Runar Haestad, a Norwegian Mercenary lost in the Peruvian Amazon

If you made it out of this hell alive, you would be damned if you ever took another Spanish coin for payment ever again. You cursed yourself in frustration at the situation you had gotten yourself into. Sweat poured off of your muscular frame as you stumbled through the dense greenery that extended as far as you could see, which was not far at all. The heat and humidity felt like it was ripping the moisture out of your body. You should have known it was too good to be true.

You were involved in the Dano-Swedish war that ended only a few years ago. As with many of your compatriots, you had hoped to take advantage of the Swedes' invasion to break Norway out from under the yolk of Danish rule...and had failed. Although you were fortunate to escape with your life, little else remained of your life. Your home was taken, and your family lost. All you had left was your skill with fighting. Dismayed by failing to free your country, you departed and offered your fighting skills to the highest bidder. Everyone spoke of how the Western Powers were looking for good men to travel to "The New World," and you answered the call like many others. It was unlikely that the Spaniards who hired you cared much about your backstory. They likely only saw a big, muscular man with blond hair and a matching beard. Long and unbraided, but extended down to cover much of your neck.

Of course, you hated that beard now. It had grown longer and more haggard over the months you've been on this expedition. A net for bugs and water to collect and a blanket that pushed more heat onto your neck and felt like it was about to come to life and you. The Spaniard Conquistadors painted wild stories of gold and treasure with little real threat from the natives, who they described as uneducated and living in huts.

Those same Conquistadores were now dead. Killed by either the heat, giant snakes, or big cats that reminded you of stories of Lions and Tigers from Africa and Asia. You were next. The last survivor of this expedition into the southern jungles of this "New World." At least, that was how it felt. You had already eschewed any non-essential clothing. Your bare chest rippled with minor cuts and nicks caused by sharp plants, and your trousers were torn in many places. Your belt, as well as a bolt quiver and a hand crossbow, kept them secure. Although some Spaniards had firearms in the form of a few arquebuses, they were unwieldy and unreliable in the moist environment. A fatal mistake that some of your expedition learned. However, you wouldn't make the mistake of trying to fight one of those big predators hand-to-hand. You held a falchion in your hand, but it was currently used to try and clear the foliage in front of you more than anything else.

You tromped forward through the jungle. It had been days of nonstop wandering and you knew that you only had a couple of days at best before you would die of dehydration, starvation, or some poisonous snake or predator. If you didn't find something, anything, then you would be as dead as the rest of the expedition. The dense forest and vast canopy hid any clear landmarks to help you escape. You could only move forward and hope.

You were practically in the water before you realized what was going on. Your feet sank into the riverside mud before a few more steps took you into the water. With a few more swings, the area opened up, and you could see a slow and meandering stream flowing through dense forest on either side. Had you been thinking more clearly, you would have checked for predators, the water's depth, or any other dangers. However, you were too happy to find something other than a nondescript jungle. You push your body out into the water and find it to be about waist deep and you sink the entirety of your body into the water. The cool water flowed across your skin, bringing much-needed relief to your sweating body. The current pulled you gently down the stream and you slowly suck some of the water into your mouth and swallow it. There was a risk of disease or illness, but you didn't care. The relief and sustenance of the water would hopefully save you for at least a few days. Perhaps you could follow it to the coast and make it out of this Jungle hell. You felt the hot sun on your back, pulled yourself fully under the water, and enjoyed being fully encapsulated by the water. You pulled yourself across the dirty stream bed, part of you imagining swimming or floating the entire way to the sea. However, as your rationality returned, you realized that that was an unreasonable plan. You had no clue what creatures may await in the deeper waters closer to the coast.

With disappointment, you pulled yourself back up out of the water. With a gasp, the hot jungle air filled your lungs as they reminded you that you were still far from safe. You stood in the waist-deep water and closed your eyes, savoring the feeling of the remaining cold water trickling through your beard and shaggy hair and down your body, as it washed away the remnant sweat from your body.

Suddenly, the snap of a twig caught your attention. Your eyes snapped to the treeline as you eyed it warily for any signs of predators. You grabbed the crossbow from your belt and loaded a bolt into it while searching warily. Finally, you caught sight of some movement, but it didn't look like an animal. Too tall. You point the steel crossbow at the tree where you saw the movement and call out, "Come out! I see you."

It was a bluff, of course; you had no idea where exactly there was a person, but it worked. You saw more movement and a young woman meekly walked out of the greenery. A copper-tipped spear was in her hand, but her unsure grip told you she had little experience using it. She had shoulder-length black hair and dark skin and was much shorter than you. She was wearing a brown cloth shirt covering her chest, but not her arms or midriff. A short skirt was wrapped around her hips and appeared made of the same material. Her eyes stared at you with wonder and surprise. No doubt from her perspective this huge man just crawled up out of the river. Anyone would be shocked. You had not interacted much with the natives of this land, but you couldn't deny that she was quite pretty. Slowly, you lowered your crossbow down, "I don't mean you harm."

You doubted that she could understand your language at all, but she did understand the motion of putting your weapon down and lowered her spear as you took a careful step toward her. You shook your head awkwardly as you struggled to come up with what to say next, "I am...lost? Maybe you could help me find some way back to my home?"

With what could only be described as wonder in her doe-eyed eyes, she looked up at you and said something. You couldn't tell what she was saying, but it was in the form of a question. So you take a chance and nod at her, "Yes, I need help."

Your nod made the young lady jump in surprise and drop her spear and she stumbled back away from you a little. Not so much in fear, but in the same shocked wonder she had in her eyes before. Her foot caught on an exposed root and she fell back against the bank of the river. Despite the awkward situation, you couldn't help but notice the underside of her breasts pushed out from under her shirt as her arms clutched up against the side of the bank, or that she did have a lack of underwear on under. It made sense, in this hot environment.

Intrusive thoughts crept into your mind. You were trapped in the middle of the jungle, and it had been months since the last time you were intimate with a woman, and your "alone time" in the jungle while looking out for dangers was hardly ever enjoyable. You were probably going to die and your only hope was a young woman who didn't even understand what you were saying. You could hope that maybe this woman could help you, or you could at least get some pleasure out of the situation. Although it was unlikely that she was willing to do such a thing; you could easily overpower her and at least go out saying you had sex before the end.