drink, a bit surprised that these men had come over to introduce themselves to her.

 

[guyloveshotstories]

"Nice doggy" Davis said almost to himself. Her words didn't convey enough confidence to him that Jasper was well trained.

"You're bunking with Gonzales, is that right?" Hunter added, his smile coming out a little more. He knew her all too well. "Have to be careful about her, she's got quite a temper" waging a finger to the right. Out of the corner of his eye he caught sight of Lt. Love seated on the couch watching the game and getting into the spirit of it.

"Anyway, you're going to be one of our new handlers?" Hunter continued, "Hope you're better than our last ones," shaking his head softly, "Those two were fuckin' terrible, no tactics, no planning, they just walked into everything like they did with that ambush" only to meet a gentle slap in the chest from Davis and a cold stare. It wasn't something he enjoyed hearing about. "Anyway, you'll find that this battalion has quite a reputation, but, if you need any help, you'll know where to find me."

 

[AlwaysFaithful]

Kat tilted her head, "A temper, huh?" She chuckled, "Trust me, I'm sure her temper won't be a problem." Though she hadn't met the woman she was bunking with she doubted that it would be a problem for her. Then Kat just listened to him talk about their last handler. "We'll be fine. Jasper is one of the best K9's to ever go through training. And I've had years of training to be as good as he is." She assured. They didn't miss anything, according to their Kennel Master they were one of the best dog teams he's ever seen. Be it bombs or human, they could find anything. "We know how to play with others." That was a fault of many dog teams, they were a team and they couldn't learn how to work with an entire unit. How Jasper didn't play well with others, but Kat could, and she could insure that Jasper minded his manners. "Thanks," She said when he offered his help if she needed it.

After a bit she stood and murmured for Jasper to heel. They left the building and found a quiet place to do some obedience, it gave the pair a chance to work their minds and get use to the new environment, sweat a bit in the heat, and just settle into their new home.

 

[guyloveshotstories]

Watching the two of them leave Hunter and Davis looked at each other. She was putting up a strong force, didn't appear to be intimidated or soft. "What do you think?" Davis asked, "Will she cut it?"

"I don't know" Hunter replied with a near whisper, "We'll see what a few months in the desert will do to her mind."

With the game still raging and the people's fervor as well, I could hear them all the way in my office. Finishing the last of the paperwork and closing the files and handing them over to my secretary, I grabbed my rifle and went outside and was slapped in the face by the warm sun that sent a tingling sensation rolling through my body. My place was past the facility where everyone was and walked by slowly. That's where I found Doyle and Jasper standing outside. Jasper's ears perked up at my approach, his head twisted to meet me, tongue rolled out of his mouth.

"Hello, Doyle," I said a few feet away from her then locked eyes with the dog, "Hi, Jasper. Are you two enjoying the game?" Personally I didn't care for professional sports, but an event like this brings the unit together in a special bonding moment.

 

[AlwaysFaithful]

She drilled them both on proper beeping exercises, distance commands by hand signal only, asking her k9 to crawl thirty feet back to her, sending him from her side to run and hide behind a number that was sitting there. All these skills could be what determined if she and her k9 came home alive. As expected the dog obeyed with the precision she had expected. After twenty minutes of that they played fetch for a bit until Lt. Colonel Rose appeared. "Sir." she nodded, slapping her thigh, snapping her dog into heel. He was unfriendly enough that she didn't trust him a round strange people unless under a specific command.

Kat shrugged, "Its alright. I'm not the biggest fan of sports, but it passes the time." She said, meeting the case of her CO. She knew of his reputation as a hard ass, but that didn't bother her. She'd rather that than a brand new CO who had no idea how to lead and wouldn't have the courage to do it if he did know. Besides the tough ones usually treated her like any other member of the unit and actually used her and her k9 for the job they'd been sent here to do. She rested her hand absently on Jasper's head, rubbing his ears as she spoke with her CO.