“Sam,” Aira said, “what is that?”

“That,” Tommy said, “is Sandaxtron.”

Sam looked at his brother, puzzled. “How do you know about Sandaxtron?”  

“Glem showed it to me. On his phone.”

Now that they were closer, Sam could see the walls soaring above him. They looked like stone, but as he reached out his hand and touched them, he realized they were sand. But tight packed, almost as hard as a plaster. He heard a cry above him.

“Open the gates!” a herald called. “Open the gates for his majesty King Samuel!”

Aira nearly did a spit take, and she wasn’t even drinking anything.

The gate was thrown open, and the three walked through a long corridor, and into the castle itself. They heard the sound of murmuring around them. A crowd of people stood, watching them, and as they came out of the gate tunnel, Sam saw lines of soldiers drawn up, in armor. But they were the most unusual soldiers he had ever seen.

They were faceless, black and white like chess pieces, but with arms and legs. A herald blew a trumpet.

“The Castle of Sandaxtron is honored the presence of his majesty King Samuel, and their majesties Prince Tommy and Princess Aira!” Somehow the last part of this announcement bothered Aira less.

A black chess piece in brown robes walked up to Sam. “Your majesty,” he said “as the representative of the order of the Sand Monks—may the tides ever be favorable to them—may I crave your indulgence?”

“Uh,” said Sam.

“Yes!” Said Tommy. “Crave away, my good monk.” The Monk gave what Sam imagined would have been a dirty look—if he had eyes. “King Samuel, the enemy is approaching the castle.

“Wait, enemy?” said Aira

“The ants,” Sam murmured. “The army of evil fire ants.”

“Just so your grace,” said the faceless chess monk. “My name is Jebesol. Would you accompany me to the battlements?”

A still bewildered Sam followed up several flights of sand steps, some of them much too large and difficult to maneuver. The castle, Jebesol informed him, had been built long ago by imbeciles. Sam stood on the battlements and looked out. From here, the beach seemed to stretch forever. Off in the distance the sea sounded less peaceful, and more like a raging monster.

“Are we certain,’ Sam said “that the sea cannot reach the castle?”

Jebesol dithered. “There are some prophecies your majesty, that one day the tides may reach the walls and end civilization as we know it. But those are very old, very discredited prophecies.”

“Yeah well, I believe them,” said Tommy, dryly. “Science and all.”

“Science your grace? Science is for the pagans who gaze at stars and think to turn lead to gold.”

Tommy looked over at a grinning Sam. “Oh, shut up,” he said.

And there they were. Off in the distance. Just shadow specks against the onrushing ocean. But clear enough by the light of the chalky moon trail. A long line of ants, heading straight for the castle.

“They’ll be here in about an hour,” Sam said. He didn’t know how he knew that. But he did. “Prince Tommy, what time is it?”

“Um, Sam, it’s still 12:00 a.m.”

“The Midnight’s Day,” Sam said sagely.

“The midna what?” said Aira. “Sammy, why are you being cryptic and strange?”

Sam turned to look at the courtyard below him. More soldiers had lined up while he was talking. He could see the steel from armor and spears, glittering in the torchlight. A servant ran up to Sam, handing him a silver hilted sword. The scabbard was black leather, engraved with silver images. Sam pulled it out of its scabbard, and held the blade aloft. Perhaps it was his imagination, or perhaps it was the light of a hundred dancing torches, but the blade seemed to dance with light.

“Make ready to fight!” he yelled, a little surprised at the strength of his own voice.

The castle became a blur of motion. Servants running about—somehow without smashing into walls. Sam made a mental note to ask them later how they accomplished this. Sam was in his element. Directing that rocks be hauled up to the battlements. He ordered a fire constructed in the main courtyard to heat up boiling water.

“For reasons I do not understand there is no well in Sandatron,” said a servant. “Where will we get the water?”

“Um, the beach,” said Aira.

“Hey, Sam,” Tommy said. “Some of the soldiers do have faces. They look just like the plastic knights we used to play with when we were little. I think—” A very tall mustachioed knight leaned over Tommy, glaring down. “I think um, that these guys will keep us good and safe,” Tommy finished.

Sam turned. He felt like he should say something to his brother. Wanted to get it out before the battle. He hadn’t yet worked it out. It sat like guilt on the edge of his mind, and just behind his tongue.

“What should we do about the gate, your lordship?” asked a knight. Yes, that was the question. The walls were tall and very thick, but the gate was made out of loose sea grass stalks placed directly next to each other.

Sam pointed to Tommy. “See the boy with the science fair badge swinging from his neck? He’s your engineer. Do whatever he tells you.”

It wasn’t long before Tommy had mini cranes set up, lifting piles of wood and shell became much easier now. Tommy ran around doing mysterious science-y things, while Sam readied his men on the walls. But most confusing of all, Tommy sent runners out from the palace, scouring the beach nearby.

“What are they looking for?” Sam asked.

“Wait and learn brother,” Tommy grinned. “Wait and learn.”

They would defend the outer wall until it was too difficult. Then, they would fall back across the moat…the dry moat.

“Lady Aira,” said one of the knights, “you should stay safely in the tower till the threat is past.” Aira stuck her tongue out.

“Aira, Sam said, “I need you to defend the innermost keep. This will be our last line of defense if the ants get through. Someone needs to keep the doors ready, and the archers on the alert. No, don’t argue. I’ll be in enough trouble with Mom as it is. The last thing I need is for you to get skewered by an army of angry fire ants.”

“Your majesty!” Jebesol came up. “The enemy king is outside the gate, and demands a meeting with you.” Sam followed the faceless monk down the stairs, past the soldiers, past the contraption of shells and sand Tommy was preparing to heap against the makeshift gate.

“Samuel,” said a long low hissing voice. “King Samuel the coward of Sandaxtron.”

The Ant king was easily a foot taller than Sam. He wore a bizarre triple breastplate. Evidently it was difficult to protect one’s body when it was split into nearly three sections. The ant king had a black helmet on his head. He leered down at Sam, two hands on his hips, two clasped behind his back, and two gesturing dramatically.

Over his shoulder, Sam noticed Tommy’s team of soldiers, hauling two very large objects toward the castle. One of them looked to be a wallet. The other…some kind of large glass bottle. Sam swallowed. He had to keep the ant king talking until they arrived at the castle.

“Coward?” Samuel asked. In truth he felt a little cowardly. Now that he stared up at the ant king.

“The man who runs from his problems. Who refuses responsibility. The king of Sandaxtron who fled. You will yield this castle to me. If you submit and comply, I will be,” he paused dramatically “lenient with some of you.”

“That’s big of you,” Sam said. “But see here bub, I have some information for you. You see that big castle?” he gestured toward Sandaxtron. “I built it.  Yeah. In one afternoon. So if I can do that, what do you think I can do to you and your sniveling army of ants?”

The ant king hissed, and shook violently. “You dare to insult the king, the exalted emperor at the will of the fire fates? So be it Sssamuel. You will die, imprisoned in your keep. And know this, your sister will suffer. And your brother? He will never attend his science fair.”

Sam walked back into the castle with a growing sense of trepidation. It was too late to send Aira back to the house. For one it was far away. For another, the ants were already forming up ranks outside the castle. From Sandatron’s foremost battlement, Sam could make out the extremity of their situation.

The castle was surrounded by ants as far as the eye could see. They were divided into great blocks, or military divisions. Each had a different banner. One had a giant ant, stepping on a person, another, a swarm of ants attacking a picnic basket.

“What are you thinking,” Tommy said from behind him. Sam turned around

“I’m thinking, that’s one big army.”

We can beat it,” Tommy said, and then more softly, “you can beat it.”

“Tommy, I,” Sam began.

“Save it,” Tommy said. “I need you and the men to buy me a little time. I think I can help in a big way.”

Down below the ants sounded some kind of horn. Was it Sam’s imagination, or did the horn have a kind of twisted vibration that sounded almost right, but just off? The horns of evil. It seemed impossible to Sam that his soldiers could even hope to make a dent in the sea of ants.

Here was his chance. Either he knew how to defend a castle, or they would all die, killed on a South Carolina beach at the hands of ants.