Your Questions to Mal-Larci

Now that Mal-Larci's first series of adventures are over, Mal-Larci is keen to answer any questions you may have for him about being a feline super-hero.

Just submit your question in the comment section before the end of December.

Meantime, Mal-Larci would like to thank you for thinking of him as he continues to recuperate from his injuries and to recommence his training.

Mal-Larci is Back in Training

Note: Mal-Larci has recommenced his training, both to improve his speed and flexibility, and also to bring him up to date on the latest news from Headquarters. 


Once Headquarters determines he's ok to return to work, Mal-Larci will recommence his blog. 

Meantime though, he's feeling a bit stir-crazy.

Larci's Progress Up-date

Mal-larci's injuries are healing well, and he's able to get about now without much help. 

It will be a few more weeks before he's able to return to his superhero duties though.

He sends out a big "HELLO!" to you.

Mal-Larci's Adventures on Hold - Temporarily

While Mal-Larci is recuperating from his injuries, Book 2 and his further adventures is on hold, but not for too long.

By the way, Mal-Larci says, "Hi!" 

Mal-Larci the Food Critic: More Cod

Did you know there are recipes for cod tongue? Who would have imagined. I can honestly say I've never heard of it in butcher's shops or fish mongers, but then I don't usually hang out in those places because they're not particularly fond of cats.

While I was in the US, Bob tracked some Cod tongue and then persuaded someone to cook it. There were two different recipes: fried codfish tongues and boiled cod tongues with lemon juice.

They were surprisingly different. Of course, onion and tomatoes were left out of the recipe and the only milk used was one specially for cats.

I was not very impressed with the cod tongues in lemon juice. The lemon juice spoilt the flavour in my opinion, and made it simply too bitter for me.

Out of five I gave boiled cod tongues with lemon juice: 

But the fried codfish tongues was quite nice. I liked the crispness of the outside and the tongue itself was nice and smooth to eat. Quite yummy.

Out of five I gave fried codfish tongues:

THE ADVENTURES OF MAL-LARCI - CHAPTER 22

Chapter 22: Mal-Larci's Final Days ©

The next day I had another visit from Lily. Boy was I glad to see her. Just looking at her made me feel good.

"How are you today, Mal-Larci," she said in her delicious accent.

"Ok," I said, wishing I could stand up or at least sit on my haunches. Somehow I felt at a disadvantage lying on my side on this bed.

"Tell me the latest news will you?" I asked, anxious to take my mind off my own problems for even a short time.

"As you know," Lily began, "We had set-up the trap for Katzenjammer the bomber so that we might be able to catch him in the act of placing the bomb on Oprah's jet. All of those false-trails you put on the internet, plus some other little items of "leaked news" fortunately persuaded Katzenjammer that the plane we had placed under surveillance was the real jet that Oprah and George Clooney were going to use."

"Mr Clooney and Oprah instead used another private jet at another location which we kept strictly under wraps. By the way, both of them arrived in Scotland and over the next couple of days will meet with several local councils and communities about saving the Scottish wildcat. I understand that a few international television reporters are there as well. Hopefully it will prove a success and raise some much needed funds for the wildcats," Lily continued.

Mal-Larci the Food Critic: Codfish Soufflé

Here's another cod recipe I found on the net. I assume many of these cod recipes will go well with most types of fish.

Boil half a pound or 220g of codfish omitting any salt. Mash the fish and mix it with two cupfuls of mashed potatoes (no milk). Add the yolks of two eggs well beaten. Beat thoroughly, then fold in the stiffly beaten whites of the eggs. Finally, place into a casserole dish and bake in a hot oven until puffed up and brown.

I must say, this one was quite a treat to eat because I love both fish and mashed potato. Mmm, yummy. It's on my list of favourite foods.

Out of five, I gave Codfish Soufflé:

THE ADVENTURES OF MAL-LARCI - CHAPTER 21

CHAPTER 21: The End ©

Everything seemed so very white when I tried to open my eyes. The weight of my eyelids seemed too heavy and I closed them again. I think some time had passed because when I opened my eyes a little, it all seemed grey.

"What's going on?" I thought. My thinking processes seemed to be heavier than my eyelids, as if my head was full of molasses, and so I closed my eyes again.

The next time I opened my eyes, it was white again, and I heard a familiar voice.

"Mal-Larci, don't be alarmed. You are at a special facility being treated for your injuries."

I opened my eyes wider and focussed on the speaker. It was Lily. She was seated on a chair next to me.

"You've had surgery to repair a broken ankle," she said.

That explained why my body felt so heavy. It must have be because of the anaesthetic from the surgery. I drifted off and slept some more.

Some time later I woke again, and Bob was in the chair. He looked delighted when he saw I was awake.

"Hey mate," he said. "Good to see you awake. How are you feeling?"

"Head hurts," I managed to rasp.

"Yeah, you banged yourself up pretty good," he said. 

"You're lucky! Headquarters in Australia puts a small locator device in your communicators, or we'd never have found you. You were thrown about 500m from the blast," he added.

"Did you catch him?" I asked referring to the bomber, Katzenjammer.

"Nah!" Bob said with a grimace, "The team tracked him down to an apartment building and when they broke in, they found he'd escaped through a tunnel he'd built into the basement."

I was so disappointed. After all of our work, the lunatic was still on the loose.

"Tired," I said.

"Yeah. You go back to sleep and someone will be here when you wake up."

I felt myself slip back into the darkness.

When I awoke, I spotted Marie who was sitting on a small raised platform in my line of vision.

She'd been reading a small magazine, but looked up when I said hello.

"Hey there Mal-Larci," she said.

"Hi," I replied. 

I was feeling much better, though my body still felt very heavy. I tried to raise my front paws, but was only able to move them a little under the covers.

"The doctor will be in shortly, and I understand you'll be getting dinner soon as well," Marie said.

Suddenly I realised how hungry I was.

"Good," I croaked.

I heard the door of the room open but had trouble moving my head to see who it was. A woman dressed in a white coat came into my line of vision. She sat down in another chair next to Marie.

"Hello Mal-Larci," she said. "My name is Dr Fletcher and I'm one of the team that's been looking after you."

"You've had an operation to place a pin in your ankle. One of the bones had been broken, and the injury seems to be healing well. You had lots of cuts and bruises but the one injury that has had us all a little worried, is the damage to your spine."

"What does that mean?" I asked.

"At this point we don't know how much long-term damage you will have. All of the tissue along the bottom half of your spine is swollen and we simply don't know if the nerves have been permanently affected," Dr Fletcher added.

"But what does that mean?" I asked.

"We're hoping that when the swelling goes down, everything will be ok, but it's too soon to tell."

"But if the nerves are damaged, how will I be affected?" I asked.

"Let's not jump the gun," she said, "There's no use worrying about that yet."

"Tell me," I demanded. "I want to know."

Sighing she said, "If the nerve damage is bad, you may never use your back legs again. It would also mean that you can't fly."

I was horrified. Tears began to well in my eyes as I asked, "How long before we know?"

"In about two weeks, you should start regaining the feeling from your chest down. After that, it will be just a matter of time," the doctor concluded.

"Never to fly again?" I thought to myself. "Never to walk again?" 

What would I do? I couldn't go back to my family like this. Who would look after me?

Softly Marie said, "Mal-Larci don't worry about the future just yet. Whatever happens, Headquarters will look after you."

It's so easy for people to say 'don't worry' but practically impossible to stop worrying when you think that you'll never be normal again.

"Ok," I said. "I think I'd like to sleep now."

Dr Fletcher picked up Marie and they left the room.

It took me a long time to sleep though. Thoughts spun round and round in my head until it became a muddled mess. Then I dropped back into sleep once more.

THE END.

Mal-Larci the Food Critic: Creamed Cod

I did a quick search on the internet and saw more than 50 different recipes for cod! I couldn't believe it. One of the humans at Headquarters overheard me talking about cod recipes and the next day they brought in creamed cod for me to taste.

Apparently you bake the cod, and then when it is cool, mix it with a creamy sauce and warm gently, then just before you serve it, mix in a couple of beaten eggs.

Of course this recipe had to be made with a special type of creamy sauce with the lactose removed so that it wouldn't give me an upset tummy.

Wow! I thought I'd tasted the best fish in the world already with Surströmming but I'd have to say this one is up there with the best of them. 

Out of five, I gave creamed cod: 

ADVENTURES OF MAL-LARCI: CHAPTER 20

Chapter 20: Trapped ©

I was well and truly trapped. The cage had come straight down over the top of me before I'd even had the chance to take one step.


We felines usually hate being in a cage at the best of times, but I'd been caught by a raving lunatic who hated cats. I figured I was in serious trouble.

Fortunately my partner, Lily the civet, another superhero, was hiding nearby and had received my distress call. She would have sent through a message to Headquarters by now. 



The man was Katzenjammer, a wanted criminal who had a pathological hatred of cats and would set bombs to destroy anything to do with them.


We'd been tracking him down and I had stumbled across him in this old workshop. 


"I guess it's just my lucky day," he'd said with a chuckle. "I'm sure I can arrange something special for you."

He had assumed I was an ordinary cat, not thinking for a moment that there might be such a thing as a superhero, let alone a superhero cat. But my abilities were flying, super-sight, hearing and extra-strong claws, not extra strength. I could probably scratch my way through the wooden floor beneath me, but then he would know that I was no ordinary cat. 

"Meow," I said, sitting back on my haunches and licking my paws. 

Hopefully fellow superheroes were already on their way here, and would grab this nutter before he decided to make me into a cat-skin wallet.

There was the softest of thumps on the floor and I realised Lily had jumped in through the open window. Her camouflage ability made her invisible in the dark and I felt reassured by her presence. I assumed she was checking the layout of the room, before the others arrived. 

"You've got perfect timing," Katzenjammer said. "I've got this place set to blow up as soon as I leave, which will be in about seven minutes. The bomb should make a lovely big noise, and there'll be one less mongrel cat in the world."

He giggled as he walked away.

"Hang tight," was the message I received in morse code from Lily as she jumped back out through the window, into the dark.

From behind the building I heard the sound of a motor turn over. It was the bomber making his escape. 

"Keep an eye on him," I transmitted to Lilly. "He's just leaving."

The vehicle reversed and I heard it drive out through the gate. 

I had less than seven minutes to get out of the cage, find the bomb and dispose of it. Wasting no time, I hacked at the floorboards beneath me with my claws and was through in under a minute. There was a crawl space beneath the building, and I quickly squeezed out from underneath the building and jumped back into the open window.

Using my super-vision I quickly scanned the room for an object that resembled a bomb. There were a variety of tools scattered about on the benches and other bits and pieces, and several unopened cupboards, but there was nothing unusual. Dashing across the room I flung open each cupboard in turn but found only empty shelves and an old carton of cola cans.

"Could it be hidden in a wall or in the ceiling?" I thought to myself. I wished Bob was with me at that moment. His x-ray vision would have spotted the bomb in no time.

I'd been tuning my ears in the hope of picking up a sound which might lead me to the bomb. Time was getting away from me, and I began to stress that I would never find it in time. 

Just at that moment I heard a tiny click. It came from the cola carton. It had to be the bomb. Would I have time to safely take the bomb away before it exploded?

A sudden thought flashed through my mind and I began to dig frantically at the floorboards of the building. Soon there was a hole big enough to push the carton through, but before I could do that, I jumped through the hole onto the ground beneath the building and continued digging. I figured I had possibly less than thirty seconds before the bomb exploded and I needed to find somewhere to place the bomb where it would cause the least damage. There were workers nearby and I didn't want anyone to be injured. I prayed that placing it into a deep hole beneath the building, would contain the detonation enough so that the explosive impact would be limited to this one building.

The earth was hard, but not as tough as the floorboards and I made steady progress downwards, until the hole was around 8m deep. I was fast running out of time, and my paws and claws were aching and bleeding. My heart was thumping as I flew back up into the room. Grabbing hold of the carton, I was pleased to find it wasn't too heavy, and floating upside down with the carton held stretched out in my arms, I gently placed it at the bottom of the hole.

Then with all my strength, I flew up to the space under the building, and crawled with all my might, expecting at any moment to hear the sound of the bomb going off. I reached the edge of the building and with a burst of speed I started to spring away, but it was at that moment, that the bomb detonated.

I felt the concussion of the explosion hit me. It slammed into me like an enormous truck and before the pain and shock of it caused me to lose consciousness, I felt my body spinning hopelessly, flung out into the dark sky and I wondered if I would ever see my family or Lily again.

Link to Chapter 21

Mal-Larci the Food Critic: Baked Cod

Ok, I've tried raw cod, so now it was time to tried baked cod. 

Baked in tinfoil in the oven, it was quite delicious and the meat almost melted in my mouth. It was far better than plain old raw cod.

Out of five, I gave baked cod: 

ADVENTURES OF MAL-LARCI: CHAPTER 19

CHAPTER 19: Tracking Down the Bomber ©

In the weeks before the explosion, teams of superheroes and FBI agents had staked out the hanger where Oprah's private jet was housed. Security had always been tight, but with the Katzenjammer's threat, it had intensified with the inclusion of superheroes from Headquarters.

The aim had been to locate any unusual activities and track them back to their source. All suspect activities until just hours before the explosion, had proven harmless.

Two hours before the jet's take-off and explosion, Lily the Civet and an FBI agent were crouched on the roof of a nearby hanger when Lily felt her whiskers tingle.

One of Lily's super-powers was the ability to pick up electronic and radar-type signals on her whiskers. With the help of Headquarters, her ability had been fine-tuned and she was equipped to send back all details of the signals to their investigative team in the USA.

That night she sensed the approach of something with an electronic signal and waited for it to approach. She had transmitted the information via her internal link-up and asked in morse-code if she should try and track its source.

"Wait to see if anything develops or if the signal comes closer and let us know," came the reply from Headquarters.

A few minutes later, Lily advised that a small motorised device had arrived inside the complex. The wheeled contraption was the size of a lunch-box and appeared to be operated by remote control and was making its way towards the hanger where Oprah's private jet was located.

"Wait for Mal-Larci," came the instructions, "And then track it down together. Use his super-sight and hearing to help you."

When I heard of my assignment, I was delighted to be teamed up with the beautiful civet and hoped my feelings would not be transparent. She had seemed uninterested in me throughout our time together and I did not want to be distracted during this important assignment. Striving to control my feelings, I flew out immediately to the private airport, and transmitted my arrival to her as I hung suspended in the air above her location.

Immediately Lily joined me and she said, "I'll try to zero in on the source of the signals. Hopefully it won't get mixed up with anything else which is unlikely at this time of the night."

"Fine," I replied, "Just let me know how I can help."

"You've probably heard that Headquarters is sending in a team to check the device if possible," she said.

"Yes," I said unnecessarily, as we were both connected to radio transmissions from the US Headquarters.

"Are you able to find out anything else from the signal?" I asked.

"At this time, only its approximate location," Lily said, "And the signal is on a very precise wave-length. Wait..."

She was quiet for a few moments, then added, "I believe there's a hidden signal underneath the main one. I've told Headquarters that I believe the device is programmed to detonate if interfered with."

"That will mean a change of plans then," I said.

Lily's speed had been steadily increasing when she came to a sudden stop. 

"It's around here somewhere," she said.

I noticed her whiskers twitching in light from the moon.

"Down there," she said, pointing towards a row of storage sheds.

Narrowing my eyes, I spotted an opening in one of the roller doors.

"Follow me," I said.

Landing behind a bush, we peered out towards the storage shed and Lily said, "Let me go and have a quick look."

Her outline flickered for a moment and then she seemed to dissolve into the night air. I could still sense her presence though, and then heard the soft impact of her paws as she leapt away onto the concrete surrounding the sheds.

My super-hearing picked up the soft padding of her feet as she approached the shed, but nothing else.

"There's no-one here," she told me in morse-code. "I'm going to go in."

"No wait," I said, but it was too late.

Instantly a loud siren was heard as Lily sneaked under the door. Turning tail she came bounding back, reappearing next to me.

"Darn!" she exclaimed, "I spotted the cameras inside before I entered. I figured the cameras wouldn't see me because I'm camouflaged, but hadn't expected a motion detector at the door."

"So what did you discover?" I asked, hope fading.

"There was a third signal mixed in, which I hadn't noticed until I got up close," Lily said in a disappointed tone.

"I got a general sense of its direction and distance before the signal stopped," she added. The motion detector had disrupted the third signal.

"Ok, let's see if we can close in on the source of the third signal," I said. "It can't hurt to try."

Lily nodded and we were quickly at the general area where this signal originated.

"The problem is that I can't track it down to its source because the signal's gone, but it was somewhere in this ½ km radius," she said.

It was a mostly industrial area with sheds of all sizes, and I could tell by Lily's face that she was dismayed about the prospect of locating this third signal source in such a location.

"Don't worry about it," I said reassuring. "Just let me tune in my ears and eyes and see if I can spot anything."

During the next fifteen minutes, as I scrutinised the area, three trucks exited several facilities and there was only one business that was busy with large-scale activity. There was also a small light in a medium-sized shed further away.

Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, though I transmitted details of the trucks and their number-plates back to Headquarters.

"That's a bit suspicious," I said, pointing towards the shed with the small light.

"I can't see anyone in the office there, but the door is wide open," I continued. "I should investigate. If a stray cat wanders in through the open door, I'm sure nobody will be concerned."

Lily followed close behind me as we flew in. She remained out of sight and camouflaged herself against the metal wall.

Removing my mask, I sauntered around the site before peeking inside the office door. When I didn't see anyone inside, I made my way around to the side of the building where I found an open window. 

"I'm going in," I sent to Lily in code.

"Take care," she replied.

Intensifying my vision, I scanned the large shed before deciding to enter. Nothing appeared out of the ordinary. There were several work-benches though I was unable to determine details in the near darkness.

Fortunately no sensor was triggered as I slipped through the opening.  Gingerly I looked around. As I took a few steps inside, my senses told me instantly that something was wrong. Perhaps it was the sound of a tiny click that alerted me, but by then it was too late. 

From overhead, a heavy cage hurtled down towards me and though I tried desperately to get out of the way, it clanged down in place around me, the sound echoing inside the shed. 

Pushing with all of my strength, I tried to lift the cage but it was no use. I did not have super-strength and had no way to escape.

"Mmm," murmured a voice from a shadowed corner of the room. "I wasn't expecting to catch a cat."

Turning to the voice, I tried to look like a startled but ordinary cat.

"I guess it's just my lucky day," he said with a chuckle.

There was a menacing tone in his voice, and I signalled back to Lily that someone had caught me and it was probably Katzenjammer.

"I'm sure I can arrange something special for you," the bomber said. 


The light from a nearby window glinted in his eyes, and I almost shuddered at the coldness of his stare.


It was at that moment that I began to feel really frightened.

Link to Chapter 20