Red Nails

Red Nails is the last of the stories about Conan the Cimmerian written by Robert E. Howard. The story begins in the jungles far to the south of any known civilized or barbarian lands, where Valeria of the Red Brotherhood and Conan are set upon by a dragon that mauls their horses. The pair retreats to a crag the monster cannot scale, but has no food or water. Conan recognizes some poisonous fruit growing nearby; they coat the tip of a spear with its juice, and pierce the jaws of the monster with it. Although blinded, the raging monster pursues them by their scent. Overtaken, Conan whirls to face the beast and lures it to its death.