RETIRED SYNTH-MOJI
I used to see it every day. Back when things were different, before they retired the whole Sentimental Robotics division. It was just part of the routine. The Emotisphere, or "Big Wink" as we called it, was one of the early Synthemoji units—back when they thought emotional connection could be engineered into machines for manual labor. You know the type, 42nd-gen anthropo-interfaces with the old Cognitron processors.
It wasn’t just a machine. Not to me, at least. Big Wink stood there every day on the edge of the hyperrail station, keeping things moving, monitoring foot traffic, occasionally giving that iconic wink. People would talk to it, like it could understand them. But it wasn’t programmed for conversation, just emotional presence—an outdated concept now, but back then, we didn’t think twice about it. When I was a kid, I’d stop by after school, waiting for the MetroDrift to pick me up. Big Wink would stand there, massive, towering above everything, surrounded by its cables and anchors, keeping the peace with that goofy smile etched into its face.
Then, of course, they phased them out. I knew it was coming—everyone did. The entire series had been replaced by the more efficient EmpaThron S-Units. More versatile, less nostalgia. You know how it goes. When Big Wink disappeared, I didn’t think much of it. Just part of life moving on.
But then, last week, I found it again. đź’›
