Danberu strode about the battlefield in his Elder Kraken form, waving the cage holding Avar in his sprawling tentacles about as if it were a lantern to ward away the stupid cats. Bakeneko below him kneeled in groups, they kneeled in scores, and Avar looked upon the still cats in the chaos of the battle frantically shouting orders to escape to the mountains.

The maids moved in a pack, orderly, bunched together as they butchered countless foes, as Fubuki kept a close watch behind them. She hadn't even drawn her sword.

Each of them held a weapon that was the spoils of war from some of the greatest of Earth's modern warriors. All of them came from the Armory that Syon and Myon that Rikya stole. A golden scroll full of looted weapons from their fallen enemies.

Rikya armed the robot maids of Avalon by her own choice using the Armory, and now the unfortunate packs of bakeneko were driven by magical beams of light, flurries of snow and needles, caught by plants, and crush by upraising ground.

An enterprising blonde maid broke ranks and charged forth, hoping to kill as many as she could herself. Fubuki appeared in a grey flash at her side as she ran, neatly tripping her and circling her arms around the maid's waist. Fubuki gripped the maid and gave her a brisk german suplex. The maid bounced off the ground as the other maids watched on in horror.

The bakeneko herd gained ample time to run from the oncoming maids. They had stopped their march and watched as Fubuki picked the blonde maid up like a doll and placed her back in her rank. Fubuki scanned the line, meeting each maid's eyes individually before she gave the sign of to advance by raising her arm and showing a closed fist to them.

Avar could only stare with indifference as he watched the maids march relentlessly over his kind. Their magical weapons were akin to fireworks in his eyes, the blood and corpses a mere afterthought A normal bakeneko might be drowing in terror and despair and running, but Avar could only watch on with glittering eyes at their performance. He had his white eyepatch off the entire time.

His ability in his covered eye allowed him to copy the rules behind his opponents attacks. At least, that was the homunculus he met last night explained to him.

The cage jostled in the air and shook Avar from his fascination with the maids. He faintly noticed another pack of kneeling cats and put strength into his voice.

Danberu let out a stentorian roar, charging in the opposite direction from the maids brutal efficiency. It didn't even occur to Avar that Danberu could be afraid. Afraid of what? Of these mighty beings that looked like something out of a picture book?

Avar watched as the bakeneko left. It would be another matter to sort out which of them was truly loyal to Avar or not after the cleansing ended. However, that matter wasn't in Avar's mind at all.

Meanwhile, back at Danberu's fortress, Renya tossed the fat lazy tanuki sitting out of the fight like footballs over the battlements. She buried her sword in the ground, thinking that if Ichi happened to ask what happened she could say she was motivating the tanuki. He'd let it pass. For whatever reason or the other, Renya assumed that she had free range to disobey Ichi as much as she liked.

But that didn't mean that Renya wasn't thinking of Ichi's feelings. Rather, she thought a great deal about Ichi's feelings, and she found the image of driving Ichi to kill Danberu and all the tanuki himself as much more amusing than taking out her rage on them for disturbing Renya's first tactical posting.

She gripped drunk tanuki by it's tail and swung it around throwing it over the battlements like a baseball pitch. To her surprise, the tanuki cheered. One even strode up to her asking to go next, waving his tail in her face. Renya's fist sunk mercifully deep into the tanuki's maw. She heard a crunch. She decided this one didn't count if he died or not.

The matter of her performance wore on her heavily as soon as the tanuki toppled to the ground.

"No, Besides, isn't it, Fubuki! Fubuki is the one leading the maids! It's not my fault. It wasn't my fault!"

If anyone was watching they might think she was upset. It turned out someone happened to be, but he was busy being amused by Renya.

In the eaves of a barracks a grey haired fox spirit smiled at the girl's behavior. The bags under her eyes and her behavior charmed him, however he had a greater interest in her black and white tails and ears.

"Is that the 'cat of balance'? Possessing a human?"

Beside him, a fox spirit whispered, "Tamamo no Mae's shikigami said to stay away from the beings from the black golem. It is not a matter of our concern. For us lesser beings, the only contribution we can make to her efforts will only interrupt her masterful plan."

The grey haired fox spirt doubted that. He said nothing. If he did, he'd be ripped to shreds by his own brethren within an evening. Their loyalty toward Tamamo exceeded his expectations. He silently watched Renya's rampage, hoping to grasp some information of worth. There is always opportunity for profit.

Back in Avalon, in Ichi's castle quarters, a lump shifted under the covers. Ichi slipped out from under the cover to the carpeted floor, letting his body roll and smooth out. His boxers and white shirt functioned as pajama wear in this situation. Gradually, he lazily moved his body toward a wooden stand. His hand gripped the wood and his body lifted itself, a white energy pulsing along his hand. It shifted color.

Ichi wearily trickled out of the room, his hair a mess, in a state of total undress, as he descended from the empty castle.

It was time, he thought, to try piloting Avalon himself.

Of course, had he spoken to anyone about it before hand they would have disagreed and suggested he either rest or man up and join the fight. However, that wasn't what Ichi was thinking at all.