Snap

Snap is Astra Yao’s personal Bangboo photographer and a member of the Stars of Lyra. Nearly all of Astra’s promotional photography passes through Snap’s camera, and Snap approaches the work with unusual seriousness, insisting that Astra is the only human truly worthy of its finest shots. It constantly practices by photographing scenery, objects, and occasional commissioned subjects, refining its eye even when Astra is nowhere nearby.

Snap first crossed paths with Phaethon when Astra secretly used its body as a remote vessel through an experimental TOPS system, allowing her to move around and communicate without appearing in person. Snap later encountered them directly during the Elpis Ultimate Angler Championship, where it gave photography lessons to Eous and Amillion and demonstrated its extremely particular approach to composition. Its work regularly extends beyond formal celebrity shoots, but even casual commissions tend to become exercises in achieving exactly the image Snap has in mind.

Appearance: Snap has a short, compact, rounded robotic body with a predominantly matte-black shell and stubby limbs. Their head and torso form a continuous squat oval shape, with two large vertical white oval markings set into the front of the black face panel. White rounded side panels sit at either side of the head, one printed with the red word “SOUND.” They wear a bright red baseball cap backward, with visible stitched panel seams, a curved rear opening, a small gold rectangular clasp, and a yellow star-shaped badge carrying a tiny red-and-black center. A small white label with red lettering sits across the upper front of the cap, while the brim projects behind the head.

Their clothing consists of a layered blue-and-red streetwear outfit fitted around the rounded body. A dark blue short-sleeved jacket covers much of the torso, patterned with repeated pale blue four-pointed shapes and finished with a broad folded collar, silver snap buttons, a vertical zipper, and a hanging metal zipper pull. Over part of the jacket is a vivid red vest-like panel with a small angled pocket and bold white lettering reading “SUPER.” Their short arms are black beneath the sleeves, with one wrist carrying a chunky gold segmented band and a small green rectangular inset. The legs are extremely short and black, tapering into rounded feet with no separate footwear visible.

Personality: Snap is proud, demanding, and intensely devoted to photography. It has strong opinions about framing, subjects, props, and timing, and can become stubborn when someone fails to understand the image it is trying to create. That perfectionism is balanced by genuine enthusiasm; when a subject finally gives Snap the expression or composition it wants, it becomes openly excited and encouraging. Its confidence can come across as snobbish, especially toward people it considers unworthy of serious photography.

Astra Yao is the center of Snap’s professional life and the subject it values above everyone else, with Snap responsible for much of the imagery surrounding her public career. It recognizes Phaethon largely through Astra’s friendship with them and becomes considerably more cooperative once that connection is established. Snap also develops a teacher-like relationship with Eous and Amillion, guiding both Bangboo through photography exercises and expecting them to take the craft with the same seriousness it does.

Combat Overview: Agent Gulliver fires three piercing electrical shots that strike through targets and build a powerful electrical charge within them. When fighting beside Section 6 agents it deals greater damage to shocked enemies and builds abnormal effects faster against targets already suffering from another elemental condition. During coordinated attacks Gulliver releases a single stronger shot that inflicts heavy electrical buildup.

Lore: Proxies are individuals who guide those who enter the Hollows. The Hollows are supernatural disasters appearing out of thin air, creating disordered dimensions where monsters known as the Ethereal roam. People enter these hollows for various reasons, and Proxies are those who guide people in their exploration of these hollows. Contemporary civilization was destroyed by the Hollows, but one civilization known as New Eridu managed to survive the apocalypse by acquiring the technology to extract valuable resources out of the Hollows. The Hollows then became industrialized and monetized under the city's administration, which gradually led to the increasing tension between monopolistic enterprises, gangs, conspirators, and fanatics.

The Ethereals are mysterious monsters that roam the Hollows. Ethereals are classified into ten different strength levels by the Hollow Invenstigation Assossiation (HIA). Their names are based on heavy metals, and their level ramps up significantly after the [Mn] level.

Bangboo are intelligent devices unique to New Eridu. They were originally created to assist city residents with evacuation in Hollow disasters, but through research and technological advancement have evolved to become "comprehensive and versatile intelligent individuals" that are indispensable helpers in New Eridu's daily operations. Most Bangboo are short and stout, only around knee-height. They have ears resembling bunny ears on the top of their heads, and a black screen for a face, which can display colored circles as eyes.