The first batch of Eden 1 phones had finally made its way off the factory floor, and Vince was itching to get them out into the world—no waiting for an official launch for him.
Backstage at IRW, Noah and Irvin were sitting there, eyes glued to the two sleek, compact boxes that Vince had just slid across the table.
Called in nearly two hours before the show, neither of the commentators had a clue why they were there—Irvin had spent the drive over bracing himself for a tongue-lashing about a loose comment he made during last week's broadcast at a bar.
He feared it especially after what had happened with Axel.
"Congratulations," Vince said, a sly grin creeping onto his face. "You're among the very first people outside of Maston Holdings to own an Eden 1."
Noah eyed the box suspiciously before looking back at Vince. "You're giving us phones?"
"Smartphones."
Irvin raised an eyebrow. "What's the difference?"
Vince's smile widened. That was exactly the question he was hoping for. "Open them up."
They pulled the devices from their packaging.
At first glance, the Eden 1 seemed surprisingly plain compared to the bulky, button-heavy Lokia phones everyone was used to. It featured a large dark screen, completely lacking a numerical keypad underneath.
Noah flipped the phone over, inspecting the sides. "Where are the buttons?"
"There aren't any."
Irvin stared at Vince as if he'd just suggested they fly to the moon. "Then how the heck are we supposed to use it?"
Vince reached across the table and pressed the bottom middle power button. The screen lit up, flashing the Eden logo—a picturesque garden inspired by the myth—before settling on a vibrant home interface.
Noah leaned in closer, intrigued by the row of tiny icons on the display.
"Touch one," Vince encouraged.
Noah hesitated for a moment, then cautiously pressed his index finger against the messaging icon. The app sprang to life instantly.
His eyes widened in surprise. He tapped the screen again. And again. "Wait..." Noah looked up at Vince, realization dawning. "The screen is the buttons?"
"Exactly."
Irvin didn't waste any time. He powered on his device and immediately started poking at different icons, eager to explore.
"What's this do?"
"That's the calendar."
"And this?"
"That's the calculator."
"What about this one?"
"Camera."
Just then, Irvin accidentally opened the shutter app, and suddenly, a close-up of Noah's startled face filled the screen.
Irvin couldn't help but grin. "Oh, I like this."
Click.
Noah flinched. "Did you just take my picture?"
"I think so."
Vince stepped in, guiding them to open the gallery, where the fresh snapshot appeared right away. Both men leaned in closer.
While it might not rival the high-end gear used by Vox's camera crews, it was definitely a step up from the grainy, barely usable lenses found on other premium smartphones.
Noah gave a slow, hesitant nod. "That's... actually impressive."
"You haven't seen the best part yet." Vince tapped back to the main menu and launched another app, revealing the familiar Dongle logo.
"The search engine?" Noah asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Yep, integrated right into the system." Vince explained that as long as they were connected to a compatible data network, they could browse Dongle on the go without being tied to a desktop.
It might not be as fast or smooth as a home PC, but that wasn't the point—the point was that it worked anywhere.
Irvin stared at the display, his eyes lighting up. "So I could just be sitting at a diner and search for something?"
"That's the idea."
"No computer?"
"No computer."
Irvin glanced at Noah, who met his gaze. For the first time, the reality of what Vince was holding truly clicked for both of them.
Beyond just the search engine, Vince had made sure his lead developer, Carl, packed the Eden 1 with a whole suite of handy built-in tools: a calculator, calendar, alarm, contacts directory, notepad, basic media player, camera, gallery, and messaging.
Individually, none of these features were groundbreaking, but bringing them all together into one sleek touchscreen device made the phone feel like something straight out of a sci-fi movie.
After just ten minutes of hands-on testing, even Noah was convinced.
But then came the twist.
"I need you to mention them on air tonight," Vince said.
Noah's head shot up. "And there it is."
Vince chuckled, but Noah pressed on. "I knew it. Nobody just gives away pricey tech to admire our smooth voices."
Irvin pretended to be offended. "Speak for yourself. My voice is worth at least two phones."
"I don't want you reading scripted ads every five minutes," Vince clarified, ignoring Irvin's jab.
"Keep them at the commentary desk. Bring them up naturally. Highlight a few features and explain to the audience what they're seeing."
Noah glanced back at the sleek dark screen. Usually, he resisted the urge to cram blatant sponsorships into the match commentary, but he had to admit the device was intriguing enough to discuss.
"Fine," Noah relented. "But if this thing bursts into flames in my hand, I'm calling you out live on national television."
"Deal."
Meanwhile, backstage, the Eden 1 was stirring up a whole different kind of chaos.
Lance Dawson had been scowling at his screen for a solid five minutes. "I hate this thing."
Mark Rivera didn't even bother to look up from his own device. "You've had it for five minutes."
"Five miserable minutes!" Lance accidentally swiped the screen, returning to the home page. "Where did my text go?!"
"You closed it."
"I didn't close anything!"
"You hit the home button."
"Why put a button there if I'm not supposed to press it?!"
Mark finally glanced up, letting out a long sigh. "You are supposed to press it."
"Then why did it close my text?!"
Mark decided that continuing this argument was a threat to his sanity and went back to testing his camera, wandering the hallway to snap pictures of doorframes and equipment crates to check the quality.
The women's locker room, on the other hand, had completely skipped the learning curve.
As Vince strolled down the hall, he was greeted by bursts of laughter spilling from the open door. Inside, Maya, Nina Clarkson, and Torrie Wilson were all huddled together, turning an Eden 1 into a makeshift photo booth.
"Move over, you're blocking the light!"
"Take another one!"
"Delete that one right now!"
Vince leaned casually against the doorframe. "You've had those for less than an hour."
Maya shot him a picture-perfect innocent look. "We're just testing them. And barging into the ladies' locker room? That's harassment."
Vince brushed off her comment. "What you're taking are called selfies."
Nina echoed him, "Selfies?"
Vince rolled his eyes. "Just don't max out the internal storage. The Eden 1 doesn't have infinite memory. Fill it up with pictures, and the whole system will start lagging until you clear some out."
That caught their attention. Maya quickly checked her gallery, suddenly very concerned about storage space.
A few minutes later, Vince was demonstrating another feature to Maya. "The messaging works just like standard SMS. Look here..."
Maya leaned in as Vince pointed out the virtual layout. "You tap the text box, and the keyboard pops up at the bottom of the screen."
Maya tapped the glass, watching the letters appear. "Typing on this is going to take forever."
"You'll get the hang of it. It's good for your fingers."
Neither of them noticed Nina standing a few feet away, angling her Eden phone just right.
Snap.
Nina glanced down at the screen. The shot captured Maya and Vince leaning in close over the device, completely engrossed in the demo. A mischievous smile crept onto Nina's face as she saved the photo to her gallery.
Meanwhile, out in the arena concourse, the Eden craze had spread to the younger talent. Luke was proudly showing off his brand-new phone to Tony and Justin, holding it just out of reach like a prized trophy.
"Vince gave you that?" Tony asked, leaning in closer.
Luke flashed a smirk. "Gave one to Maya, and one to me."
"Why do you get one?" Tony grumbled.
"Family connections, my friend."
Justin reached out to tap the screen, but Luke quickly pulled it away. "Hey! Keep your hands to yourself!"
"You don't even know how it works!"
"I know exactly how it works."
Tony pointed at the display. "Alright then. Launch Dongle."
Luke hesitated, his eyes glued to the icons.
Justin chuckled. "You have no clue, do you?"
"Shut it!"
Feeling cornered, Luke finally handed over the phone, and in no time, all three were jabbing at the screen like it was a game.
"Tap that one."
"No, that's the calculator."
"Go back!"
"How do you go back?!"
Justin slammed his thumb against the bottom of the screen, and just like that, the display went completely black.
They all froze in shock.
Luke gaped at the lifeless screen, then slowly turned to Justin. "What did you do?"
"Nothing!"
"You broke it!"
"I just pressed one button!" Justin defended himself.
Tony was already doubled over, laughing like crazy. Luke grabbed the device back, desperately mashing buttons. "If this is broken, you're paying for it!"
"Why me?! Tony told me to press it!"
Just as the argument was about to escalate, the house lights dimmed, and the arena audio roared to life, signaling that it was showtime.