The clock which read 12:24, only three minutes had passed since Hugo had last look at the wretched device. In that time, his history class had covered very little as his peers were more accustomed to listening rather than participating. Still, this new professor who had previously taught at Goldsmouth was keen on hearing their voices.
“Hugo!” said Mr. Auld, shattering his daydreams.
Hugo shifted his gaze from the clock to the bespectacled professor without saying a word. His slicked back hair was combed and neat fully revealing the dark green eyes that rested on Hugo. His gold necklace was displayed proudly over his navy suit and the eye that hung from the end of the chain was the same deep shade of green as his own. 
“What year did the council pass sanction 34?”
“Year 241, third age,” Hugo replied after a slight second of hesitation.
“I would appreciate if you used proper grammar Hugo, and also remind us what sanction 34 is,” said Mr. Auld, a slight shimmer in his eyes.
Hugo looked around at his classmates, he knew he did not belong with these kids but genetics had not been favorable and he was forced to sit among the two hundreds. After a slight look at the blank faces surrounding him, Hugo once again positioned the gaze of his grey eyes directly at Mr. Auld.
“The Council passed Sanction 34, the rule that all one hundreds may not receive more than eight years of schooling, in the year 241 of the Third Age.”
“Now that wasn’t too bad was it?”
Hugo did not respond, it wasn’t worth it and he knew there was nothing he could do to prevent his teacher from trying to force more and more words from his mouth. This same lesson was taught every day to the two hundreds as a reminder of superiority and it for the most part just an outline of the rules they were expected to follow taught through a “history” class.
Mr Auld proceeded, “that is correct, as some of you may know, the Council of Infinites rose to power in the 100th year of the third age and with that they structured the wonderful society that we have now. Never have our communities prospered in such a magnificent way, the system of roles and tasks that are set force by the Council have repaired the demolished state.”
He finished speech and looked around at the blank faces with a slight grin. Teachers were highly valued in the community primarily made up of the 500’s. Teaching other six hundreds or even excess of that was an honor that not many obtained and unfortunately Mr. Auld was one of the unlucky ones.
“Now would you please stand up and recite the two hundred pledge,” he said.
The class of 18 year olds rose from their seats and began to chant, “We, two hundreds pledge allegiance to the Council of Infinites, vow to work assigned tasks, and follow rules for safety and prosperity. Then pass into the quiet realm for peace”
They returned to their seats as M. Auld muttered his pledge under his breath in a much more intricate and longer fashion. Hugo looked up at the clock once more, 12:30. The bell rang and the class of 30 students rose and left the rundown classroom.
“Remember class, tomorrow we will be meeting at the monument to the Council of the Infinites to partake in the monthly prayer,” Mr. Auld said as they headed towards the exit.
Another day in the books. As he neared the large wooden doors to the outside world, Hugo felt a slight tap on his shoulder. He turned around to find Al, his best friend and neighbor since birth. He wore a nice uniform and wore a silver necklace with an eye that matched his blue ones. He towered over Hugo and had to look down at him when he talked. Al was a five hundred and took classes in a different part of the building along with the other future engineers and pupils of noble professions. Hugo gave him a slight nod. Al was not worth wasting words.
“Good day?” asked Al.
Hugo simply shrugged his shoulders like he usually did when asked about school.
“You have your check today, don’t you?”
“Yeah,” said Hugo.
“Well I gotta run back to class, I just wanted to wish you luck!” Al’s statement was once more received by a nod as he turned around and ran back to his classroom where the five hundreds had several more hours of schooling.

The commute to the doctor was not a long one, simply a five minute bike ride through town, past the monument to the Council of Infinites. He saw one hundreds gathering trash, washing cars, or even hiding in alleys from the sun. It was no way to live. These people did not have homes and were prone to disease and often not even deemed worthy for the quite realm. His mother had been a one hundred who fell in love with a five hundred. Unfortunately, the Council of infinites was against any interbreeding between the ranks and they were separated, leaving her with Hugo, who had received her genes. She had died several years back.
The clinic was a large white building and doctors ran in and out of it, the deep green eyes on their chest reflecting the sun as they walked. Hugo stepped inside and up to the receptionist who pointed him to the waiting area. The clock on the wall read 12:45. He was 15 minutes early. For several minutes, Hugo was captivated by a poster on the wall which read:
Talking expectancy (words in millions),
500- 80 years
400- 64 years
300- 48 years
200- 32 years
100- 16 years
Hugo had seen this distribution before and every time it made his curse his genetics. He was not born with just over 100 million words. He was already overdue. closed his eyes and let himself fall into a light slumber.
A shape emerged out of the darkness and he noticed it as his grandfather, long ago released into the quiet realm, where all mutes go out to live the rest of their lives in peace. Except, unlike the photos they had seen in class, his grandfather did not look happy, he looked terrified. His mouth was making unrecognizable shapes but as he crept closer Hugo could make out the the single word repeated over and over again on his lips.
Help
“Hugo? Hugo”
“Uh, here,” Hugo replied as he stood up from his seat and walked over to the door where his doctor, Dr. White was waiting for him.
“You know where you’re going,” said Dr. White as they walked back to a room with a large device that was able to tap into the Broca’s region of the brain.
Hugo sat down and Dr. White attached the machine to his left and right temple. It began to hum and the computer screen lit up. Dr. White examined it for a couple minutes as the color seeped out of his face until he matched his white lab coat.
“I’m sorry, you should have stopped talking a year ago Hugo. This doesn’t make sense.”
“How long doc?”
“At this point you can go mute at any moment. I say two more weeks tops. You should start gathering your things. I’m amazed, you are the brightest patient I have ever had, it’s a shame you fell short with your words. It’s still an incredible feat that you managed twelve years in class with the two hundreds.”
Hugo locked eyes with the doctor. No words needed to be said.

Hugo lived with his grandmother, who was 70 years old and also running out of words. Their home was small, build with brick and containing only two rooms. A living room and a small bedroom where Hugo’s grandmother, Rose slept. That night dinner was silent as both hung on to their last words. Who will be the first to go? These thoughts haunted Hugo all through the night. He couldn’t fall asleep and that night, all three moons were full and pierced the darkness through the tiny window casting shadows on the wall cluttered with signs and guides to simple grammar and word conservation. The slow ticking of the clock which usually provided rhythm and balance for Hugo had become a countdown to silence. He closed his eyes.
Once more his grandfather came in his dream. This time he spoke. “Council of Infinites, killing off mutes, no quiet realm.”

The next day at school was more of the same, with Mr. Auld pushing to extract every last word from Hugo’s mouth. This time Hugo resisted. He refused to speak until it was his time. He had to choose his words carefully and as he envisioned his demise he realized nothing was going to change. An 18 year old kid did not have the power to change anything but the council would be there and he would not go down without at least trying.
At noon, the class made the walk to the town square where the council of infinites looked down from a raised platform overlooking their subjects. Al found his way next to Hugo as he always did, standing in front of him so no one saw Hugo remain silent in the mass chant.
The crowd began, “We pledge allegiance to the Council of Infinites, and vow to work assigned tasks, and follow rules for safety and prosperity. Then as we  pass into the quiet realm for peace, may the Council guide us and look over us.”
Then all grew silent. They sat in silence for a minute or two. Finally Al glanced back behind him. Hugo was gone. Suddenly the crowd erupted into yells as a small figure with dark hair and grey eyes appeared at the top of the monument.
“My fellow citizens, we are living a lie!” exploded Hugo, “This council that you worship governs us through fear and a system of rank that is not fair to you or me or anyone. The quiet realm does not exist. We are all sentenced to death from the moment we are born, especially those who are not lucky enough to be born with millions upon millions of words. So please hear me, this is the time to take action. We do not need to be governed by a council. We are our only masters. And though it may take years or generations, I know that in due time we will all finally have…”