seres manda and the 9th panda

 Seres Manda is on all fours, skulking about slowly. The plush head of a monochrome bear rests by the closed door into the room next to a loaded backpack, observing the boy. The room is bare. There's nothing but a bright square on one of the otherwise dijon walls.

 Finally the head gets impatient.

Head» It's not that I care, but you've been crawling for a while. What exactly is this about? Why are we even here? Frankly I'm getting very, very bored.

Manda» I'm trying to find a little dot pressed into the linoleum.

 His eyes are scanning the soviet floor. The head chuckles.

Head» Wait, is that how you understood what the man in the tracksuit said?

 Manda finally raises his head and looks at the bear head. He thinks back on their encounter with the saint encased in glass with a tv set and a mattress in the church of saint Nicholas in the lesser part of Prague. He sits down and starts going through the pockets of the two sizes too large M95 jacket.

Manda» I remember writing it down somewhere.

Head» You probably remember wanting to write it down somewhere.

  The head sighs and continues.

Head» "To me it's like looking for a needle in a haystack."

Manda» I know, right?

Head» No! That's what the guy said.

 The boy shakes his head. He gets a little frantic.

Manda» No, no, no. After he told us the address.

Head» The address? Boy, that was a bible verse. Even I know that.

Manda» A what-verse?

Head» Never mind. Maybe it's under the linoleum?

Manda» It has occured to me too! Just didn't feel right to immediately resort to violence.

Head» I'm pretty sure the floor doesn't feel pain.

Manda» Well, no, but you can still be violent to it.

Head» Boy, please.

 Manda sniffs. He pauses for a moment, considering violating the floor. A rybička knife slides into his hand.

Manda» What do you think? Straight down the middle? Like a pathologist would a corpse?

 The head rolls its eyes.

Head» Sure... Peel it carefully, so you don't hurt the dried glue underneath.

Manda» No need to be sarcastic about it.

 He gets up and walks to one of the corners of the room. A multitude of considerations flow through his mind. Finally he plunges the rybička into the rubbery floor. Backpedalling, he scrapes the knife through the linoleum until his back hits the opposite corner. There's a fairly straight cut now across the entire room.

Manda» Now for the hard part.

 The boy walks into the middle of the room and reaches his fingers into the slit. There's an audible gulp. The head is silent. Manda begins to slowly peel the linoleum off. The centuries old glue screams as the solidified strings of liquid begin tearing.

Head» Stop! This is absolutely disgusting. Do it like you would a band-aid.

 Without much thought, Manda jumps into the air, holding onto the linoleum and rips it upwards. There's just a single short-lived screech. A good portion of the floor now reveals wooden panels, ruined by the glue and inhumane operations.

Head» Well, fuck me.

Manda» What?

Head» That's first republic panel flooring.

Manda» Cool?

 Several quick rips later, Manda yells.

Head» What is it?!

 Manda gets back on all fours and pushes the rolled up pile of linoleum away. There's a rough outline of a bear etched into one of the wooden panels along with some text the boy cannot read.

Head» Coincidence.