"And the sounds of the runes are in the verse. "Manches’ gives "Mannez’, Ansuz, concealed in ‘Main mise au’, Isaz in ‘s’assies’ and ‘Algiz’ in ‘La verge’.

"But what happened before the god came? I need to describe the process. My chant with its carefully chosen date had its impact even before the appearance of the god.

He swiftly penned:

"This needs more detail of the time mechanism I placed in the chant if my dream is to be accurately remembered for I will undoubtedly use many other dates from this time forth. I need a verse to hold the detail, a verse that spells out the passage of time since I first tried to influence Aralyn’s astronomically determined fate. And I need to make it clear that it is a code

Michel once more committed to paper the words that he needed but this time created two verses.

"The god came when I used this process. I saw it and felt its presence but what was the feeling that I felt beyond that time. Was it a vortex, a vortex in the mind spiralling downwards in glistening tubes? A vortex, that was surely it, taking me down into a world of crystal, a palace of the windswept tree.

"And the god was it a duality, two spirits bound as one? It had a strong feminine presence as well as masculine, Sophia entwined with Hermes. I need these feelings in my verse for this male female mixture was crucial to my emotions.

Michel paused. He knew that he had been changed by the experience of the previous night and here, in these verses, he had the core he needed to remember how it happened, so that he could repeat it when required. He also hoped that he could now trace back into the recent past and recall detail not meant for conscious minds.

Michel had walked much of Europe to achieve this quest. And he knew that some of what he saw was a result of this search. The constant reading of gods and hidden secrets had to create an impact on his mind. The observer cannot remain impartial and any quest impresses change upon those who pursue it.

He also knew the God that was worshipped in his time was a diminished god, stripped of much of its softer qualities and of far harsher tones than that revealed within his vision. He sensed it, felt it as a physical force, the emotions linked to the vision before his senses locked him out. The spirit of the previous evening was a less masculine god of softer values, merciful and forgiving, an earthy god linked to nature, a Venus moonlike God.

"Sophia." He softly breathed "This is Sophia, that part of God disapproved, reprimanded, removed by the masculine mind-set that had evolved in the recent centuries of social tumult. Sophia the goddess of wisdom, the feminine half of which Hermes is the remainder. Sophia and Hermes! Venus and Mercury;God and Goddess of wisdom.

And with this vision Michel de Nostredame felt changed , changed from his past, chained to the future, channeled from Nostredame, physician to the prophet Nostradamus.

His musing continued, a sequence of ideas drawn out by the threads he had initiated and at each step a glow, a feeling of emotion as each thought left its trail of satisfaction. "The church is not solely responsible for Venus’ demise. For pressure also comes from men of science and commerce."

Nostradamus was aware of the sophic quality of his vision and through the duality saw the images beyond. "She, the feminine god, seated facing south, her hands to her breast, the goddess burnt as witch. She and he, Sophia and Hermes, the godlike duality sat in communion with me. That is what I felt, their presence inspiring awe and fear but holding vast treasures of the mind"

And he knew immediately why these images appeared in this form. Much of his reading had been into the Hermes legend based on an ancient Egyptian philosopher king. Michel had always been vitally interested in this author of supposedly twenty thousand books in which he revealed to mankind ideas of medicine, chemistry, law, art, astrology, music, rhetoric, magic, philosophy, geography, mathematics, anatomy and oratory.

Once more he was filled with pleasure as the memory flowed through his mind, stirred by his writings and this mental trail. His feelings drew him back over the patterns of the last few years. This appears to help for that mist drawn over the previous night seems about to yield its secrets.

"And additionally it was Hermes who wrote "The Book of Thoth", which contained the processes by which the regeneration of mankind was to be accomplished. The process of regeneration, that is the basis of my quest and why I seek the works of Hermes.

Although he had found nothing definite about the contents of this book Nostradamus was aware that its pages were supposedly covered with strange pictorial writing, which gave to those acquainted with their use unlimited powers over the spirits of the air and the subterranean divinities. He also knew that when certain areas of the brain are stimulated by the secret power of Hermes Mysteries the consciousness of man is extended and the practitioner is permitted to behold the Immortals and enter into the presence of the superior gods.

This ancient legend had led Nostradamus on his search and in the Norse legends and runes he had found striking similarities. It was as though the runes were part of Hermes’ forgotten legacy.

These thoughts of runes and Hermes were definitely linked with what went on the night before. He could sense their association and feel their union drawing him deeper into the veil that clung beyond the god –like image. "I have a destiny linked to these runes and I sense their call. This must be included in my records as the time that I became aware of it even if the detail is still unclear. I need to build in the Norse words in a way that is not easily seen. The fates and the Norse runic alphabet, the futhorc or futharc I can use as triggers for my goal." He thought some more then wrote:

The impression of this god-like figure is the last clear memory Nostradamus had retained from the night before because, in holding the vision in his mind, all normal channels closed down.

"I went to a deeper level, hovering close to the unconscious precipice and maybe even further.

"In order for me to remember other details of this communion with these beings I therefore need these mnemonic trails, these emotional links stirred by words. I need ancient techniques of recall rather than direct memory."

He had seen a duality and placed upon it ancient names to fit its emotional aura but in reality he knew that the images were not Hermes and Sophia. Even though their initial presence had called these gods to mind the actual emotional aura of these spirits drew them back to him..

"This god of mine, this dual god is a union of two lesser beings. Two people whose personal lives are in some way linked to mine. Perhaps she is Aralyn but who is he and what has he to do with her?"

Nostradamus felt the yearning ache left by his vision. Lovers tied in duality for harmonically they are one. Their differences create this yearning tension that their unity resolves. And from them, in them was his quest, the response itself an entwined meaning. He became more certain she held the essence of Aralyn, and the other half, the masculine half, the hidden secret of her fate.

And Nostradamus felt other things, emotional things, brought out by his aroused senses. From her there was a movement away, a locking out of him. Aralyn dead, aloof from Nostradamus. And from the male side of the equation a contact strong in purpose. A common goal, united need, to save, to be eternally united with this ill-fated female half.

Nostradamus now knew more. Emotion triggered recall. He felt an ongoing memory left by that presence in his mind. Vestiges of thought and facts left buried in this 16^th century brain. He sensed the language and the man, felt a bond that would not break; their sublime minds he knew were joined. He whispered "I and this strange fellow are locked in a most unearthly course, a spiritual conspiracy"

There was no clear recollection of the detail and Nostradamus hoped that repeated visitations would bring clarity to the plan. At this stage all he felt was a comfortable sense of an ally working to the same end. An ally that sought to circumvent the same tragedy he had induced on Aralyn.

During the time he had been visited Nostradamus knew he had pressed his own case. It had not all been one way. His mind followed their emotional trail but they, in turn, used his. There were strong emotional associations whenever he brought the visitor and his aims together. This strength of satisfaction was the basis on which he relied to recall their meeting.

Nostradamus did not dwell on one part of his life for it gave him no pleasure but it lay at the heart of his quest and he could feel their awareness of it. They drew it from him against his will and it lay harsh amongst his other thoughts. "I propelled the dying Carolin into the future. A future where she would once more be with me. Born again to live with me. Slightly altered but essentially the same. I used formulae given to me by Scaliger but my clumsy, sacrilegious attempts failed. "

He knew long ago that he had failed for she did not reappear. Its failure was a source of guilt for this besotted man. Driven by guilt Nostradamus had come to believe Aralyn was now in some other time outside his control and destined for an undeserved fate.

Guilt had driven him on this quest and would not end until he felt he had undone the harm he had caused. Only by rescuing Aralyn from wherever she was and placing her in a better time, a chosen time and not one of chance, would he be absolved. The vision that he had encountered was in empathy with his cause. It knew his feelings and carefully unravelled his deeply hidden hurt. This he knew and it pleased him.