Superman Elseworlds: 'In the Name of...'

Chapter 5: Odyssey (part 1)

He turned at looked at us in turn. I could see Aunty standing by Uncle, holding his arm tightly, her eyes wide. I could see Uncle standing tensely, his brow furrowed and his free arm twitching and slightly reaching for Ishy. I could see Ishy quietly looking at the floor, waiting, and I wondered what they saw of me. Could they see my fear? Could they see my desire to grab Ishy and run with him to safety?

'Beta, for now I believe you should continue to be 'ghayb'. I…I don't think this world is ready yet.

'Please forgive this old man his fear,' he said as he suddenly knelt in front of Ishy and held him by the shoulders. 'You, your existence, it brings many things into question for many people. For almost everyone, I fear. 'Rabil aalameen' – the Lord of all that exists. Everything. But we're not ready for you.

'Just as Isa alayhi salaam told his disciples they were not ready for certain truths, we are not ready, either.'

'So what should I do?' whispered Ishy.

Mufti Mahmood shook him slightly and crouched a little lower to meet his downturned gaze. 'You keep doing what you have been doing. I know you know this: Do good to others, surely Allah loves those who do good to others. And you have been doing good, Masha'Allah. It is a cornerstone of our deen and you cannot let my fear, or your parents' fear, or anyone's fear stop you from doing good.

'Continue to learn. Education is absolutely fundamental. Absolutely. Your path is…the choices you will have to make are much different to what I previously thought. Before, I said to you that there were three possible paths. I think now…

'Beta, all I can really say is that, as Hazrat Abu Bakr, RadiAllahu 'Anhu asked the Ummah to do for him, I will help you if you are in the right, and correct you if you are in the wrong. You have to take some time now to decide what you need to do next. You have so much knowledge, but you are still young. So young.'

Ishy looked at the Mufti and asked him, softly, 'What am I?'

Mufti Mahmood smiled, ruffled Ishy's hair, kissed his forehead, and said, 'A Muslim, Beta. You're a Muslim. Maybe…and Allah knows best, of course, but maybe you are Mu'min.'

I made my way over to Aunty and Uncle as Ishy and the Mufti continued talking. Our fears were allayed, for now, but we knew things were going to change, and probably change sooner rather than later. The revelation Ishy made, that he had been out there stopping rapes and muggings and abuses…I had joked before about him becoming a vigilante but I didn't think he would actually become one.

But what else was he supposed to do?

I can't even begin to understand what it's like for him being able to hear the bad things going on around him, around us. The village was a haven, Alhumdulillah, but everything he's been experiencing since then?

I don't think there was any doubt in any of our minds that, eventually, he was going to start doing…spectacular things. He was going to change the world. He is going to change the world. But Mufti Mahmood is right: the world isn't ready; and Ishy isn't ready yet, either.

How am I supposed to help my little brother become the best he can be? I'm not exactly 'a man of the world'…and is 'a man of the world' the right kind of person to even teach him, anyway?

He has the Mufti, Alhumdulillah, to guide him in deen and parts of duniya, but Ishy's exposed to the darker side of this world already, without even trying. When I was his age I knew to be wary of strangers and 'dodgy' people, but I had never knowingly encountered a paedophile, or a would-be rapist, let alone a frigging would-be suicide bomber! And sure, he's bullet proof, more or less, but he still had bruises when he was shot. What if he hadn't been able to talk down the suicide bomber?

Is he fast enough to outrun an explosion?

Would he even do that?

No, knowing him he would probably try to smother it. Try to make sure it was only him and the bomber who would get hurt. Maybe carry the bomber and speed him away, even.

He's fast enough to run to Islamabad and back in mere minutes, but what if there was more than one bomber?

Ya Allah, are we supposed to train him somehow?

Is there a line as to what he can and can't intervene in? Dissuasive burns in order to stop a would-be molester or rapist are understandable, I guess, but what happens when he's older? What happens if he gets outed?

And it was while these thoughts were running through my head that there was a knock on the door and the feelings of panic rushed back into the room.

***

Glossary

 

Surah Rahman – this is the 55th 'chapter' in the Qur'an. The name of the surah highlights one of God's oft-cited attributes (Ar-Rahman is one of God's names/99 attributes): that He is being merciful currently and immediately (this is an approximate translation of the meaning). The verse 'He has taught you' is often translated to include, in brackets to establish it is distinct from the actual Arabic text, 'mankind', but the nature of the verse itself is open – it doesn't specify who is being taught but, rather, establishes that God teaches the Qur'an to anyone who is willing to learn.

'(as)' - abbreviation of 'Alayhis Salam' – Peace be upon him – used when a Prophet is referred to by name (for ease, when written (in English) it is often abbreviated to '(as)')

A'oodhubillah – 'I seek refuge with Allah (God)'

Insan – roughly 'human' but usually 'mankind'. 'Al-Insan' is also the 76th 'chapter' in the Qur'an.

Deen – 'religion' or 'way of life'

Hazrat Abu Bakr (ra) was the first head of state of the Muslims after the Holy Prophet (saw)

Radi Allahu 'Anhu is an expression used by Muslims whenever a name of a male companion of the Prophet (saw) is mentioned or used in writing. Radia Allahu 'Anha is used for female companions. Both often abbreviated, in English, to '(ra)' when used in writing. It means 'May God be pleased with him/her'

Ummah is 'nation' or 'community' and is used to refer to Muslim population as a whole

Mu'min literally means 'a believer'. A Muslim is a person who is an adherent of Islam and believes in its doctrines, while a Mu'min is a Muslim with a higher degree of belief. So every Mu'min is a Muslim but not every Muslim is a Mu'min

 

Duniya – 'world', this realm of existence