The very small imp that ran the projector raised a tiny thumb.

'Very well,' said Ponder. 'First slide. This is the Roundworld as it currently—'

'It's the wrong way up,' said Rincewind.

Ponder looked at the image.

'It's a ball,' he snarled. 'It's floating in space. How can it be the wrong way up?'

'That crinkly continent should be at the top.'

'Very well!' snapped Ponder. 'Imp, turn it around. Right? Satisfied?'

'It's the right way up but now it's the wrong way arou—' Rincewind began.

There was a thwack as Ponder's pointer stick smacked into the screen. 'This is the Roundworld!'

he snapped. 'As it exists at present! A world covered in ice! But time on Roundworld is subordinate to time in the real world! All times in Roundworld are accessible to us, in the same way that all pages in a book, though consecutive, are accessible to us! I have ascertained that the Faculty are on Roundworld but not in what appears to be the present time! They are several hundred million years in the past! Which is, from our point of view, perfectly capable of also being the present! I don't know how they got there! It should not be physically possible! Hex has located them! We have to assume that they can't get back the way they came! However -next slide please!'

Click!

'It's the same one,' said Rincewind. 'But now it's sideways—'

'A globe has no sideways!' said Ponder. There was a tinkle of breaking glass from the direction of the projector, and some very small cursing.

'I just thought you wanted to do it properly,' murmured Rincewind. Anyway, this is going to be about L-space, isn't it? I know it is. You know it is.'

'Yes, but I don't say that yet! I've got another dozen slides to come!' gasped Ponder. 'And a flow chart!'

'But it is, isn't it,' said Rincewind wearily. I mean, they say they've found other wizards. That means libraries. That means you can get there through L-space.'

I was going to say that's how we can get there,' said Ponder.

Yes, I know,' said Rincewind. 'That's why I thought I'd take the opportunity of saying "you" at this early juncture.'