Cugel the Clever was seeking revenge when he met Mumber Sull who was seeking justice. Revenge and justice may seem empty dreams when the sun may flicker out at any moment, but such is the nature of man as it has always been since the dawn of time. Mumber Sull owed his loyalty to the long-vanished overlord Simbilis, whose knowledge and science were legendary, whose domains had extended over a vast terrain, and whose whereabouts had been lost for centuries. He persuaded Cugel that if they could but find Simbilis, they would both gain their just rewards. The story of their quest for Simbilis is a marvellous fantasy of wonder and adventure millions of years from now, on the Dying Earth that Jack Vance first described and which has now, by permission, been further chronicled by Michael Shea.