Cinder was excited, no doubt.
He didn't even think his thoughts and reactions were abnormal for a seven-year-old. If one was to replace CInder with a kid who grew up on the streets, such thoughts would definitely be expected but Cinder?
Whilst it was true that he did have this unique training, he still grew up in the lap of luxury.
That was one of the reasons why people never associated the persona 'Ice' with Kyle Smith, even though the former didn't wear a mask anymore.
One was a cold-blooded killer while the other was a famous and relatively friendly businessman - who may be ruthless at work but he was fair and just.
He was decisive and ruthless in cutting out dead meat, but he was very fair to any employees that were from the company that he shut down or took over.
Not to mention the company both dealt with were from different walks of life.
Ice, however, didn't have such a reputation of being kind. He just killed.
Cinder, naturally, still had to wear a mask because he did not have such a distinct and unique persona when he was Cinder, or Alex. It would be too easy for one to recognise Cinder and in return, know who Ice and Fyre really were.
Perhaps, in the future, Cinder may remove the mask but that is a story for another day.
For now, Cinder was busy making sure his wolf pup knew what to do.
He had given him the instructions and now, just to make sure that Max knew, he had opened up a video showing how wolves hunt.
So right now, Max was sitting cross-legged on the ground while showing the phone to Max - who had his head tilted to watch the screen intently.
Max found the moving pictures interesting.
He saw another pack crouching and attacking an animal that was much bigger than them. One attacked the leg while another attacked the neck.
Max saw his Alpha tap the one that bit the leg and then tapped Max on the nose.
Max remembered what his Alpha had indicated before.
He looked at the big human that was just standing there and then back as his Alpha. His Alpha showed him the video again, pointed at his leg then his fingers did a curve to then point towards the other human. Then, he tapped the wolf in the moving picture and pointed at Max.
Max gave a small bark, to indicate he understood.
Bite man at leg.
Got it.
He looked at the man again, then at the leg.
Then, his vision was blocked by his Alpha's hand, which was clenched in a fist in front of his face.
Stay.
He stayed.
Then he watched as his Alpha walked over to the man and patted the area the other pack members had touched before. Max tilted his head and gave a small bark.
But he was curious.
What about the other spot?
The other pack member - whom Max has started to realise was actually the Beta - had touched there, too, and the human had howled.
It wasn't a good howl, but it was loud.
As expected of the Beta.
His Alpha was awesome, so the 2nd-in-command would be awesome as well.
Not as awesome as his Alpha, of course.
But still awesome.
Max wondered if he could make the human howl as well.
When he did, could he become the next-in-command (aka Delta)?
Their pack was small, after all, but Max knew he was still a child in his Alpha's eyes so he had to prove himself.
Instinctively, Max also deferred to the Beta, but only when his Alpha wasn't around. Max also felt he was higher up in the pack as compared to Iori and the other human pack member.
And his Alpha only brought him along for the hunt.
Which means, his Alpha was thinking of him being in power as well?
Max was excited thinking about it and wanted to prove himself more.
His Alpha then came over and patted him on his head, so Max got up from his sitting position.
It was time.
He started getting excited and he looked over to his Alpha, waiting for his signal.
Cinder took a deep breath and got into position.
There were basically two starting points that his father had taught him before a sprint: the four-point start and the three-point start.
This was something Cinder had found strange to learn but as time went on, he began to realise that it imitated an animal that was gearing to attack.
It was just the first step.
Get this right and they can move on to the next step: sneaking up on the target and then gearing up to attack.
Cinder placed his hands vertically on the ground, his fingers out so that it lay on the ground while his pam was above ground. He had his knee down on the ground and slightly behind while the other knee was above ground yet not ahead of his shoulders. His spine was straight and he had to make sure that he was not leaning forward.
To lean forward meant the shoulders would be placed ahead of the hands, and this was wrong. This would only put pressure on them.
His mind went back to how his father had trained him to make sure he had the proper starting position. There was a stick that was placed on his shoulder with strings at the side.
At first, it was used to show where his shoulders were so that he could position himself properly. After that, it was used to prove the fact when he leaned forward, thus earning him various punishments such as push-ups or planking.
The reason for this position was that the load is placed more on the feet rather than the hands, and this is where it should be. It allows the hand to react more quickly and places more bursts of power to go forward.
Next, he had to place his head down even though he'd rather look up.
However, looking too far up would put a strain on the neck and creates tension, which detracts from the relaxed position required. In addition, it could cause him to come upright too soon, which can then cause overstriding as they get into a running position before finishing accelerating.
Plus, there is a short period where the leading leg is trying to pull rather than push. So the answer to this is to look down, stay low, and have a gradually phased acceleration. However, staying low doesn't mean that he is to run low - that is counter-productive.
Though the simple act of sprinting or running had so many technical aspects to it, Cinder never questioned it.
People tend to see the result, not the minute technical details actually required in achieving the optimum result.
Cinder learned this from a young age and trusted his father in knowing the proper technique - as was evidenced by the fact that his father could run faster than even the best sprinter in the world.
Cinder didn't need to speak, as he lifted his hips high to get into traction and pushed himself forward. Max, who had been waiting patiently like an arrow on a string, burst forward at the same time.
Cinder took out his knife that was on his belt out as he reached Raul and slashed at his chest while Max jumped up and took a big chunk of the thigh in his mouth.
Tears streamed down Raul's face from the pain but no sound could come out and his body was as stiff as a board.
"Down," Cinder commanded as he stood back.
Max obediently let go of the thigh and licked his lips, swallowing the blood.
Cinder pursed his lips, looking at Max then at the damage that had been done.
He walked back to the starting point and got into position again.
This time, it was the 3-point start.
A four-point start basically meant there were four 'points' touching the ground: his two hands and feet (knees). A three-point start naturally meant only three things were touching the ground: his two feet and one hand (fingers).
The hand that was on the ground (five fingers out, and the tips on the ground) was parallel with his shoulder. Unlike the 4-point, where the hands were slightly more apart. His back was straight as a rod and his head and torso were like a straight line.
His other arm was raised and the elbow was at a 90-degree angle slightly above his back. In that hand, he was holding on to his knife and the blade shined as it reflected the lights in the warehouse.
Again, he could not lean forward but his legs (shin, to be precise) were at a 45-degree angle.
Unlike the 4-point start that would give Max the hint that he would sprint when he raised his back, the 3-point start had him sprinting the moment he was ready.
Thus, for the 3-point start, Cinder had to shout, "Go!" as he pushed his front foot forward, propelling him ahead.
Max gave a small howl as he rushed forward with his Alpha.
This was so much fun!!