Sun

The villagers told about a woman named Vasanthi, a young Bharatnatyam performer who was locally admired for her grace, discipline, and stage presence. She aspired to compete professionally, elevate her family’s reputation through performance, and eventually teach dance to young children within her community.

Due to her talent and commanding presence, many of her peers referred to her as “Apsara”, which means a celestial angel belonging from Svarga Lok, that is Heaven.

Outside the household, Vasanthi’s family was also widely regarded as respectable and socially disciplined. Her father was viewed as stern but honorable, a man deeply devoted to order, stability, and familial responsibility. Her mother was regarded as patient, religious, and dutiful. Witnesses frequently described the household as traditional, structured, and well respected within the local community. But from inside, nobody knew the truth.

Vasanthi’s ambitions gradually became the source of severe domestic conflict. Her parents disapproved of her desire to pursue dance professionally. While dance itself was considered culturally respectable, her father reportedly viewed the idea of building an independent life around performance as irresponsible and unsustainable.

The family valued discipline, obedience, and social order above personal ambition, particularly for women expected to maintain domestic responsibilities within traditional households. From this, there were frequent arguments between Vasanthi and her father, regarding her continued performances and increasing desire for personal independence, that escalated into emotional neglect, resentment, humiliation, and repeated psychological abuse. 

Vasanthi even stopped performing publicly under parental supervision, instead leaving the household in secret to continue participating in local performances. 

As The Apsara began gaining popularity within nearby communities, resentment toward her success also increased. Prior to a major local performance, her own rivals that grew envious of her, tampered Vasanthi’s anklets by placing sharpened metal fragments within the inner bindings.

Vasanthi continued performing despite severe injury and visible blood loss before collapsing during the performance, forming multiple deep lacerations to both feet, requiring extended recovery and temporary inability to continue dance activity, to which she protested and panicked, fearing she'll lose all the status she made.

Realising Vasanthi’s been sneaking out to perform for her art without their knowledge from the injury, the father discarded her multiple costumes, and performance materials that belonged to Vasanthi outside the family residence in view of neighboring residents.

He then blamed her artistic ambitions for the incident and lying to her parents, which accelerated the chances of her marriage. Her mother supported the arrangement and made no attempt to intervene. Despite repeated objections from Vasanthi, the marriage proceeded against her will.

During the days preceding the ceremony, Vasanthi became emotionally withdrawn and displayed signs consistent with dissociation.

The marriage ceremony was completed. Weeks passed, and Vasanthi later saw her husband’s true colors, and began to endure physical and psychological abuse from the man. From this, she gradually became emotionally unstable and un-reactive, as if she was bottling herself up despite evidence of ongoing abuse.

Vasanthi’s husband was later discovered deceased inside the marital residence, his body on the bed extensively mutilated, with an Aruval that was kept inside of their home. One day later, both of Vasanthi’s parents were too found murdered under similar circumstances, with other victims identified to be suspected of involving in sabotaging Vasanthi’s last performance.

Search parties organized shortly after Vasanthi’s disappearance later discovered her within a forest, clearing near an aged Kali shrine surrounded by fire pits.

Vasanthi was barefoot, and dressed in her dance outfit, but this time, splattered and tainted with blood, with the same anklets from her last performance, attached to her legs. Her hair was disheveled, ceremonial makeup smeared across her face, and her clothing heavily saturated with blood.

When approached, Vasanthi turned toward the group and formed a dance posture which resembled the Nataraja, extending her tongue as if her presence threatened the group to not come any closer - as if she became unstoppable. They ran away before they could get killed, never returning to the forest again.

Following independent investigation, Clyde Perry identified the subject as a highly viable candidate for Project Lathe, and was subsequently transferred to Murkoff custody for further evaluation and experimentation under the protocols.

PROJECT LATHE REPORT OF “THE APSARA”: 

Vasanthi displays severe trauma-induced dissociation combined with compulsive behavioral fixation centered around discipline, control, humiliation, emotional suppression, and ritualized order.

Unlike most violent subjects, Vasanthi maintains unusual composure under psychological stress, and demonstrates a pronounced ability to influence surrounding individuals through intimidation and representing herself as an authoritarian presence that she adapted from her father.

Despite the brutality of her actions, Vasanthi frequently presents herself in a calm and instructional manner, but later bursts out of impatience if ticked off. Vasanthi demonstrates obsessive perfectionism, emotional detachment, ritualized movement patterns, and heightened sensitivity toward disorder, disobedience, emotional vulnerability, or perceived failure in others due to her upbringing.

Periods of composure are frequently interrupted by sudden emotional instability, including violent outbursts of anger and sadness, compulsive self-correction, and dissociative mumbling directed toward unseen individuals believed to represent deceased family members and her former spouse. During such episodes, Vasanthi appears to relive traumatic experiences associated with humiliation, forced marriage, emotional neglect, and prolonged psychological abuse.

Psychological deterioration intensifies whenever routines are disrupted, authority is challenged, or surrounding individuals fail to comply with instruction. Under these conditions, Vasanthi responds with disproportionate physical aggression and threat, fearing the people around her will take away what she had.

PRIME ASSET'S PURPOSE:

Before her breakdown and becoming a Prime Asset for Murkoff, she used to hold dependency over her parents, her husband while meeting the standards of the society that caused her to suppress her passions that she had with her for the sake of pleasing whoever she loved. Even if the ones who didn't love didn't give her anything, she was in the mindset that maybe they’d change after a while, and prove them wrong with her talent. 

It all went into shambles the moment she was forced to abandon the only thing that kept her alive - breaking her apart and killing the people who made her what she became.

As Easterman gives her a trial environment, she feels she has her own stage, she feels liberated, and dances with all pride. Anybody trying to intervene in her trial makes her feel they're one of the "people" who tried to take her passion away, and she murders them with an emotionally, yet deadly intent in the exception they're trying to spoil whatever she earned so far. She cries, she screams, she berates them for being "one of them".

Her trial signifies and teaches the Reagents that reality will always take away what you always wished to be, or have, or desired.

TRIAL ENVIORNMENT:

Her trial environment is an ancient-themed architectural pavilion - with the roots of her culture. They call it the Mandapam.

MAIN TRIAL

“Appease the Audience” - “A successful performance requires discipline, coordination, and obedience behind the scenes. Maintain the theater, successfully conclude the performance, and we will let you out."

MK-CHALLENGES

“Prepare the Performer” - “A well dancer graces the stage and it's own audience. We want you to prepare the performer for it's biggest debut, before we set you free."